A Maps Demo Key now lets you turn a geospatial prompt in Google AI Studio into a live map, places, and routes preview with no credit card. This guide covers the daily quota, which APIs the free key omits, and the billing upgrade that keeps the same key and code. The sandbox is for interactive sessions, not production traffic.
Updated November 9, 2026
Key Takeaways
- AI Studio provisions a Maps Demo Key with no credit card.
- The cap is 100 calls per day per API, reset every 24 hours.
- New users miss route optimisation, solar data, and Nav Connect.
- Linking billing keeps the same demo key; app code does not change.
How do you go from prompt to a live map preview?
On Google’s Maps in AI Studio announcement, you describe the app and AI Studio handles configuration and key management, at no cost. The Next Web notes the no-credit-card key itself dates to November 2025; AI Studio now creates and connects it automatically. Prefer a personal Google Account. Group, corporate, or school accounts may disable experimental features or cloud integrations.
- Open the Google AI Studio Apps panel and click New App, or select the Build tab.
- Describe the app, or use the Google Maps Platform discovery chip, then click Build.
- On the card titled “Set up Google Maps Platform,” accept the Maps Demo Project Terms of Service and, if prompted, the Starter Tier Additional Terms of Service, then click Enable Google Maps.
- Check that the preview sandbox loads a live map and that secrets include GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY.
New users get a free project plus the demo key. Existing Cloud users can keep that capped path or connect a billed project when they enable Maps.
What quota limits apply to a Maps Demo Key?
These keys are for interactive development sessions, not launch traffic. Google’s AI Studio Maps documentation sets a limit of 100 calls per day per API, resetting every 24 hours. Because the cap is per API, a session that hammers Places can fail there while Routes still has calls left.
A RESOURCE_EXHAUSTED or quota exceeded error means wait for the reset or upgrade. If a standard key reports demo environment limitations, check that project on the Google Cloud Console Quotas page.
Which APIs does the demo key leave out?
The Maps and AI codelab describes core APIs such as the Maps JavaScript API, Geocoding API, Places API, and Routes API. On the developer blog, the store finder uses the Places API, and the multi-stop fleet sample uses the Routes API. A separate gallery example shows 3D city maps with flyover camera paths. The Next Web, citing Google’s documentation, says the demo key still skips specific products.
- New to Google Cloud: most Maps APIs, but not route optimisation, solar data, or Nav Connect.
- Existing Cloud users on a demo key: a smaller set, without user photos and reviews.
- If you already use Cloud, are prototyping with a demo key, and see an API key restriction such as ApiTargetBlockedMapError, that API is not on the demo key’s supported list. Connect a billed Cloud project to use it.
The launch post invites broad geospatial prompts. Build against the documented subset, not that invitation. A route preview can succeed on the Routes API and still break if the feature needs route optimisation.
How do you upgrade so the same code survives launch?
Production needs a paid Cloud billing account, which brings standard Maps pricing. Link a Cloud Billing account in the Google Cloud console to upgrade the project. The existing demo API key continues to work, so you do not change app code. Already billed? Skip the demo key and choose that Cloud project when you enable Maps, which issues a standard key with full API coverage and standard quotas.
| Check | Maps Demo Key | Billed Cloud project |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | No credit card | Paid account required for production |
| Daily quota | 100 calls per API, reset every 24 hours | Standard quotas, without daily demo limits |
| APIs | Subset: no route optimisation, solar, or Nav Connect for new users; no photos or reviews for existing users | Full API coverage |
| Code | Stored as GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY | Same demo key keeps working after you link billing; no code change |
Starter Tier is a separate allowance: publish up to two full-stack apps in a select region at no cost, without a full billing account. AI Studio can also deploy the finished app to Cloud Run from the UI. After billing is on, keep the key out of git, the same control as locking down coding-agent secrets. A billed Maps key is a cloud invoice surface, in the same spend class as LLMJacking attacks that run up cloud bills.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a credit card for a Maps Demo Key?
No. For new Google Cloud users, AI Studio creates a free project and a demo key without a credit card or a Cloud billing account.
What happens when the daily quota is hit?
The app can return RESOURCE_EXHAUSTED or a quota exceeded error. Demo limits reset every 24 hours unless you upgrade to a billed project.
Do I have to rewrite code when I add billing?
No. Link a Cloud Billing account in the Google Cloud console and the existing demo API key continues to work, so the app code stays the same.
Which Maps APIs are missing on the free key?
New Cloud users do not get route optimisation, solar data, or Nav Connect. Existing Cloud users on a demo key also miss user photos and reviews.
