Geocoding API | Documentation & Examples

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Geocoding API Request Format

Request Parameters

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https://api.distancematrix.ai/maps/api/geocode/json?parameters

Required parameters in a geocoding request:

• address — The street address that you want to geocode. Specify addresses in accordance with the format used by the national postal service of the country concerned. Additional address elements such as business names and unit, suite or floor numbers should be avoided. Street address elements should be delimited by spaces (shown here as url-escaped to %20):

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address=24%20Sussex%20Drive%20Ottawa%20ON

• key — Your application's API key. This key identifies your application for purposes of quota management.

Optional parameters in a Geocoding request:

• language — The language in which to return results.
  
  • 
    See the list of supported languages.
    
  • 
    If language is not supplied, the geocoder attempts to use the preferred language as specified in the Accept-Language header, or the native language of the domain from which the request is sent.
    
  • 
    The geocoder does its best to provide a street address that is readable for both the user and locals. To achieve that goal, it returns street addresses in the local language, transliterated to a script readable by the user if necessary, observing the preferred language. All other addresses are returned in the preferred language. Address components are all returned in the same language, which is chosen from the first component.
    
  • 
    If a name is not available in the preferred language, the geocoder uses the closest match.
    
  • 
    The preferred language has a small influence on the set of results that the API chooses to return, and the order in which they are returned. The geocoder interprets abbreviations differently depending on language, such as the abbreviations for street types, or synonyms that may be valid in one language but not in another. For example, utca and tér are synonyms for street and square respectively in Hungarian.
    

• region — The region code, specified as a ccTLD ("top-level domain") two-character value. This parameter will only influence, not fully restrict, results from the geocoder.

Geocoding Responses

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https://api.distancematrix.ai/maps/api/geocode/json?address=1600+Amphitheatre+Parkway,+Mountain+View,+CA&key=<your_access_token>

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{
   "result": [
       {
           "address_components": [
               {
                   "long_name": "1600",
                   "short_name": "1600",
                   "types": [
                       "street_number"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "amphitheatre parkway",
                   "short_name": "amphitheatre parkway",
                   "types": [
                       "route"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "mountain view",
                   "short_name": "mountain view",
                   "types": [
                       "locality"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "ca",
                   "short_name": "ca",
                   "types": [
                       "state"
                   ]
               }
           ],
           "formatted_address": "1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA",
           "geometry": {
               "location": {
                   "lat": 37.422387799999996,
                   "lng": -122.08418770000002
               },
               "location_type": "APPROXIMATE",
               "viewport": {
                   "northeast": {
                       "lat": 37.422387799999996,
                       "lng": -122.08418770000002
                   },
                   "southwest": {
                       "lat": 37.422387799999996,
                       "lng": -122.08418770000002
                   }
               }
           },
           "place_id": "",
           "plus_code": {
               "compound_code": "CWC8+R9 Mountain View, California, United States",
               "global_code": "849VCWC8+R9"
           },
           "types": [
               "locality",
               "political"
           ]
       }
   ],
   "status": "OK"
}

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• "status" contains metadata on the request. See Status Codes below.
  
• "results" contains an array of geocoded address information and geometry information.
  

Status Codes

• "OK" indicates that no errors occurred; the address was successfully parsed and at least one geocode was returned.
• "ZERO_RESULTS" indicates that the geocode was successful but returned no results. This may occur if the geocoder was passed a non-existent address.
• "OVER_DAILY_LIMIT" indicates any of the following:
  
  • 
    The API key is missing or invalid.
    
  • 
    Billing has not been enabled on your account.
    
  • 
    A self-imposed usage cap has been exceeded.
    
• "OVER_QUERY_LIMIT" indicates that you are over your quota.
• "REQUEST_DENIED" indicates that your request was denied.
• "INVALID_REQUEST" generally indicates that the query (address, components or latlng) is missing.
• "UNKNOWN_ERROR" indicates that the request could not be processed due to a server error. The request may succeed if you try again.

Error Messages

Results

• The types[] array indicates the type of the returned result. This array contains a set of zero or more tags identifying the type of feature returned in the result. For example, a geocode of "Chicago" returns "locality" which indicates that "Chicago" is a city, and also returns "political" which indicates it is a political entity.
• formatted_address is a string containing the human-readable address of this location. Often this address is equivalent to the postal address. Note that some countries, such as the United Kingdom, do not allow distribution of true postal addresses due to licensing restrictions. The formatted address is logically composed of one or more address components. For example, the address "111 8th Avenue, New York, NY" consists of the following components: "111" (the street number), "8th Avenue" (the route), "New York" (the city) and "NY" (the US state). Do not parse the formatted address programmatically. Instead you should use the individual address components, which the API response includes in addition to the formatted address field.
• address_components[] is an array containing the separate components applicable to this address.

• types[] is an array indicating the type of the address component.
• long_name is the full text description or name of the address component as returned by the Geocoder.
• short_name is an abbreviated textual name for the address component, if available. For example, an address component for the state of Alaska may have a long_name of "Alaska" and a short_name of "AK" using the 2-letter postal abbreviation.

