Geometry Operations API

Operations

The API takes GeoJSON geometries in the request body and returns one of four result types: geojson, number, boolean or empty. The 42 operations are grouped into 10 categories:

Each operation has its own input fields, for example polygon for area, geometry1 and geometry2 for contains, or polygons for union. See Supported Operations for the fields, options and a request example of every operation.

Request example

All operations use the same endpoint. The operation field selects what to do, and the other fields carry the geometries:

POST https://api.geoapify.com/v1/geometry/operation?apiKey=YOUR_API_KEY
Content-Type: application/json

For example, a store near Alexanderplatz in Berlin delivers within a rectangular zone. To check whether a customer's address is inside the zone, send the zone and the customer's location to contains. Coordinates are [longitude, latitude]:

const deliveryZone = {
  type: "Polygon",
  coordinates: [[[13.388, 52.53], [13.438, 52.53], [13.438, 52.51], [13.388, 52.51], [13.388, 52.53]]]
};

const response = await fetch("https://api.geoapify.com/v1/geometry/operation?apiKey=YOUR_API_KEY", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    operation: "contains",
    geometry1: deliveryZone,
    geometry2: { type: "Point", coordinates: [13.405, 52.52] }
  })
});

console.log(await response.json()); // {"type":"boolean","data":true}

A customer at [13.4545, 52.5096], east of the zone, gets {"type":"boolean","data":false}. With the same zone in "operation": "area" and "polygon": deliveryZone, the API returns the size in square meters, about 7.5 km²:

{ "type": "number", "data": 7523512.272821501 }

Operations that build a shape return a GeoJSON Feature. A buffer of 500 meters around the store, with "params": { "units": "meters", "steps": 4 }, returns a 16-point polygon (shortened):

{
  "type": "geojson",
  "data": {
    "type": "Feature",
    "properties": {},
    "geometry": {
      "type": "Polygon",
      "coordinates": [[[13.420590157978372, 52.52189976986668], [13.420027883158841, 52.52362057857764], ..., [13.420590157978372, 52.52189976986668]]]
    }
  }
}

Responses from requests made on 14 October 2026. Errors use HTTP status codes: 400 for invalid input or geometry, 401 for a missing or invalid API key, and 429 when the rate limit is exceeded. Try any operation without code in the Geometry Operations Playground.

Use cases

The Geometry Operations API is useful wherever an application has GeoJSON and needs an answer about it on the server, without adding a geometry library:

• Service areas: check whether an address is inside a delivery or service zone with contains or within, and find the gaps between service areas and a target region.
• Combining zones: merge overlapping delivery zones or isochrones with union, find their overlap with intersection, or cut one area out of another with difference.
• Cleaning GeoJSON: validate shapes with valid before processing, and simplify large polygons and lines before you draw them on a map.
• Measuring: get polygon areas in square meters, line lengths and distances between points or from a point to a line or polygon.
• Grouping points: cluster customers or assets with DBSCAN or k-means, or split an area between locations with a Voronoi diagram.

Geometry tools for AI agents

The Geoapify MCP Server gives AI assistants four geometry tools based on these operations: combine_geometries, evaluate_spatial_relation, measure_geometry and transform_geometry. An agent can, for example, measure an area it built from search results or test whether a point lies inside a polygon. The MCP tools cover a subset of the operations; for all 42, call the REST API.

Geometry by ID for isolines

Some Geoapify APIs, such as the Isoline API, return an ID with each geometry they build. To combine those geometries without sending their coordinates, use the Geometry API: a GET request with operation=union or operation=intersection and two or more geometry IDs. It costs the number of geometries minus one in credits, so a union of 3 isolines costs 2 credits.

Pricing

Each request to the Geometry Operations API costs 1 credit, whatever the operation and however complex the input geometries are. The Free plan includes 3,000 credits per day, which is 3,000 operations, and no credit card is needed. See pricing plans for higher volumes and the Geometry Operations pricing in the docs.

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