A Radar Maps alternative with a free tier

Radar sells geofencing and location tracking, and a maps platform with geocoding, address autocomplete, IP geocoding, and routing. Its maps APIs start at $0.50 per 1,000 calls on an annual contract, with no free tier. Mapricot's APIs cost $0.10 per 1,000 requests after 250,000 free every 30 days, paid as you go, and its map tiles are free.

Start for free Compare prices

Equivalent APIs

Each Mapricot API next to the Radar product that does the same job. Mapricot's API isn't compatible with any other provider's, so switching means changing requests and response handling.

What you need
Mapricot
Radar

Forward geocoding

Mapricot GET /v1/search
Radar Forward geocode

Reverse geocoding

Mapricot GET /v1/reverse
Radar Reverse geocode

Autocomplete

Mapricot GET /v1/autocomplete
Radar Autocomplete

Nearby places by category

Mapricot GET /v1/nearby
Radar Search places, by chain or category

Place lookup by ID

Mapricot GET /v1/places/{id}
Radar Not listed

Driving, cycling, and walking routes

Mapricot POST /v1/route
Radar Directions

IP geolocation

Mapricot GET /v1/ip/{ip}
Radar IP geocode, for the caller's own IP only

Vector map tiles

Mapricot Free, no API key, for MapLibre
Radar Radar Maps, with a publishable key

Radar products, from its documentation, checked October 23, 2026.

When to choose each

Where Mapricot is stronger

  • A free tier: 250,000 requests every 30 days, usable in production. Radar has no free tier.
  • Pay as you go from prepaid credit, with no annual contract or call with sales.
  • IP lookups for any address. Radar's IP geocode locates only the IP that calls it.
  • Map tiles that are free and need no key.

Where Radar is stronger

  • Geofencing, trip tracking, and mobile SDKs that track location in the background.
  • Address validation, route optimization, route matching, and distance matrices.
  • Places search by chain, such as every Starbucks near a point.

Radar pricing

Radar sells annual contracts with a monthly quota, priced by usage. Core Maps, which covers geocoding, IP geocoding, address autocomplete, static maps, distance, directions, and matrices, starts at $0.50 per 1,000 calls. Premium Maps, with address validation, places search, route optimization, and satellite maps, starts at $2.00 per 1,000. There's no free tier.

What you pay for
Radar

Geocoding

$0.50 per 1,000 calls, in Core Maps

Places and autocomplete

Autocomplete: $0.50 per 1,000, in Core Maps. Places search: $2.00 per 1,000, in Premium Maps

Routing

Directions and distance: $0.50 per 1,000, in Core Maps. Matrices by element

IP geolocation

$0.50 per 1,000, in Core Maps, for the caller's own IP

These are starting prices: Radar sets each contract's rate from its usage. A matrix is billed for each pair of origin and destination. Source: Radar pricing, last checked October 23, 2026. Mapricot charges $0.10 per 1,000 requests after 250,000 free every 30 days, shared by every API, and its map tiles are free with no key.

Differences to plan for

  • Requests: Radar takes the key, as it is, in the Authorization header, with publishable keys for calls from apps and pages. Mapricot takes it as Authorization: Bearer, with browser keys that work only from your sites. Radar's forward geocode takes query, and Mapricot's search takes q.
  • Reverse geocoding: Radar takes coordinates=latitude,longitude. Mapricot takes lat and lon separately.
  • Routes: Mapricot returns the distance, travel time, and a line for driving, walking, or cycling through up to 20 stops. It doesn't return turn-by-turn instructions, matrices, or traffic.
  • Polylines: Mapricot's route line is a polyline with six decimal places, so decode with precision 6. See decoding a route polyline.

Start with 250,000 free requests

Sign in with your email, create an API key, and make your first request in a few minutes. No credit card required.

Start for free Read the docs