A Distance Matrix API request takes the following form:
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/outputFormat?parameters
where outputFormat
may be either of the following values:
json
(recommended), indicates output in JavaScript Object Notation (JSON); orxml
, indicates output as XML.
Certain parameters are required while others are optional. As is standard in URLs, all
parameters are separated using the ampersand (&
) character. All
reserved characters (for example the plus sign "+") must be
URL-encoded.
The list of parameters and their possible values are enumerated below.
Required parameters
destinations
One or more locations to use as the finishing point for calculating travel distance and time. The options for the destinations parameter are the same as for the origins parameter.
origins
The starting point for calculating travel distance and time. You can supply one or more locations separated by the pipe character (|), in the form of a place ID, an address, or latitude/longitude coordinates:
- Place ID: If you supply a place ID, you must prefix it
with
place_id:
. - Address: If you pass an address, the service geocodes
the string and converts it to a latitude/longitude coordinate to
calculate distance. This coordinate may be different from that returned
by the Geocoding API, for example a building entrance rather than its
center.
Note: using place IDs is preferred over using addresses or latitude/longitude coordinates. Using coordinates will always result in the point being snapped to the road nearest to those coordinates - which may not be an access point to the property, or even a road that will quickly or safely lead to the destination. Using the address will provide the distance to the center of the building, as opposed to an entrance to the building.
- Coordinates: If you pass latitude/longitude coordinates, they they will snap to the nearest road. Passing a place ID is preferred. If you do pass coordinates, ensure that no space exists between the latitude and longitude values.
- Plus codes must be formatted as a global code or a
compound code. Format plus codes as shown here (plus signs are
url-escaped to %2B and spaces are url-escaped to %20):
- global code is a 4 character area code and 6
character or longer local code (
849VCWC8+R9
is encoded to849VCWC8%2BR9
). - compound code is a 6 character or longer local code
with an explicit location (
CWC8+R9 Mountain View, CA, USA
is encoded toCWC8%2BR9%20Mountain%20View%20CA%20USA
).
- global code is a 4 character area code and 6
character or longer local code (
- Encoded Polyline Alternatively, you can supply an
encoded set of coordinates using the
Encoded Polyline Algorithm. This is particularly useful if you have a large number of origin
points, because the URL is significantly shorter when using an encoded
polyline.
-
Encoded polylines must be prefixed with
enc:
and followed by a colon:
. For example:origins=enc:gfo}EtohhU:
-
You can also include multiple encoded polylines, separated by the
pipe character
|
. For example:origins=enc:wc~oAwquwMdlTxiKtqLyiK:|enc:c~vnAamswMvlTor@tjGi}L:|enc:udymA{~bxM:
-
Encoded polylines must be prefixed with
- Place ID: If you supply a place ID, you must prefix it
with
Optional parameters
arrival_time
Specifies the desired time of arrival for transit directions, in seconds since midnight, January 1, 1970 UTC. You can specify either
departure_time
orarrival_time
, but not both. Note thatarrival_time
must be specified as an integer.avoid
Distances may be calculated that adhere to certain restrictions. Restrictions are indicated by use of the avoid parameter, and an argument to that parameter indicating the restriction to avoid. The following restrictions are supported:
tolls
indicates that the calculated route should avoid toll roads/bridges.highways
indicates that the calculated route should avoid highways.ferries
indicates that the calculated route should avoid ferries.indoor
indicates that the calculated route should avoid indoor steps for walking and transit directions.
It's possible to request a route that avoids any combination of tolls, highways and ferries by passing both restrictions to the avoid parameter. For example
avoid=tolls|highways|ferries
.Note: The addition of restrictions does not preclude routes that include the restricted feature; it biases the result to more favorable routes.departure_time
Specifies the desired time of departure. You can specify the time as an integer in seconds since midnight, January 1, 1970 UTC. If a
departure_time
later than 9999-12-31T23:59:59.999999999Z is specified, the API will fall back thedeparture_time
to 9999-12-31T23:59:59.999999999Z. Alternatively, you can specify a value of now, which sets the departure time to the current time (correct to the nearest second). The departure time may be specified in two cases:-
For requests where the travel mode is transit: You can optionally
specify one of
departure_time
orarrival_time
. If neither time is specified, thedeparture_time
defaults to now (that is, the departure time defaults to the current time). -
For requests where the travel mode is driving: You can specify the
departure_time
to receive a route and trip duration (response field: duration_in_traffic) that take traffic conditions into account. Thedeparture_time
must be set to the current time or some time in the future. It cannot be in the past.
