Geocoding converts a human-readable address or place name into geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude). Reverse geocoding does the opposite — it turns a pair of coordinates back into the nearest address.

Where does the data come from?

Results are fetched from OpenStreetMap’s Nominatim service via our server. The data is community-maintained and licensed under the Open Database License (ODbL).

Why are some addresses not found?

Nominatim matches against OpenStreetMap data, so very new, rural, or informally named places may be missing or imprecise. Try a more complete address or a nearby landmark.

Is the geocoder free and does it need an API key?

Yes, it is free and needs no key or sign-up. Lookups are proxied through our server to OpenStreetMap’s Nominatim service, which is open and community-funded.

Why do I get several results for one address?

Street and place names repeat across towns and countries, so forward geocoding returns up to five ranked candidates with an importance score. Pick the one whose full display name matches the place you meant.

Can I geocode coordinates in the middle of the ocean?

Reverse geocoding needs nearby mapped features, so points far from any address — such as open ocean — often return no result. Choose coordinates closer to land or a known place.

Address Geocoder & Reverse Geocoder

Type an address to get its exact coordinates, or enter latitude and longitude to find the matching address — powered by OpenStreetMap Nominatim.

Updated June 2026

Data provided by Nominatim / OpenStreetMap · ODbL

How to use Address Geocoder & Reverse Geocoder

The Address Geocoder converts between street addresses and geographic coordinates in both directions. In forward mode you type an address or place name — for example "1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View" — and get back up to five candidate matches, each with a precise latitude and longitude. In reverse mode you enter a latitude and longitude and receive the nearest formatted address along with its individual components such as road, city, postcode and country. Every lookup runs server-side against OpenStreetMap’s Nominatim service, so the results reflect the same community-maintained map data used across the web, with no API key, sign-up, or cost required.

Choose a direction: "Address → Coordinates" (forward) or "Coordinates → Address" (reverse).
In forward mode, type the address or place name; in reverse mode, enter latitude and longitude.
Press the geocode button to run a live server-side query against OpenStreetMap Nominatim.
Review the ranked matches or the resolved address and its individual components.
Copy the coordinates or address into your map, spreadsheet, or routing tool.

Your query is sent to Nominatim / OpenStreetMapto fetch results. We don't store it.

Forward vs reverse geocoding

Geocoding comes in two complementary directions. Forward geocoding takes a textual address or place name and returns coordinates, which is what you need to drop a pin on a map from a postal address. Reverse geocoding takes a latitude and longitude and returns the nearest address, which is how a phone turns its GPS fix into "you are on Main Street". Because addresses are ambiguous — many towns share a street name — forward geocoding returns several ranked candidates, each with an importance score, so you can disambiguate. Reverse geocoding instead returns the single closest match, broken down into structured fields you can store separately.

Forward vs reverse geocoding
Aspect	Forward	Reverse
Input	Address or place name	Latitude and longitude
Output	Up to 5 coordinate matches	One nearest address
Typical use	Plot an address on a map	Label a GPS position
Ambiguity	Several candidates ranked	Single closest result

Reading latitude and longitude

Coordinates are expressed as a latitude and a longitude in decimal degrees. Latitude runs from -90 at the South Pole to +90 at the North Pole, while longitude runs from -180 to +180 east and west of the Greenwich prime meridian. Positive latitudes are north of the equator and positive longitudes are east of Greenwich; negative values are south and west respectively. Each additional decimal place sharpens precision: five decimals pin a location to roughly a metre, which is far more than street-level accuracy. When you paste coordinates into another tool, keep the latitude first and the longitude second, since reversing them is the single most common geocoding mistake.

Glossary

Geocoding: Converting an address or place name into latitude/longitude coordinates.
Reverse geocoding: Converting a pair of coordinates into the nearest human-readable address.
Latitude: The north–south coordinate, from -90 at the South Pole to +90 at the North Pole.
Longitude: The east–west coordinate, from -180 to +180 relative to the Greenwich prime meridian.
Nominatim: OpenStreetMap’s open-source search engine that powers this tool’s geocoding.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Why use Address Geocoder & Reverse Geocoder?

Forward and reverse geocoding in one tool, with a single click to switch direction
Returns up to five ranked candidate matches so you can pick the right place
Exposes raw latitude/longitude to six decimal places for mapping and routing
Built on OpenStreetMap data with no API key, sign-up, or usage cost

Common use cases

Find the latitude and longitude of a customer address to plot it on a map
Turn GPS coordinates from a photo or device back into a readable street address
Validate that an address a user typed resolves to a real, locatable place
Look up coordinates to seed a delivery, routing, or geofencing calculation
Identify the city, region, and country that a pair of coordinates falls within

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