Geocode

Service version: 2

Last edit: 2022.05.05

Purpose

In many cases, the complete Search service might be too much. For instance, if you are only interested in traditional Geocoding, Search can also be exclusively accessed for address look-up.

The Geocoding is performed by hitting the Geocode endpoint with just the address or partial address in question.
The Geocoding index will be queried for everything above the street level data.
No POIs (Points of Interest) will be returned.
Note that the geocoder is very tolerant of typos and incomplete addresses.

It will also handle everything from exact street addresses, streets, or intersections as well as higher-level geographies such as city centers, counties, states, etc.

Run this endpoint

You can easily run this and other endpoints. Go to the TomTom API Explorer page and follow the directions.

Request data

HTTPS Method: `GET`

For ease of viewing and identification:

Constants and parameters enclosed in curly brackets { } must be replaced with their values.
Please see the following Request parameters section with the required and optional parameters tables for their values. The generic request format is as follows.

URL format

GET

Request URL

https://{baseURL}/search/{versionNumber}/geocode/{query}.{ext}?key={Your_API_Key}&storeResult={storeResult}&typeahead={typeahead}&limit={limit}&ofs={ofs}&lat={lat}&lon={lon}&countrySet={countrySet}&radius={radius}&topLeft={topLeft}&btmRight={btmRight}&language={language}&extendedPostalCodesFor={extendedPostalCodesFor}&view={view}&mapcodes={mapcodes}&entityTypeSet={entityTypeSet}

curl command format

GET

Request curl command

curl 'https://{baseURL}/search/{versionNumber}/geocode/{query}.{ext}?key={Your_API_Key}&storeResult={storeResult}&typeahead={typeahead}&limit={limit}&ofs={ofs}&lat={lat}&lon={lon}&countrySet={countrySet}&radius={radius}&topLeft={topLeft}&btmRight={btmRight}&language={language}&extendedPostalCodesFor={extendedPostalCodesFor}&view={view}&mapcodes={mapcodes}&entityTypeSet={entityTypeSet}'

Request parameters

The following table describes the parameters that can be used in a request.

Required parameters must be used or the call will fail.
Optional parameters may be used.
The order of request parameters is not important.

Required parameters	Description
`baseURL` string	Base URL for calling the API. Values: `api.tomtom.com` `kr-api.tomtom.com` (see the Region-specific content page)
`versionNumber` string	Service version number. Value: The current value is `2`.
`query` string	Query string. Must be properly URL encoded. Value: A properly URL encoded query string.
`ext` string	A valid response format: Values: `json`, `jsonp`, `js`, or `xml`
`key` string	An API Key valid for the requested service. Value: Your valid `API Key`.

