Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

ZIP Code API VS IP-API.com

Compare ZIP Code API VS IP-API.com and see what are their differences

ZIP Code API logo ZIP Code API

REST API for US ZIP, ZIP+4, and Canadian postal codes. Single unified endpoint covers address validation and standardization, radius search (centroid haversine and true spatial polygon intersection), point-to-point distance, autocomplete/typeah

IP-API.com logo IP-API.com

Free IP Geolocation API - lookup any IP address
  • ZIP Code API Landing page
    Landing page //
    2026-05-21

API for US ZIP, ZIP+4, and Canadian postal code data. One unified endpoint set covers North America โ€” no separate APIs by country or data type.

What it does

  • Address validation and standardization โ€” production-grade parser with ZIP+4 append, refreshed monthly
  • Radius search โ€” centroid haversine and true spatial polygon intersection. Returns ZIPs/FSAs within range, with per-result pct_inside overlap percentage for spatial queries
  • Unified lookup endpoint โ€” accepts US ZIP, ZIP+4, Canadian FSA, full Canadian postal codes, or latitude/longitude inputs
  • Autocomplete/typeahead โ€” cities, counties, metros, states, FSAs, ZIPs
  • Point-to-point distance โ€” between any two postal points
  • Census ACS demographics โ€” 2011โ€“2024, 542 fields per ZIP across income, education, housing, social, and economic profiles
  • Boundary lookups โ€” Census tracts, congressional districts, state legislative areas, school districts โ€” with computed intersection percentages per ZIP

What makes it different

  • Licensed commercial data โ€” not commodity or scraped sources
  • Canadian postal coverage โ€” most peers in this space are US-only
  • True spatial radius โ€” not just centroid haversine
  • 14 years of historical ACS depth via API โ€” unusual outside of raw Census downloads
  • One endpoint for all of North America โ€” no country-detection or input-routing logic to maintain on the client side

Pricing

  • Free โ€” 2,500 lookups/day, no credit card required, no expiry
  • Developer โ€” $49/mo, 100K credits, 300/min
  • Professional โ€” $149/mo, 350K credits, 300/min
  • Business โ€” $499/mo, 1.5M credits, 600/min
  • Credit packs โ€” one-time, from 25K ($19) up to 2M ($799)

Resources

  • IP-API.com Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-11-26

A simple to integrate Geolocation API that provides information about your users, either directly from a browser or device, or from any of your servers.

Provides data such as City, Region, Postal code, Country, Continent, Coordinates, Timezone, Currency, Organization, ISP, AS, if they are using a mobile network, or an anonymous proxy/VPN.

Works with IPv4, IPv6 or hostnames. Supports batch requests with up to 100 queries per HTTP request.

The free version requires no sign up or keys, and it's limited to 45 HTTP requests per minute from an IP address. Non-commercial use only.

The pro service includes more features such as SLA for 99.9% of monthly uptime, a dashboard with usage statistics, up to 10 API keys (customizable with restrictions), and more.

ZIP Code API

Pricing URL
-
$ Details
-
Platforms
-
Release Date
2026 April
Startup details
Country
United States
State
NY

IP-API.com

Website
ip-api.com
$ Details
freemium โ‚ฌ15.0 / Monthly (Unlimited queries, SLA, Commercial Use)
Platforms
REST API
Release Date
2012 January

ZIP Code API features and specs

  • Comprehensive ZIP Code Data
    The ZIP Code API from zip-codes.com provides extensive data including ZIP code details, city information, state data, and geographic coordinates, making it a thorough resource for location-based lookups.
  • Multiple Lookup Options
    The API supports various types of lookups including ZIP code to city/state, city/state to ZIP code, distance calculations between ZIP codes, and radius searches, offering flexible querying capabilities.
  • Easy Integration
    The API uses standard REST-based HTTP requests and returns data in commonly used formats like JSON and XML, making it straightforward to integrate into most applications and programming languages.
  • Distance and Radius Calculations
    The API includes built-in functionality for calculating distances between ZIP codes and finding ZIP codes within a specified radius, which is valuable for store locators, shipping estimates, and proximity-based features.
  • Well-Documented Endpoints
    The API provides clear documentation for its various endpoints and parameters, helping developers understand available features and implement them correctly without extensive trial and error.

IP-API.com features and specs

  • Comprehensive Data
    IP-API.com provides extensive information such as country, region, city, latitude, longitude, ISP, and more, which can be useful for various applications like geolocation, analytics, and security.
  • Ease of Use
    The API is straightforward to use, with a simple HTTP GET request format that returns data in popular formats like JSON, XML, and CSV.
  • High Accuracy
    IP-API.com is known for its high accuracy in identifying geographic locations based on IP addresses, which is critical for applications requiring precise geolocation.
  • Free Tier
    The service offers a free tier with a generous limit of up to 45 requests per minute, making it accessible for small projects and testing purposes.
  • Scalable
    IP-API.com provides commercial plans that offer higher request limits and additional features, allowing users to scale their usage as needed.
  • No API Key Required for Free Tier
    Users can access the free tier without needing an API key, which simplifies the setup process and reduces initial friction for new users.

