Nominatim

Open-source geocoding tool for OpenStreetMap data, providing address search and reverse geocoding capabilities

As of 29 August 2026, Nominatim is free to use. Nominatim is an open-source geocoding tool for OpenStreetMap data, providing address search and reverse geocoding capabilities. Softwr lists it under Maps. Nominatim is available on Web.

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Overview

What Nominatim does

Nominatim is an open-source geocoding tool for OpenStreetMap data, providing address search and reverse geocoding capabilities.

What people use it for

Geocoding and reverse geocoding services
Address lookup and location search
OpenStreetMap-based geolocation data

The honest half

Where it falls short

Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about Nominatim.

The public API allows an absolute maximum of 1 request per second
Bulk geocoding must run in a single thread and cannot be distributed across machines
Scripts running longer than a day or on a schedule are limited to 4 requests per minute
Autocomplete search against the public API is explicitly prohibited
Systematic queries such as grid based reverse lookups and complete data downloads are prohibited
Reselling geocoding results or acting as an API intermediary is prohibited
Every request must send a valid HTTP Referer or User-Agent identifying the application, and default library headers are rejected
Results must be cached client side, and repeated identical queries can lead to blocking
Attribution to OpenStreetMap under ODbL must be displayed

Cross-shopped

What people choose instead of Nominatim

Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.

Nominatimvs
Google Maps Platform
Google Maps Platform: Comprehensive set of APIs and SDKs that allow developers to embed Google
Nominatimvs
Mapbox
Mapbox: Location data platform for mobile and web applications
Nominatimvs
HERE Technologies
HERE Technologies: Location data and technology company that provides mapping and location services to businesses globally
Nominatimvs
Apple Maps
Apple Maps: Web mapping and navigation application developed by Apple Inc

Capabilities

Features

Core Functionality
Essential features for everyday use
User Interface
Intuitive and user-friendly interface

Answered, with sources

Questions people ask

Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.

Is Nominatim free?

Nominatim is open source software built on OpenStreetMap data. It appears to be free to use, though commercial usage may require separate licensing or terms. Check the project repository or contact support for clarity on licensing.

Source

What is Nominatim's pricing model?

Nominatim does not publish a standard pricing model on its website. As open source software, it is available for free, but commercial or large-scale deployments may require reviewing their licensing terms or contacting project maintainers.

Source

Keep looking

Where to go from Nominatim

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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for Nominatim, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.

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