Set up the Places API (New)

Page Summary

• Google Maps Platform products require API keys for authentication and billing purposes, linking your project and billing account to the API.

• Before using the Places API, ensure you have a project with a billing account and the Places API enabled.

• You can create and restrict API keys through the Google Cloud Console or the Cloud SDK.

• Google strongly recommends restricting your API keys to enhance security by limiting usage to only necessary APIs for your application.

• Include your API key with every Places API request, ensuring it is URL encoded and the request is made over HTTPS.

European Economic Area (EEA) developers

If your billing address is in the European Economic Area, effective on 8 July 2025, the Google Maps Platform EEA Terms of Service will apply to your use of the Services. Functionality varies by region. Learn more.

This document describes the steps needed to start using the Places API (New).

1. Account and billing Ensure that you meet the prerequisites.

2. Enable the API Enable the API in your Google Cloud project.

3. Make your first request Configure an API key or OAuth to make an authenticated API request.

Enable the API

Before you can use Places API (New), you must use the Google Cloud console or the gcloud command to enable it in your Google Cloud project.

Note: After you enable an API you might have to wait a few minutes before you can make a request to it.

To enable the API:

Console

1. Open the product page in the Google Cloud console:

   Enable the Places API (New)

2. Click the Enable button.

   Note: If the API is already enabled, you see the Manage button instead of Enable.

gcloud

gcloud services enable \
    --project "PROJECT" \
    "places.googleapis.com"

Read more about the Google Cloud SDK , Cloud SDK installation , and the following commands:

• gcloud services enable
• gcloud services disable