• The array of address components may contain more components than the formatted_address.
• The array does not necessarily include all the political entities that contain an address, apart from those included in the formatted_address. To retrieve all the political entities that contain a specific address, you should use reverse geocoding, passing the latitude/longitude of the address as a parameter to the request.
• The format of the response is not guaranteed to remain the same between requests. In particular, the number of address_components varies based on the address requested and can change over time for the same address. A component can change position in the array. The type of the component can change. A particular component may be missing in a later response.

• postcode_localities[] is an array denoting all the localities contained in a postal code. This is only present when the result is a postal code that contains multiple localities.
• geometry contains the following information:
  
  • 
    location contains the geocoded latitude, longitude value. For normal address lookups, this field is typically the most important.
    
  • 
    location_type stores additional data about the specified location. The following values are currently supported:
    
  • • "ROOFTOP" indicates that the returned result is a precise geocode for which we have location information accurate down to street address precision.
    • "RANGE_INTERPOLATED" indicates that the returned result reflects an approximation (usually on a road) interpolated between two precise points (such as intersections). Interpolated results are generally returned when rooftop geocodes are unavailable for a street address.
    • "GEOMETRIC_CENTER" indicates that the returned result is the geometric center of a result such as a polyline (for example, a street) or polygon (region).
      
    • "APPROXIMATE" indicates that the returned result is approximate.
• partial_match indicates that the geocoder did not return an exact match for the original request, though it was able to match part of the requested address. You may wish to examine the original request for misspellings and/or an incomplete address.

Address Types and Address Component Types

• street_address indicates a precise street address.
• route indicates a named route (such as "US 101").
• intersection indicates a major intersection, usually of two major roads.
• political indicates a political entity. Usually, this type indicates a polygon of some civil administration.
• country indicates the national political entity, and is typically the highest order type returned by the Geocoder.
• administrative_area_level_1 indicates a first-order civil entity below the country level. Within the United States, these administrative levels are states. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels. In most cases, administrative_area_level_1 short names will closely match ISO 3166-2 subdivisions and other widely circulated lists; however this is not guaranteed as our geocoding results are based on a variety of signals and location data.
• administrative_area_level_2 indicates a second-order civil entity below the country level. Within the United States, these administrative levels are counties. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
• administrative_area_level_3 indicates a third-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
• administrative_area_level_4 indicates a fourth-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
• administrative_area_level_5 indicates a fifth-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
• colloquial_area indicates a commonly-used alternative name for the entity.
• locality indicates an incorporated city or town political entity.
• sublocality indicates a first-order civil entity below a locality. For some locations may receive one of the additional types: sublocality_level_1 to sublocality_level_5. Each sublocality level is a civil entity. Larger numbers indicate a smaller geographic area.
• neighborhood indicates a named neighborhood.
• premise indicates a named location, usually a building or collection of buildings with a common name.
• subpremise indicates a first-order entity below a named location, usually a singular building within a collection of buildings with a common name.
• postal_code indicates a postal code as used to address postal mail within the country.
• natural_feature indicates a prominent natural feature.
• airport indicates an airport.
• park indicates a named park.
• point_of_interest indicates a named point of interest. Typically, these "POI"s are prominent local entities that don't easily fit in another category, such as "Empire State Building" or "Eiffel Tower".

• floor indicates the floor of a building address.
• establishment typically indicates a place that has not yet been categorized.
• point_of_interest indicates a named point of interest.
• parking indicates a parking lot or parking structure.
• post_box indicates a specific postal box.
• postal_town indicates a grouping of geographic areas, such as locality and sublocality, used for mailing addresses in some countries.
• room indicates the room of a building address.
• street_number indicates the precise street number.
• bus_station, train_station and transit_station indicate the location of a bus, train or public transit stop.

Reverse Geocoding Requests

Required parameters in a Reverse Geocoding request:

• latlng — The latitude and longitude values specifying the location for which you wish to obtain the closest, human-readable address.
• key — Your application's API key. This key identifies your application for purposes of quota management.

Optional parameters in a Reverse Geocoding request:

• language — The language in which to return results.
  
  • 
    If language is not supplied, the geocoder attempts to use the preferred language as specified in the Accept-Language header, or the native language of the domain from which the request is sent.
    
  • 
    The geocoder does its best to provide a street address that is readable for both the user and locals. To achieve that goal, it returns street addresses in the local language, transliterated to a script readable by the user if necessary, observing the preferred language. All other addresses are returned in the preferred language. Address components are all returned in the same language, which is chosen from the first component.
    
  • 
    If a name is not available in the preferred language, the geocoder uses the closest match.
    

• result_type — A filter of one or more address types, separated by a pipe (|). If the parameter contains multiple address types, the API returns all addresses that match any of the types. A note about processing: The result_type parameter does not restrict the search to the specified address type(s). Rather, the result_type acts as a post-search filter: the API fetches all results for the specified latlng, then discards those results that do not match the specified address type(s). The following values are supported:
  
  • 
    street_address indicates a precise street address.
    
  • 
    route indicates a named route (such as "US 101").
    
  • 
    intersection indicates a major intersection, usually of two major roads.
    
