--- title: "Use Amazon Location Service SDK" section: "frontend/geo" platforms: ["android", "angular", "javascript", "nextjs", "react", "swift", "vue"] gen: 2 last-updated: "2026-03-25T17:40:00.000Z" url: "https://docs.amplify.aws/react/frontend/geo/amazon-location-sdk/" --- Amplify Geo provides solutions for common use cases with [Amazon Location Service](https://aws.amazon.com/location/) but for any functionality that is not currently supported by Amplify Geo you can access the [Amazon Location Service SDK](https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-js-v3/tree/main/clients/client-location) directly. Follow this guide to get started with the `aws-sdk` for Amazon Location Service using Amplify Auth credentials. ## Overview In this tutorial, we’ll go over the following: - Setting up the AWS SDK JavaScript v3 package for the Amazon Location Service SDK calls with Amplify auth. - Code examples using the Amazon Location Service SDK. ## Installing SDK dependencies The first step to using the SDKs in the client is to install the necessary dependencies with the following command: ```bash title="Terminal" showLineNumbers={false} npm add @aws-sdk/client-location ``` ## Connecting your app to Amazon Location Service In the following procedure, you’ll connect your app to the Amazon Location Service APIs. **To connect your app to the Amazon Location Service** In your React App, open `src/App.js` file, and call the following function to initialize the Amazon Location Service client: ```javascript import { Amplify } from 'aws-amplify'; import { fetchAuthSession } from 'aws-amplify/auth'; import { LocationClient, AssociateTrackerConsumerCommand } from '@aws-sdk/client-location'; import outputs from '../amplify_outputs.json'; Amplify.configure(outputs); const createClient = async () => { const session = await fetchAuthSession(); const client = new LocationClient({ credentials: session.credentials, region: amplifyconfig.aws_project_region }); return client; }; ``` You’ve now successfully connected your app to the Amazon Location Service. ## Using the Amazon Location Service APIs In order to access Amazon Location Service APIs, ensure you've provisioned resources and configured your app using the instructions in either [Amplify Geo Maps docs](/[platform]/build-a-backend/add-aws-services/geo/set-up-geo/) or the [Amazon Location Service console](https://console.aws.amazon.com/location/home#/create). You can check out the [Amazon Location API Reference documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/index.html) for a complete list of supported features. ### Example: Getting Device Position This example requires you to have first provisioned a Tracker resource using the [Amazon Location Service console](https://console.aws.amazon.com/location/tracking/home#/create). The following code details how to use the Amazon Location Service APIs to update a device position and get a device position using the tracker you just created: ```javascript // UpdateDevicePosition API const params = { TrackerName: 'trackerId', Updates: [ { DeviceId: 'deviceId', Position: [-122.431297, 37.773972], SampleTime: new Date() } ] }; const command = new BatchUpdateDevicePositionCommand(params); client.send(command, (err, data) => { if (err) console.error(err); if (data) console.log(data); }); // GetDevicePosition API const client = await createClient(); const params = { TrackerName: 'trackerId', DeviceId: 'deviceId' }; const command = new GetDevicePositionCommand(params); client.send(command, (err, data) => { if (err) console.error(err); if (data) console.log(data); }); ``` If you need functionality in the AWS services used by the Amplify Geo category that isn't available, we provide an escape hatch so you can get a reference to that service. Note: If you provisioned your Geo resources via CDK, then the IAM policy will be specifically scoped to only allow actions required by the library. Please [adjust your authorization permissions](/[platform]/build-a-backend/add-aws-services/geo/existing-resources/) accordingly for your escape hatch use-cases. #### [Java] Learn more about consuming Kotlin clients from Java using either a blocking interface or an equivalent async interface based on futures [here](https://github.com/awslabs/smithy-kotlin/blob/main/docs/design/kotlin-smithy-sdk.md#java-interop). ```java import android.util.Log; import androidx.annotation.NonNull; import com.amplifyframework.core.Amplify; import com.amplifyframework.geo.location.AWSLocationGeoPlugin; import aws.sdk.kotlin.services.location.LocationClient; import aws.sdk.kotlin.services.location.model.ListMapsRequest; import aws.sdk.kotlin.services.location.model.ListMapsResponse; import