Route and directions

A route and turn-by-turn directions for two points created with the routing service

What is routing?

Routing, also known as simple routing, is the process of finding the best path from an origin to a destination for an individual or single vehicle. Routing takes into consideration many different data parameters in the street network such as speed limit, number of lanes, and time of day. Routing can also take into consideration other real-time data such as road conditions, accidents, and other barriers.

You can use routing to build applications that:

Find the shortest path from an origin to a destination
Find the quickest path to multiple destinations
Generate driving directions in multiple languages

How routing works

The typical workflow for creating a route is to:

Define the origin, and stops, and destination.
Define the type of travel for the route.
Call the service to find the route features and directions.

You can create simple or optimized routes using the routing service.

A simple route is the shortest path between stops.
An optimized route is the most efficient path between stops.

To create an optimized route, you will need to use the findBestSequence parameter. Using the parameter will result in the stops being reordered to return the most efficient path between them.

How to navigate a route

Once you have a route, if you want to use your current device's location to track progress and provide navigation instructions (voice guidance) as you traverse the route, the best way to accomplish this is with the ArcGIS Maps SDKs for Native Apps.

URL requests

You can find a route and directions by making an HTTPS request to the routing service solve operation or by using client APIs. Specify the origin, destination, and optionally, additional parameters to refine the results with directions. Some of the most common parameters are described provided below.

Request limits

Limit	Direct	Job
Maximum number of stops	150	10,000
Maximum transaction time:	5 minutes	60 minutes
Maximum number of point barriers:	250	250
Maximum number of street features intersected by polyline barriers:	500	500
Maximum number of street features intersected by polygon barriers:	2,000	2,000
Maximum straight-line distance for the walking travel mode: (If the straight-line distance between any stops is greater than this limit, the analysis will fail when the walking restriction is used.)	27 miles (43.45 kilometers)	27 miles (43.45 kilometers)
Force hierarchy beyond a straight-line distance of: (If the straight-line distance between any stops is greater than the limit shown here, the analysis uses hierarchy, even if the `travel_mode` defines not to use hierarchy.)	50 miles (80.46 kilometers)	50 miles (80.46 kilometers)
Maximum snap tolerance: (If the distance between an input point and its nearest traversable street is greater than the distance specified here, the point is excluded from the analysis.)	12.42 miles (20 kilometers)	12.42 miles (20 kilometers)
Maximum number of directions features that can be returned:	No limit	1,000,000
Maximum number of route edges that can be returned:	Not available	1,000,000

Required parameters

Name	Description	Examples
`f`	The format of the data returned.	`f=json` `f=pjson` `f=geojson` `f=html`
`token`	An API key or OAuth 2.0 access token. Learn how to get an access token in Security and authentication.	`token=<YOUR_API_KEY>` `token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>`
`stops`	The two or more locations that need to be visited in the route.	`stops=-117,34; -117.5,34.5`
`findBestSequence`	Specify whether the service should find the best sequence when visiting multiple destinations. Note: Set this parameter to `true` to generate an optimized route.	`findBestSequence=true`

Direct

Use for shorter transactions with less than 150 stops that will complete in less than 5 minutes.

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https://route-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World/solve?<parameters>

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https://route.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World/solve?<parameters>

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Key parameters

Name (Direct)	Description	Examples
`travelMode`	The mode of transportation such as driving a car or a truck or walking.	`travelMode=`JSON Object
`startTime`	The time at which travel begins from the input stops. You can also specify a value of `now`, to set the depart time to the current time.	`startTime=now`
`returnDirections`	Generate driving directions for each route.	`returnDirections=true`
`directionsLanguage`	The language to be used when generating driving directions.	`directionsLanguage=es`

Additional parameters: Set additional constraints for a route such as temporary slowdowns, using polygonBarriers, or set outputLines to specify the type of route feature created by the service.

Job

Use for longer transactions with up to 10,000 stops that will complete in less than 60 minutes.

