SHSelfHostIndex

OpenStreetMap Carto vs OpenStreetMap Website

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?
OP OpenStreetMap Carto The standard map style for OpenStreetMap rendering VS OP OpenStreetMap Website The Rails application powering openstreetmap.org
FeatureOpenStreetMap CartoOpenStreetMap Website
Deploy effortRead-the-docs projectUnder-an-hour setup
Health score81 · Excellent84 · Excellent
CategoryMaps & GISMaps & GIS
LicenseCC0-1.0GPL-2.0
LanguageCartoCSSRuby
Setup difficultyHardHard
Min. RAM4,096 MB4,096 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 1,730★ 2,834
First released20122006
ReplacesGoogle MapsGoogle Maps

What are OpenStreetMap Carto and OpenStreetMap Website?

OpenStreetMap Carto

OpenStreetMap Carto is the CartoCSS map stylesheet used to render the standard map layer on openstreetmap.org. It is used with renderers like Mapnik to produce raster tiles from OSM data.

  • Standard OSM map style
  • Mapnik rendering
  • Detailed cartography
  • Widely reused base style

OpenStreetMap Website

The OpenStreetMap website is the open-source Rails application that runs openstreetmap.org. It provides the map browsing interface, data editing tools, and user accounts for the collaborative world map.

  • Collaborative map editing
  • User accounts and diaries
  • Map data API
  • Open map data

OpenStreetMap Carto vs OpenStreetMap Website: key differences

OpenStreetMap Carto is written in CartoCSS, while OpenStreetMap Website is built with Ruby. Licensing differs — CC0-1.0 for OpenStreetMap Carto versus GPL-2.0 for OpenStreetMap Website. OpenStreetMap Website is the more established project (first released 2006), while OpenStreetMap Carto arrived in 2012. OpenStreetMap Website lists first-class Docker deployment; OpenStreetMap Carto does not.

Why pick each one

Choose OpenStreetMap Carto if…

  • Released under the CC0-1.0 license
  • Active community (1.7k GitHub stars)
  • Written in CartoCSS
OpenStreetMap Carto details

Choose OpenStreetMap Website if…

  • Released under the GPL-2.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Active community (2.8k GitHub stars)
  • Written in Ruby
OpenStreetMap Website details

Frequently asked questions

Is OpenStreetMap Carto or OpenStreetMap Website better?

Neither is universally better. OpenStreetMap Website has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are OpenStreetMap Carto and OpenStreetMap Website free and open-source?

Yes. OpenStreetMap Carto is licensed under CC0-1.0 and OpenStreetMap Website under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run OpenStreetMap Carto and OpenStreetMap Website with Docker?

OpenStreetMap Carto: check the project docs for container support. OpenStreetMap Website: yes.

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