Places
SafeGraph Places is a commercial point-of-interest (POI) dataset that provides over 80 million global locations with machine-generated, human-verified polygons and rich attributes such as geographic coordinates, industry categories, opened/closed dates, brands, and store IDs.
Publisher review
SafeGraph Places is a commercial point-of-interest (POI) dataset that provides over 80 million global locations with machine-generated, human-verified polygons and rich attributes such as geographic coordinates, industry categories, opened/closed dates, brands, and store IDs. It is designed for data teams, analysts, and developers who need reliable, regularly refreshed location data for analytics, modeling, or application building—without the pay-per-API-call model of services like Google Places API. The product is especially suited for users who require bulk, offline access to POI data and value transparent quality metrics over opaque vendor claims. SafeGraph targets enterprises and mid-market organizations that need customizable datasets and flexible delivery options, including monthly updates to their environment of choice. The company positions Places as a direct alternative to per-request APIs, emphasizing predictable annual pricing and dedicated support.
SafeGraph Places is updated monthly by the 7th of each month, with the May 2026 release adding 1.86 million new POIs and 393 new brands across 133 countries. Each place is assigned a persistent `placekey` that remains stable across releases, enabling longitudinal tracking. The data undergoes rigorous verification: machine learning classification and manual checks drive a real open rate of 70% overall (Q2 2026), with rural areas reaching 75% and urban areas at 68%. Coverage against Google's verified POIs stands at 86% overall, with some categories like Arts, Entertainment & Recreation exceeding 100% coverage. Attributes include precise building footprints (polygons), industry categories, opened/closed dates, brand names, and store IDs. Customers receive proactive support and a dedicated Customer Success Manager, plus access to publicly available technical documentation and summary statistics.
In the POI data market, SafeGraph competes with GapMaps, Xtract, Xverum, Grepsr, and Silencio Network. Its differentiators include transparent, published accuracy metrics (e.g., real open rate, coverage rate) and a focus on bulk data licensing rather than per-request billing. Compared to Google Places API, which charges per SKU with tiers up to $0.005 per request for basic data, SafeGraph offers a single annual fee based on rows, columns, and usage rights. This model avoids unpredictable costs for high-volume users. However, competitors like Xtract and Grepsr may offer more flexible web scraping or on-demand data collection, while GapMaps specializes in retail network planning with built-in analytics.
The primary trade-off is limited public pricing—SafeGraph does not list base rates or tiered plans, requiring a sales conversation to get a quote. Data accuracy varies by region and category; while overall coverage is 86%, some geographies or niche categories may have lower completeness. Certain advanced features, such as custom integrations or specific attribute columns, require custom requests and may not be immediately available. Additionally, the monthly update cadence, while regular, means that very recent openings or closures (within the current month) are not reflected until the next release, which could be a limitation for real-time use cases.
How it works
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Customizable datasets
Customers select specific rows (locations) and premium attribute columns, then define usage rights and delivery terms to create a tailored POI package.
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Flexible delivery options
Data is delivered monthly to the customer's environment of choice, with support for custom integrations upon request.
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Monthly updates
Places data is refreshed by the 7th of each month, reflecting the past month's openings and closings.
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Rigorous POI verification
Machine learning classification and manual verification achieve a 70% real open rate overall, with rural areas at 75% and urban at 68%.
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Rich POI attributes
Includes geographic coordinates, industry/category codes, opened/closed dates, brand names, store IDs, and machine-generated, human-verified place polygons.
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Persistent placekey
Each location receives a stable `placekey` that remains consistent across monthly releases, enabling longitudinal analysis.
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Transparent documentation
Publicly available technical documentation and summary statistics allow customers to understand data quality and trade-offs.
Strengths and trade-offs
Strengths
- Achieves a 70% real open rate overall (Q2 2026), with rural areas reaching 75%, based on ML classification and manual verification.
- Covers 86% of Google's verified POIs in benchmark geographies, with some categories like Arts, Entertainment & Recreation exceeding 100% coverage.
- Provides a persistent `placekey` across monthly releases, enabling reliable longitudinal tracking of locations over time.
- Offers a simple annual fee based on rows, columns, and usage rights, avoiding unpredictable per-API-call costs.
Trade-offs
- Public pricing details are not listed; potential customers must schedule a demo or request a custom quote to get a price.