Possible disadvantages of IP-API.com

  • Rate Limits
    The free tier is limited to 45 requests per minute, which might not be sufficient for high-volume applications.
  • Data Privacy
    Storing and processing IP data can raise privacy concerns, especially in regions with strict data protection laws like GDPR in the EU.
  • Dependence on Third-Party Service
    Relying on an external API means your application is dependent on their uptime and performance. Any downtime or issues with IP-API.com can impact your application.
  • Limited to IP Geolocation
    The service is highly specialized for IP geolocation and does not provide broader functionalities that might be offered by more comprehensive data service providers.
  • No Batch Processing in Free Tier
    Batch processing of multiple IP addresses in a single request is not available in the free tier, which can make handling large datasets more cumbersome.
  • Paid Plans Required for Advanced Features
    To access higher rate limits and additional features, users must subscribe to paid plans, which can be a limitation for budget-conscious projects.

Analysis of ZIP Code API

Overall verdict

  • ZIP Code API from zip-codes.com is a solid, reliable choice for developers and businesses needing accurate US and Canadian postal code data, offering a straightforward RESTful interface with regularly updated databases.

Why this product is good

  • Provides accurate and frequently updated ZIP code, city, state, and geographic data
  • Offers a simple RESTful API that is easy to integrate into web and mobile applications
  • Supports features like ZIP code lookup, radius search, and distance calculations
  • Includes both US ZIP codes and Canadian postal codes for broader coverage
  • Backed by an established data provider with a long track record in postal data

Recommended for

  • Developers building address validation or autofill features
  • E-commerce platforms needing shipping and location-based calculations
  • Businesses performing geographic or radius-based store locators
  • Applications requiring reliable US and Canadian postal data
  • Marketing and logistics teams that need regional or demographic targeting

Analysis of IP-API.com

Overall verdict

  • IP-API.com is considered a good choice for those looking for a dependable, efficient, and well-documented geolocation and IP information service. Its combination of accurate data, ease of use, and flexible pricing makes it suitable for a variety of applications.

Why this product is good

  • IP-API.com offers a reliable and fast API service for geolocation and IP information. It is widely used because of its straightforward and easy-to-use interface, providing accurate data such as location, country, region, city, zip code, latitude, longitude, timezone, ISP, and more. The service supports both free and paid plans, with the paid tier offering higher request limits and priority support. Additionally, the documentation is well-maintained, making it easy for developers to integrate the API into their applications.

Recommended for

  • Developers looking for a quick and efficient geolocation API integration.
  • Businesses that need reliable IP data services for fraud prevention.
  • Organizations seeking geographic analytics to enhance user engagement.
  • Websites or applications that require IP-based personalization features.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to ZIP Code API and IP-API.com)
Zip Lookup
100 100%
0% 0
IP Data
0 0%
100% 100
APIs
100 100%
0% 0
IP Geolocation
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, IP-API.com seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 34 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

ZIP Code API mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of ZIP Code API yet. Tracking of ZIP Code API recommendations started around May 2026.

IP-API.com mentions (34)

  • Hurl vs Postman: Git-Friendly API Testing With Proxy-Aware Egress (2026)
    Free public geo APIs do not love datacenter traffic. My first instinct was to use ip-api.com โ€” itโ€™s the go-to for โ€œwhat country is this IPโ€ lookups and has a generous free tier. Hooked it up, ran the direct profile, got a clean response. Then I ran it through the Bright Data proxies I had (these) and got a HTTP 402. Turns out ip-api.comโ€™s free tier detects any datacenter egress and refuses to serve it. The proxy... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • I Built a Threat Intelligence Tool That Maps Malicious IPs in Real Time
    The original version used http://ip-api.com โ€” plain HTTP. On a cloud server, that traffic is unencrypted and could be intercepted and spoofed. I switched to https://ipinfo.io which supports HTTPS on the free tier. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • MongoDB equivalent to FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED
    In this example, I'll process messages based on their originating IP address. Multiple threads will enrich them with location data fetched from the public API at https://ip-api.com/. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • A list of SaaS, PaaS and IaaS offerings that have free tiers of interest to devops and infradev
    Ip-api โ€” IP Geolocation API, Free for non-commercial use, no API key required, limited to 45 req/minute from the same IP address for the free plan. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • Using Whoer IP Checker in 2023
    The Language may be different: You can check up the [Set language based on IP], and make the system automatically set up the browser language according to the IP that you set up. Mismatch of DNS or system time: We recommend you to replace the proxy IP and start the operation. Or you can enter the site https://ip-api.com for verification. Source: over 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing ZIP Code API and IP-API.com, you can also consider the following products

Smarty - Smarty provides address validation, autocomplete, geocoding and reverse geocoding services covering addresses in over 240+ countries.

ipinfo.io - Simple IP address information.

Zipcodestack - Free Zip Code API - Free Postal Code Validation | Zipcodestack

ipapi - Web analytics with IP address lookup and location API

PostalDataPI - The most affordable postal code API. 240+ countries, sub-5 ms responses. Simple, elegant, transparent.

ipgeolocation.io - Free IP Geolocation API and Accurate GeoIP Lookup Location Database