Note: If departure time is not specified, choice of route and duration are based on road network and average time-independent traffic conditions. Results for a given request may vary over time due to changes in the road network, updated average traffic conditions, and the distributed nature of the service. Results may also vary between nearly-equivalent routes at any time or frequency.Note: Distance Matrix requests specifying `departure_time` when `mode=driving` are limited to a maximum of 100 elements per request. The number of origins times the number of destinations defines the number of elements.-
For requests where the travel mode is transit: You can optionally
specify one of
language
The language in which to return results.
- See the list of supported languages. Google often updates the supported languages, so this list may not be exhaustive.
-
If
language
is not supplied, the API attempts to use the preferred language as specified in theAccept-Language
header. - The API does its best to provide a street address that is readable for both the user and locals. To achieve that goal, it returns street addresses in the local language, transliterated to a script readable by the user if necessary, observing the preferred language. All other addresses are returned in the preferred language. Address components are all returned in the same language, which is chosen from the first component.
- If a name is not available in the preferred language, the API uses the closest match.
- The preferred language has a small influence on the set of results that the API chooses to return, and the order in which they are returned. The geocoder interprets abbreviations differently depending on language, such as the abbreviations for street types, or synonyms that may be valid in one language but not in another. For example, utca and tér are synonyms for street in Hungarian.
mode
For the calculation of distances and directions, you may specify the transportation mode to use. By default,
DRIVING
mode is used. By default, directions are calculated as driving directions. The following travel modes are supported:driving
(default) indicates standard driving directions or distance using the road network.walking
requests walking directions or distance via pedestrian paths & sidewalks (where available).bicycling
requests bicycling directions or distance via bicycle paths & preferred streets (where available).transit
requests directions or distance via public transit routes (where available). Transit trips are available for up to 7 days in the past or 100 days in the future. If you set the mode to transit, you can optionally specify either adeparture_time
or anarrival_time
. If neither time is specified, thedeparture_time
defaults to now (that is, the departure time defaults to the current time). You can also optionally include atransit_mode
and/or atransit_routing_preference
.
Note: Both walking and bicycling directions may sometimes not include clear pedestrian or bicycling paths, so these directions will return warnings in the returned result which you must display to the user.region
The region code, specified as a ccTLD ("top-level domain") two-character value. Most ccTLD codes are identical to ISO 3166-1 codes, with some notable exceptions. For example, the United Kingdom's ccTLD is "uk" (.co.uk) while its ISO 3166-1 code is "gb" (technically for the entity of "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland").
traffic_model
Specifies the assumptions to use when calculating time in traffic. This setting affects the value returned in the duration_in_traffic field in the response, which contains the predicted time in traffic based on historical averages. The
traffic_model
parameter may only be specified for driving directions where the request includes adeparture_time
. The available values for this parameter are:best_guess
(default) indicates that the returned duration_in_traffic should be the best estimate of travel time given what is known about both historical traffic conditions and live traffic. Live traffic becomes more important the closer thedeparture_time
is to now.pessimistic
indicates that the returned duration_in_traffic should be longer than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly bad traffic conditions may exceed this value.optimistic
indicates that the returned duration_in_traffic should be shorter than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly good traffic conditions may be faster than this value.
The default value of
best_guess
will give the most useful predictions for the vast majority of use cases. It is possible thebest_guess
travel time prediction may be shorter thanoptimistic
, or alternatively, longer thanpessimistic
, due to the way thebest_guess
prediction model integrates live traffic information.transit_mode
Specifies one or more preferred modes of transit. This parameter may only be specified for transit directions. The parameter supports the following arguments:
bus
indicates that the calculated route should prefer travel by bus.subway
indicates that the calculated route should prefer travel by subway.train
indicates that the calculated route should prefer travel by train.tram
indicates that the calculated route should prefer travel by tram and light rail.rail
indicates that the calculated route should prefer travel by train, tram, light rail, and subway. This is equivalent totransit_mode=train|tram|subway
.
transit_routing_preference
Specifies preferences for transit routes. Using this parameter, you can bias the options returned, rather than accepting the default best route chosen by the API. This parameter may only be specified for transit directions. The parameter supports the following arguments:
less_walking
indicates that the calculated route should prefer limited amounts of walking.fewer_transfers
indicates that the calculated route should prefer a limited number of transfers.
units
Specifies the unit system to use when displaying results.
Note: this unit system setting only affects the text displayed within distance fields. The distance fields also contain values which are always expressed in meters.
