loc8n

Command-line interface for the loc8n geographic data API.

Look up ZIP codes, demographics, boundaries, mortgage data, employment stats, migration flows, and more — directly from your terminal.

Install

npm install -g loc8n

Requires Node.js 20+.

Quick start

# Authenticate
loc8n auth login

# Look up a ZIP code
loc8n zip lookup 22903

# Search ZIPs by city
loc8n zip by-city -c Austin -s TX

# Get demographics
loc8n demographics lookup 22903 --category income

# Reverse geocode
loc8n geocode reverse --lat 38.0293 --lon -78.4767

# Pipe JSON to another tool
loc8n zip search --state VA --limit 100 --json | jq '.[].city'

Authentication

loc8n auth login              # Prompt for API key
loc8n auth login gd_mykey123  # Pass key directly

API key resolution order:

1. --api-key flag
2. LOC8N_API_KEY environment variable
3. Active profile in config file

Config is stored at $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/loc8n/config.json (default ~/.config/loc8n/config.json).

Profiles

loc8n auth login --profile staging    # Create named profile
loc8n auth switch staging             # Switch active profile
loc8n auth list                       # List all profiles
loc8n auth remove staging             # Delete a profile
loc8n auth logout                     # Remove key from active profile

Output formats

| Flag | Format | Default when | | ----------- | ------- | -------------------- | | (none) | table | Interactive terminal | | (none) | json | Piped / redirected | | --json | JSON | Explicit | | --csv | CSV | Explicit | | --geojson | GeoJSON | Explicit |

Format is also inferred from file extension when using -o:

loc8n zip search --state VA -o results.csv    # Outputs CSV
loc8n zip search --state VA -o results.json   # Outputs JSON

Output options

--fields zip,city,state    # Select specific fields
--compact                  # Minified JSON
--no-header                # Omit table/CSV header row
-q, --quiet                # Data only, no metadata
-o, --output <file>        # Write to file instead of stdout

Commands

zip

ZIP code lookups, search, and distance tools.

loc8n zip lookup <code>
loc8n zip search [-s state] [-c city] [--county name] [--type standard|po_box|unique]
loc8n zip by-city -c <city> -s <state>
loc8n zip by-coords --lat <lat> --lon <lon> [--limit 5]
loc8n zip distance <from> <to> [--unit miles|kilometers] [--method haversine|vincenty]
loc8n zip radius <code> --radius <miles> [--unit miles|km] [--sort distance|zip] [--limit 100]
loc8n zip batch [codes...] [--file path]
loc8n zip matrix --origins <zips> --destinations <zips> [--unit miles|km]

Fields: zip, city, state, county, type, latitude, longitude, timezone, areaCode, landArea, waterArea

demographics

Demographic data by ZIP, area, or block group.

loc8n demographics lookup <zip> [--year] [--category population|income|housing|education|employment|households]
loc8n demographics area <type> <code> [--year] [--category]
loc8n demographics compare <codes...> [--type] [--year] [--category]     # Max 10
loc8n demographics aggregate <zips...> [--method sum|average|weighted]    # Max 100
loc8n demographics trend <code> [--type] [--start-year] [--end-year]
loc8n demographics changes <code> [--type] [--year]
loc8n demographics years
loc8n demographics block-group <geoid>    # 12-digit GEOID

Fields: zip, geoid, areaType, name, year, population, medianAge, medianIncome, perCapitaIncome, medianHomeValue, medianRent, homeOwnershipRate, vacancyRate, povertyRate, bachelorsDegreeRate, unemploymentRate, householdSize, totalHouseholds

geocode

Forward and reverse geocoding.

loc8n geocode address <address> [--limit] [--country]
loc8n geocode reverse --lat <lat> --lon <lon>
loc8n geocode validate <address>
loc8n geocode batch [addresses...] [--file path]

Fields: formattedAddress, latitude, longitude, confidence, city, state, zip, county, country

boundaries

Geographic boundary data (GeoJSON).

loc8n boundaries zip <code> [--tolerance 0.0001-0.1]
loc8n boundaries county <fips> [--tolerance]
loc8n boundaries state <code> [--tolerance]
loc8n boundaries containing --lat <lat> --lon <lon> [--types zip,county,state]
loc8n boundaries contains --lat <lat> --lon <lon> --type <type> --id <id>
loc8n boundaries intersecting --type <type> --file <geojson>

locations

Manage saved locations.

