Leaflet vs OpenStreetMap Carto
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted maps & gis options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Leaflet
Lightweight JavaScript library for interactive maps
VS
OpenStreetMap Carto
The standard map style for OpenStreetMap rendering
| Feature | Leaflet | OpenStreetMap Carto |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Maps & GIS | Maps & GIS |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | CC0-1.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | CartoCSS |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 4,096 MB |
| Deployment | source, bare-metal | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 45,461 | ★ 1,723 |
| First released | 2011 | 2012 |
| Replaces | Google Maps JavaScript API | Google Maps |
Why pick each one
Choose Leaflet if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 45.5k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
Choose OpenStreetMap Carto if…
- Released under the CC0-1.0 license
- Active community (1.7k GitHub stars)
- Written in CartoCSS
Frequently asked questions
Is Leaflet or OpenStreetMap Carto better?
Leaflet is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider OpenStreetMap Carto if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Leaflet and OpenStreetMap Carto free and open-source?
Yes. Leaflet is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and OpenStreetMap Carto under CC0-1.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Leaflet and OpenStreetMap Carto with Docker?
Leaflet: check the project docs for container support. OpenStreetMap Carto: check the project docs for container support.