{
 "categories": [
  "gis",
  "platform",
  "developer-tools"
 ],
 "deployment": "saas",
 "evidence": [
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "homepage",
   "note": "Google presents Google Maps Platform as Maps, Routes, and Places APIs and SDKs for web and mobile, including Maps JavaScript API, Maps SDK for Android, and Maps SDK for iOS.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "license",
   "note": "Setup requires a billing-enabled Cloud project. Google documents a Cloud trial credit and per-SKU monthly free usage. Maps Demo Key is for prototyping, not production.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "platforms",
   "note": "The developer home lists web (Maps JavaScript API, React, Flutter web) plus native Android and iOS SDKs.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.exists",
   "note": "Google documents enabling Maps, Routes, and Places backend APIs on a Cloud project and authenticating requests with an API key.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.kinds[0]",
   "note": "Places API (New) and Routes API are HTTPS services. Requests must include an API key, preferably over HTTPS.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/get-api-key",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.auth[0]",
   "note": "An API key created in Cloud Console Credentials authenticates Maps Platform requests and ties usage to the billed project.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.auth[1]",
   "note": "Maps Grounding Lite documents OAuth client IDs as an alternative to an API key, with scope https://www.googleapis.com/auth/maps-platform.mapstools. Places and Routes setup pages also mention configuring OAuth.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.coverage",
   "note": "The enable list covers Maps, Routes, Places, Geocoding, Roads, and related backends. Each SKU is billed and quota-limited, so coverage of the platform is broad but not a single unrestricted surface. Places API (New) versus Legacy is dated on the migration watch page.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.api.docs",
   "note": "Opened as Google's current Maps Platform getting-started guide, last updated 2026-09-10.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.sdk.exists",
   "note": "Google documents official Maps JavaScript API, Maps SDK for Android, and Maps SDK for iOS on the platform home.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.sdk.languages[0]",
   "note": "Maps JavaScript API is the documented web SDK, including React and Flutter web samples.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.sdk.languages[1]",
   "note": "Maps SDK for Android is documented with Jetpack Compose samples.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.sdk.languages[2]",
   "note": "Maps SDK for iOS is documented with SwiftUI samples.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.mcp.first_party",
   "note": "Google documents a hosted Maps Grounding Lite MCP at https://mapstools.googleapis.com/mcp over Streamable HTTP. Page last updated 2026-09-10.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.data_access.export[0]",
   "note": "Grounding Lite and the Places/Routes APIs return structured JSON, including Place IDs, coordinates, Maps links, weather, and route distance or duration.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "modalities.agent_docs.llms_txt",
   "note": "https://developers.google.com/maps/llms.txt returned 404 on 2026-09-17.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/llms.txt",
   "tier": "scraped"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "verdict.scores.api",
   "note": "Maps, Routes, and Places are documented, billed, and SDK-backed. Required billing, per-SKU quotas, and key restrictions keep the path at 8 rather than unusually complete.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "verdict.scores.mcp",
   "note": "Official Grounding Lite MCP has three production tools plus experimental resolve APIs, 300 QPM quotas, no turn-by-turn routing, and LLM-training restrictions. That is useful official coverage, not the full platform.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "freshness.watch[0].url",
   "note": "Opened and verified as Google's current Maps Grounding Lite overview, including tools, auth, quotas, billing, and attribution rules. Last updated 2026-09-10.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "freshness.watch[1].url",
