Geocoding API

GET Geocode Address

The geocoding service enables you to take an address and get the associated latitude and longitude.

Resource URL

https://www.mapquestapi.com/geocoding/v1/address

Resource Information

Response Formats	JSON, XML, CSV
Authentication	Yes (Requires Key)
Rate Limited	Yes

Request Parameters

Request Parameter	Description	Required
key	The API Key, which is needed to make requests to MapQuest services.	Yes
location	The location to geocode. Example: Single Line Location location=Denver,CO	Yes
boundingBox	When ambiguous results are returned, any results within the provided bounding box will be moved to the top of the results list. Bounding box format is: upper left latitude, upper left longitude, lower right latitude, lower right longitude. Example: Bounding Box boundingBox=40.099998,-77.305603,39.099998,-75.305603	optional
ignoreLatLngInput	This option tells the service whether it should fail when given a latitude/longitude pair in an address or batch geocode call, or if it should ignore that and try and geocode what it can. true: The geocoder will ignore the LatLng specified in the location, and use the address info to perform geocode false: The geocoder will return a geoaddress object containing the LatLng passed in and write a warning message to Info block Example: Ignore Lat Lng Input ignoreLatLngInput=true	optional, defaults to false
thumbMaps	This parameter tells the service whether it should return a URL to a static map thumbnail image for a location being geocoded. true: The response will include a URL to a static map image of the geocoded location. false : The response will not include a static map image URL. Example: Disable Static Map Response thumbMaps=false	optional, defaults to true
maxResults	The max number of locations to return from the geocode This option will only have an effect on the second location because it is ambiguous Example: Five Results Max maxResults=5	optional
outFormat	Specifies the format of the response. Must be one of the following, if supplied: - json - xml - csv (character delimited) Example: XML response outFormat=xml	optional, defaults to json
delimiter	Specifies the delimiter used in the csv response , | : ; Example: Pipe Delimiter delimiter=|
intlMode	Allows users of the International Geocoder to tell MapQuest how to handle a 5-box geocode. 5BOX: Keeps the query as a 5-box and sends it to the TomTom International Geocoder as a 5-box. 1BOX: Converts the 5-box query into a 1-box query and sends it to the TomTom International Geocoder. AUTO: Handles the query in a way deemed most optimal by MapQuest. Currently, this converts a 5-box query to a 1-box query across the board. Example: 1BOX International Mode intlMode=1BOX	optional, defaults to auto
callback	A JavaScript function name. The JSON-formatted response will be wrapped in a call to the supplied callback function name to provide JSONP functionality. This functionality might be needed to do cross-site scripting. See the Wikipedia.org entry for JSON for more details. Example: Callback callback=geocodeResult	optional

Response Object

providedLocation	The provided location properties passed in the geocode request.
latLng	Returns the latitude/longitude for routing and is the nearest point on a road for the entrance.
street	Street address.
adminArea6	Neighborhood name.
adminArea5	City name.
adminArea4	County name.
adminArea3	State name.
adminArea1	Country name.
postalCode	Postal code.
type	Type of location. 's' = stop (default) 'v' = via
dragPoint	Is location a drag point? This option only applies when making a dragroute call. - true = location is a drag point - false = location is not a drag point (default)
displayLatLng	A lat/lng pair that can be helpful when showing this address as a Point of Interest.
geocodeQuality	The precision of the geocoded location. Refer to the Geocode Quality reference page for more information.
geocodeQua lityCode	The five character quality code for the precision of the geocoded location. Refer to the Geocode Quality reference page for more information.
linkId	String that identifies the closest road to the address for routing purposes.
sideOfStreet	Specifies the side of street. 'L' = left 'R' = right 'M' = mixed 'N' = none (default)
info	This field contains information about the response. The statuscode subfield is an integer return value. Refer to the status codes page for more details about our status codes and error messages. The messages subfield is an array of error messages that describe the status

Example Request

GET https://www.mapquestapi.com/geocoding/v1/address?key=KEY&location=Washington,DC