Request examples
This example uses latitude/longitude coordinates to specify the destination coordinates:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=40.659569%2C-73.933783%7C40.729029%2C-73.851524%7C40.6860072%2C-73.6334271%7C40.598566%2C-73.7527626 &origins=40.6655101%2C-73.89188969999998 &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=40.6655101%2C-73.89188969999998&destinations=40.659569%2C-73.933783%7C40.729029%2C-73.851524%7C40.6860072%2C-73.6334271%7C40.598566%2C-73.7527626&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
This example uses plus codes to specify the destination coordinates:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=San%20Francisco &origins=849VCWC8%2BR9 &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=849VCWC8%2BR9&destinations=San%20Francisco&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
This example shows the same request using an encoded polyline:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=enc%3A_kjwFjtsbMt%60EgnKcqLcaOzkGari%40naPxhVg%7CJjjb%40cqLcaOzkGari%40naPxhV%3A &origins=40.6655101%2C-73.89188969999998 &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=40.6655101%2C-73.89188969999998&destinations=enc%3A_kjwFjtsbMt%60EgnKcqLcaOzkGari%40naPxhVg%7CJjjb%40cqLcaOzkGari%40naPxhV%3A&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
Traffic information
Traffic information is used when all the following apply (these are the conditions
required to receive the duration_in_traffic
field in the Distance Matrix response):
- The travel
mode
parameter isdriving
, or is not specified (driving
is the default travel mode). - The request includes a valid
departure_time
parameter. Thedeparture_time
can be set to the current time or some time in the future. It cannot be in the past.
Optionally, you can include the traffic_model
parameter in
your request to specify the assumptions to use when calculating time in traffic.
The following URL initiates a Distance Matrix request for driving distances between Boston, MA
or Charlestown, MA, and Lexington, MA and Concord, MA. The request includes a departure time,
meeting all the requirements to return the duration_in_traffic
field in the
Distance Matrix response.
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?departure_time=now &destinations=Lexington%2CMA%7CConcord%2CMA &origins=Boston%2CMA%7CCharlestown%2CMA &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=Boston%2CMA%7CCharlestown%2CMA&destinations=Lexington%2CMA%7CConcord%2CMA&departure_time=now&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
JSON
{ "destination_addresses": ["Lexington, MA, USA", "Concord, MA, USA"], "origin_addresses": ["Boston, MA, USA", "Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA"], "rows": [ { "elements": [ { "distance": { "text": "33.3 km", "value": 33253 }, "duration": { "text": "27 mins", "value": 1620 }, "duration_in_traffic": { "text": "34 mins", "value": 2019 }, "status": "OK", }, { "distance": { "text": "41.5 km", "value": 41491 }, "duration": { "text": "33 mins", "value": 1981 }, "duration_in_traffic": { "text": "39 mins", "value": 2342 }, "status": "OK", }, ], }, { "elements": [ { "distance": { "text": "31.1 km", "value": 31100 }, "duration": { "text": "26 mins", "value": 1543 }, "duration_in_traffic": { "text": "29 mins", "value": 1754 }, "status": "OK", }, { "distance": { "text": "39.3 km", "value": 39338 }, "duration": { "text": "32 mins", "value": 1904 }, "duration_in_traffic": { "text": "35 mins", "value": 2077 }, "status": "OK", }, ], }, ], "status": "OK", }
XML
<DistanceMatrixResponse> <status>OK</status> <origin_address>Boston, MA, USA</origin_address> <origin_address>Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA</origin_address> <destination_address>Lexington, MA, USA</destination_address> <destination_address>Concord, MA, USA</destination_address> <row> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>1620</value> <text>27 mins</text> </duration> <distance> <value>33253</value> <text>33.3 km</text> </distance> <duration_in_traffic> <value>2018</value> <text>34 mins</text> </duration_in_traffic> </element> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>1981</value> <text>33 mins</text> </duration> <distance> <value>41491</value> <text>41.5 km</text> </distance> <duration_in_traffic> <value>2342</value> <text>39 mins</text> </duration_in_traffic> </element> </row> <row> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>1543</value> <text>26 mins</text> </duration> <distance> <value>31100</value> <text>31.1 km</text> </distance> <duration_in_traffic> <value>1759</value> <text>29 mins</text> </duration_in_traffic> </element> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>1904</value> <text>32 mins</text> </duration> <distance> <value>39338</value> <text>39.3 km</text> </distance> <duration_in_traffic> <value>2077</value> <text>35 mins</text> </duration_in_traffic> </element> </row> </DistanceMatrixResponse>
Location Modifiers
You can use location modifiers to indicate how drivers should approach a particular location, by
using the side_of_road
modifier to specify which side of the road to use, or by
specifying a heading to indicate the correct direction of travel.