kotlin.Unit; import kotlin.coroutines.Continuation; import kotlin.coroutines.CoroutineContext; import kotlinx.coroutines.GlobalScope; ``` ```java // Obtain reference to the plugin AWSLocationGeoPlugin geoPlugin = (AWSLocationGeoPlugin) Amplify.Geo.getPlugin("awsLocationGeoPlugin"); LocationClient locationClient = geoPlugin.getEscapeHatch(); // Send a new request to the Location Maps endpoint directly using the client ListMapsRequest request = ListMapsRequest.Companion.invoke(requestBuilder -> Unit.INSTANCE); locationClient.listMaps(request, new Continuation() { @NonNull @Override public CoroutineContext getContext() { return GlobalScope.INSTANCE.getCoroutineContext(); } @Override public void resumeWith(@NonNull Object resultOrException) { Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", resultOrException.toString()); } }); ``` #### [Kotlin] ```kotlin import android.util.Log import aws.sdk.kotlin.services.location.LocationClient import aws.sdk.kotlin.services.location.model.ListMapsRequest import com.amplifyframework.core.Amplify ``` ```kotlin // Obtain reference to the Amazon Location Service client val geoPlugin = Amplify.Geo.getPlugin("awsLocationGeoPlugin") val locationClient = geoPlugin.escapeHatch as LocationClient // Send a new request to the Location Maps endpoint directly using the client val request = ListMapsRequest { } val response = locationClient.listMaps(request) Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", response.entries.toString()) ``` ## Documentation Resources * [How to manage Amazon Location Service resources through console](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/welcome.html) **Maps** * [Using Amazon Location Maps in your application](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/using-maps.html) * [Amazon Location Maps API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-maps/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html) **Places** * [Searching place and geolocation data using Amazon Location](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/searching-for-places.html) * [Amazon Location Places API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-places/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html) **Device Tracking** * [Managing your tracker resources](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/managing-trackers.html) * [Amazon Location Trackers API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-trackers/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html) If you need functionality in the AWSLocation framework used by the Amplify Geo category that isn't available, we provide an escape hatch so you can reference it directly. Note: If you provisioned your Geo resources, then the IAM policy will be specifically scoped to only allow actions required by the library. Please [adjust your authorization permissions](/[platform]/build-a-backend/add-aws-services/geo/existing-resources/) accordingly for your escape hatch use-cases. ```swift import AWSLocation ``` Then retrieve the escape hatch and call methods on `AWSLocation` directly: ```swift do { // Retrieve AWSLocationGeoPlugin let plugin = try Amplify.Geo.getPlugin(for: "awsLocationGeoPlugin") guard let locationPlugin = plugin as? AWSLocationGeoPlugin else { return } // Retrieve reference to AWSLocation let awsLocation = locationPlugin.getEscapeHatch() // Make Request var request = ListMapsInput() request.maxResults = 5 let response = try await awsLocation.listMaps(input: request) // handle response ... } catch { print("Error occurred while fetching the escape hatch \(error)") } ``` ## Documentation Resources - [How to manage Amazon Location Service resources through console](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/welcome.html) **Maps** - [Using Amazon Location Maps in your application](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/using-maps.html) - [Amazon Location Maps API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-maps/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html) **Places** - [Searching place and geolocation data using Amazon Location](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/searching-for-places.html) - [Amazon Location Places API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-places/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html) **Device Tracking** - [Managing your tracker resources](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location/latest/developerguide/managing-trackers.html) - [Amazon Location Trackers API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/location-trackers/latest/APIReference/API_Operations.html)