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Show HN: PinSharing – OSM static maps and geocoding you can cache forever

PinSharing launched a static-map and geocoding API built on OpenStreetMap data that lets paid-plan customers store every image and geocode indefinitely, even after cancelling, with hard monthly caps that prevent overage billing. The service starts at $19 a month and includes a "privacy area mode" that snaps a real location to a grid and draws a circle containing it with no pin, so every address in the same cell returns an identical image. PinSharing claims storing 100,000 geocoded addresses a month costs $19 on its Starter plan versus $500 at Mapbox's published rate of $5.00 per 1,000 storable geocodes, checked November 2026.

read5 min views1 publishedNov 5, 2026
Show HN: PinSharing – OSM static maps and geocoding you can cache forever
Image: source

Maps you can keep

Store every image and geocode for as long as you like on paid plans, even after you cancel. Hard monthly caps mean you're never billed for overage. Privacy area mode shows a neighbourhood instead of an address. From $19 a month.

No card · Growth's limits free for 14 days · email-code sign-up in under a minute · 14-day refund on your first payment

Privacy area mode: the circle always contains the real spot, and the real spot never appears in the image.

https://api.pinsharing.com/v1/static?area=41.6843,-88.3512&radius=1600&snap=0.02&size=640x300&scale=2&key=YOUR_KEY Live status pageListed in the official MCP Registry Passkey sign-in Map data updated Nov 4, 2026

Show where, not exactly where #

An exact pin on a listing exposes someone's home. Privacy area mode snaps the real point to a grid and draws a circle that always contains it, with no pin. Every address in the same cell gets the identical image, so nobody can narrow it down by comparing maps.

  • Rentals and home listings shown before a viewing is booked
  • Private sellers and for-sale-by-owner listings
  • Marketplace meetups and local services

One key, four jobs #

Every product is built on OpenStreetMap data and billed against the same flat plan.

Show a location without the address

Privacy area images for listings: a shaded circle, no pin, the same picture for every nearby address.

Turn addresses into coordinates you keep

Forward, reverse and type-ahead geocoding worldwide. Store the results in your own database on any paid plan.

Put a map anywhere an image goes

One URL returns a PNG, JPG or WebP with markers, a route or an area. Use it in listing cards, emails and PDFs, and cache it.

Run an interactive map

Raster tiles for Leaflet, or vector tiles with four ready-made styles for MapLibre.

Other map APIs vs PinSharing #

The questions that decide a bill, and what you may do with what you paid for.

Swipe the table sideways to see both columns.

Common elsewhere PinSharing
Past the limit Billed per 1,000 requests, unless you set a limit Hard cap. Never an overage bill, guaranteed.
Storing geocodes Forbidden, limited to 30 days, plan-gated or priced higher Every paid plan, indefinitely
Caching static images Often restricted, or priced as a premium request Every paid plan, indefinitely
After you cancel Storage rights can end with the subscription What you stored stays yours
Approximate locations Draw your own circle and hope it doesn't give the address away Privacy area mode, built in

Storing 100,000 geocoded addresses a month costs $19 on Starter. At Mapbox's published rate for geocodes you may store ($5.00 per 1,000, no free allowance) the same 100,000 cost $500. mapbox.com/pricing, checked Nov 2026.

Side by side: Mapbox · Stadia Maps · MapTiler · Geoapify · LocationIQ · Google

Simple plans, hard caps #

Requests at the cap until the 1st of the month or until you upgrade. We email you at 80% so it's never a surprise.

The no-overage guarantee. Every plan stops at its cap. If we ever bill you a cent for overage, we refund that whole month.

Every plan: commercial use, one key for all products, and a hard monthly cap. You are never billed for overage.

Swipe sideways to see all four plans.

Free

  • 100 static map images, with a small pinsharing.com mark
  • 10,000 address lookups
  • 10,000 map tiles (≈ 600 map views)
  • Store results for 30 days
  • 1 API key · 5 requests a second
  • New accounts: Growth's limits free for 14 days

Get a free key

Starter

  • 100,000 static map images
  • 100,000 address lookups
  • 1,000,000 map tiles (≈ 62,000 map views)
  • Keep images and results forever
  • No image mark · up to 20 keys
  • Email support

Choose Starter

Growth Recommended

  • 400,000 static map images
  • 300,000 address lookups
  • 5,000,000 map tiles (≈ 310,000 map views)
  • Keep images and results forever
  • No image mark · up to 20 keys
  • Email support

Choose Growth

Business

  • 1,500,000 static map images
  • 1,000,000 address lookups
  • 20,000,000 map tiles (≈ 1.25M map views)
  • Keep images and results forever
  • No image mark · up to 20 keys
  • Priority email support · 99.5% uptime target with service credits

Choose Business

Enterprise

Higher caps, annual contracts, and invoices on net-30 terms paid by ACH, wire transfer or card. W-9 on request.

Email sales with your volumes

Questions #

Is it really free to start? #

Yes. Free needs no card and allows commercial use: 100 static images, 10,000 address lookups and 10,000 map tiles a month. Free images carry a small pinsharing.com mark, and Free results may be stored for 30 days. New accounts also get Growth's limits free for their first 14 days, then move to Free automatically; nothing is charged.

What does "maps you can keep" mean? #

On any paid plan you may cache static images and store geocoding results indefinitely, including in commercial products, as long as the OpenStreetMap credit goes with them. What you stored stays yours even if you cancel. Many map APIs forbid that or charge extra for it.

What happens when I hit my cap? #

That product answers HTTP 429 until the 1st of next month or until you upgrade. Your other products keep working. We email you at 80% and at 100%, and we never bill for overage.

Where does the map data come from? #

OpenStreetMap, rebuilt regularly. The current data is from Nov 4, 2026. Streets and towns are reliable worldwide; US house numbers vary by area while we add a US address dataset.

Try it on your own addresses #

Get a key and make your first map in about a minute. No card, no sales call, and Growth's limits free for your first 14 days.

Get a free API key

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