- Data accuracy varies by region and category, with urban areas showing a lower real open rate (68%) compared to rural areas (75%).
- Some features, such as custom integrations or specific attribute columns, require custom requests and may not be available out of the box.
- Monthly updates mean that very recent changes (within the current month) are not reflected until the next release, limiting real-time use.
Pricing context
Custom annual fee based on the selected mix of rows (locations), premium attribute columns, and usage rights. No per-API-call charges. Free custom samples available for evaluation.
Getting started with Places
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Request a custom sample
Visit the SafeGraph website and fill out the contact form to request a free custom sample of Places data. Specify your desired rows, columns, and usage rights so the team can prepare a tailored evaluation dataset for your needs.
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Define your dataset scope
Work with your Customer Success Manager to select the specific rows (locations) and premium attribute columns you need. Choose geographic regions, industry categories, and any custom attributes to build a dataset that matches your analytics or application requirements.
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Set up delivery environment
Provide your preferred delivery environment (e.g., cloud storage bucket or server) to receive monthly updates. Configure access permissions and confirm the integration method with SafeGraph support to ensure seamless data transfer by the 7th of each month.
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Load and verify POI data
After receiving the first delivery, load the Places dataset into your data pipeline or analytics platform. Verify the data quality by checking the real open rate and coverage metrics provided in the documentation, and confirm that the persistent `placekey` values are correctly mapped.
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Schedule monthly updates
Automate the ingestion of new monthly releases by setting up a recurring task to pull the updated dataset from your delivery environment. Monitor the release notes for changes in POI counts or attributes, and adjust your downstream processes to incorporate the latest data.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is SafeGraph Places?
SafeGraph Places is a commercial point-of-interest dataset covering over 80 million global locations. It provides machine-generated, human-verified polygons and attributes like coordinates, industry categories, and brands. It is designed for bulk, offline use without per-API-call charges.
How accurate is SafeGraph Places data?
SafeGraph Places achieves a 70% real open rate overall as of Q2 2026, with rural areas at 75% and urban at 68%. Coverage against Google's verified POIs is 86% overall, with some categories exceeding 100%. Accuracy varies by region and category.
How much does SafeGraph Places cost?
SafeGraph Places uses a custom annual fee based on rows, columns, and usage rights. There are no per-API-call charges. Public pricing is not listed, so you must request a quote through a sales conversation. Free custom samples are available for evaluation.
How often is SafeGraph Places updated?
SafeGraph Places is updated monthly by the 7th of each month. The May 2026 release added 1.86 million new POIs and 393 new brands across 133 countries. Recent changes within the current month are not reflected until the next release.
What is a placekey in SafeGraph Places?
A placekey is a persistent identifier assigned to each location in SafeGraph Places. It remains stable across monthly releases, enabling reliable longitudinal tracking of places over time. This allows users to analyze changes in POI status and attributes across updates.
How does SafeGraph Places compare to Google Places API?
SafeGraph Places offers bulk data licensing with a predictable annual fee, unlike Google Places API's per-request pricing up to $0.005 per request. It provides transparent accuracy metrics and monthly updates. However, Google Places API may offer more real-time data and immediate access.
Alternatives
How Places compares
Direct head-to-head against 2 competitors. Picked by 7wData.
Places
- Pricing
- Custom annual fee based on the selected mix of rows (locations), premium attribute columns, and usage rights. No per-API-call charges. Free custom samples available for evaluation.
- Target
- SafeGraph Places is a commercial point-of-interest (POI) dataset that provides over 80 million global locations with machine-generated, human-verified polygons and rich attributes such as geographic
- Strength
- Achieves a 70% real open rate overall (Q2 2026), with rural areas reaching 75%, based on ML classification and manual verification.
- Watch for
- Public pricing details are not listed; potential customers must schedule a demo or request a custom quote to get a price.
Waldo
- Pricing
- Custom/Contact sales
- Target
- Mid-sized companies needing basic desk booking
- Deployment
- Cloud
- Strength
- Simple Teams integration
- Watch for
- Limited scalability for complex policies
Yoffix
- Pricing
- Custom/Contact sales
- Target
- EU mid-sized firms (200-5k employees)
- Deployment
- Cloud
- Strength
- Deep Microsoft 365 integration
- Watch for
- Regional focus limits global support
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Sources
Reporting on this tool draws on these publicly available sources.