Optional parameters	Description
`storeResult` boolean Deprecated	If the `storeResult` flag is set, the query will be interpreted as a stored geocode, and will be billed according to the terms of use. Default value: `false`. December 1, 2017 The `storeResult` parameter has been deprecated and will be withdrawn following a 12 month deprecation period. The planned withdrawal date is December 1, 2018. Following withdrawal, API requests that include the `storeResult` parameter will receive a HTTP 400 error in the response.
`typeahead` boolean	If the `typeahead` flag is set, the query will be interpreted as a partial input, and the search will enter predictive mode. Default value: `false`
`limit` integer	The maximum number of responses that will be returned. Default value: `10` Maximum value: `100`
`ofs` integer	The starting offset of the returned results within the full result set. Default value: `0` Maximum value: `1900` The total number of results can be no more than 2000. If you want to receive all the results, you need to limit the number of results by using, for example, the `radius` parameter.
`lat` float	Latitude, e.g., `lat=37.337` lat,lon where results should be biased. Note: supplying a `lat/lon` without a radius will bias the search results to that area. Value: `lat`
`lon` float	Longitude, e.g., `lon=-121.89` lat,lon where results should be biased. Note: supplying a `lat/lon` without a radius will bias the search results to that area. Value: `lon`
`countrySet` string	Comma separated string of country codes in ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 or alpha-3 code formats (e.g., `FR,ES` or `FRA,ESP`). This will limit the search to the specified countries. The choice of view may restrict which countries are available. Value: `FR`,`ES` or `FRA`,`ESP`, etc. Visit the Search API Market Coverage page for a list of all the countries supported by the Search engine.
`radius` integer	If `radius` and `position` are set, the results will be constrained to the defined area. The `radius` parameter is specified in meters. Value: A radius.
`topLeft` string	Top-left position of the bounding box. This is specified as a comma-separated string composed by lat,lon (e.g., `37.553,-122.453`). Important note: Point-Radius parameters and Bounding Box parameters are mutually exclusive. Point-Radius parameters take precenence when both are passed. Value: A comma-separated string composed by `lat`,`lon`. Example: `37.553,-122.453`
`btmRight` string	Bottom-right position of the bounding box. This is specified as a comma-separated string composed by lat,lon (e.g., `37.553,-122.453`). Important note: Point-Radius parameters and Bounding Box parameters are mutually exclusive. Point-Radius parameters take precenence when both are passed. Value: A comma-separated string composed by `lat`,`lon`. Example: `37.553,-122.453`
`language` string	Language in which search results should be returned. Should be one of the TomTom IETF Supported Language Tags, case insensitive. When data in the specified language is not available for a specific field or the language is not specified, the language best matched with your query is used. Value: A TomTom IETF Supported Language Tag.
`extendedPostalCodesFor` string	Indexes for which extended postal codes should be included in the results. Available values are described in Additional Information indexes abbreviation values section. The value should be a comma-separated list of index types (in any order) or "None" for no indexes. By default, extended postal codes are included for all indexes except Geo. Extended postal code lists for geographies can be quite long, so they have to be explicitly requested when needed. Usage examples: `extendedPostalCodesFor=POI` `extendedPostalCodesFor=PAD,Addr,POI` `extendedPostalCodesFor=None` Extended postal code is returned as the `extendedPostalCode` property of an address. Availability is region-dependent. Value: A comma-separated list of index types.
`view` string	Geopolitical View. The context used to resolve the handling of disputed territories. Views include `Unified`, along with `AR` `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `PK`, `RU`, `TR`, and `CN` which are respectively tailored for Argentina, Israel, India, Morocco, Pakistan, Russia, Turkey, and China. Default values: Argentina, default view: `AR`, available views: `Unified`, `IL`, `IN`,`MA`, `PK`, `RU`, `TR`, `CN` India, default view: `IN`, available views: - Morocco, default view: `MA`, available views: `Unified`, `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `PK`, `RU`, `TR`, `CN` Pakistan, default view: `PK`, available views: `Unified`, `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `RU`, `TR`, `CN` Russia, default view: `RU`, available views: `Unified`, `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `PK`, `TR`, `CN` Turkey, default view: `TR`, available views: `Unified`, `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `PK`, `RU`, `CN` China, default view: `CN`, available views: `Unified`, `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `PK`, `RU`, `TR` Others, default view: `Unified`, available views: `AR`, `IL`, `IN`, `MA`, `PK`, `RU`, `TR`, `CN`
`mapcodes` string	Enables the return of a comma-separted mapcodes list. It can also filter the response to only show selected mapcode types. See `mapcodes` in the response. Values: One or more of: `Local` `International` `Alternative` A mapcode represents a specific location, to within a few meters. Every location on Earth can be represented by a mapcode. Mapcodes are designed to be short, easy to recognize, remember, and communicate. Visit the Mapcode project website for more information. Usage examples: `mapcodes=Local` (returns only the local mapcode for a location) `mapcodes=Local,Alternative` (returns both, local and alternative, mapcodes for a location) `mapcodes=Local,Alternative,International` (returns all possible mapcodes for a location)
`entityTypeSet` string	A comma-separated list of entity types which can be used to restrict the result to the Geography result of a specific entity type. If `entityTypeSet` is specified, only a Geography result with a proper entity type will be returned. Value: A comma-separated list of of entity types. Item order in the list does not matter. Values are case sensitive. Available values: `Country` `CountrySubdivision` `CountrySecondarySubdivision` `CountryTertiarySubdivision` `Municipality` `MunicipalitySubdivision` `Neighbourhood` `PostalCodeArea` Usage examples: `entityTypeSet=Municipality`: Only returns results with a `Municipality` entity type. `entityTypeSet=Municipality,MunicipalitySubdivision`: Returns results with a `Municipality` or `MunicipalitySubdivision` entity type.