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https://logistics.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/GPServer/FindRoutes/submitJob?<parameters>

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Required parameters

Name	Description	Examples
`f`	The format of the data returned.	`f=json` `f=pjson` `f=geojson` `f=html`
`token`	An API key or OAuth 2.0 access token. Learn how to get an access token in Security and authentication.	`token=<YOUR_API_KEY>` `token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>`
`stops`	The two or more locations that need to be visited in the route.	`stops=-117,34; -117.5,34.5`
`reorder_stops_to_find_optimal_routes`	Specify whether the service should find the best sequence when visiting multiple destinations. Note:Set this parameter to `true` to return an optimized route.	`reorder_stops_to_find_optimal_routes=true`

Key parameters

Name (Job)	Description	Examples
`travel_mode`	The mode of transportation such as driving a car or a truck or walking.	`travel_mode=`JSON Object
`time_of_day`	The time at which travel begins from the input stops.	`time_of_day=1608022800000`
`populate_directions`	Generate driving directions for each route.	`populate_directions=true`
`directions_language`	The language to be used when generating driving directions.	`directions_language=es`

Additional parameters: Set additional constraints such as temporary slowdowns, using polygon_barriers, route_shape to specify the type of route feature created by the service, or set return_to_start if the start and end location for your route is same.

Code examples

Direct: Find a route and directions

In this example, use the routing service to find a route between a set of stops that accounts for current traffic conditions and generate driving directions in Spanish.

To find a route, you need to define at least two stops to visit. The default travelMode is driving time by vehicle, but you can use walk or trucking travel modes as well. It is always good to provide the startTime to get the best results. In this example, we specify startTime as now which sets the route departure time as the current time and also indicates to the service that the route should use the current traffic conditions. We also set the directionsLanguage to generate driving directions in our language of choice.

The response contains a set of ordered stops to visit, the route segments, and turn-by-turn text directions.

APIs

ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScriptArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScriptArcGIS Maps SDK for .NETArcGIS Maps SDK for SwiftArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaArcGIS Maps SDK for Qt (C++)ArcGIS Maps SDK for Qt (QML)ArcGIS API for PythonArcGIS REST JSEsri LeafletMapLibre GL JSOpenLayersCesiumJS
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      function getRoute() {

        const routeUrl = "https://route-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World";

        const routeParams = new RouteParameters({
          stops: new FeatureSet({
            features: view.graphics.toArray()
          }),
          returnDirections: true,
          directionsLanguage: "es"
        });

        route.solve(routeUrl, routeParams)
          .then((data)=> {
            if (data.routeResults.length > 0) {
              showRoute(data.routeResults[0].route);
              showDirections(data.routeResults[0].directions.features);
            }
          })
          .catch((error)=>{
            console.log(error);
          })
      }
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REST API

cURL

HTTP

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curl https://route-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World/solve? \
-d "f=json"
-d "token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>"
-d "stops=-122.68782,45.51238;-122.690176,45.522054;-122.614995,45.526201"
-d "startTime=now"
-d "returnDirections=true"
-d "directionsLanguage=es"

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{
  "routes": {
    "fieldAliases": {
      // one or more field aliases
    },
    "geometryType": "esriGeometryPolyline",
    "spatialReference": {
      "wkid": 4326,
      "latestWkid": 4326
    },
    "features": [
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Location 1 - Location 3",
          "Total_TravelTime": 14.758,
          "Total_Miles": 5.491,
          "Total_Kilometers": 8.837
          // more field values
        },
        "geometry": {
          "paths": [
            [
              [
                -122.68838,
                45.51262
              ]
              // additional points that make up the path geometry between location 1 and location 2

            ],
            [
              [
                -122.69019,
                45.52206
              ]
              // additional points that make up the path geometry between location 2 and location 3

            ]
          ]
        }
      }
    ]
  },
  "directions": [
    {
      "routeId": 1,
      "routeName": "Location 1 - Location 3",
      "summary": {
        "totalLength": 5.491,
        "totalTime": 14.758,
        "totalDriveTime": 14.758,
        "envelope": {
          "xmin": -122.69257,
          "ymin": 45.51262,
          "xmax": -122.61497,
          "ymax": 45.53422,
          "spatialReference": {
            "wkid": 4326,
            "latestWkid": 4326
          }
        }
      },
      "features": [
        {
          "attributes": {
            "length": 0,
            "time": 0,
            "text": "Salga desde Location 1",
            "ETA": 1607894119000,
            "arriveTimeUTC": 1607922919000,
            "maneuverType": "esriDMTDepart"
          },
          "compressedGeometry": "+gm5a9-1vvvvvh+nnn9tf+0+0",
          "strings": [
            {
              "string": "9:15 PM",
              "stringType": "esriDSTEstimatedArrivalTime"
            },
            {
              "string": "Location 1",
              "stringType": "esriDSTStreetName"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "attributes": {
            "length": 0.024,
            "time": 0.054,
            "text": "Vaya hacia el noreste",
            "ETA": 1607894119000,
            "arriveTimeUTC": 1607922919000,
            "maneuverType": "esriDMTStraight"
          },
          "compressedGeometry": "+gm5a9-1vvvvvh+nnn9tf+8a+j6+1h7+59i",
          "strings": [
            {
              "string": "9:15 PM",
              "stringType": "esriDSTEstimatedArrivalTime"
            }
          ]
        }
        // more direction features
      ]
    }
  ]
}

See full response

Job: Find multiple routes

In this example, you will find the travel time and travel distance for multiple routes operated by a long-haul logistics company.

