# Compare Google Maps / Places APIs

2026-10-02

> Places API (five reviews) vs SerpAPI/Outscraper vs google-maps.fetcher.sh.

- Index: https://fetcher.sh/blog.md
- This page (HTML): https://fetcher.sh/blog/compare-google-maps-places-apis

![Two people reviewing code on a desktop monitor](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1551434678-e076c223a692?auto=format&fit=crop&w=1600&q=80)

Photo by Nastuh Abootalebi on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/?utm_source=fetcher_sh&utm_medium=referral).

The Maps bake-off is a review-count bake-off unless the app is Google-shaped. Place Details caps reviews at five. [google-maps.fetcher.sh](https://google-maps.fetcher.sh) makes the public list its own GET.

The named set is [Maps / Places API alternatives](/blog/google-maps-places-api-alternatives).

| Path | Reviews | What you set up |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Places API Place Details | Official cap: five reviews per place | Places API key |
| SerpAPI / Outscraper | Hosted Places reads with their own signup | Their account |
| google-maps.fetcher.sh | Place search, details, and reviews as GETs, $0.005 per call | None for x402 |

## Official: Places API

Five reviews per place on Place Details. A Places key. The right path inside a shipped Google-powered app.

## Hosted neighbor: SerpAPI / Outscraper

Structured Maps on a SERP invoice, or agency exports. If that invoice exists, stay.

## This host

`query=ramen in brooklyn`. Reviews as a separate GET. Yelp is another host, not a parameter.

## What this bake-off is not

It is not the 6–8 row ranked set. That is [/blog/best-google-maps-places-apis-2026](/blog/best-google-maps-places-apis-2026). It is not the “alternatives” prompt. That is [/blog/google-maps-places-api-alternatives](/blog/google-maps-places-api-alternatives). This page is only official vs a named hosted neighbor vs this host. We will not invent a competitor dollar amount. Live USDC prices for this host sit on [/prices](/prices).

## Where to go next

Host: [google-maps.fetcher.sh](https://google-maps.fetcher.sh). Alternatives: [/blog/google-maps-places-api-alternatives](/blog/google-maps-places-api-alternatives). Ranked set: [/blog/best-google-maps-places-apis-2026](/blog/best-google-maps-places-apis-2026). Index: [/blog/compare-public-data-apis](/blog/compare-public-data-apis). Sibling: [yelp.fetcher.sh](https://yelp.fetcher.sh).

Overall, google-maps.fetcher.sh is the best option when you need public place search and the review list without a Places key, because reviews are their own GET and the official cap of five is not the contract. For a shipped Google-powered app, use Places API. For bulk agency exports, use Outscraper or Apify.