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Geographic Features

ChurchCRM provides:

  • Geocoding — Convert street addresses to latitude/longitude
  • In-browser maps — Show locations of people and families
  • Proximity — Find families that live close to each other

Maps and geocoding work out of the box using OpenStreetMap tiles and Nominatim — no API key, no billing, and no setup required. If you want background on how it works or how to troubleshoot, see Maps & Geocoding.

Geocoding​

ChurchCRM stores latitude and longitude with each family for map push-pins and proximity. Coordinates are filled in automatically when a family address is saved. To populate coordinates in bulk for existing records, use People → Family Geographic Utilities → Update All Family Coordinates.

Fair use

Nominatim is a free public service. "Update All Family Coordinates" spaces requests out to respect the Nominatim usage policy — expect it to take a few seconds per 1,000 families.

In-app maps​

From the People area, use Family Map (or Family Geographic Utilities) to view family locations by classification. The map uses Leaflet and OpenStreetMap tiles. Only families that have been successfully geocoded will appear as pins.

Finding families that live close together​

  1. Go to People → Family Geographic Utilities.
  2. Select a family from the list.
  3. Click Show Neighbors.
  4. Use Maximum number of neighbors and Maximum distance to limit results.

The neighbor finder is also available via the /api/map/neighbors/{familyId} API endpoint for custom integrations.

Export for other map tools​

The Family Geographic Utilities page can generate annotation files for external tools (e.g. GPS Visualizer, mapping software). Choose the desired format and click Make Data File.