A collection of online map sources and geo data portals.
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About this collection
About this collection
Maps simplified and improved people's lifes for many years. The internet only accelerated this trend, and huge quantities of great online maps have since been produced. Some of which we use every day, and some that are simply fun to explore.
I started bookmarking a few truly fantastic works, and soon ended up with a long list which demanded some structure. This is what I'm sharing here: An incomprehensive link collection, shaped by my own interests and my Swiss view of the world.
I am not affiliated with any of the linked resources, and do not necessarily share any opinions with their authors. Some maps visualize potentially distressing or sensitive themes, so please consume those at your own discretion.
Pascal Gwosdek, 2026
Universal
Universal
Global
Global
Free community-built map. Highly detailed. Many map layers.
Map with aerial image and ego perspective layer. Navigation options, and live traffic data.
Virtual globe. Many areas feature a detailed 3D model of the terrain surface, including buildings and vegetation.
Tools for OpenStreetMap developers. Features more data layers, aerial imagery, and a map comparison tool.
Preview of renderers to embed maps into your own website. Many options from OpenStreetMap and other sources.
Swiss
Swiss
Official map of the Swiss Confederation. Many thematic maps, including a lot of official GIS data and areal photos.
GIS Canton ZH
Official GIS browser of the canton of Zurich. Contains high-res authoritative mapping and lots of thematic overlays.
Official map of the city of Zurich, with thematic overlays, layers for communal infrastructure, and historic maps.
Your own custom maps
Your own custom maps
Create your own maps with OpenStreetMap base maps.
Create your own maps based on Google maps data.
Country-centred map projections
World maps with a custom projection, and centered around a custom country.
Transport
Transport
Navigation
Navigation
Routing for different transportation means on OpenStreetMap. Provides turn instructions.
Another OpenStreetMap-based routing portal. Plots height diagrams.
Directions for cars, by public transport, and by foot. Live traffic data.
Public transport in the ZVV network.
Trains
Trains
Shows which places you can reach in a given public transport time. Lots of filters, including minimum elevation of the destination.
All public Swiss mountain railways, and whether they accept GA or half fare cards.
Average train delays by station, for many countries in Europe.
Sectional drawings of all major Swiss railway stations as printable PDFs.
Electric cars
Electric cars
EV charging points, organized by power. Supports filters for connectors and vendors.
Tesla super chargers. Supports filtering for many dimensions, including whether non-Tesla EVs are allowed.
Air & sea
Air & sea
Live air traffic sourced from ADS-B and other sources.
Live marine traffic sourced from AIS.
Community maintained nautical map with many features. Supports inland navigation.
Community maintained airspace maps.
Environmental
Environmental
Elemental forces
Elemental forces
Animated live data from lightning strikes and thunder propagation.
Visualizes shadows cast by terrain and buildings at any time of day.
Recent and historic earthquakes in Switzerland, as detected by the Swiss Seismological Service.
Modeled impact of floods due to extreme precipitation events.
Pollution & anthropogenic effects
Pollution & anthropogenic effects
Brightness of the night sky due to human infrastructure.
Satellite data of fire sites across the globe. Tracks war activity, forest fires, and other large heat sources.
Electricity & communication
Electricity & communication
Live and historic data of the energy mix, and of electric power exports across country borders.
Searchable map showing all important global submarine cables.
Interactive map showing all buildings connected to the Swiss Fiber network, and init7's backbone connections to them.
Historic
Historic
Global
Global
Birth places of famous or otherwise well-known people, plotted on a globe.
Historic sites across the world.
Indigeneous territories, treaties, and languages.
Aerial imagery, animated over time.
A lot of historic or contemporary maps, across all thematic areas.
European
European
A 12th century map of European trade paths.
Tabula Peutingeriana projected onto a modern map.
Roman roads map reflecting the current state of research.
Roman roads rendered in the style of a modern subway map.
Swiss
Swiss
Historic maps on the Swiss geo portal.
More than 300'000 historic Swiss pictures exactly geo-located and aligned onto a 3D model of the country.
3D models of the city of Zurich in different epochs, all the way back to the Neolithic times.
High-res topology maps around historic Swiss fortresses. Used to derive detailed artillery firing maps.
Artistic
Artistic
Maps rendered in Watercolor style, by Eric Rodenbeck of Stamen Design.
Stunning drawings based on vintage maps by Ed Fairburn.
Terrain drawn as stacked elevation profiles by Habibi Code.
A collection of circular tube maps for different transit networks by Max Roberts.
NASA's name generator based on original Landsat aerials that resemble letters.
Data exploration
Data exploration
A nice representation of a country's population density.
Animated weather, wind, and population data on a globe, with historic data.
Largest island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island.
Germany, drawn by its population
Population density in Germany, animated over time.
Animated discharge of a country's rivers over many months.
Names of communities in Germany. Quite funny if you're fluent in German.
Military
Military
Battle map of Russia's invasion in Ukraine.
Mapping of recent media reports about incidents related to the Ukraine war and other conflict regions.
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