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Creating a Maps identifier and a private key

Create a Maps identifier and a private key before generating tokens for MapKit JS.

Overview

MapKit JS uses a token to authenticate map initializations and other API requests. Before you can create a token, you need a Maps identifier (Maps ID) and private key that’s associated with a Maps ID.

You create a Maps ID and private keys through your Apple Developer Account. After you complete the steps to obtain these items you can construct a token and sign it with your private key, as Creating and using tokens with Maps Server API describes.

Create a Maps ID

A Maps ID is a string that you provide to identify a domain or environment that calls the MapKit JS API. Maps IDs use reverse-domain-style notation with three or four fields separated by a dot. The first field must be maps; the remainder of this string can be a name that’s meaningful to you. For example, your string might resemble maps.com.mywebsite or maps.com.mycompany.mywebsite.

To create a Maps ID, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Apple Developer Account and log in with your Apple Developer credentials.

  2. Under Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, click Identifiers in the sidebar.

  3. At the top of the identifiers list, click the Add Identifiers button (+).

  4. On the following page, select the Maps IDs checkbox, and then click the Continue button at the top of the page.

  5. Enter a string for the description. This can be your app name, team name, project name, or anything that conveys context and is meaningful to you.

  6. Enter a reverse-domain-style string for the identifier (for example, maps.com.mycompany.mywebsite), then click Continue.

  7. Review the information, then click Register.

If you have multiple environments, such as a development environment and a production environment, it’s good practice to create separate Maps IDs and keys for each environment. That way, if a key you use in production becomes compromised, revoking it doesn’t affect your UAT or test environments.

Obtain a MapKit JS private key

After you create a Maps ID, the next steps are to create a private key, add the MapKit JS service to this key, and associate it with a Maps ID:

  1. In Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, click Keys in the sidebar, then click the Keys + button at the top of the keys list.

  2. Under Key Name, enter a unique name for the key.

  3. Below that, select the checkbox next to MapKit JS. Note that the MapKit JS checkbox isn’t in an enabled state until you create a Maps ID.

  4. Near the top right of the page, click Configure. On the next page, choose a Maps ID to associate to this key from the pop-up menu, then click Save.

  5. Click Continue, review the key configuration, then click Register.

  6. Optionally, click Download to download the key. The private key is available to download a single time. If the Download button isn’t in an enabled state, you previously downloaded the key associated with this identifier.

  7. Click Done.

After executing these steps, you have a private key that you can use to sign tokens, and you can begin Creating and using tokens with Maps Server API.

The private key doesn’t expire, but you can revoke it. Revoking a key makes it invalid and affects calls to the MapKit JS API. If you lose a key or if someone else starts using your key, revoke it. See Revoke, edit, and download keys for more information.

See Also

Essentials