Tileserver PHP vs OpenMapTiles
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted maps & gis options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Tileserver PHP | OpenMapTiles |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 79 · Good |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Maps & GIS | Maps & GIS |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | PHP | PLpgSQL |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 8,192 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 593 | ★ 3,170 |
| First released | 2013 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Mapbox, Google Maps tiles | Mapbox |
What are Tileserver PHP and OpenMapTiles?
Tileserver PHP
Tileserver PHP is a lightweight server that hosts raster and vector map tiles, MBTiles, and UTFGrids over standard protocols. It is simple to deploy on common PHP hosting for serving custom maps.
- Serves MBTiles and UTFGrids
- TMS and WMTS protocols
- Runs on shared PHP hosting
- Raster and vector tiles
OpenMapTiles
OpenMapTiles is an open-source toolset for self-hosting the entire pipeline of generating vector map tiles from OpenStreetMap data. It produces ready-to-use tiles and styles for serving custom maps.
- Full vector tile pipeline
- OSM data import
- Multiple map styles
- Self-hosted tile generation
Tileserver PHP vs OpenMapTiles: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Tileserver PHP's repository is archived and no longer developed, while OpenMapTiles is actively maintained. Tileserver PHP is written in PHP, while OpenMapTiles is built with PLpgSQL. Licensing differs — BSD-2-Clause for Tileserver PHP versus BSD-3-Clause for OpenMapTiles. Tileserver PHP is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 8,192 MB for OpenMapTiles. Tileserver PHP is the more established project (first released 2013), while OpenMapTiles arrived in 2016. OpenMapTiles has the considerably larger community, at 3,170 GitHub stars versus 593. OpenMapTiles lists first-class Docker deployment; Tileserver PHP does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Tileserver PHP if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose OpenMapTiles if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in PLpgSQL
Frequently asked questions
Is Tileserver PHP or OpenMapTiles better?
Neither is universally better. OpenMapTiles has the larger community, while Tileserver PHP is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Tileserver PHP and OpenMapTiles free and open-source?
Yes. Tileserver PHP is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and OpenMapTiles under BSD-3-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Tileserver PHP and OpenMapTiles with Docker?
Tileserver PHP: check the project docs for container support. OpenMapTiles: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Tileserver PHP or OpenMapTiles?
Tileserver PHP has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 8,192 MB for OpenMapTiles. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.