Request headers

Optional headers Description

Accept-Encoding Enables response compression.
Value: gzip

Tracking-ID

Optional headers	Description
Accept-Encoding	Enables response compression. Value: `gzip`
Tracking-ID	Specifies an identifier for the request. It can be used to trace a call. The value must match the regular expression `'^[a-zA-Z0-9-]{1,100}$'`. An example of the format that matches this regular expression is UUID: (e.g., `9ac68072-c7a4-11e8-a8d5-f2801f1b9fd1`). For details check RFC 4122. If specified, it is replicated in the Tracking-ID response header. It is only meant to be used for support and does not involve tracking of you or your users in any form. Value: An `identifier` for the request.

Specifies an identifier for the request.

It can be used to trace a call.
The value must match the regular expression '^[a-zA-Z0-9-]{1,100}$'.
An example of the format that matches this regular expression is UUID: (e.g., 9ac68072-c7a4-11e8-a8d5-f2801f1b9fd1). For details check RFC 4122.
If specified, it is replicated in the Tracking-ID response header.
It is only meant to be used for support and does not involve tracking of you or your users in any form.

Value: An identifier for the request.

Response data

Response body

For illustrative purposes the example below is neatly indented and includes all possible response fields.

Actual responses are more compact and the fields present will vary based on the result type and the data available.
See the following response field documentation for more information.

When requesting JSON output the response has the following structure:

Response structure - JSON
1{
"summary": {
  "query": "2501 soquel dr santa cruz ca 95065",
  "queryType": "NON_NEAR",
  "queryTime": 8,
  "numResults": 1,
  "offset": 0,
  "totalResults": 1,
  "fuzzyLevel": 1,
  "geoBias": {
    "lat": 36.98844,
    "lon": -121.97483
  }
},
"results": []
16}

Where each element of the results array is in the following format:

Results array elements format - JSON

1{
"type": "Point Address",
"id": "US/PAD/p0/45619296",
"score": 15.725,
"matchConfidence": {
  "score": 1
},
"dist": 0.8875712594288668,
"address": {
  "streetNumber": "2501",
  "streetName": "Soquel Dr",
  "municipalitySubdivision": "Santa Cruz, Live Oak",
  "municipality": "Santa Cruz, Live Oak",
  "countrySecondarySubdivision": "Santa Cruz",
  "countryTertiarySubdivision": "Santa Cruz",
  "countrySubdivision": "CA",
  "postalCode": "95065",
  "extendedPostalCode": "950652023",
  "countryCode": "US",
  "country": "United States Of America",
  "countryCodeISO3": "USA",
  "freeformAddress": "2501 Soquel Dr, Santa Cruz, CA 95065",
  "countrySubdivisionName": "California",
  "localName": "Santa Cruz"
},
"position": {
  "lat": 36.98844,
  "lon": -121.97482
},
"mapcodes":[
  {
    "type":"Local",
    "fullMapcode":"US-CA FS.WRH3",
    "territory":"US-CA",
    "code":"FS.WRH3"
  },
  {
    "type":"International",
    "fullMapcode":"S4ZW4.990V"
  },
  {
    "type":"Alternative",
    "fullMapcode":"US-CA 4349.S8W",
    "territory":"US-CA",
    "code":"4349.S8W"
  },
  {
    "type":"Alternative",
    "fullMapcode":"US-CA JJCH.H9DF",
    "territory":"US-CA",
    "code":"JJCH.H9DF"
  },
  {
    "type":"Alternative",
    "fullMapcode":"USA JJCH.H9DF",
    "territory":"USA",
    "code":"JJCH.H9DF"
  }
],
"viewport": {
  "topLeftPoint": {
    "lat": 36.98934,
    "lon": -121.97595
  },
  "btmRightPoint": {
    "lat": 36.98754,
    "lon": -121.97369
  }
},
"entryPoints": [
  {
    "type": "main",
    "position": {
      "lat": 36.98817,
      "lon": -121.97487
    }
  }
],
"addressRanges": {
  "rangeLeft": "1 - 3",
  "rangeRight": "2 - 12",
  "from": {
    "lat": 51.16561,
    "lon": 19.48489
  },
  "to": {
    "lat": 51.16545,
    "lon": 19.4863
  }
},
"dataSources": {
  "geometry": {
    "id": "00004e4c-3100-3c00-0000-0000685e23c7"
  }
}
96}

