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Hey all,

Quick question.

Does anyone know the difference between the free google geocoder and using an enterprise API key within this transformer? I thought there was a limit on the number of addresses you could geocode per day on the free version, but I ran 5,000 through multiple times. If the free version within FME is the same as the enterprise api my company pays for I could tell them to cancel our subscription. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Is the enterprise API more accurate?

Thanks again!

Ethan

Best answer by redgeographics

There's a second limit: 50 requests per second. You can use a Decelerator to avoid this (but then you'd still be subject to the 2500 max requests per day).

It might be that Google uses a different, higher, limit internally than what they tell you online. It might even be that this is a flexible limit based on the volume of requests from paying clients and that it's just them being nice when they up the limit if they have spare capacity, but this is pure speculation on my part.

 

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    8 replies

    david_r
    Celebrity
    • david_rCelebrity
    • October 21, 2016

    Look here: https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/geocoding/usage-limits?hl=EN

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    • heidtmer
    • Author
    • October 21, 2016
    david_r wrote:

    Look here: https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/geocoding/usage-limits?hl=EN

    I see, but when running the 'standard' (free version) of the google geocoder within FME, I geocoded 5,000 addresses - multiple times. But if I geocode within excel I will be limited to 2,500 using the 'standard' version. I was curious if the transformer in FME somehow bypasses this limit.
    david_r
    Celebrity
    • david_rCelebrity
    • October 21, 2016
    heidtmer wrote:
    I see, but when running the 'standard' (free version) of the google geocoder within FME, I geocoded 5,000 addresses - multiple times. But if I geocode within excel I will be limited to 2,500 using the 'standard' version. I was curious if the transformer in FME somehow bypasses this limit.
    No, the limit is with Google alone.

     

     

    H
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    • heidtmer
    • Author
    • October 21, 2016
    david_r wrote:
    No, the limit is with Google alone.

     

     

    I am curious why would the GoogleGeocoder transofmer within FME let me geocode so many addresses if the limit is 2,500 requests per day?

     

     

     

    H
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    • heidtmer
    • Author
    • October 21, 2016

    Ok I hit a limit, but I have been running it all day, its not 2,500 not sure what it is.

    redgeographics
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    • redgeographicsCelebrity
    • Celebrity
    • Best Answer
    • October 25, 2016

    There's a second limit: 50 requests per second. You can use a Decelerator to avoid this (but then you'd still be subject to the 2500 max requests per day).

    It might be that Google uses a different, higher, limit internally than what they tell you online. It might even be that this is a flexible limit based on the volume of requests from paying clients and that it's just them being nice when they up the limit if they have spare capacity, but this is pure speculation on my part.

     

    H
    Forum|alt.badge.img
    • heidtmer
    • Author
    • October 25, 2016
    redgeographics wrote:

    There's a second limit: 50 requests per second. You can use a Decelerator to avoid this (but then you'd still be subject to the 2500 max requests per day).

    It might be that Google uses a different, higher, limit internally than what they tell you online. It might even be that this is a flexible limit based on the volume of requests from paying clients and that it's just them being nice when they up the limit if they have spare capacity, but this is pure speculation on my part.

     

    Yeah I would think it is something along these lines.I believe the limit for me was somewhere around 9,000 but that could be different for anyone. I am going to keep using my companies API key because we need to run around 13k every Monday. However, if you only need to run say 5k I would give the free version a try.

     

     

    david_r
    Celebrity
    • david_rCelebrity
    • October 25, 2016
    heidtmer wrote:
    Yeah I would think it is something along these lines.I believe the limit for me was somewhere around 9,000 but that could be different for anyone. I am going to keep using my companies API key because we need to run around 13k every Monday. However, if you only need to run say 5k I would give the free version a try.

     

     

    Some services (e.g. Twitter) do not publish hard limits on their APIs, only guidelines. This is to have some leeway to block spammers earlier or because the system has some unpredictability built into it to make it more complicted to abuse. It might be that Google does something like that.

     

     

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