Specify that calculated routes must pass through a particular side of the road
When specifying a location, you can request that the calculated route go through
whichever side of the road the waypoint is biased towards by using the
side_of_road:
prefix. For example, this request will return the distance for
a long route so that the vehicle ends on the side of the road to which the
waypoint was biased:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=side_of_road%3A37.7663444%2C-122.4412006 &origins=37.7680296%2C-122.4375126 &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=37.7680296%2C-122.4375126&destinations=side_of_road%3A37.7663444%2C-122.4412006&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
When using side_of_road:
with encoded polylines, the modifier is applied to
every location along the polyline. For example, the two destinations in this
request both use the parameter:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=side_of_road%3Aenc%3A%7BoqeF%60fejV%5BnC%3A &origins=San%20Francisco%20City%20hall &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=San%20Francisco%20City%20hall&destinations=side_of_road%3Aenc%3A%7BoqeF%60fejV%5BnC%3A&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
The side_of_road:
modifier may only be used with this restriction:
- The travel
mode
parameter isdriving
, or is not specified (driving
is the default travel mode).
Specify that calculated routes should have a particular heading
When specifying a location, you can request that the calculated route go through the
location in a particular heading. This heading is specified
with the prefix heading=X:
, where X is an integer degree value
between 0 (inclusive) and 360 (exclusive). A heading of 0 indicates North, 90
indicates East, and so on, continuing clockwise. For example, in this
request the calculated route goes east from the origin, then takes a U-turn:
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=37.773245%2C-122.469502 &origins=heading%3D90%3A37.773279%2C-122.468780 &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=heading%3D90%3A37.773279%2C-122.468780&destinations=37.773245%2C-122.469502&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
The heading=X:
modifier may only be used with these restrictions:
- The travel
mode
parameter isdriving
,bicycling
, or is not specified (driving
is the default travel mode). - The
side_of_road
modifier is not specified for the same location. - The location is specified with a latitude/longitude value. You may not use
heading
with addresses, Place IDs, or encoded polylines.
Distance Matrix request and responses
A sample HTTP request is shown below, requesting distance and duration from Vancouver, BC, Canada and from Seattle, WA, USA, to San Francisco, CA, USA and to Victoria, BC, Canada.
URL
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json ?destinations=San%20Francisco%7CVictoria%20BC &language=fr-FR &mode=bicycling &origins=Vancouver%20BC%7CSeattle &key=YOUR_API_KEY
cURL
curl -L -X GET 'https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/distancematrix/json?origins=Vancouver%20BC%7CSeattle&destinations=San%20Francisco%7CVictoria%20BC&mode=bicycling&language=fr-FR&key=YOUR_API_KEY'
This request will return four elements - two origins times two destinations:
Vancouver to San Francisco | Vancouver to Victoria |
Seattle to San Francisco | Seattle to Victoria |
Results are returned in rows, each row containing one origin paired with each destination.
JSON
{ "destination_addresses": ["San Francisco, Californie, États-Unis", "Victoria, BC, Canada"], "origin_addresses": ["Vancouver, BC, Canada", "Seattle, Washington, États-Unis"], "rows": [ { "elements": [ { "distance": { "text": "1 712 km", "value": 1711765 }, "duration": { "text": "3 jours 16 heures", "value": 318119 }, "status": "OK", }, { "distance": { "text": "140 km", "value": 139695 }, "duration": { "text": "6 heures 49 minutes", "value": 24567 }, "status": "OK", }, ], }, { "elements": [ { "distance": { "text": "1 452 km", "value": 1451704 }, "duration": { "text": "3 jours 2 heures", "value": 266680 }, "status": "OK", }, { "distance": { "text": "146 km", "value": 146500 }, "duration": { "text": "2 heures 53 minutes", "value": 10374 }, "status": "OK", }, ], }, ], "status": "OK", }
XML
<DistanceMatrixResponse> <status>OK</status> <origin_address>Vancouver, BC, Canada</origin_address> <origin_address>Seattle, Washington, États-Unis</origin_address> <destination_address>San Francisco, Californie, États-Unis</destination_address> <destination_address>Victoria, BC, Canada</destination_address> <row> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>318119</value> <text>3 jours 16 heures</text> </duration> <distance> <value>1711765</value> <text>1 712 km</text> </distance> </element> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>24567</value> <text>6 heures 49 minutes</text> </duration> <distance> <value>139695</value> <text>140 km</text> </distance> </element> </row> <row> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>266680</value> <text>3 jours 2 heures</text> </duration> <distance> <value>1451704</value> <text>1 452 km</text> </distance> </element> <element> <status>OK</status> <duration> <value>10374</value> <text>2 heures 53 minutes</text> </duration> <distance> <value>146500</value> <text>146 km</text> </distance> </element> </row> </DistanceMatrixResponse>
DistanceMatrixResponse
Field | Required | Type | Description |
---|---|---|---|
| required | Array<string> |
An array of addresses as returned by the API from your original
request. As with |
| required | Array<string> | An array of addresses as returned by the API from your original request. These are formatted by the geocoder and localized according to the language parameter passed with the request. This content is meant to be read as-is. Do not programatically parse the formatted addresses. |
| required | Array<DistanceMatrixRow> |
An array of elements, which in turn each contain a
See DistanceMatrixRow for more information. |
| required | DistanceMatrixStatus | Contains the status of the request, and may contain debugging information to help you track down why the request failed. See DistanceMatrixStatus for more information. |
| optional | string | A string containing the human-readable text of any errors encountered while the request was being processed. |
DistanceMatrixStatus
Status codes returned by service.
