Google Maps API pricing 2026: free caps and cost per SKU

How does Google Maps API pricing work in 2026?

Every Google Maps Platform service is split into SKUs, and each SKU has a price per 1,000 billable events. On March 1, 2025, Google replaced the $200 monthly credit with a free monthly cap for each SKU. Essentials SKUs get 10,000 free events, Pro SKUs 5,000 and Enterprise SKUs 1,000. Some SKUs, such as Maps Embed and the mobile Maps SDKs, are free without limit.

Above the cap, prices fall in steps as monthly volume grows, down to a lowest tier above 5 million events. Usage counts across every project on the same billing account. You need a Cloud project with billing turned on and an API key, even for free use. New Google Cloud customers can get a $300 trial credit for 90 days.

How much does each Google Maps API cost?

The table shows the SKUs most apps and agents use. Prices are per 1,000 events and come from Google’s global price list. Prices checked November 10, 2026.

Which Places fields raise the price of a request?

Place Details, Text Search and Nearby Search bill at the highest SKU among the fields you request. One extra field can move a whole request up a price band. This is the main reason Places bills jump.

• IDs only: Place Details and Text Search requests that return only place IDs are free without limit.
• Name and address: in a web service Text Search request, asking for displayName or formattedAddress bills Text Search Pro, $32 per 1,000.
• Rating, phone, website or opening hours: these bill the Enterprise SKU, $35 per 1,000 for Text Search and $20 for Place Details.
• Reviews, editorial summaries and amenities such as outdoor seating: these bill Enterprise + Atmosphere, $40 per 1,000 for Text Search and $25 for Place Details.
• Ending an Autocomplete session with a Place Details call that asks for any Pro or higher field bills that call at Place Details Enterprise + Atmosphere.

What does the Google Maps API cost at 1,000 and 100,000 requests a month?

At 1,000 requests a month, every SKU in the table stays inside its free cap, so the bill is $0. At 100,000, you pay for everything above the cap. Each figure is for one SKU on its own, on pay-as-you-go prices.

• Subscriptions can cut this. Starter costs $100 a month for 50,000 combined Dynamic Maps and Geocoding calls. Essentials costs $275 for 100,000 calls across 20 SKUs. Pro costs $1,200 for 250,000 calls across 36 SKUs, including Text Search Pro.
• On a subscription, calls above the limit are billed at pay-as-you-go prices for the rest of the month. Google does not block them. Enterprise SKUs are not part of any subscription.

What are the catches in Google Maps Platform pricing?

The price list is long. These rules matter as much as the rates.

• Free caps apply per SKU and do not pool. A spare Geocoding allowance does not cover Text Search.
• Google’s terms bar using Places, Geocoding, Directions or Routes content with a non-Google map.
• Latitude and longitude from Places and Routes may be cached for at most 30 days. Geocoding results may be kept longer only to support the user-facing feature that asked for them. Place IDs may be cached.
• Places API (Legacy), Directions (Legacy) and Distance Matrix (Legacy) still have prices, but Google has moved them to Legacy status.
• Usage from every project on one billing account counts toward the same volume tiers.

Can an AI agent get Google Maps data through Locus Pro?

Not from the official Google Maps Platform APIs. Locus Pro has no Google Maps Platform endpoints. Its catalog has other ways to do the same jobs, charged per call to one prepaid credit balance. Catalog checked November 10, 2026.

Read the status column. The Serper endpoints are listings published by the seller, which Locus has not reviewed. The Google place details endpoint is built over google.com, so it can break when the site changes, and the site’s terms may restrict automated access. Mapbox is a known vendor with its own terms.

• Mapbox vs Google Maps pricing
• Browse the tool catalog

When is Google Maps Platform the better fit?

If your app shows a map, or needs Google’s licensed place data and support, use Google Maps Platform. Below the free caps it costs nothing, and at volume a Google subscription can cut a Places bill by more than half.

Locus Pro fits an agent that needs a few place lookups or geocodes as part of a larger task, without a Cloud project, billing account and API key. The data comes from a different source under different terms, so check that it fits your use before you rely on it.

Which Google Maps option should you choose?

Start from what you show users, then from your monthly volume.

• A product that displays maps and places to users: Google Maps Platform, with field masks kept to what you show.
• Steady volume above the free caps: price a Google subscription before paying list rates.
• Geocoding and routing without Google’s map-display rules: compare Mapbox.
• An agent that looks up a handful of businesses or addresses next to other paid tools: Locus Pro.