Openpath

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

Openpath vs OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass) for AI agents

Free, donation-run public servers for searching OpenStreetMap data: Nominatim for geocoding and place search, Overpass for querying OSM objects. 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

  • 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.
  • 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.

OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass) and Openpath, side by side

OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass)Openpath
SearchesOpenStreetMap data worldwide: addresses, places and mapped POIs.Live jobs from employers’ own job boards (Austin, Texas, and remote) and local businesses in Austin
ReturnsNominatim 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.Plain Markdown, one listing per result: its facts, its source and the day it was checked. Typed JSON on request.
Before the first callNo account or key. Nominatim requires a valid User-Agent or Referer that identifies your app, and visible attribution.One empty request to /v1/connect, which returns a token. No account, email or card.
FreeFree 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.Free: 600 searches a minute and 20,000 a day for each connected agent
PaidNo paid tier. Heavy users are told to run their own instance or use commercial third-party providers.Free for agents
Acting on a resultPhone or website appear only when mappers tagged them in OSM, through Nominatim's extratags. There is no messaging.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 resultsData 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.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 termsNominatim'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.Built 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.
CoverageWorldwide OpenStreetMap data. POI completeness depends on volunteer mapping.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 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.

OpenStreetMap (Nominatim and Overpass), read on October 15, 2026: