Neshan
Neshan is Iran's leading mapping and navigation platform, offering a free consumer app serving 20M+ monthly active users and a B2B developer platform with map, routing, geocoding, and logistics APIs used by 500+ companies including Snapp, Divar, and Bank Markazi.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersMashhad, Iran
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Neshan does
Neshan is Iran's largest mapping and navigation platform, operating a free consumer navigation app serving 20M+ monthly active users alongside a B2B developer platform used by 500+ companies and processing 10M+ API requests per day. Founded around 2005 under the legal entity Sazehaye Ettelaati Razzman and headquartered in Mashhad with a sales office in Tehran, the company has been recognized as the best navigation app in Iran for four consecutive years (2018–2021). Its service portfolio spans turn-by-turn navigation for car, motorcycle, public transit, bicycle, and pedestrian modes, with Persian-language voice guidance, live traffic, and crowdsourced alerts for police, speed bumps, and cameras.
The technology stack is built on OpenStreetMap base data enhanced with proprietary Iranian-specific layers: live traffic derived from anonymous user speed and location data, crowdsourced map corrections and POI contributions, an Iranian license-plate-based addressing system unique to Neshan, and a TSP (Traveling Salesman Problem) optimization engine for logistics. The platform exposes a comprehensive API/SDK portfolio covering routing (live, predictive, typical, pedestrian), geocoding, reverse geocoding, search, distance matrix, isochrone, map matching, and static maps, with SDKs for Android (including Jetpack Compose), iOS (Swift/Objective-C), and web (MapboxGL, OpenLayers, Leaflet), plus framework components for React and Vue.js.
Neshan generates revenue through three primary streams: (1) Location-Based Advertising on the consumer app — pin ads, search ads, header banners, and zero-speed billboards — sold via a dedicated Tehran ad-sales team targeting enterprise and brand advertisers; (2) B2B API/SDK consumption on a pay-as-you-go basis with prepay account funding and a free 200,000-Toman 3-month developer tier; and (3) freemium consumer app usage monetized primarily through in-app advertising rather than subscription. Notable customers include Snapp, Divar, Tapsi Food, Kerman Motor, Bank Markazi, AloPeyk, Shatel, Torob, Paziresh24, and Ronia. The company operates a flat 14-team organizational structure, runs the Hammasir talent bootcamp, holds Fanap investment, and is engaged in municipal mapping projects across 17 Iranian cities.
Neshan firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Neshan
- Legal name
- شرکت سازههای اطلاعاتی راژمان (Sazehaye Ettelaati Razzman)
- Website
- https://neshan.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Short description
- Neshan is Iran's leading mapping and navigation platform, offering a free consumer app serving 20M+ monthly active users and a B2B developer platform with map, routing, geocoding, and logistics APIs used by 500+ companies including Snapp, Divar, and Bank Markazi.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Neshan industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mapping and Navigation Software
- akta.pro primary industry
- POI, Local Listings & Business Directory Platforms (BPAMANAD)
Keywords
Where Neshan is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Mashhad
- HQ country
- Iran
- HQ region
- Middle East
Offices2 records
Markets served
Neshan business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Location-Based Advertising (LBA): Business advertising on the navigation app and map — pin ads, search ads, header banners, zero-speed billboards, and general banners shown to users during navigation and search. Pricing varies: pin ads (monthly), search ads (per click), zero-speed billboard (per impression), header banner (per impression).
- API and SDK Platform (Pay-as-you-go): B2B developers and businesses pay for API usage based on volume (Pay As You Go). Free tier includes 200K Toman credit for first 3 months for testing and development.
- Consumer App (Freemium): Free navigation app for consumers with 8+ million users. Revenue primarily from advertising displayed within the app rather than premium subscriptions.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free tier for developers — 200K Toman credit for 3 months |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Pay-as-you-go API consumption |
| Subscription | Monthly | Pin Ad — monthly subscription |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Search Ad — per click |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Zero Speed Billboard — per impression (minimum 1M impressions) |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Header Banner — per impression |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels7 records
Marketing channels6 records
Neshan product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Neshan operates a Persian-language map and navigation platform consisting of a free consumer navigation app (car, motorcycle, transit, bicycle, pedestrian) and a B2B developer platform offering mapping APIs/SDKs (routing, TSP, geocoding, search, distance matrix, isochrone, map matching, static maps). It monetizes the consumer base through a Location-Based Advertising (LBA) platform offering pin ads, search ads, header banners, and zero-speed billboards to local businesses and brands.
