OpenRouteService
OpenRouteService — Open-source routing API for directions, isochrones, and matrix calculations based on OpenStreetMap.
Our Verdict
Great free tier for prototypes; at production scale expect to self-host or pay commercial alternatives.
Pros
- Fully open-source OSM-based routing
- Isochrones and matrix APIs included
- Free tier generous for hobby projects
- Self-hostable for unlimited volume
Cons
- Public API rate limits tight for production
- Self-hosting requires heavy infra resources
- Routing quality behind Google/Mapbox in dense urban areas
- Community-maintained with volunteer support
Best for: Side projects and research needing routing without vendor lock-in
Not for: Production apps needing 99.9% SLA and traffic-aware routing
When to Use OpenRouteService
Good fit if you need
- Open-source routing API for directions and distance matrices
- Isochrone calculation for reachability analysis and planning
- Self-hosted routing on OpenStreetMap without Google dependencies
- Routing optimization for humanitarian logistics operations
- Turn-by-turn navigation without per-request API billing
Lock-in Assessment
High 5/5
Lock-in Score 5/5
Pricing
Price wrong?OpenRouteService Pricing
- Pricing Model
- freemium
- Free Tier
- Yes
- Entry Price
- —
- Enterprise Available
- No
- Transparency Score
- —
Beta — estimates may differ from actual pricing
1,000
1001K10K100K1M
Estimated Monthly Cost
$25
Estimated Annual Cost
$300
Estimates are approximate and may not reflect current pricing. Always check the official pricing page.
Community Discussion
Comments powered by Giscus (GitHub Discussions). You need a GitHub account to comment.