OpenStreetMap

aid: openstreetmap
name: OpenStreetMap
description: 'OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a collaborative project to create a free, editable map of the world.
  The OSM ecosystem exposes a family of public REST APIs: the main editing API (v0.6) for CRUD operations
  on map data, the Overpass API for complex read-only geospatial queries, and the Nominatim API for forward
  and reverse geocoding. Map data is licensed under the Open Database License (ODbL) 1.0 and tile imagery
  under CC BY-SA 2.0.'
type: Index
position: Consumer
access: 3rd-Party
image: https://kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
tags:
  - Geospatial
  - Mapping
  - Open Data
  - Geocoding
  - Editing
created: '2026-03-18'
modified: '2026-05-04'
url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/apis.yml
specificationVersion: '0.19'
apis:
  - aid: openstreetmap:main-api
    name: OpenStreetMap Main Editing API v0.6
    description: The OpenStreetMap main API v0.6 provides CRUD operations for map data editing including
      nodes, ways, relations, changesets, and notes. Requires OAuth 2.0 authentication for write operations.
      Maximum bounding box query area is 0.25 square degrees. Returns XML or JSON. Intended for editing,
      not high-volume read access.
    humanURL: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/API_v0.6
    baseURL: https://api.openstreetmap.org/api/0.6
    tags:
      - Geospatial
      - Mapping
      - Open Data
      - REST
      - Editing
    properties:
      - type: Documentation
        url: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/API_v0.6
      - type: RateLimits
        url: https://operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/api/
      - type: OpenAPI
        url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/openapi/openstreetmap-main-openapi.yml
      - type: JSONSchema
        url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/json-schema/openstreetmap-node-schema.json
      - type: JSONLDContext
        url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/json-ld/openstreetmap-context.jsonld
  - aid: openstreetmap:overpass-api
    name: OpenStreetMap Overpass API
    description: 'The Overpass API is a read-only database engine for complex geospatial queries against
      the OSM dataset. Accepts Overpass QL or XML queries and returns results in XML, JSON, GeoJSON, or
      CSV. Safe usage: under 10,000 queries/day and under 1 GB/day. Python SDKs include overpass, overpy,
      and OSMPythonTools; JavaScript SDKs include query-overpass and overpass-ts.'
    humanURL: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Overpass_API
    baseURL: https://overpass-api.de/api
    tags:
      - Geospatial
      - Mapping
      - Open Data
      - XML
      - Overpass
    properties:
      - type: Documentation
        url: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Overpass_API
      - type: Reference
        url: https://dev.overpass-api.de/overpass-doc/en/
      - type: DeveloperTools
        url: https://overpass-turbo.eu/
  - aid: openstreetmap:nominatim-api
    name: OpenStreetMap Nominatim Geocoding API
    description: Nominatim is the OpenStreetMap geocoding API providing search (forward geocoding), reverse
      geocoding, and address lookup for OSM objects. Rate limit is 1 request/second for the public instance.
      Requires valid User-Agent header. Open source under GNU GPL v3; self-hosted deployment available
      for higher volume needs.
    humanURL: https://nominatim.org/release-docs/latest/api/Overview/
    baseURL: https://nominatim.openstreetmap.org
    tags:
      - Geospatial
      - Mapping
      - Geocoding
      - Open Data
    properties:
      - type: Documentation
        url: https://nominatim.org/release-docs/latest/api/Overview/
      - type: RateLimits
        url: https://operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/nominatim/
      - type: OpenAPI
        url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/openapi/openstreetmap-nominatim-openapi.yml
common:
  - url: https://www.openstreetmap.org/
    name: OpenStreetMap
    type: Website
  - url: https://www.openstreetmap.org/
    name: OSM Map
    type: Portal
  - url: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/API
    name: API Documentation
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/API_v0.6
    name: API v0.6 Reference
    type: Reference
  - url: https://operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/api/
    name: API Usage Policy and Rate Limits
    type: RateLimits
  - url: https://osmfoundation.org/wiki/Terms_of_Use
    name: Terms of Use
    type: TermsOfService
  - url: https://osmfoundation.org/wiki/Privacy_Policy
    name: Privacy Policy
    type: PrivacyPolicy
  - url: https://blog.openstreetmap.org/
    name: OSM Blog
    type: Blog
  - url: https://github.com/openstreetmap
    name: GitHub Organization
    type: GitHubOrganization
  - url: https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright
    name: Copyright and License
    type: License
  - url: https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/
    name: ODbL 1.0 (Map Data)
    type: License
  - url: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Main_Page
    name: OSM Wiki
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://community.openstreetmap.org/
    name: OSM Community Forum
    type: Forum
  - url: https://help.openstreetmap.org/
    name: Help
    type: Support
  - url: https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright
    name: OAuth 2.0 Authentication
    type: Authentication
  - url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/openapi/openstreetmap-main-openapi.yml
    name: OSM Main API OpenAPI
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/openapi/openstreetmap-nominatim-openapi.yml
    name: Nominatim OpenAPI
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/json-schema/openstreetmap-node-schema.json
    name: OSM Node JSON Schema
    type: JSONSchema
  - url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/openstreetmap/refs/heads/main/json-ld/openstreetmap-context.jsonld
    name: OSM JSON-LD Context
    type: JSONLDContext
  - type: Features
    data:
      - Free open OSM data under ODbL license
      - Public API (osm.org) free for personal/educational use
      - AUP requires self-hosting or 3rd-party for production / heavy use
      - 'Tile server: 2 req/sec/IP cap'
      - 'Nominatim: 1 req/sec/IP cap'
      - 'Overpass API: 2 concurrent/IP cap'
      - 'Self-hosting: osm2pgsql + Nominatim + tile renderer (Tilemaker, Mapnik)'
      - 'Third-party providers: Mapbox, MapTiler, Geoapify, Stadia Maps, TomTom'
      - Editing API for contributing data (free for verified users)
      - Planet downloads (XML or PBF)
      - Diff replication (minutely/hourly/daily)
      - Vector tiles via OpenMapTiles, Shortbread, Versatiles
      - Funded by OpenStreetMap Foundation (OSMF) donations + corporate sponsors
      - Data updated continuously by ~10K daily contributors
      - 'Foundation policy: https://operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/'
      - 'Wiki: wiki.openstreetmap.org'
    sources:
      - https://www.openstreetmap.org/
      - https://operations.osmfoundation.org/policies/api/
    updated: '2026-05-04'
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: [email protected]