Response fields

The following tables describe all of the fields that can appear in a response. Fields are listed by the response section they belong to, and in the order that they appear in the response.

Primary fields
Field	Description
`summary` object	Summary information about the search that was performed. `summary` object
`results` array	The result list, sorted in descending order by score. `results` array
summary object
Field	Description
`query` string	The query as interpreted by the search engine.
`queryType` string	Response type. Can be `NEARBY` or `NON_NEAR`.
`queryTime` integer	Time spent on resolving the query.
`numResults` integer	The number of results in the response.
`offset` integer	The starting offset of the returned results within the full result set.
`totalResults` integer	The total number of results found.
`fuzzyLevel` integer	The maximum fuzzy level required to provide results.
`geoBias` object	The position used to bias the results: Latitude, Longitude `LatLon`
results array
Field	Description
`type` string	Type of result. Value: One of: `Street` `Geography` `Point Address` `Address Range` `Cross Street`
`id` string	the non-stable unique id for this result.
`score` double	The score of the result. A larger score means there is a probability that a result meeting the query criteria is higher.
`matchConfidence` object	The confidence of the result`s textual match with the query. `matchConfidence` object
`dist` double	Unit: meters. This is the distance to an object if `geobias` was provided.
`address` object	The structured address for the result. `address` object
`position` object	The position of the result: Latitude, Longitude. `LatLon`
`mapcodes` array	List of `mapcode` objects. `mapcodes` object
`viewport` object	A viewport which can be used to display the result on a map. `viewport` object
`boundingBox` object	Optional section. Only present if type == Geography. A bounding box which can be used to display the result on a map defined by minimum and maximum longitudes and latitudes. `boundingBox` object
`entrypoints` array	A list of entry points of the POI (Points of Interest). `entryPoints` array
`addressRanges` object	The address ranges on a street segment. Available only for results where the result type is equal to Address Range.`addressRanges` object
`dataSources` object	An optional section. These are unique reference ids for use with the Additional Data service. `dataSources` object
address object
Field	Description
`streetNumber` string	The building number on the street.
`streetName` string	The street name.
`municipalitySubdivision` string	Sub / Super City
`municipality` string	City / Town
`countrySecondarySubdivision` string	County
`countryTertiarySubdivision` string	Named Area
`countrySubdivision` string	State or Province
`postalCode` string	Postal Code / Zip Code
`postalName` string	An address component which represents the name for a postal code that is related to a single administrative area, city, town, or other populated place. Note: This field only appears for geographies having `entityType == PostalCodeArea`. It is only supported for the USA.
`extendedPostalCode` string	Extended postal code (availability dependent on region).
`countryCode` string	A country's code (Note: This is a two-letter code, not a country name.).
`country` string	Country name
`countryCodeISO3` string	ISO alpha-3 country code
`freeformAddress` string	An address line formatted according to: The formatting rules of the result's country of origin. In the case of countries, its full country name. For the USA, in the case of geographies with `entityType == PostalCodeArea` it will contain the `postalName` field value.
`countrySubdivisionName` string	The full name of the first level of country administrative hierarchy. This field appears only in case `countrySubdivision` is presented in an abbreviated form. Supported only for USA, Canada, and Great Britain.
`countrySubdivisionCode` string	`countrySubdivisionCode` prefixed by `countryCode` (`countryCode-countrySubdivisionCode`) and the hyphen forms the ISO 3166-2 code. Only present if returned document has `entityType == CountrySubdivision`. `countrySubdivisionCode` examples: `TX` for Texas, `SCT` for Scotland, `ON` for Ontario, `ZE` for Zeeland and `BB` for Brandenburg.
`localName` string	An address component which represents the name of a geographic area or locality that groups a number of addressable objects for addressing purposes, without being an administrative unit.
matchConfidence object
Field	Description
