# The FiveM pause menu map: how it works and what you can change

> The FiveM pause menu map draws the same minimap tiles as the radar. Set a waypoint with SetNewWaypoint, read it back, and see what a map swap changes.

Source: https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-pause-menu-map · FAM Tools · published 2026-09-11 · updated 2026-09-11 · about 10 min

**Short answer.** The pause map and the radar use the same minimap texture dictionaries, drawn at different zoom levels, plus a low-detail LOD texture when fully zoomed out. Set a waypoint with `SetNewWaypoint(x, y)`, read the current one with `GetFirstBlipInfoId(8)` and `GetBlipInfoIdCoord`, and detect the open pause menu with `IsPauseMenuActive()`.

## Key points

- Pause map and radar = **the same textures** at different zoom levels.
- Fully zoomed out, the pause map shows the separate **LOD** texture.
- The waypoint is blip sprite **8**; read it with `GetFirstBlipInfoId(8)`.
- `SetNewWaypoint(x, y)` places a waypoint from a script.
- If the pause map changed but the radar did not, the client cache is stale.

The pause map is where players actually study your city: planning a route, finding a business, reading postal numbers. It is drawn from the same textures as the corner radar, it shares the same blips, and scripts can read and write its waypoint. Knowing how those pieces connect explains most “the map looks wrong” questions and unlocks a few genuinely useful scripts.

## One set of textures, two views

The GTA V map is a grid of land textures with a sea layer underneath. The corner radar shows a small window of it; the pause map shows the same art at whatever zoom the player chooses. At the widest zoom the game switches to a single low-detail texture, `minimap_lod`. Replace the textures and both views change together — which is exactly what a [custom minimap](https://fam-tools.com/guides/install-fivem-minimap) does.

| What you see | Drawn from |
| --- | --- |
| Corner radar | Land + sea tiles, lower mip levels |
| Pause map, zoomed in | Land + sea tiles, full detail |
| Pause map, fully zoomed out | `minimap_lod` |

> **Pause map right, radar wrong?** — The radar draws smaller mip levels, which are the part most likely to be stale in a player’s cache after an update. Clearing the client cache fixes it — see [the minimap not showing guide](https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-minimap-not-showing).

## Reading and setting the waypoint

*client.lua*

```lua
-- Place a waypoint (only X and Y are needed)
SetNewWaypoint(215.8, -810.1)

-- Read the current waypoint
local blip = GetFirstBlipInfoId(8) -- 8 = radar_waypoint
if DoesBlipExist(blip) then
    local coords = GetBlipInfoIdCoord(blip)
    print(coords.x, coords.y)
end

-- Remove it
SetWaypointOff()
```

Setting a waypoint from a script is the backbone of GPS features: a job that routes you to the next drop-off, a phone contact that sends a location, a `/postal` command that routes to a postal number (see [the nearest postal script](https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-nearest-postal-script)).

## Teleport to waypoint (admin tool)

The waypoint has no height, so a teleport must find the ground at that X/Y. The robust approach tries heights from high to low until the ground is found:

*client.lua*

```lua
RegisterCommand('tpm', function()
    local blip = GetFirstBlipInfoId(8)
    if not DoesBlipExist(blip) then return print('no waypoint set') end
    local c = GetBlipInfoIdCoord(blip)
    local ped = PlayerPedId()

    for z = 1000.0, 0.0, -25.0 do
        SetEntityCoordsNoOffset(ped, c.x, c.y, z, false, false, false)
        RequestCollisionAtCoord(c.x, c.y, z)
        Wait(0)
        local found, groundZ = GetGroundZFor_3dCoord(c.x, c.y, z, false)
        if found then
            SetEntityCoordsNoOffset(ped, c.x, c.y, groundZ + 1.0, false, false, false)
            return
        end
    end
end, false)
```

> **Restrict it** — A client-side teleport command is a staff tool. Gate it behind a permission check from the server, or use txAdmin’s built-in “teleport to waypoint”, rather than letting every player run it.

## Detecting the pause menu

*client.lua*

```lua
CreateThread(function()
    local wasOpen = false
    while true do
        local open = IsPauseMenuActive()
        if open ~= wasOpen then
            wasOpen = open
            -- hide your NUI HUD while the pause menu is open
            SendNUIMessage({ action = 'hud', visible = not open })
        end
        Wait(250)
    end
end)
```

Hiding NUI HUD elements while the pause menu is open stops them floating over the map.

## Blips and the legend

Every blip on the radar also appears on the pause map, and short-range blips appear there even when the player is far away. The legend on the right groups blips by their name, which is why naming every blip matters. See [the blips guide](https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-blips-guide) and [the sprite and colour list](https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-blip-sprites-colors-list).

## Questions

### Does a custom minimap change the pause map too?

Yes. The pause map and the radar are drawn from the same textures, so a custom minimap changes both.

### How do I set a waypoint from a script?

`SetNewWaypoint(x, y)` in a client script.

### How do I get the waypoint coordinates?

Get the waypoint blip with `GetFirstBlipInfoId(8)` and read its position with `GetBlipInfoIdCoord`.

### How do I teleport to the waypoint?

Read the waypoint coordinates, then find the ground height at that X/Y by trying heights from high to low with `GetGroundZFor_3dCoord`, and set the ped there.

### Why is the pause map updated but not the radar?

The player’s client cache still holds the old radar mips. Clearing the FiveM cache fixes it.

## Related

- https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-nearest-postal-script
- https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-blips-guide
- https://fam-tools.com/guides/install-fivem-minimap
- https://fam-tools.com/guides/fivem-hide-minimap-radar