# Photon Geocoder Scraper (`parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper`) Actor

Geocode place names into coordinates or reverse geocode coordinates into addresses using the free Photon API. Returns each match as a flat row with latitude, longitude, and full address.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, Lead generation, Automation
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### Photon Geocoder Scraper

**Convert addresses to coordinates and coordinates to addresses with the free Photon geocoder, up to a million results per run.** Each match returns its latitude, longitude, full address, place type, and bounding box. No API key required. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Google's Geocoding API charges per request and needs a billing account. This Actor calls the public Photon API, built on OpenStreetMap data, to geocode place names or reverse geocode coordinates. You get a flat list of matching locations with no rate limits to manage.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Photon Geocoder for |
|---|---|
| Data analysts | Enrich a list of addresses with coordinates for mapping. |
| Logistics planners | Convert delivery point coordinates into readable street addresses. |
| Real estate researchers | Geocode property listings to analyze spatial distribution. |
| App developers | Batch geocode user-submitted place names for a location feature. |

### What it does

This Actor geocodes a free-text query into matching places or reverse geocodes a latitude/longitude pair into the nearest address, and returns each result as a flat row.

- 📍 **Forward geocoding:** Turn a place name or address into coordinates and structured location data.
- 🔄 **Reverse geocoding:** Turn a latitude and longitude pair into the nearest human-readable place or address.
- 🌐 **Multi-language results:** Request place names in English, German, French, Italian, or Spanish where available.
- 📊 **Structured output:** Each row includes the display name, latitude, longitude, place type, and bounding box.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with Photon Geocoder data

**🗺️ Geocode a list of addresses for a map.**

A data analyst runs the Actor with a CSV of place names, collects coordinates for each, and plots them on a Leaflet map.

**📍 Find what is at a specific coordinate.**

A field researcher feeds a GPS point into reverse geocoding mode to get the nearest street address and neighborhood name.

**🏘️ Enrich a property database with location data.**

A real estate analyst geocodes property addresses to join them with school district and transit shapefiles.

**🚚 Normalize delivery addresses from GPS pings.**

A logistics planner reverse geocodes driver stop coordinates to verify the actual delivery location against the manifest.

### Why choose this scraper

| | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | Photon is a free, public API. You do not need to register an app or manage credentials. |
| **OpenStreetMap data** | Results are based on the community-maintained OSM database, updated continuously. |
| **Flat output** | Every match arrives as one row, ready for spreadsheets, databases, or map visualizations. |

### How it compares

No other Store actor targets Photon Geocoder the same way, so the honest comparison is with the alternatives teams actually weigh.

| | Photon Geocoder Scraper | Build it in-house | By hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup | Run it now, zero config | Days of engineering | None, but hours per pull |
| When Photon Geocoder changes | Maintained for you | You fix it | You re-learn the page |
| Proxies, retries, anti-bot | Built in | Your problem | Browser only |
| Output | Fixed JSON schema, CSV/Excel export | Whatever you build | Copy-paste |
| Cost | Pay per result | Engineering time | Analyst hours |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor with a single search query for forward geocoding or a coordinate pair for reverse geocoding, and set a maximum number of results to cap your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
 "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
 "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
 "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
 "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.004 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.40 |
| 1,000 results | $4.00 |
| 10,000 results | $40.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [Photon Geocoder Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Photon Geocoder through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check that your query is spelled correctly and is specific enough. For reverse geocoding, verify that both latitude and longitude are filled in and use a period as the decimal separator.

**The Actor returns results in the wrong language.**

Set the Result Language field to your preferred language. If Photon does not have a name in that language, it falls back to the local default.

**I set a high maxItems but got fewer results.**

Photon returns only the matches it finds. If your query is very broad, try making it more specific or adding a bounding box to narrow the area.

**The reverse geocoding result is not the exact address I expected.**

Photon returns the nearest named place or address in OpenStreetMap. For a precise street address, ensure the coordinate is accurate and try a forward geocoding query with the full address instead.

**I get a timeout or server error.**

The public Photon API may be temporarily overloaded. Retry the run after a few minutes. If the problem persists, reduce the maxItems value to lighten the request.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is Photon? | Photon is an open-source geocoder built on OpenStreetMap data, maintained by Komoot. It provides a free, public API for forward and reverse geocoding without an API key. |
| Do I need an API key to use this Actor? | No. The Actor calls the public Photon API endpoint, which does not require authentication or an API key. |
| How many results can I get per run? | You can set the maximum items up to one million. The actual number returned depends on how many matches Photon finds for your query. |
| What is the difference between forward and reverse geocoding? | Forward geocoding converts a text query like 'Berlin' into coordinates. Reverse geocoding converts a latitude and longitude pair into the nearest place or address. |
| Can I geocode multiple queries in one run? | The Actor processes one query or one coordinate pair per run. To batch many queries, use Apify's task scheduling or call the Actor from an integration like Make or Zapier. |
| What data does each result contain? | Each row includes the place name, full address, latitude, longitude, OpenStreetMap place type, and a bounding box array. |
| Which languages are supported for place names? | You can request results in English, German, French, Italian, or Spanish. The default is English. |
| What coordinate format should I use for reverse geocoding? | Provide latitude and longitude as decimal degrees, for example 52.5162699 and 13.3777034. |
| Is there a rate limit on the Photon API? | The public Photon endpoint has a fair-use policy. For very large volumes, consider self-hosting a Photon instance or running the Actor with a reasonable delay. |
| Can I filter results by country or bounding box? | The Photon API supports a bounding box filter. You can add a bbox parameter directly in the query string, for example 'Berlin\&bbox=13.0,52.4,13.8,52.7'. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Komoot GmbH. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `query` (type: `string`):

Free text place, address, or point of interest to look up, for example "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin" or "Berlin". Leave empty if you want reverse geocoding instead.

## `language` (type: `string`):

Preferred language for place names where available.

## `latitude` (type: `string`):

Latitude of the point to reverse geocode, for example "52.5162699". Provide both Latitude and Longitude to use reverse mode.

## `longitude` (type: `string`):

Longitude of the point to reverse geocode, for example "13.3777034".

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many geocoding results to collect per run.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
  "language": "en",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
    "maxItems": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "query": "Brandenburg Gate, Berlin",
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/photon-geocoder-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/ZCS0Y2k0ewZHHvVlj/builds/UOEeN2xwhfnMqEJDA/openapi.json