Google Maps Platform beginner's guide — what it is, how it works, when to use it
With any new API, the hardest part is figuring out what it actually does and where it's useful. Let's start there.
What is Google Maps Platform?
The industry-standard maps suite — Directions, Places, Geocoding, Street View and more.
Google Maps Platform is the industry-leading suite for anything maps. Dozens of APIs — Directions, Distance Matrix, Geocoding, Places, Street View, Elevation, Roads. Expensive vs Mapbox/Here but the most accurate — especially for Places and travel times.
Who it's for
- Delivery and mobility apps
- Real-estate platforms
- Tourism
- Large products where accuracy pays for itself
A first example
Here is the shortest path to seeing something work:
curl "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/geocode/json?address=Dizengoff+99,Tel+Aviv&key=YOUR_KEY"When to use it, when not to
Google Maps Platform is a great fit for most of what it covers, but not every case. If you only need small, static data once or twice, it may be simpler to download and cache locally. For real products that need fresh data, the API is the way.