  • 
    political indicates a political entity. Usually, this type indicates a polygon of some civil administration.
    
  • 
    country indicates the national political entity, and is typically the highest order type returned by the Geocoder.
    
  • 
    administrative_area_level_1 indicates a first-order civil entity below the country level. Within the United States, these administrative levels are states. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels. In most cases, administrative_area_level_1 short names will closely match ISO 3166-2 subdivisions and other widely circulated lists; however this is not guaranteed as our geocoding results are based on a variety of signals and location data.
    
  • 
    administrative_area_level_2 indicates a second-order civil entity below the country level. Within the United States, these administrative levels are counties. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
    
  • 
    administrative_area_level_3 indicates a third-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
    
  • 
    administrative_area_level_4 indicates a fourth-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
    
  • 
    administrative_area_level_5 indicates a fifth-order civil entity below the country level. This type indicates a minor civil division. Not all nations exhibit these administrative levels.
    
  • 
    colloquial_area indicates a commonly-used alternative name for the entity.
    
  • 
    locality indicates an incorporated city or town political entity.
    
  • 
    sublocality indicates a first-order civil entity below a locality. For some locations may receive one of the additional types: sublocality_level_1 to sublocality_level_5. Each sublocality level is a civil entity. Larger numbers indicate a smaller geographic area.
    
  • 
    neighborhood indicates a named neighborhood.
    
  • 
    premise indicates a named location, usually a building or collection of buildings with a common name.
    
  • 
    subpremise indicates a first-order entity below a named location, usually a singular building within a collection of buildings with a common name.
    
  • 
    postal_code indicates a postal code as used to address postal mail within the country.
    
  • 
    natural_feature indicates a prominent natural feature.
    
  • 
    airport indicates an airport.
    
  • 
    park indicates a named park.
    
  • 
    point_of_interest indicates a named point of interest. Typically, these "POI"s are prominent local entities that don't easily fit in another category, such as "Empire State Building" or "Eiffel Tower".
    

• location_type — A filter of one or more location types, separated by a pipe (|). If the parameter contains multiple location types, the API returns all addresses that match any of the types. A note about processing: The location_type parameter does not restrict the search to the specified location type(s). Rather, the location_type acts as a post-search filter: the API fetches all results for the specified latlng, then discards those results that do not match the specified location type(s). The following values are supported:
  
  • 
    "ROOFTOP" returns only the addresses for which DistanceMatrix has location information accurate down to street address precision.
    
  • 
    "RANGE_INTERPOLATED" returns only the addresses that reflect an approximation (usually on a road) interpolated between two precise points (such as intersections). An interpolated range generally indicates that rooftop geocodes are unavailable for a street address.
    
  • 
    "GEOMETRIC_CENTER" returns only geometric centers of a location such as a polyline (for example, a street) or polygon (region).
    
  • 
    "APPROXIMATE" returns only the addresses that are characterized as approximate.
    

Example of Reverse Geocoding

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https://api.distancematrix.ai/maps/api/geocode/json?latlng=40.714224,-73.961452&key=<your_access_token>

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{
   "result": [
       {
           "address_components": [
               {
                   "long_name": "290-306",
                   "short_name": "290-306",
                   "types": [
                       "street_number"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "bedford ave",
                   "short_name": "bedford ave",
                   "types": [
                       "route"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "brooklyn",
                   "short_name": "brooklyn",
                   "types": [
                       "city_district"
                   ]
               },
               {
                  "long_name": "ny",
                   "short_name": "ny",
                   "types": [
                       "state"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "11249",
                   "short_name": "11249",
                   "types": [
                       "postcode"
                   ]
               },
               {
                   "long_name": "usa",
                   "short_name": "usa",
                   "types": [
                       "country"
                   ]
               }
           ],
           "formatted_address": "290-306 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11249, USA",
           "geometry": {
               "location": {
                   "lat": 40.714224,
                   "lng": -73.961452
               },
               "location_type": "APPROXIMATE",
               "viewport": {
                   "northeast": {
                       "lat": 40.714224,
                       "lng": -73.961452
                   },
                   "southwest": {
                       "lat": 40.714224,
                       "lng": -73.961452
                   }
               }
           },
           "place_id": "",
           "plus_code": {
           },
           "types": [
               "locality",
               "political"
           ]
       }
   ],
   "status": "OK"
}

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Reverse Geocoding Status Codes

• "OK" indicates that no errors occurred and at least one address was returned.
• "ZERO_RESULTS" indicates that the reverse geocoding was successful but returned no results. This may occur if the geocoder was passed a latlng in a remote location.
• "OVER_QUERY_LIMIT" indicates that you are over your quota.
• "REQUEST_DENIED" indicates that the request was denied. Possibly because the request includes a result_type or location_type parameter but does not include an API key or client ID.
• "INVALID_REQUEST" generally indicates one of the following:
  
  • 
    The query ( address, components or latlng) is missing.
    
  • 
    An invalid result_type or location_type was given.
    
• "UNKNOWN_ERROR" indicates that the request could not be processed due to a server error. The request may succeed if you try again.