Example Response

JSON

  {
    "info": {
        "statuscode": 0,
        "copyright": {
        "text": "© 2023 MapQuest, Inc.",
        "imageUrl": "https://api.mqcdn.com/res/mqlogo.gif",
        "imageAltText": "© 2023 MapQuest, Inc."
        },
        "messages": []
    },
    "options": {
        "maxResults": -1,
        "thumbMaps": true,
        "ignoreLatLngInput": false
    },
    "results": [
     {
        "providedLocation": {
            "location": "Washington,DC"
        },
        "locations": [
            {
            "street": "",
            "adminArea6": "",
            "adminArea6Type": "Neighborhood",
            "adminArea5": "Washington",
            "adminArea5Type": "City",
            "adminArea4": "District of Columbia",
            "adminArea4Type": "County",
            "adminArea3": "DC",
            "adminArea3Type": "State",
            "adminArea1": "US",
            "adminArea1Type": "Country",
            "postalCode": "",
            "geocodeQualityCode": "A5XAX",
            "geocodeQuality": "CITY",
            "dragPoint": false,
            "sideOfStreet": "N",
            "linkId": "282772166",
            "unknownInput": "",
            "type": "s",
            "latLng": {
                "lat": 38.892062,
                "lng": -77.019912
            },
            "displayLatLng": {
                "lat": 38.892062,
                "lng": -77.019912
            },
            "mapUrl": "https://www.mapquestapi.com/staticmap/v5/getmap?key=KEY&type=map&size=225,160&pois=purple-1,38.892062,-77.019912,0,0,|&center=38.892062,-77.019912&zoom=12&rand=306744981"
            }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }

XML

<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>
<response>
  <info>
    <statusCode>0</statusCode>
    <messages/>
    <copyright>
      <imageUrl>https://api.mqcdn.com/res/mqlogo.gif</imageUrl>
      <imageAltText>&#169; 2023 MapQuest, Inc.</imageAltText>
      <text>&#169; 2023 MapQuest, Inc.</text>
    </copyright>
  </info>
  <results>
    <result>
      <providedLocation>
        <location>Washington,DC</location>
      </providedLocation>
      <locations>
        <location>
          <street/>
          <adminArea6 type='Neighborhood'/>
          <adminArea5 type='City'>Washington</adminArea5>
          <adminArea3 type='State'>DC</adminArea3>
          <adminArea4 type='County'>District of Columbia</adminArea4>
          <postalCode/>
          <adminArea1 type='Country'>US</adminArea1>
          <geocodeQuality>CITY</geocodeQuality>
          <geocodeQualityCode>A5XAX</geocodeQualityCode>
          <dragPoint>false</dragPoint>
          <sideOfStreet>N</sideOfStreet>
          <displayLatLng>
            <latLng>
              <lat>38.892062</lat>
              <lng>-77.019912</lng>
            </latLng>
          </displayLatLng>
          <linkId>282772166</linkId>
          <unknownInput/>
          <type>s</type>
          <latLng>
            <lat>38.892062</lat>
            <lng>-77.019912</lng>
          </latLng>
          <mapUrl>
            <![CDATA[https://www.mapquestapi.com/staticmap/v5/getmap?key=Bcq45hgAPyN8yXUClwubFZeIJgFvAj1V&type=map&size=225,160&pois=purple-1,38.892062,-77.019912,0,0,|&amp;center=38.892062,-77.019912&zoom=12&rand=2030313300]]>
          </mapUrl>
        </location>
      </locations>
    </result>
  </results>
  <options>
    <maxResults>-1</maxResults>
    <thumbMaps>true</thumbMaps>
    <ignoreLatLngInput>false</ignoreLatLngInput>
    <boundingBox/>
  </options>
</response>

CSV

"Country","State","County","City","PostalCode","Street","Lat","Lng","DragPoint","LinkId","Type","GeocodeQualityCode","GeocodeQuality","SideOfStreet","DisplayLat","DisplayLng"
"US","DC","District of Columbia","Washington","","","38.892062","-77.019912","false","282772166","s","A5XAX","CITY","N","38.892062","-77.019912"