`score` double	Represents overall textual match score, in the range of [0..1], where 1 means perfect match and 0 - no match. Example: A Point Address result with freeformAddress `9390 Santa Monica Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CA 90210` has: `score: 1` for a query that matches perfectly, like "9390 santa monica boulevard beverly hills california los angeles" `score: 0.88` for a query that matches, despite a spelling error and synonym, like "9390 snta monica avenue beverly hills california los angeles" `score: 0.42` for a query that contains many unmatched terms, like "mr smith apartment 20 ground floor 9390 santa monica boulevard beverly hills california los angeles"
mapcodes object
Field	Description
`type` string	Type of mapcode: `Local`: The shortest possible (and easiest to remember) mapcode. Local mapcodes are especially useful when the user knows what `territory` the mapcode is in (for example, when an application is designed to be used inside just one European country or US state). Note that the `code` element of a `Local` mapcode is ambiguous when used without the `territory` element. For example, the "4J.P2" mapcode can mean the Eiffel Tower location (48.858380, 2.294440) (with the `territory` set to `FRA`), but also some place in Amsterdam-Noord, Netherlands (52.382184, 4.911021) (with the `territory` set to `NLD`). `International`: This mapcode is unambiguous. It is also the longest. `Alternative`: Alternatives to `Local` mapcodes. Each `Alternative` mapcode points to slightly different coordinates due to the way mapcodes are computed (see the mapcode documentation). For example, the position from a response can be encoded as "5DM.WC" (51.759244, 19.448316) and the "VHJ.036" (51.759245, 19.448264), which are close to each other, but not exactly the same place.
`fullMapcode` string	The full form of a mapcode (`territory` + `code`). It is always unambiguous. The `territory` element is always in the Latin alphabet. In an `International` mapcode, the `territory` part is empty.
`territory` string	The `territory` element of the mapcode. The `territory` element is always in the Latin alphabet. Usually, the `territory` is the ISO 3166-1 alpha 3 abbreviation for the country name. However in these eight very large countries: USA Canada Mexico Brazil India Australia Russia China an address has little meaning unless the user also knows what state it's in (just as, elsewhere, an address has little meaning if the user doesn’t know what country it’s in). More information about `territory` codes is available at Territories for mapcodes. This field is not returned for an `International` mapcode.
`code` string	The mapcode without the `territory` element. It consists of two groups of letters and digits separated by a dot. The `code` is using the same language and alphabet as the response. The `language` parameter may be used to modify the language and alphabet of both the response and the `code` (for example: Cyrillic for the language `ru-RU`). This field is not returned for the `International` mapcodes. Use `fullMapcode` instead.
viewport object
Field	Description
`topLeftPoint` object	Top-left corner of the rectangle: `LatLon`
`btmRightPoint` object	Bottom-right corner of the rectangle: `LatLon`
boundingBox object
Field	Description
`topLeftPoint` object	Top-left position of the bounding box: `LatLon`
`btmRightPoint` object	Bottom-right position of the bounding box: `LatLon`
entryPoints array
Field	Description
`type` string	The main entry point. One of: `main` `minor`
`functions` array	If present, represents the type of access for the POI. Example: `FrontDoor`
`position` object	Position of the entry point. `LatLon`
addressRanges object
Field	Description
`rangeLeft` string	An address range on the left side of a street segment (assuming looking from the "from" end toward the "to" end).
`rangeRight` string	An address range on the right side of a street segment (assuming looking from the "from" end toward the "to" end).
`from` object	The beginning point of a street segment: Latitude, Longitude `LatLon`
`to` object	The end point of a street segment: Latitude, Longitude `LatLon`
dataSources object
Field	Description
`geometry` object	Information about the geometric shape of the result. Only present if `type == Geography`. `geometry` object
geometry
Field	Description
`id` string	Pass this as `geometryId` to the Additional Data service to fetch geometry information for this result.
LatLon
Field	Description
`lat` float	Latitude. min/max: -90 to +90 Reference: Latitude, Longitude and Coordinate System Grids
`lon` float	Longitude. min/max: -180 to +180 Reference: Latitude, Longitude and Coordinate System Grids

