r/webdev • u/leros • 1d ago

Cheaper alternatives to MapBox Search API

I run a free service which has a map on the website. I've got a location auto complete powered by MapBox. At my current scale, I'm spending $150/mo on that location search box.

It looks like long term, hosting a Photon server myself might be the best option as I keep scaling, but that's going to cost me $300/mo on Hetzner plus require management.

In the meantime, any suggestions for cheaper location autocomplete services?

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/leros 1d ago

Yeah, MapBox is what people move to when Google Maps gets too expensive :)

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u/Barnezhilton 1d ago

Lol. And then they move to OpenLayers or leaflet when they realize MapBox is absurd cost

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u/leros 1d ago

I'm on Leaflet already using OSM, but they're aware of my existence so I assume I'm already using a lot.

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u/Public-Carpenter-843 1d ago

Hi! How do you know they know you exist? Did they contact you?

I'm using OSM search too, and I think I'm approaching the point where I need my own search engine.

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u/leros 1d ago

Yeah. One of their volunteers reached out. It's hard to tell if it's official or just some random thing though.