Apple Maps Server API vs OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass) for AI agents
Apple Maps Server API is Apple's REST API for geocoding, place and POI search, autocomplete, directions and ETAs, using Apple Maps data. Free, donation-run public servers for searching OpenStreetMap data: Nominatim for geocoding and place search, Overpass for querying OSM objects.
The short answer
- Apple Maps Server API: Apps already in the Apple ecosystem that show results on an Apple map and fit within the free daily quota.
- OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass): Free, openly licensed geocoding and occasional place lookups at low volume, or a base to self-host. It is not a backend for a public app at scale.
Side by side
| Apple Maps Server API | OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass) | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches | Places and points of interest by name or criteria, with POI category include/exclude filters and country limits. | OpenStreetMap data worldwide: addresses, places and mapped POIs. |
| Returns | JSON Place objects with name, formatted and structured address, coordinate, country code, display map region and a Place ID. | Nominatim returns xml, json, jsonv2 (the default), geojson or geocodejson. With extratags=1 it adds extra tags such as opening hours or a wikipedia link when mapped. |
| Before the first call | An Apple Developer account with a Maps ID and private key, which you use to sign JWTs. The API is governed by the Apple Developer Program License Agreement (the program costs 99 USD a year). | No account or key. Nominatim requires a valid User-Agent or Referer that identifies your app, and visible attribution. |
| Free | Up to 25,000 service calls a day per team, shared between the Apple Maps Server API and MapKit JS. | Free within strict limits. Nominatim allows an absolute maximum of 1 request per second. Overpass asks users to stay at or below roughly 10,000 requests and 1 GB a day. |
| Paid | Not stated on its pages | No paid tier. Heavy users are told to run their own instance or use commercial third-party providers. |
| Acting on a result | The Place object documentation lists no phone or website field. There is no way to message a business through the API. | Phone or website appear only when mappers tagged them in OSM, through Nominatim's extratags. There is no messaging. |
| Limits on keeping or showing results | Map Data may be cached or stored only on a temporary, limited basis. When Map Data is shown on a map it must be an Apple map, and surfaced results must show the corresponding Apple map. Building a substitute service is not allowed. | Data is ODbL (share-alike), and you must credit OpenStreetMap and its contributors. Nominatim requires results to be cached for bulk jobs. It bans systematic queries, downloading all POIs in an area, autocomplete, and reselling results. |
| AI in its terms | Not stated on its pages | Nominatim's policy has a "Usage in LLMs" section. LLMs may only suggest the service if they prominently point to the usage policy. The public API must not be built into or offered through no-code, low-code or vibe-coding platforms as a generic place-search service. |
| Coverage | Apple says the service may not be available in all countries, regions or languages. | Worldwide OpenStreetMap data. POI completeness depends on volunteer mapping. |
| MCP server | No official server listed | No official server listed |
Where Openpath fits
If the agent needs a local business to message in Austin, Texas, Openpath returns the listings themselves, free and with no key. See Openpath vs Apple Maps Server API and Openpath vs OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass).
Questions people ask
What do I need before I can use Apple Maps Server API?
An Apple Developer account with a Maps ID and private key, which you use to sign JWTs. The API is governed by the Apple Developer Program License Agreement (the program costs 99 USD a year).
Is Apple Maps Server API free?
Up to 25,000 service calls a day per team, shared between the Apple Maps Server API and MapKit JS.
What do I need before I can use OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass)?
No account or key. Nominatim requires a valid User-Agent or Referer that identifies your app, and visible attribution.
Is OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass) free?
Free within strict limits. Nominatim allows an absolute maximum of 1 request per second. Overpass asks users to stay at or below roughly 10,000 requests and 1 GB a day.
Sources
Every line about another company comes from its own pages. Prices and terms change, so check the source before you rely on one.
Apple Maps Server API, read on October 15, 2026:
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi: “The service provides up to 25,000 service calls per day per team between Apple Maps Server API and MapKit JS.”
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi: “If your app requires a larger daily quota, submit a”
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi: “It requires authorization using a JSON Web Token (JWT) for API calls.”
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi: “You obtain a key for creating the token when you complete the setup in your Apple Developer account.”
- developer.apple.com/programs/whats-included: “The Apple Developer Program is 99 USD per membership year”
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi/-v1-search: “Find places by name or by specific search criteria.”
- developer.apple.com/documentation/applemapsserverapi/place: “An object that describes a place in terms of a variety of spatial, administrative, and qualitative properties.”
- developer.apple.com/support/terms/apple-developer-program-license-agreement: “Map Data may not be cached, pre-fetched, or stored by You ... other than on a temporary and limited basis”
- developer.apple.com/support/terms/apple-developer-program-license-agreement: “when displaying it on a map, You agree that it will be displayed only on an Apple map”
- developer.apple.com/support/terms/apple-developer-program-license-agreement: “The Apple Maps Service may not be available in all countries, regions, or languages”
OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass), read on October 15, 2026:
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “No heavy uses (an absolute maximum of 1 request per second ).”
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “Provide a valid HTTP Referer or User-Agent identifying the application”
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “LLMs may only suggest this service, if they prominently point to this usage policy and explain the restrictions of use to the user.”
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “must not be built into, offered through, suggested by, or automatically generated by no-code, low-code, or vibe-coding platforms”
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “This includes reverse queries in a grid, searching for complete lists of postcodes, towns etc. and downloading all POIs in an area.”
- operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim: “If your requirements are even larger you can install your own instance of Nominatim.”
- dev.overpass-api.de/overpass-doc/en/preface/commons.html: “users are expected to send a maximum of about 10000 requests per day and keep their download volume below about 1 GB per day”
- nominatim.org/release-docs/latest/api/Search: “the response include any additional information in the result that is available in the database, e.g. wikipedia link, opening hours”
- openstreetmap.org/copyright: “You are free to copy, distribute, transmit and adapt our data, as long as you credit OpenStreetMap and its contributors.”