Martin vs TileServer GL
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted maps & gis options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Martin | TileServer GL |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 89 · Excellent | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Maps & GIS | Maps & GIS |
| License | MIT | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | Rust | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,939 | ★ 2,905 |
| First released | 2018 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Mapbox | Mapbox |
What are Martin and TileServer GL?
Martin
Martin is a high-performance vector tile server that serves tiles directly from PostGIS databases, PMTiles, and MBTiles files. It powers fast, dynamic map serving with minimal configuration.
- PostGIS tile serving
- PMTiles and MBTiles support
- Auto-discovery of sources
- High performance
TileServer GL
TileServer GL is an open-source map tile server that serves vector and raster tiles, styles, and rendered images. It is the standard self-hosted solution for delivering MapLibre and Mapbox-style maps.
- Vector and raster tiles
- Server-side rendering
- MBTiles support
- MapLibre compatible
Martin vs TileServer GL: key differences
Martin is written in Rust, while TileServer GL is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — MIT for Martin versus BSD-2-Clause for TileServer GL. Martin is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for TileServer GL. TileServer GL is the more established project (first released 2016), while Martin arrived in 2018.
Why pick each one
Choose Martin if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
Choose TileServer GL if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Martin or TileServer GL better?
Neither is universally better. Martin has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Martin and TileServer GL free and open-source?
Yes. Martin is licensed under MIT and TileServer GL under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Martin and TileServer GL with Docker?
Martin: yes. TileServer GL: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Martin or TileServer GL?
Martin has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for TileServer GL. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.