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Overview of Urbi search APIs

Use Urbi search APIs to accomplish tasks related to finding objects on the map or collecting information about objects from the Urbi directory.

To determine object coordinates by its address or vice versa, use Geocoder API. Send requests to this API in scenarios when you need to determine an object address by clicking a map. Or the other way round: to show a known address on the map.


You can collect information about an object of interest or select objects by any criteria using Places API. Objects include companies, buildings, transport stops, sights, parking, intersections, and more.

Places API provides access to the full object directory that Urbi collects and uses in its own solutions. Send requests to this API when you need to create a set of objects by specific criteria and handle information on them.

You can implement the same mechanism of searching and displaying objects on the map as in Urbi:


If you want to implement a suggester that will complete user input in a search field, Suggest API is the right tool. Use it in web interfaces and mobile screens to help users select a proper address or an object on the city map faster.

For example, in the Urbi interface, the suggester works as follows:


When you need to determine which category an object belongs to, use Categories API. For example, you can learn which type of attractions are available in Dubai or what the type of the "H20" facility is: a restaurant, a cafe, or a cafeteria.

To get information about a region on the map, use Regions API. Requests to this API can help you determine which region a point on the map belongs to, get a list of settlements in the region, and also get the region ID to make other search requests more specific.

You can also display objects as markers on the map using Markers API.

For detailed examples of requests and parameter references, see the documentation of each search API.

FAQ​

How to get started with search APIs?​

To work with the API, you need to get an access key:

  1. Sign in to the Platform Manager.
  2. Create a demo key or purchase a subscription to use the APIs.
  3. Study the examples of requests and responses in the documentation for the required API.

How is API usage cost calculated?​

The cost of using search APIs is calculated by the number of API requests. In addition, some information about objects (for example, a company trade license) is only available on demand and for an extra cost. See the list of methods and fields with separate pricing in the documentation for Places API, Geocoder API, and Suggest API.

Can I use search APIs for free?​

You can get a demo access key to test search APIs for one month. Using a demo key, you can get a maximum of 5 pages of response results with 10 objects on each page.

How to track actual API resource usage?​

You can track the progress of limit consumption by services and request distribution statistics in the Platform Manager. For more details, see the Statistics section.

How to manage API resource consumption?​

To avoid premature exhaustion of limits, you can restrict the use of API resources by your applications. In the Platform Manager personal account, several ways to configure restrictions are available:

  • Set limits on requests to specific services for all API keys in the subscription or for individual keys. Exceeding the limits will block product usage: API requests will return an error.
  • Configure notifications to be sent when approaching limits.

For more details, see the Access Key Management section.

What criteria can I use to search for objects in the directory?​

With the Places API, you can find a specific object or a list of objects by arbitrary text query, coordinates, address, phone number, categories, and other object parameters (for example, by the availability of delivery in a food establishment). See the main scenarios in the Examples section.

Who can I limit the search area?​

When searching, you can specify a specific address down to the house and entrance number, search in a wider area (district, city, region, country), or set an arbitrary area (for example, a search radius around a point).

When searching, you can specify an administrative division (region, city, district, and more), a specific address, or set a custom search area by coordinates (for example, a radius around a point on the map, a rectangle, or an arbitrary area). For more details, see the Examples section.

What company data can I get?​

With the search APIs, you can get basic information about an organization: name, address, working hours, coordinates on the map, review statistics, and more. Some data is available for an additional fee and is not available for a demo key: contact information, number of employees, trade license, etc. See the full list of available data and conditions for obtaining it in the documentation for the required API.

How often is the data in the directory updated?​

The data in the Urbi directory is updated every month and becomes available in your projects simultaneously with Urbi products.

Can I add my own objects or addresses to the directory?​

Editing the Urbi directory is only possible through internal processes of the Urbi company.

I could not find an answer to my question​

Use the documentation search or send an email to api@2gis.ru.