OK
indicates the response contains a valid result.INVALID_REQUEST
indicates that the provided request was invalid.MAX_ELEMENTS_EXCEEDED
indicates that the product of origins and destinations exceeds the per-query limit.MAX_DIMENSIONS_EXCEEDED
indicates that the number of origins or destinations exceeds the per-query limit.OVER_DAILY_LIMIT
indicates any of the following:- The API key is missing or invalid.
- Billing has not been enabled on your account.
- A self-imposed usage cap has been exceeded.
- The provided method of payment is no longer valid (for example, a credit card has expired).
OVER_QUERY_LIMIT
indicates the service has received too many requests from your application within the allowed time period.REQUEST_DENIED
indicates that the service denied use of the Distance Matrix service by your application.UNKNOWN_ERROR
indicates a Distance Matrix request could not be processed due to a server error. The request may succeed if you try again.
DistanceMatrixRow
Field | Required | Type | Description |
---|---|---|---|
| required | Array<DistanceMatrixElement> | When the Distance Matrix API returns results, it places them within a JSON rows array. Even if no results are returned (such as when the origins and/or destinations don't exist), it still returns an empty array. Rows are ordered according to the values in the origin parameter of the request. Each row corresponds to an origin, and each element within that row corresponds to a pairing of the origin with a destination value. Each row array contains one or more element entries, which in turn contain the information about a single origin-destination pairing. See DistanceMatrixElement for more information. |
DistanceMatrixElement
Field | Required | Type | Description |
---|---|---|---|
| required | DistanceMatrixElementStatus | A status for the element. See DistanceMatrixElementStatus for more information. |
| optional | TextValueObject | The total distance of this route, expressed in meters (value) and as text. The textual value uses the unit system specified with the unit parameter of the original request, or the origin's region. See TextValueObject for more information. |
| optional | TextValueObject | The length of time it takes to travel this route, expressed in seconds (the value field) and as text. The textual representation is localized according to the query's language parameter. See TextValueObject for more information. |
| optional | TextValueObject |
The length of time it takes to travel this route, based on current
and historical traffic conditions. See the
See TextValueObject for more information. |
| optional | Fare | If present, contains the total fare (that is, the total ticket costs) on this route. This property is only returned for transit requests and only for transit providers where fare information is available. See Fare for more information. |
Fare
The total fare for the route.
{
"currency" : "USD",
"value" : 6,
"text" : "$6.00"
}
Field | Required | Type | Description |
---|---|---|---|
| required | string | An ISO 4217 currency code indicating the currency that the amount is expressed in. |
| required | string | The total fare amount, formatted in the requested language. |
| required | number | The total fare amount, in the currency specified. |
DistanceMatrixElementStatus
OK
indicates the response contains a valid result.NOT_FOUND
indicates that the origin and/or destination of this pairing could not be geocoded.ZERO_RESULTS
indicates no route could be found between the origin and destination.MAX_ROUTE_LENGTH_EXCEEDED
indicates the requested route is too long and cannot be processed.
TextValueObject
An object containing a numeric value and its formatted text representation.
Field | Required | Type | Description |
---|---|---|---|
| required | string | String value. |
| required | number | Numeric value. |