Clustering

Clustering reduces the overlap between the trips of different vehicles. The optimization groups nearby visits into clusters and gives each cluster to one vehicle, so vehicles do not cross into each other’s areas. The routes are clearly separated, but usually a little less optimal than without clustering.

• Less overlap between the routes of different vehicles.
• Each vehicle gets its own service area.
• The total distance may be longer than a fully optimized result.
• Useful when clear separation matters more than the shortest distance.

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Turning it on

1. Open Planning › Routing › Configuration and go to Optimization.
2. Tick Clustering (item 6 in the picture).
3. Choose Minimum overlap or No overlap.

The change is saved as soon as you make it.

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Options

Minimum overlap: Minimize overlap between routes of different vehicles. Some overlap may remain, but it is kept small.

• Use it when complete separation is not critical, when you want better routes while still reducing overlap, or when the area’s geography makes some overlap unavoidable.
• Trade-off: more efficient and flexible, but a vehicle may still cross into a nearby area.

No overlap: Prevent any overlap between routes of different vehicles. Routes are completely separated.

• Use it when strict areas are required, for example by company policy or regulation.
• Trade-off: the strictest boundaries, but longer total distance and less flexibility.

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How it works

Without clustering, vehicles may visit places anywhere in the service area, and routes may cross, as long as the total is efficient. With clustering:

1. Visits are grouped into clusters by distance.
2. Each cluster is given to one vehicle.
3. Each vehicle works inside its own cluster.
4. Overlap is reduced or prevented, depending on the option.

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Use cases

Regional sales teams: each sales rep has a territory. Use No overlap: every rep stays in their own territory. Delivery fleet that prefers fixed areas: drivers like familiar areas but may cross when it helps. Use Minimum overlap: drivers mostly stay in their area. Mixed city and rural areas: some vehicles serve the city, others the countryside. Use Minimum overlap: clusters follow the geography with few crossings.

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When to use it

Use it when:

• vehicles need clear boundaries,
• drivers have assigned regions,
• less overlap matters more than the shortest distance,
• overlapping routes would confuse drivers,
• your service areas are geographically distinct.

Avoid it when:

• the shortest total distance matters most,
• the area is small and overlap is not a problem,
• visits are packed close together,
• few vehicles serve a large area.

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Clustering and Geotagging

Clustering is often confused with Geotagging, because both split work by area. The difference is who draws the areas and what they are for. Clustering is automatic. You draw nothing. The optimization groups nearby visits and gives each group to a vehicle, to reduce overlap. The areas come from where the visits are, so they can change from one run to the next, and the optimization decides which vehicle serves which area. Geotagging is manual. You draw fixed areas on the map. Each area has tags, and only vehicles with those tags may serve its visits. The areas stay the same every run, so you decide exactly where each area is and which vehicles serve it.

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Frequently asked questions

Are routes always longer with clustering? Usually, because separation comes before the shortest distance. No overlap usually gives longer routes than Minimum overlap. Does it work with other options? Yes: Auto Split, Auto Merge, Multi Trip and capacity constraints. Does it respect tags? Yes. Visits only go to vehicles with matching tags. What if visits are spread unevenly? Some vehicles may get small areas with many visits, others large areas with few.