   "note": "Opened and verified as the current MCP tool reference for search_places, lookup_weather, compute_routes, resolve_names, and resolve_maps_urls.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite/reference/mcp",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "freshness.watch[2].url",
   "note": "Opened and verified as the current Maps Platform getting-started guide.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "freshness.watch[3].url",
   "note": "Opened and verified as the current Google Maps Platform developer home.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
   "tier": "declared"
  },
  {
   "date": "2026-09-17",
   "fact": "freshness.watch[4].url",
   "note": "Opened and verified as Google's current Places API (New) versus Places API (Legacy) migration overview, including separate enablement, SKUs, JSON-only responses, and field masks. Last updated 2026-09-10.",
   "source": "https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/migrate-overview",
   "tier": "declared"
  }
 ],
 "freshness": {
  "last_verified": "2026-09-17",
  "volatility": "high",
  "watch": [
   {
    "type": "mcp",
    "url": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite"
   },
   {
    "type": "mcp",
    "url": "https://developers.google.com/maps/ai/grounding-lite/reference/mcp"
   },
   {
    "type": "docs",
    "url": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started"
   },
   {
    "type": "docs",
    "url": "https://developers.google.com/maps"
   },
   {
    "type": "docs",
    "url": "https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/migrate-overview"
   }
  ]
 },
 "homepage": "https://developers.google.com/maps",
 "id": "google-maps-platform",
 "license": "commercial",
 "modalities": {
  "agent_docs": {
   "llms_txt": false
  },
  "api": {
   "auth": [
    "api-key",
    "oauth2"
   ],
   "coverage": "partial",
   "docs": "https://developers.google.com/maps/get-started",
   "exists": true,
   "kinds": [
    "rest"
   ]
  },
  "cli": {
   "exists": "unknown"
  },
  "computer_use": {
   "issues": [],
   "viability": "unknown"
  },
  "data_access": {
   "export": [
    "json"
   ],
   "import": []
  },
  "extensibility": {
   "scripting": [],
   "webhooks": "unknown"
  },
  "integrations": {
   "make": "unknown",
   "n8n": "unknown",
   "power_automate": "unknown",
   "zapier": "unknown"
  },
  "mcp": {
   "first_party": true,
   "third_party": [],
   "verdict": "official"
  },
  "rpa": {
   "drivability": "unknown",
   "notes": "No repeatable UI probe was run. Google Maps Platform REST APIs, official SDKs, and Maps Grounding Lite MCP cover geospatial queries without browser control of the consumer Maps app.\n",
   "ui_stack": [
    "web-dom"
   ],
   "vendor_support": []
  },
  "sdk": {
   "exists": true,
   "languages": [
    "javascript",
    "java",
    "swift"
   ],
   "official": true
  }
 },
 "name": "Google Maps Platform",
 "platforms": [
  "web",
  "ios",
  "android"
 ],
 "related": {
  "alternatives": [
   "esri-arcgis-pro",
   "qgis"
  ],
  "our_products": []
 },
 "schema_version": 1,
 "score_version": 1,
 "status": "active",
 "vendor": "Google",
 "verdict": {
  "best_path": "api",
  "scores": {
   "api": 8,
   "cli": null,
   "computer_use": null,
   "integrations": null,
   "mcp": 7,
   "overall": 8,
   "rpa": null
  },
  "summary": "Google Maps Platform is automatable today through the Maps, Routes, and Places APIs and official SDKs. A billing-enabled Cloud project, enabled APIs or SDKs, and an API key are required. Places API (New) is a separately enabled Cloud API from Places API (Legacy), with different SKUs, JSON-only responses, and required field masks; Google recommends a separate API key if both versions stay enabled. Places API (New) and Routes API authenticate with an API key over HTTPS; Grounding Lite also accepts X-Goog-Api-Key or OAuth with scope https://www.googleapis.com/auth/maps-platform.mapstools. A first-party Maps Grounding Lite MCP at https://mapstools.googleapis.com/mcp over Streamable HTTP exposes search_places, lookup_weather, and compute_routes, plus experimental resolve_names and resolve_maps_urls. It does not provide step-by-step routing, real-time traffic, or navigation. Quotas include 300 queries per minute per project for the three main tools. Grounding Lite is a billed SKU and is subject to Maps attribution rules and a ban on using Maps content to train or improve the connected LLM. This record excludes the consumer Google Maps app, Esri ArcGIS Pro, QGIS, and Google Cloud infrastructure. Computer-use viability is unassessed. API scores 8 and is the best path because MCP coverage is a narrow grounding subset of the platform.\n"
 }
}