We group a pair of stops that define a route by assigning them a unique RouteName value. This allows the service to find all the routes in a single request as compared to sending multiple requests for each route, thus improving the overall performance.
We specify the Trucking Time travel_mode since we are finding routes for trucks and not cars.
Since we are only interested in finding the travel time and travel distance for our routes and do not need the route geometry, we set the route_shape to None.
We also do not need driving directions for our routes. So we set the populate_directions to false.

APIs

ArcGIS API for Python

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    # Connect to the routing service
    api_key = "YOUR_API_KEY"
    arcgis.GIS("https://www.arcgis.com", api_key=api_key)

    # Get the trucking time travel mode defined for the portal. Fail if the travel mode is not found.
    truck_time_travel_mode = ""
    for feature in arcgis.network.analysis.get_travel_modes().supported_travel_modes.features:
        attributes = feature.attributes
        if attributes["AltName"] == "Trucking Time":
            truck_time_travel_mode = attributes["TravelMode"]
            break
    assert truck_time_travel_mode, "Trucking Time travel mode not found"

    # Call the routing service
    result = arcgis.network.analysis.find_routes(stops=stops,
                                                 travel_mode=truck_time_travel_mode,
                                                 populate_directions=False,
                                                 route_shape="None")
    print_result(result)

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REST API

Unlike Direct request type which allows you to make a request and get back all the results in the response, when working with a Job request type, you need to follow a three step workflow:

Make the submitJob request with the appropriate request parameters to get a job id.
Using the job id, check the job status to see if the job completed successfully.
Use the job id to get one or more results.

cURL

HTTP

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curl https://logistics.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/GPServer/FindRoutes/submitJob? \
-d "f=json" \
-d "token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>" \
-d "stops={'features':[{'geometry':{'x':-118.268579,'y':34.052291},'attributes':{'Name':'Los Angeles, CA','RouteName':'Route A'}},{'geometry':{'x':-74.009023,'y':40.709975},'attributes':{'Name':'New York, NY','RouteName':'Route A'}},{'geometry':{'x':-87.648549,'y':41.758688},'attributes':{'Name':'Chicago, IL','RouteName':'Route B'}},{'geometry':{'x':-122.320028,'y':47.591046},'attributes':{'Name':'Seattle, WA','RouteName':'Route B'}},{'geometry':{'x':-71.057477,'y':42.359483},'attributes':{'Name':'Boston, MA','RouteName':'Route C'}},{'geometry':{'x':-95.368848,'y':29.759222},'attributes':{'Name':'Houston, TX','RouteName':'Route C'}},{'geometry':{'x':-80.220762,'y':25.761156},'attributes':{'Name':'Miami, FL','RouteName':'Route D'}},{'geometry':{'x':-122.651334,'y':45.51567},'attributes':{'Name':'Portland, OR','RouteName':'Route D'}},{'geometry':{'x':-112.074247,'y':33.446554},'attributes':{'Name':'Phoenix, AZ','RouteName':'Route E'}},{'geometry':{'x':-75.161557,'y':39.952057},'attributes':{'Name':'Philadelphia, PA','RouteName':'Route E'}}]}" \
-d "travel_mode={'attributeParameterValues':[{'attributeName':'Use Preferred Truck Routes','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'PREFER_HIGH'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Unpaved Roads','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'AVOID_HIGH'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Private Roads','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'AVOID_MEDIUM'},{'attributeName':'Driving a Truck','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'PROHIBITED'},{'attributeName':'Roads Under Construction Prohibited','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'PROHIBITED'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Gates','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'AVOID_MEDIUM'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Express Lanes','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'PROHIBITED'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Carpool Roads','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'PROHIBITED'},{'attributeName':'Avoid Truck Restricted Roads','parameterName':'Restriction Usage','value':'AVOID_HIGH'},{'attributeName':'TruckTravelTime','parameterName':'Vehicle Maximum Speed (km/h)','value':0}],'description':'Models basic truck travel by preferring designated truck routes, and finds solutions that optimize travel time. Routes must obey one-way roads, avoid illegal turns, and so on. When you specify a start time, dynamic travel speeds based on traffic are used where it is available, up to the legal truck speed limit.','distanceAttributeName':'Kilometers','id':'ZzzRtYcPLjXFBKwr','impedanceAttributeName':'TruckTravelTime','name':'Trucking Time','restrictionAttributeNames':['Avoid Carpool Roads','Avoid Express Lanes','Avoid Gates','Avoid Private Roads','Avoid Truck Restricted Roads','Avoid Unpaved Roads','Driving a Truck','Roads Under Construction Prohibited','Use Preferred Truck Routes'],'simplificationTolerance':10,'simplificationToleranceUnits':'esriMeters','timeAttributeName':'TruckTravelTime','type':'TRUCK','useHierarchy':true,'uturnAtJunctions':'esriNFSBNoBacktrack'}" \
-d "populate_directions=false" \
-d "route_shape=None" \

