Bing Places API: Why are API-published addresses and Location IDs changing on Bing Maps?

Question

We are managing and publishing business listings on Bing Places through the Bing Places API on behalf of our clients.

We are facing inconsistencies between the information submitted through the Bing Places API and what is displayed publicly on Bing Maps.

For some listings, the complete address submitted through the API is displayed correctly. However, for other listings, we are seeing the following issues:

• The address displayed on Bing Maps is different from the address submitted through the API.
• The address is sometimes truncated and does not show the complete information submitted.
• The PIN/postal code submitted through the API is missing from the public listing.

Since the same API integration is being used for all these listings, we would like to understand why the address is being reflected differently across listings.

We would also like to understand whether Bing applies any character limits, address formatting/normalization, validation, truncation, or other processing after the address is submitted through the API, and whether this behavior can vary based on the listing, location, verification status, or other factors.

Additionally, we are seeing cases where the Bing Location ID changes even though we have not updated, recreated, or republished the listing through Bing Places. We would like to understand what could cause the Location ID to change without an action from the API publisher.

We can provide examples of affected listings along with the API-submitted address, the address currently displayed on Bing Maps, and the relevant Location IDs. We can also provide examples of listings where the address is displayed correctly for comparison.

Our main objective is to understand the underlying Bing Places/API processing that is causing these inconsistencies, rather than simply correcting individual listings through "Suggest an Edit".

Any clarification on how Bing processes the submitted address data and under what circumstances a Location ID can change would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Hi Gowtham R,

The issue you are describing relates to the internal processing and lifecycle management of Bing Places listings, including address normalization, data reconciliation, public display logic, and the generation or reassignment of Bing Location IDs. These behaviors are determined by Bing Places backend services and product-specific implementation details that are not publicly documented through Microsoft Q&A.

As members of the Microsoft Q&A community, we do not have access to the Bing Places service infrastructure, internal data-processing rules, or engineering tools required to investigate and explain the situation.

Because answering these questions would require insight into non-public product behavior and access to internal Bing Places engineering systems, this is outside the scope of support that can be provided through the Microsoft Q&A community forum.

For further investigation, we recommend contacting the Bing Places support team through the official Bing Places for Business channel, where the appropriate product team can review the affected listings and determine whether the observed behavior is expected service behavior or requires further investigation.

Thank you for your understanding.