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Maps · head to head

Foursquare Spatial Studio vs HERE Technologies

Foursquare Spatial Studio logo

Foursquare Spatial Studio

Maps

The product formerly sold as Unfolded, now a Foursquare platform rather than a standalone company

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
HERE Technologies logo

HERE Technologies

Maps

Location data and technology company that provides mapping and location services to businesses globally

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only HERE Technologies has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Foursquare Spatial Studio unfolded no longer exists as a product or a contracting entity, so buyers researching under that name find documentation, pricing discussion and comparison material that no longer applies to what Foursquare sells; HERE Technologies pricing is complex and unpredictable, with additional fees for common functionalities creating surprise costs at scale
  • They diverge on capability: Foursquare Spatial Studio covers Browser rendering at scale, HERE Technologies covers Core Functionality.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Foursquare Spatial Studio and HERE Technologies actually diverge.

Attributes where Foursquare Spatial Studio and HERE Technologies differ
AttributeFoursquare Spatial StudioHERE Technologies
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android, Cross-platform
FoundedUnknown1985

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Maps).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Foursquare Spatial Studio

  • Browser rendering at scale
  • H3 spatial indexing
  • Data joins
  • Time animation
  • Map sharing and embedding
  • Cloud data connections
  • Foursquare data access

Only in HERE Technologies

  • Core Functionality
  • User Interface

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Foursquare Spatial Studio

  • A retail property team comparing catchment overlap between candidate sites using hexagonal aggregation rather than drive-time polygonsnot HERE Technologies
  • A telecommunications planner visualising a national dataset of measurements in the browser without building a tile pipelinenot HERE Technologies
  • An analytics team that already writes deck.gl in-house and wants a hosted environment so non-developers can explore the same datanot HERE Technologies
  • A marketing group that wants Foursquare places and movement data joined to its own customer geography in one toolnot HERE Technologies

HERE Technologies

  • Map data for automated and assisted drivingnot Foursquare Spatial Studio
  • Connected driving, including hazard alerts and road surface analysisnot Foursquare Spatial Studio
  • Supply chain planning and logistics digital twinsnot Foursquare Spatial Studio
  • Geocoding, search and map rendering through hosted location servicesnot Foursquare Spatial Studio
  • Fleet tour planning and routing across 200 countriesnot Foursquare Spatial Studio

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Foursquare Spatial Studio

  • Unfolded no longer exists as a product or a contracting entity, so buyers researching under that name find documentation, pricing discussion and comparison material that no longer applies to what Foursquare sells
  • Pricing is not published at all, and because access to Foursquare datasets can be bundled into the same agreement, separating the cost of the software from the cost of the data requires explicitly asking for a split quote
  • Much of the visualisation capability exists in kepler.gl and deck.gl, which are free and open source, so the paid product must justify itself on hosting, collaboration and data rather than on rendering
  • Foursquare's core business is selling location data, which means the analytics roadmap follows what makes that data sell, and a customer using only its own data is not the priority segment
  • It is analysis and visualisation, not a spatial database or an editing environment, so organisations still need PostGIS, a warehouse or a GIS for the authoritative data and its maintenance

HERE Technologies

  • Pricing is complex and unpredictable, with additional fees for common functionalities creating surprise costs at scale
  • Lack of transparency in cost projections makes budgeting and forecasting difficult
  • Requires separate API keys and subscriptions for different feature categories, complicating integration
  • Customer support quality and responsiveness is inconsistent compared to competitors like Google Maps

Pricing, plan by plan

Foursquare Spatial Studio

On request
  • Foursquare Spatial Studio$undefined/year
    • Quoted by users, data volume and which Foursquare datasets you take
    • Cloud warehouse connections on the higher tier
    • Not published

HERE Technologies

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the HERE Technologies review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Foursquare Spatial Studio if

  • You need browser rendering at scale.
  • You also want h3 spatial indexing.
Foursquare Spatial Studio review

Choose HERE Technologies if

  • You need core functionality.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cross-platform.
  • You also want user interface.
HERE Technologies review

Questions people ask

Is Foursquare Spatial Studio or HERE Technologies better?
Neither clearly leads. Foursquare Spatial Studio starts at On request and HERE Technologies at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Foursquare Spatial Studio or HERE Technologies?
HERE Technologies has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Foursquare Spatial Studio and Free for HERE Technologies.
Does Foursquare Spatial Studio or HERE Technologies run on more platforms?
Foursquare Spatial Studio runs on Web. HERE Technologies runs on Web, iOS, Android, Cross-platform.
Can I use HERE Technologies for free?
Yes. HERE Technologies has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Foursquare Spatial Studio starts at On request.
What is Foursquare Spatial Studio best used for?
Foursquare Spatial Studio is most often used for a retail property team comparing catchment overlap between candidate sites using hexagonal aggregation rather than drive-time polygons, a telecommunications planner visualising a national dataset of measurements in the browser without building a tile pipeline, an analytics team that already writes deck.gl in-house and wants a hosted environment so non-developers can explore the same data, a marketing group that wants foursquare places and movement data joined to its own customer geography in one tool. Of those, a retail property team comparing catchment overlap between candidate sites using hexagonal aggregation rather than drive-time polygons and a telecommunications planner visualising a national dataset of measurements in the browser without building a tile pipeline are not what HERE Technologies is typically brought in for.
What can Foursquare Spatial Studio do that HERE Technologies cannot?
Foursquare Spatial Studio covers Browser rendering at scale, H3 spatial indexing, Data joins, Time animation. HERE Technologies covers Core Functionality, User Interface.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Foursquare Spatial Studio: Can I still buy Unfolded?

No. Foursquare acquired Unfolded in 2021 and sells the product as Foursquare Spatial Studio. There is no Unfolded contract.

HERE Technologies: What does HERE Technologies provide?

HERE Technologies provides a comprehensive location platform including digital maps, routing and navigation APIs, geocoding, search, traffic, positioning, and telematics services for automotive, logistics, and enterprise applications.

Source
Foursquare Spatial Studio: Is kepler.gl the same thing?

No. kepler.gl is the free open source visualisation library from the same original team. Spatial Studio is the hosted commercial platform built around it.

HERE Technologies: Does HERE offer a free tier?

Yes. HERE provides a free tier with 30,000 map requests per month, 5,000 routing transactions, and 30,000 geocoding transactions. Usage beyond these limits is charged on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Source
Foursquare Spatial Studio: What does it cost?

Foursquare does not publish pricing. Ask for the software and the data licences to be quoted separately.

HERE Technologies: What SDKs and APIs does HERE offer?

HERE provides REST APIs for maps, routing, geocoding, and search, plus SDKs for Android, iOS, Flutter, and JavaScript. The HERE SDK enables turn-by-turn navigation and location services for mobile and web applications.

Source
Foursquare Spatial Studio: Do I need Foursquare's data to use it?

No, you can load your own, but the commercial proposition is strongest for customers who also want the places and movement datasets.

HERE Technologies: Is HERE's pricing transparent?

No. HERE uses a complex transaction-based pricing model with separate costs for different API categories. The pricing structure lacks transparency, making it difficult for customers to forecast costs at scale.

Source
HERE Technologies: How has HERE's pricing changed?

HERE moved to a simplified transaction-based pricing model with free monthly allowances for common APIs. Users pay per transaction beyond the free tier, though the structure has been criticized for complexity and lack of cost transparency.

Source
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