$maxDistance

  • 08/14/2025

The $maxDistance operator is used in geospatial queries to specify the maximum distance (in meters) that can exist between two points. It pairs well with $near for radius-based location searches.

Syntax

{
  <location field>: {
    $near: {
      $geometry: {
        type: "Point",
        coordinates: [<longitude>, <latitude>]
      },
      $maxDistance: <distance in meters>
    }
  }
}

Parameters

Parameter Description
location field The field containing the geospatial data
coordinates An array of [longitude, latitude] specifying the center point
$maxDistance Maximum distance in meters from the center point

Example

Using the stores collection, let's find all stores within 10Km of the Point coordinate.

db.stores.find({
  location: {
    $near: {
      $geometry: {
        type: "Point",
        coordinates: [-77.9951,-62.7339]
      },
      $maxDistance: 10000  // 10 kilometers in meters
    }
  }
},
{
  name: 1,
  location: 1
}).limit(2)

The query returns only one store that falls within 10Km of the coordinate provided.

{
   "_id": "66fd4cdd-ffc3-44b6-81d9-6d5e9c1f7f9a",
   "name": "Trey Research | Health Food Center - North Michelle",
   "location": { "lat": -77.9951, "lon": -62.7339 }
}

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