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Best Google Maps API Alternatives in 2026, Ranked

Quick answer: Mapbox is the closest full replacement for the Google Maps API, with 50,000 free web map loads and 100,000 free geocoding requests a month. TomTom is the strongest all-rounder with no card required, Geoapify is the best free tier you can use commercially, and Nominatim is the free option if you only need geocoding at low volume.

Most lists ranking Google Maps alternatives are written by one of the alternatives. This one is not: we run a directory of public APIs and list Google Maps next to its competitors. Every allowance below was read from the vendor's own pricing page on 25 September 2026.

Why do developers leave the Google Maps API?

Because the free credit is gone. On 1 March 2025 Google replaced the $200 monthly credit with free usage caps per SKU: 10,000 free calls a month on each Essentials SKU, 5,000 on Pro and 1,000 on Enterprise. Past the cap, Dynamic Maps costs $7.00 per 1,000 loads, Geocoding $5.00 per 1,000 requests and Places Autocomplete $2.83 per 1,000.

For a small app that renders a map on every page view, 10,000 loads can go in a week. The alternatives below start at five to twenty times that allowance.

Most "free geolocation APIs" cannot replace Google Maps

We sorted the 90 live APIs in our Geocoding category (published and not archived, counted today) by what each one actually does:

| What it does | APIs | Share | |---|---|---| | IP address to rough location | 27 | 30% | | Address to coordinates, or back | 18 | 20% | | Postcode and zip lookups | 12 | 13% | | Full map platforms (tiles, search, routing) | 9 | 10% | | Reference data (countries, regions, elevation, other) | 24 | 27% |

So when a search for "free Google Maps alternative" returns a page of geolocation APIs, most of them solve a different problem. An IP lookup tells you a visitor is probably in Lisbon. It cannot draw a street map or route a delivery. Only the 9 platforms and the 18 geocoders are real candidates, and while 42 of the 90 need no API key, only one of those is a map platform and six are geocoders. The rest are IP, postcode and reference lookups.

What are the best Google Maps API alternatives?

Ranked for a team replacing Google Maps in a web or mobile product and watching the bill.

  1. Mapbox. The closest like-for-like replacement: vector maps you can style completely, geocoding, directions and mobile SDKs. Free to 50,000 web map loads, 100,000 temporary geocoding requests and 100,000 directions requests a month. Mapbox is in our directory. Verdict: the default pick when design control matters.
  2. TomTom. Maps, search, routing and live traffic from a company that owns its map data. Free to 200,000 map tile requests a month plus 20,000 geocoding and 20,000 routing requests, with no credit card needed to start. See TomTom. Verdict: the best all-rounder, especially if you need traffic.
  3. Geoapify. 3,000 credits a day free, and the pricing page states plainly that the free plan can be used in commercial production with attribution. Paid starts at $59 a month for 10,000 credits a day. Geoapify covers geocoding, autocomplete, routing and isochrones. Verdict: the best free tier you can legally ship on.
  4. MapTiler. OpenStreetMap-based maps with good default styles and a clean MapLibre story. Free to 5,000 map sessions and 100,000 API requests a month, Flex from $30 a month. The free plan is described as for testing and non-commercial use. Verdict: best value once you pay.
  5. Stadia Maps. 200,000 credits a month free, but the free plan explicitly forbids commercial use. Starter is $20 a month for 1,000,000 credits. Verdict: the cheapest paid entry point on this list.
  6. HERE. A mature enterprise platform with strong geocoding and truck routing. There is a free Base plan, though the allowances were not visible on the public pricing page today. HERE Maps. Verdict: worth it for logistics, heavy for a side project.
  7. LocationIQ. 5,000 requests a day free at 2 per second, with commercial use allowed if you link back to them. The Developer plan with geocoding, routing and maps is $100 a month. See LocationIQ. Verdict: simple, cheap geocoding on OpenStreetMap data.
  8. OpenCage. Geocoding only, built on open data, with clear and fair terms. The free trial is 2,500 requests a day and is for testing only, so budget for a paid plan in production. OpenCage. Verdict: the geocoder to pick when licensing clarity matters.
  9. Nominatim. The free OpenStreetMap geocoder, and the one that answered our keyless test instantly. The public instance allows 1 request per second at most and bans autocomplete and bulk jobs, so heavier use means running your own. Nominatim. Verdict: perfect for low-volume, user-triggered lookups.

Bing Maps is missing on purpose. Microsoft stopped licensing Bing Maps for Enterprise to new customers on 30 June 2024, retires it on 30 June 2028, and points everyone to Azure Maps.

Which free tiers can you actually use in production?

The headline numbers are not comparable, because the terms differ more than the allowances do.

| Provider | Free allowance | Commercial use on free? | |---|---|---| | Google Maps Platform | 10,000 calls per Essentials SKU a month | Yes | | Mapbox | 50,000 web map loads, 100,000 geocodes a month | Yes | | TomTom | 200,000 tile requests, 20,000 geocodes a month | Yes | | Geoapify | 3,000 credits a day | Yes, with attribution | | LocationIQ | 5,000 requests a day | Limited, with a link back | | MapTiler | 5,000 map sessions a month | Described as non-commercial | | Stadia Maps | 200,000 credits a month | No | | OpenCage | 2,500 requests a day | No, testing only | | Nominatim (public) | 1 request per second | Yes, but no autocomplete or bulk |

What did the keyless geocoders do when we called them?

We sent the same query, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, to five of the six keyless geocoders in our catalog today. Nominatim returned the right building, down to the house number. BigDataCloud's free client-side API reverse-geocoded the coordinates to the correct postcode. Geocode.xyz's unauthenticated tier answered "Throttled" on our very first request, and Geokeo rejected the call without a key despite being listed as keyless. The French government's address API matched exactly, but it only covers France.

The lesson: "no key" often means "no key for a demo". Budget for a real account before launch.

How do you migrate off Google Maps?

Split the job by capability rather than moving everything at once. Map display, geocoding, autocomplete and routing are separate APIs everywhere, and you can mix vendors: MapLibre with MapTiler tiles for display, Geoapify or LocationIQ for geocoding, TomTom for routing. Check each provider's rules on storing results, because geocoding terms vary on how long you may cache coordinates. Transit and routing data beyond maps lives in our transportation category.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free Google Maps API?

Yes, in the sense that Google gives 10,000 free calls a month per Essentials SKU, including Dynamic Maps and Geocoding. You still need a billing account, and every call past the cap is charged.

What is the best free map API?

For commercial use, Geoapify's free plan is the most permissive, and TomTom has the largest map tile allowance with no card needed. For hobby projects, Stadia Maps and MapTiler are generous.

Which map API is best for a startup?

Mapbox if you want a polished, customisable map, TomTom if you need routing and traffic. Both have free tiers large enough to reach real traffic before you pay.

Is OpenStreetMap a replacement for Google Maps?

OpenStreetMap is the data, not a hosted API. Services like MapTiler, Stadia Maps, Geoapify, LocationIQ and Nominatim serve it for you, which is how most apps use it.