Geocoding addresses

Geocoding is the process of turning an address into earth coordinates. Geocoding requires a comprehensive dataset that ties zip codes, cities, streets, and street numbers (or street number ranges) to the coordinates. In order to have a geocoder that works for any address in the world with reasonable accuracy, you need to use a cloud service because geocoding datasets are very dense and can be quite large. Creating a geocoding dataset for any area beyond a few square miles requires a significant amount of resources. There are several services available, including Google and MapQuest. In QGIS, the easiest way to access these services is through the QGIS Python GeoCoding plugin. In this recipe, we'll use this plugin to programmatically geocode an address.

Getting ready

You will need to install the QGIS Python GeoCoding plugin by Alessandro Pasotti for this exercise, as follows:

1. From the QGIS Plugins menu, select Manage and Install Plugins….
2. In the Plugins dialog...