What it does
Foursquare Places API exposes point-of-interest search and place-data endpoints for location-aware applications. A Place Search request can combine a query such as a business name or category with a location hint, including coordinates and radius, a geocodable locality, or a rectangular area. Developers create a project and service API key in the Developer Console before calling the endpoints.
Anchor discovery to a real location
Start in the Developer Console by creating a project and service API key. For a nearby-place feature, send a Place Search request with a term such as a venue type and an explicit location. The reference documents latitude and longitude with an optional radius, a locality passed through near, or a pair of northeast and southwest coordinates for a rectangular search. Category filters can narrow the results further. The API returns place records that an application can use to label a map, build a local search interface, or connect a location to another workflow.
The pricing page classifies Places API use as pay-as-you-go and lists a monthly free band for Pro calls, while Premium fields and endpoints are billed separately. The Getting Started guide also notes that Premium calls require billing and credits. Check the requested fields before building a cost estimate, because the same search or details endpoint can move into the Premium tier when premium fields are requested.
Pay-as-you-go and sandbox usage has a notable data-retention constraint: the usage guidelines allow caching place IDs and photo IDs but do not permit caching other Places API attributes for those account types. That affects offline search, local indexing, and synchronization designs, so plan to retrieve current attributes when the application needs them instead of building a persistent copy of the returned records.
Strengths
- Place Search supports text queries with coordinate-radius, locality, or rectangular geographic inputs.
- The documentation explains service-key setup and project-based attribution for API calls.
- The pricing page distinguishes Pro and Premium endpoints and fields rather than presenting one rate for every request.
Watch out for
- Pay-as-you-go and sandbox customers may cache place IDs and photo IDs, but not other Places API attributes.
- Requests using Premium endpoints or fields require billing and credits.
Best for
- Adding nearby-place search or location-aware discovery to an application.
- Filtering point-of-interest results by locality, coordinates, category, or venue query.
Sources
- Places API | Global POI Data for Developers | Foursquare (Oct 25, 2026)
- Getting Started (Oct 25, 2026)
- Place Search (Oct 25, 2026)
- Foursquare Pricing | Plans for Developers & Marketers (Oct 25, 2026)
- Usage Guidelines (Oct 25, 2026)