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Response (JSON)

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{
  "jobId": "j2b41de060e5d42d082b888d3be029253",
  "jobStatus": "esriJobSubmitted"
}

Request

cURL

HTTP

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curl https://logistics.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/GPServer/FindRoutes/jobs/j2b41de060e5d42d082b888d3be029253? \
-d "f=json" \
-d "token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>"

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Response (JSON)

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{
  "jobId": "j2b41de060e5d42d082b888d3be029253",
  "jobStatus": "esriJobSucceeded",
  "results": {
    "Solve_Succeeded": {
      "paramUrl": "results/Solve_Succeeded"
    },
    "Output_Routes": {
      "paramUrl": "results/Output_Routes"
    },
    "Output_Route_Edges": {
      "paramUrl": "results/Output_Route_Edges"
    },
    "Output_Directions": {
      "paramUrl": "results/Output_Directions"
    },
    "Output_Stops": {
      "paramUrl": "results/Output_Stops"
    },
    "Output_Network_Analysis_Layer": {
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Request

cURL

HTTP

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curl https://logistics.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/GPServer/FindRoutes/jobs/j2b41de060e5d42d082b888d3be029253/results/Output_Routes? \
-d "f=json" \
-d "token=<ACCESS_TOKEN>"

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Response (JSON)

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{
  "paramName": "Output_Routes",
  "value": {
    "fields": [
      // One or more field definitions
    ],
    "features": [
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Route A",
          "Total_Miles": 2802.1727702808216,
          "Total_Kilometers": 4509.6689541527276,
          "Total_Minutes": 2569.5486409677055
          // more field values
        }
      },
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Route B",
          "Total_Miles": 2123.5459789541665,
          "Total_Kilometers": 3417.5228149996442,
          "Total_Minutes": 1942.2562740678086
          // more field values
        }
      },
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Route C",
          "Total_Miles": 1858.4600032557835,
          "Total_Kilometers": 2990.9074372945502,
          "Total_Minutes": 1741.9289972140964
          // more field values
        }
      },
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Route D",
          "Total_Miles": 3270.1929177872121,
          "Total_Kilometers": 5262.8758768350972,
          "Total_Minutes": 2975.6605207300813
          // more field values
        }
      },
      {
        "attributes": {
          "Name": "Route E",
          "Total_Miles": 2392.4891536441355,
          "Total_Kilometers": 3850.3457651737981,
          "Total_Minutes": 2128.3869138049135
          // more field values
        }
      }
    ],
    "exceededTransferLimit": false
  }
}

See full response

Tutorials

Find a route and directions

Find a route and directions with the routing service.

Find service areas

Create an isochrone with driving distance with the routing service.

Services

Routing service

Get turn-by-turn directions and solve advanced routing problems.

API support

	Routing	Optimized Routing	Fleet routing	Closest facility routing	Service areas	Location-allocation	Travel cost matrix
ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScript			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for .NET			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Kotlin			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Swift			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Java			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Qt			¹			¹	¹
ArcGIS API for Python
ArcGIS REST JS
Esri Leaflet	²	²	²	²	²	²	²
MapLibre GL JS	²	²	²	²	²	²	²
OpenLayers	²	²	²	²	²	²	²

Full supportPartial supportNo support

1. Access with geoprocessing task.
2. Access via ArcGIS REST JS.

Tools

Developer dashboard

Manage API keys, service usage, and data with the ArcGIS Developers website.

ArcGIS Online

Create, manage, and share content and data with cloud-based GIS tools.

Map Viewer

Create, explore, and share web maps for 2D applications.

Scene Viewer

Create, explore, and share web scenes for 3D applications.

ArcGIS Pro

Explore, visualize, and analyze both 2D and 3D data with desktop GIS tools.

Mapping APIs and location services

Route and directions

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