Response codes

The following data table contains HTTP response codes signifying successful and failed requests to an API server.

Successful and failed response codes
Code	Meaning & possible causes
`200`	OK: The search successfully returned zero or more results.
`400`	Bad Request: One or more parameters were incorrectly specified.
`403`	Forbidden: Possible causes include: Service requires SSL Not authorized Rate or volume limit exceeded Unknown referer
`405`	Method Not Allowed: The HTTPS method (`GET`, `POST`, etc.) is not supported for this request.
`404/596`	Not Found: The HTTPS request method (`GET`, `POST`, etc.) or path is incorrect.
`429`	Too Many Requests: The API Key is over QPS (Queries per second).
`5xx`	Server Error: The service was unable to process your request. Contact support to resolve the issue.

Response headers

The following table contains response headers sent back from an API server.

Header	Description
Access-Control-Allow-Origin	Ensures that clients implementing the CORS security model are able to access the response from this service. Value: An asterisk `*` that signifies access to the TomTom API using the Access-Control-Allow-Origin (ACAO) header in its response indicating which origin sites are allowed.
Content-Type	Indicates the format of the response, as chosen by the client. Format: `type/subtype; charset=utf-8` Value: type/subtype is one of: `application/json` `text/javascript` `text/xml`
Content-Encoding	If requested by the client, the Search service applies gzip compression to the responses with the Accept-Encoding header. Value: `gzip`
Tracking-ID	An identifier for the request. If the Tracking-ID header was specified, it is replicated in the response. Otherwise, it is generated automatically by the service. It is only meant to be used for support and does not involve tracking of you or your users in any form. Value: An `identifier` for the request.

Error response

The error response content type depends on the ext parameter.

Error response content type - JSON
1{
"errorText":"Error parsing 'language': Language tag 'en-ES' not supported",
"detailedError":{
  "code":"BadRequest",
  "message":"Error parsing 'language': Language tag 'en-ES' not supported",
  "target":"language"
  },
"httpStatusCode":"400"
9}

Error response content type - XML
1<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
2<response>
3  <errorText>Error parsing 'language': Language tag 'en-ES' not supported</errorText>
4  <detailedError>
5    <code>BadRequest</code>
6    <message>Error parsing 'language': Language tag 'en-ES' not supported</message>
7    <target>language</target>
8  </detailedError>
9  <httpStatusCode>400</httpStatusCode>
10</response>

Error response fields

Primary fields
Field	Description
`errorText` string	A human-readable description of the error.
`detailedError` object	Detailed information about the error. `detailedError` object
`httpStatusCode` integer	HTTP response codes signifying failed requests to an API server.
detailedError object
Field	Description
`code` string	One of a server-defined set of error codes.
`message` string	A human-readable description of the error code. It is intended as an aid to developers and is not suitable for exposure to end users.
`target` string	Optional. Target of the particular error. Value: The name of the request parameter causing the error.

Additional information

Indexes abbreviation values

In some cases, a list of indexes can be passed as a parameter to query, which should be listed with their abbreviations, available values are:

Geo = Geographies - areas on map which represent administrative divison of a land i.e., country, state, city.
PAD = Point Addresses - points on a map where a specific address with a street name and number can be found in the index, i.e., Soquel Dr 2501.
Addr = Address ranges - for some streets there are address points that are interpolated from the beginning and end of the street, those points are represented as address ranges.
Str = Streets - representation of streets on the map.
XStr = Cross Streets (intersections) - representations of junctions; places where two streets intersect.