Free Google Places API Alternative: 37 Business Categories, No API Key

Google Places API removed its free tier in February 2025. The new pricing starts at ~$275/month for 100K calls.

If you need basic business/POI data and don't need Google's reviews or photos, here's a free alternative.

BizData API

A REST API wrapping OpenStreetMap's Overpass API. Free, no API key, no signup.

curl "https://bizdata-web.vercel.app/api/businesses?location=Paris&category=cafe&limit=3"

Returns structured JSON with name, address, phone, website, email, coordinates, and opening hours.

Google Places vs BizData

Feature	Google Places	BizData
Price	$275+/mo	Free
API key	Required	Not needed
Categories	100+	37
Reviews/photos	Yes	No
Coverage (EU)	Excellent	Excellent
Coverage (US)	Excellent	Good
Rate limits	Strict	Fair use

When to use this

• Lead generation (bulk business listings)
• Market research (how many cafes in a neighborhood?)
• Location-based apps needing basic POI data
• Prototyping before committing to Google's pricing
• MCP tool calls from AI assistants

Endpoints

• GET /api/businesses?location=X&category=Y - Find businesses
• GET /api/count?location=X&category=Y - Count businesses
• GET /api/categories - List all categories

Optional: radius_km (default 5), limit (max 500).

MCP Server

Also works as an MCP server for Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bizdata": {
      "type": "streamable-http",
      "url": "https://bizdata-web.vercel.app/api/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Try it

bizdata-web.vercel.app

Data from OpenStreetMap. Built with TypeScript, hosted on Vercel.