Product overview
Neshan operates as a multi-layered map and location-based services company with two core layers: (1) the Neshan Maps & Navigation consumer app — a free Persian-language turn-by-turn navigation app serving 8 million users and 20+ million monthly active users, supporting car, motorcycle, public transit, bicycle, and pedestrian navigation with real-time traffic and crowdsourced road reports; and (2) the Neshan Maps Platform — a developer-facing B2B platform offering a comprehensive portfolio of APIs (routing with live/predictive/typical traffic, pedestrian routing, TSP optimization, geocoding, reverse geocoding, search, distance matrix, isochrone, map matching, static maps) and SDKs (Web SDKs based on MapboxGL, OpenLayers, and Leaflet; Android SDK with Jetpack Compose support; iOS SDK; deprecated B4A SDK; deprecated WordPress plugin). Additionally, Neshan operates a Location-Based Advertising (LBA) platform with ad formats including custom pin, search ads, header banner, general banner, and zero-speed billboard for local businesses and major brands, alongside a free blue tick business verification program.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- هممسیر (Hammasir): Bootcamp program for training and hiring new talent in technical positions
- وب نشان (Web Neshan)
Products and services
- Neshan Maps & Navigation App (نقشه و مسیریاب نشان)
Quantifiable outcome
- 99.9% platform uptime
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Neshan
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Neshan technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature7 records
Neshan partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- OpenStreetMapcoreNeshan's mapping platform is built on OpenStreetMap (OSM) data, which is enhanced and extended with Neshan's proprietary Iranian address data, live traffic, and crowdsourced corrections. Neshan then makes this enhanced data available to developers through its API platform.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Neshan competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- TomTom:
- OpenStreetMap: Open-source collaborative mapping project that serves as the underlying map data foundation for Neshan's platform. Not a competitor but an enabling infrastructure dependency and upstream data source.
Direct peers
- Mapbox: B2B mapping platform offering APIs, SDKs, and map tiles for developers. Closest direct peer to Neshan's developer platform business, including the Web SDK integrations with MapboxGL (which Neshan itself uses).
- Balad: Iranian navigation app and local search platform serving Iranian consumers. Direct in-country competitor to Neshan's consumer app with overlapping use cases.
- Waze: Consumer navigation app with crowdsourced traffic and road alert data. Direct functional analog to Neshan's consumer app, including the crowdsourced police/speed bump/camera reports and community-driven map updates model.
- Yandex Maps: Local mapping platform serving the Russian and CIS markets with similar structural characteristics: a leading local mapping product that benefits from restricted access by Western mapping competitors, with consumer and B2B offerings.
- Baidu Maps: Leading Chinese mapping platform with consumer navigation and B2B services. Similar in market structure to Neshan: a locally dominant mapping platform in a market with restricted access by Western incumbents.
- Kakao Maps: Korean mapping and navigation platform with consumer app, local POI data, and Korean-language specialization. Direct structural analog to Neshan's local-market specialization model.
Broad incumbents
- HERE Technologies: Enterprise B2B mapping and location platform providing APIs, SDKs, and map data to logistics, automotive, and enterprise customers. Comparable to Neshan's B2B platform offering at a global scale.
- Google Maps: Global mapping and navigation incumbent with consumer app, APIs, and place data. Largely blocked in Iran, but represents the dominant global benchmark and the primary competitive threat if market access changes.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Neshan social profiles
Digital presenceNeshan compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Neshan financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Neshan leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
Neshan funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Neshan M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Neshan
What does Neshan do?
Neshan operates a Persian-language map and navigation platform consisting of a free consumer navigation app (car, motorcycle, transit, bicycle, pedestrian) and a B2B developer platform offering mapping APIs/SDKs (routing, TSP, geocoding, search, distance matrix, isochrone, map matching, static maps). It monetizes the consumer base through a Location-Based Advertising (LBA) platform offering pin ads, search ads, header banners, and zero-speed billboards to local businesses and brands.
Is Neshan a public or private company?
Neshan is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Neshan founded?
Neshan was founded in 2005.
Where is Neshan based?
Neshan is headquartered in Mashhad, Iran, in the Middle East region.
How does Neshan make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Location-Based Advertising (LBA) is the primary driver. The others are API and SDK Platform (Pay-as-you-go) and consumer App (Freemium).
Who are Neshan's main competitors?
Others on record are TomTom and OpenStreetMap. Direct peers are Mapbox, Balad, Waze, Yandex Maps, Baidu Maps and Kakao Maps. Broad incumbents are HERE Technologies and Google Maps.
Does Neshan have an API?
Yes. پلتفرم نقشه نشان is the only Iranian platform providing map services and routing APIs with live traffic data. Offers routing with live traffic, place search, geocoding, reverse geocoding, distance matrix, isochrone, map matching, TSP (Traveling Salesman Problem), and static map APIs. Pricing model is Pay As You Go. New accounts receive 200,000 Toman free credit for 3 months. Supports 10M+ daily requests. Developer documentation is at platform.neshan.org/docs.
What industry is Neshan in?
Neshan's product category is Mapping and Navigation Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMANAD, POI, Local Listings & Business Directory Platforms.