Place IDs

Select platform: Android iOS JavaScript Web Service

Place IDs uniquely identify a place in the Google Places database and on Google Maps. Place IDs are accepted in requests to the following Maps APIs:

  • Retrieving an address for a Place ID in the Geocoding API web service and Geocoding Service, Maps JavaScript API.
  • Specifying origin, destination and intermediate waypoints in the Routes API and Directions API web service and Directions Service, Maps JavaScript API.
  • Specifying origins and destinations in the Routes API and Distance Matrix API web service and Distance Matrix Service, Maps JavaScript API.
  • Retrieving Place Details in Places API web service, Places SDK for Android, Places SDK for iOS, and Places Library.
  • Using Place ID parameters in Maps Embed API.
  • Retrieving search queries in Maps URLs.
  • Displaying speed limits in Roads API.
  • Finding and styling boundary polygons in data-driven styling for boundaries.

Find the ID of a particular place

Are you looking for the place ID of a specific place? Use the place ID finder below to search for a place and get its ID:

Alternatively, you can view the place ID finder with its code in the Maps JavaScript API documentation.

Overview

A place ID is a textual identifier that uniquely identifies a place. The length of the identifier may vary (there is no maximum length for Place IDs). Examples:

  • ChIJgUbEo8cfqokR5lP9_Wh_DaM
  • GhIJQWDl0CIeQUARxks3icF8U8A
  • EicxMyBNYXJrZXQgU3QsIFdpbG1pbmd0b24sIE5DIDI4NDAxLCBVU0EiGhIYChQKEgnRTo6ixx-qiRHo_bbmkCm7ZRAN
  • EicxMyBNYXJrZXQgU3QsIFdpbG1pbmd0b24sIE5DIDI4NDAxLCBVU0E
  • IhoSGAoUChIJ0U6OoscfqokR6P225pApu2UQDQ

Place IDs are available for most locations, including businesses, landmarks, parks, and intersections. It is possible for the same place or location to have multiple different place IDs. Place IDs may change over time.

You can use the same place ID across the Places API and a number of Google Maps Platform APIs. For example, you can use the same place ID to reference a place in the Places API, the Maps JavaScript API, the Geocoding API, the Maps Embed API and the Roads API.

Retrieve place details using the place ID

A common way of using place IDs is to search for a place (using the Places API or the Places library in the Maps JavaScript API, for example) then use the returned place ID to retrieve place details. You can store the place ID and use it to retrieve the same place details later. Read about saving place IDs below.

Example using the Places library in the Maps JavaScript API

To use a place ID in your JavaScript app, you must first find the ID, which is available in the PlaceResult returned by a Place Search, or by getPlace() in the Place Autocomplete service. Then you can use the place ID to look up place details.

var map;

function initialize() {
  // Create a map centered in Pyrmont, Sydney (Australia).
  map = new google.maps.Map(document.getElementById('map'), {
    center: {lat: -33.8666, lng: 151.1958},
    zoom: 15
  });

  // Search for Google's office in Australia.
  var request = {
    location: map.getCenter(),
    radius: '500',
    query: 'Google Sydney'
  };

  var service = new google.maps.places.PlacesService(map);
  service.textSearch(request, callback);
}

// Checks that the PlacesServiceStatus is OK, and adds a marker
// using the place ID and location from the PlacesService.
function callback(results, status) {
  if (status == google.maps.places.PlacesServiceStatus.OK) {
    var marker = new google.maps.Marker({
      map: map,
      place: {
        placeId: results[0].place_id,
        location: results[0].geometry.location
      }
    });
  }
}

google.maps.event.addDomListener(window, 'load', initialize);

Save place IDs for later use

Place IDs are exempt from the caching restrictions stated in Section 3.2.3(b) of the Google Maps Platform Terms of Service. You can therefore store place ID values for later use.

Refreshing stored place IDs

We recommend refreshing place IDs if they are more than 12 months old. You can refresh Place IDs at no charge, by making a Place Details request, specifying only the place_id field in the fields parameter. This call triggers the Places Details - ID Refresh SKU.

This request might also return NOT_FOUND status code. One strategy is to store the original request that returned each place ID. If a place ID becomes invalid, you can re-issue that request to get fresh results. These results may or may not include the original place. However, this request is chargeable.

Error codes when using place IDs

The INVALID_REQUEST status code indicates that the specified place ID is not valid. INVALID_REQUEST may be returned when the place ID has been truncated or otherwise modified, and is no longer correct.

The NOT_FOUND status code indicates that the specified place ID is obsolete. A place ID may become obsolete if a business closes or moves to a new location. Place IDs may change due to updates on the Google Maps database. In such cases, a place may receive a new place ID, and the old ID returns a NOT_FOUND response.

In particular, some types of place IDs may sometimes cause a NOT_FOUND response, or the API may return a different place ID in the response. These place ID types include:

  • Street addresses that do not exist in Google Maps as precise addresses, but are inferred from a range of addresses.
  • Segments of a long route, where the request also specifies a city or locality.
  • Intersections.
  • Places with an address component of type subpremise.

These IDs often take the form of a long string (there is no maximum length for Place IDs). For example:

EpID4LC14LC_4LCo4LCv4LGN4LCo4LCX4LCw4LGNIC0g4LC44LGI4LCm4LGN4LCs4LC-4LCm4LGNIOCwsOCxi-CwoeCxjeCwoeCxgSAmIOCwteCwv-CwqOCwr-CxjSDgsKjgsJfgsLDgsY0g4LCu4LGG4LCv4LC_4LCo4LGNIOCwsOCxi-CwoeCxjeCwoeCxgSwg4LC14LC_4LCo4LCv4LGNIOCwqOCwl-CwsOCxjSDgsJXgsL7gsLLgsKjgsYAsIOCwsuCwleCxjeCwt-CxjeCwruCwv-CwqOCwl-CwsOCxjSDgsJXgsL7gsLLgsKjgsYAsIOCwuOCwsOCxguCwsOCxjSDgsKjgsJfgsLDgsY0g4LC14LGG4LC44LGN4LCf4LGNLCDgsLjgsK_gsYDgsKbgsL7gsKzgsL7gsKbgsY0sIOCwueCxiOCwpuCwsOCwvuCwrOCwvuCwpuCxjSwg4LCk4LGG4LCy4LCC4LCX4LC-4LCjIDUwMDA1OSwg4LCt4LC-4LCw4LCk4LCm4LGH4LC24LCCImYiZAoUChIJ31l5uGWYyzsR9zY2qk9lDiASFAoSCd9ZebhlmMs7Efc2NqpPZQ4gGhQKEglDz61OZpjLOxHgDJCFY-o1qBoUChIJi37TW2-YyzsRr_uv50r7tdEiCg1MwFcKFS_dyy4