loc8n locations list [--type] [--tags] [--active|--inactive] [--sort] [--order] [--limit] [--page]
loc8n locations get <id>
loc8n locations create --name <name> --lat <lat> --lon <lon> [--type] [--tags] [--address] [--zip]
loc8n locations update <id> [--name] [--lat] [--lon] [--type] [--tags] [--address] [--zip]
loc8n locations delete <id> [--force]
loc8n locations nearby --lat <lat> --lon <lon> --radius <r> [--unit miles|km] [--limit]
loc8n locations search <query> [--limit]
loc8n locations bulk-create --file <path>       # JSON array, max 100
loc8n locations bulk-delete --ids <ids> [--force]

Fields: id, name, latitude, longitude, type, tags, address, zip, city, state, active, createdAt, updatedAt

market

Fair Market Rent and housing market data.

loc8n market fmr zip <code> [--year]
loc8n market fmr county <fips> [--year]
loc8n market fmr metro <code> [--year]
loc8n market fmr state <code> [--year]
loc8n market trend <zip|county|metro|state> <code> [--start-year] [--end-year]

Fields: areaType, code, name, year, efficiency, oneBedroom, twoBedroom, threeBedroom, fourBedroom

migration

IRS migration flow data.

loc8n migration county <fips> [--year]
loc8n migration state <code> [--year]
loc8n migration inflows <code> [--type county|state] [--year] [--limit] [--sort count|percentage]
loc8n migration outflows <code> [--type county|state] [--year] [--limit] [--sort count|percentage]
loc8n migration trend <code> [--type county|state] [--start-year] [--end-year]
loc8n migration years

hmda

Mortgage lending data (Home Mortgage Disclosure Act).

loc8n hmda tract <geoid> [--year]       # 11-digit GEOID
loc8n hmda county <fips> [--year]
loc8n hmda state <code> [--year]
loc8n hmda trend <tract|county|state> <code> [--start-year] [--end-year]
loc8n hmda years

Fields: areaType, code, name, year, applicationCount, originationCount, denialCount, denialRate, medianLoanAmount, medianInterestRate, medianPropertyValue, medianBorrowerIncome, purchasePct, refinancePct

employment

LODES employment data.

loc8n employment tract <geoid> [--perspective workplace|residence] [--year]
loc8n employment county <fips> [--perspective] [--year]
loc8n employment state <code> [--perspective] [--year]
loc8n employment inflows <code> [--type tract|county|state] [--year] [--limit]
loc8n employment outflows <code> [--type tract|county|state] [--year] [--limit]
loc8n employment compare <codes...> [--type] [--perspective] [--year]    # 2-10 codes
loc8n employment trend <type> <code> [--perspective] [--start-year] [--end-year]

areas

Search for geographic areas.

loc8n areas search <query> [--type zip,county,state,cbsa,place] [--state] [--limit]

Fields: code, name, type, state

whoami

loc8n whoami          # Text output
loc8n whoami --json   # JSON output

Shows current profile and validates your API key.

Global options

--api-key <key>      API key (overrides profile/env)
--profile <name>     Use a specific profile
--json               Force JSON output
--csv                Force CSV output
--geojson            Force GeoJSON output
-o, --output <file>  Write to file
-v, --verbose        Show HTTP request/response details
-q, --quiet          Data only, no metadata
--fields <fields>    Comma-separated field list
--compact            Minified JSON
--no-tty             Force non-interactive mode
--no-header          Suppress table/CSV headers

Batch operations

Commands that accept multiple inputs (zip batch, geocode batch, locations bulk-create) support three input methods:

# Arguments
loc8n zip batch 22903 10001 90210

# File
loc8n zip batch --file zips.txt

# Stdin
cat zips.txt | loc8n zip batch

Input files can be plain text (one per line), CSV, or JSON arrays. Format is auto-detected.

Progress is reported to stderr; data goes to stdout — safe for piping.

Environment variables

| Variable | Description | | ------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------- | | LOC8N_API_KEY | API key (overrides profile config) | | LOC8N_API_URL | Base API URL (default: https://api.loc8n.com) | | LOC8N_MAX_RETRIES | Max retry attempts (default: 3) | | LOC8N_RETRY_BACKOFF_MS | Base backoff in ms (default: 1000) |

Retry behavior

The client automatically retries on:

• 429 Too Many Requests — uses Retry-After header with exponential backoff
• 5xx Server Errors — exponential backoff (1s, 2s, 4s...)

Non-retryable errors (401, 403, 404, 422) fail immediately.

License

MIT