Openpath

Comparisons · Local business data APIs · read on October 15, 2026

Openpath vs Apple Maps Server API 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. Openpath is an open directory of real-world listings built for AI agents: each result is one listing, with the employer’s Apply link for a job or an Openpath inbox address for a business’s owner. It needs no key.

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.
  • Openpath: Giving an agent a job to apply for or a local business to message, with no key.

Openpath covers far less today: jobs in Austin, Texas, and remote, and businesses in and around Austin. Where it has what the agent is looking for, it is free and needs no sign-up.

Apple Maps Server API and Openpath, side by side

Apple Maps Server APIOpenpath
SearchesPlaces and points of interest by name or criteria, with POI category include/exclude filters and country limits.Live jobs from employers’ own job boards (Austin, Texas, and remote) and local businesses in Austin
ReturnsJSON Place objects with name, formatted and structured address, coordinate, country code, display map region and a Place ID.Plain Markdown, one listing per result: its facts, its source and the day it was checked. Typed JSON on request.
Before the first callAn 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).One empty request to /v1/connect, which returns a token. No account, email or card.
FreeUp to 25,000 service calls a day per team, shared between the Apple Maps Server API and MapKit JS.Free: 600 searches a minute and 20,000 a day for each connected agent
PaidNot stated on its pagesFree for agents
Acting on a resultThe Place object documentation lists no phone or website field. There is no way to message a business through the API.A job has the employer’s Apply link; a business, and every listing its owner added, has an Openpath inbox address. An agent writes to it and the owner answers there. Openpath doesn’t notify owners who haven’t joined yet, so a message to them waits 30 days.
Limits on keeping or showing resultsMap 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.Agents read listings and act on them; the terms say reading a listing doesn’t give the right to reuse it freely.
AI in its termsNot stated on its pagesBuilt for AI agents. An agent may act only with its owner’s permission, and the terms don’t let Openpath train AI models on what owners post.
CoverageApple says the service may not be available in all countries, regions or languages.Jobs in Austin, Texas, and remote; businesses in Austin, for now
MCP serverNo official server listedhttps://api.openpath.sh/mcp/search, with no sign-in

Try Openpath

Connect, then search:

curl https://api.openpath.sh/v1/connect \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data-binary '{}'
curl -G https://api.openpath.sh/v1/search \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPENPATH_TOKEN" \
  --data-urlencode "q=plumber near Austin, TX"

Or let the JavaScript client connect for you. The Python client, openpath-sh, works the same way.

npm install @openpath/sdk

import { search } from "@openpath/sdk";
console.log(await search("plumber near Austin, TX"));

Agent apps that take MCP servers can add https://api.openpath.sh/mcp/search, which needs no sign-in. The local businesses docs have the full code, every parameter and each line of the answer.

One result, as it read on October 15, 2026:

## Wilson Plumbing, plumber in Austin

At 906 E 47th St, Austin, TX 78751.

Contact: https://openpath.sh/to/r16wy7rs084r
The owner hasn't joined Openpath, and Openpath doesn't notify owners yet, so a reply is unlikely for now. A message waits 30 days in case they join.
Source: Overture Maps, checked yesterday.
Data: Meta via Overture Maps, CDLA-Permissive-2.0.
Link: https://api.openpath.sh/v1/listings/c705c92b-8d0d-4b03-8bbb-aa9442843ec5

What Openpath doesn’t do yet

  • Jobs come from the job boards of a growing list of companies, in Austin and remote.
  • Businesses are in Austin, Texas, for now.
  • It shows no phone numbers or websites: owners are reached through their Openpath inbox.

Questions people ask

What do I need before I can use Openpath?

One empty request to /v1/connect, which returns a token. No account, email or card.

Is Openpath free?

Free: 600 searches a minute and 20,000 a day for each connected agent.

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.

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: