Commons:Map resources

All categories and pages that start with "Commons" in the name are for internal Commons work. They contain resources, help, tools, instructions, links, FAQs, examples, labs, software, etc.. They are not for categorization of images and media files used outside of internal Commons work. Please do not categorize regular image or media files here. Instead, see the main categories and subcategories at the Main Page and here. See also: Category help and category search. Search the Commons namespace at Special:Search.

To find categorized maps, atlases, and satellite pictures please see:

Category:Maps – maps for Wikipedia sites in many languages.
Category:WikiAtlas – current and historical atlases for many nations and regions.
Category:Satellite pictures – categorized satellite photos.

Many maps are ineligible for copyright, and are in the public domain

See Commons:Threshold of originality#Maps. Use {{PD-map}} on maps which are ineligible for copyright.

Create maps online for free

Note: Please add more free sites. Resulting maps must be free according to Wikimedia standards.

Anybody can create maps for free at the sites below and upload them to the Commons.

Datawrapper.de – Create charts and maps with Datawrapper for free. Add an image license, and this template:
- {{Datawrapper.de}}
MapChart.net – Create custom maps for free. Use this image license template:
- {{Mapchart.net}}

Map resource subpages

Special:PrefixIndex/Commons:Map resources. All subpages of this page.

The subpages are a repository of various files useful for creating new maps for various wiki projects. The files in the subpages are not necessarily opened through web browsers since many of them are in graphic applications generic formats, like GIMP.

Where to request new or improved maps

Commons:Help desk. You may get a more rapid answer here.
Commons:Graphic Lab/Map workshop – for help creating or improving maps.
en:Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Map workshop – edits and creates maps on request.
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps#Participants – ask the participants for help.
en:Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Maps – ask at this talk page.
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Illustration – ask project members for help.
en:Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Illustration – ask at this talk page.
es:Wikiproyecto:Ilustración/Taller gráfico/Peticiones – página de peticiones del taller gráfico de Wikipedia en español.
fr:Wikipédia:Atelier graphique/Cartes – specific page of the French Graphic Lab for map creation or modification.
it:Progetto:Laboratorio_grafico/Immagini_da_migliorare – Italian Graphic Lab.

Wikimedia Commons map resources

On commons.wikimedia.org.

Category:Commons maps – a map work category with many resources.
Commons:WikiProject Atlas – for working on atlases.
Category:WikiAtlas Assistance – altas help, templates, progress.
Commons:Free media resources/Map.
Commons:Wikimaps.
Commons:Wikimaps/Resources.
Category:Blank maps - blank templates for making informational maps. "You can also find blank maps in the category:SVG maps : by easily deleting the additional SVG format information of those maps you will get rapidly a blank map. See Commons:File types#SVG for more info."

User-editable maps

These SVG maps have user-editable sections (any text editor) to allow creation of more maps on more topics. Just paste in a list of states and values. See examples at Category:English-language SVG maps of the United States made with templates. Feel free to create map templates for other countries too. Cmglee may be able to help with that.

Version 2: Convert a US list/table to a state-by-state data map. With examples and step-by step instructions. Example:
Homicide rates per 100,000 by state. FBI.

Simple map below with state names and colored states. See its talk page.
Medicaid expansion map of US. Affordable Care Act

SVG file checkers

3 SVG file checkers are listed below. Use them on SVG maps (like the ones in the previous section). Some text editors such as en:Notepad++ will both edit SVG files, and show line numbers. File checkers list errors by line number.

en:Wikipedia:SVG help#Testing for problems - Here they are:

WMF Labs SVG check. Among other things it will tell you if there is a font that does not exist on Wikimedia wikis. And it will show you what the map may look like on the Commons without having to upload it permanently first. It depends on if the software versions are the same. Commons rendering can be different from what a map looks like in a browser before uploading.
Commons SVG Checker. If checking via file name do not include "File:"
w3.org validator. Upload file. Don't use Commons file URL.

Accessibility and map colors

en:MOS:COLOR - Many file checkers to upload map to.
en:Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility/Colors

Color blindness:

Coblis — Color Blindness Simulator - Colblindor. Easy to use.
Color vision deficiency emulator. Easy to use. Upload a PNG/JPG/JPEG map. Download a PNG map from various-size links on Commons SVG file description page. After uploading to the emulator save the "All" tab with all the test results compiled on one page. That way you can compare different images. The emulator will stop working if you try to upload too many images, especially the same exact image, because you forgot what the results were.

Contrast checkers:

WhoCanUse. Who can use this color combination?
WebAIM: Contrast Checker.
Colour Contrast Check -snook.ca.

Wikipedia help:

Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility/Colors
Wikipedia:Colour contrast
Help:Link color - some map overlays have links.

Wikimedia Meta map resources

On meta.wikimedia.org.

Meta:Category:Wikimaps – Meta-Wiki category for many map resources.
meta:WikiMiniAtlas – draggable, zoomable, and clickable geocoded maps.

MediaWiki map resources

On mediawiki.org – MediaWiki.

mw:Maps – catalogs tools, extensions, projects, help, and more.
mw:Category:Map extensions
mw:Help:Map Data
mw:Wikimedia Maps
mw:Help:VisualEditor/Maps

Wikipedia map resources

en:Category:Maps
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps – Much info and many links. List of all subpages.
en:Wikipedia:Maps for Wikipedia - many links.
en:Wikipedia:Graphics Lab - various workshops. One is for maps.
en:Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Map workshop
en:Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Resources
en:Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Resources/Tutorials/Map tutorials
en:Category:Wikipedia geography work groups
en:Category:Wikipedia maps – the map work category at English Wikipedia.
en:Category:Cartography – categorized Wikipedia articles on cartography.
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps/Source materials – many source materials.
en:Wikipedia:Creating route maps from OpenStreetMap data – a tutorial for making line maps.
en:Wikipedia:Creating shape maps from OpenStreetMap data – a tutorial for making shape maps.
en:Wikipedia:Image source files - see maps section.

Templates

en:Category:Mapping templates
en:Category:Graphic templates – some map templates, too.
en:Category:Wikipedia template categories – Some map-related templates here.

Tutorials

Note: See also the user-editable map section higher up.

Category:Map tutorials
Image:Tutorial-cartography (basic).svg – learn quickly how to draw SVG maps.
Commons:PDF to image files – many free maps from the UN and elsewhere are in the PDF format.
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps/PDF map conversion to SVG

Geographic coordinates, geotagging, and geocoding

Category:Commons geocoding
meta:WikiMiniAtlas – draggable, zoomable, and clickable geocoded maps.
Geographic coordinates, geotagging and geocoding.
de:Wikipedia:WikiProjekt Georeferenzierung/Wikipedia-World/en. International cooperation for coordinate mapping. See also:
en:Wikipedia:WikiProject Geographical coordinates
en:Category:WikiProject Geographical coordinates
en:Category:Coordinates templates

Other free or public-domain map resources online

Please upload more free maps to Commons. Resulting maps must be free according to Wikimedia standards.

Resources with image license templates

Wikitravel: Category:Maps – {{CC-by-sa-3.0}}.
Map Library (MapLibrary.org) [1]. Africa and Central America. "The Map Library is a source of public domain basic map data concerning administrative boundaries in developing countries." {{PD-MapLibrary}}.
CIA reference maps: [2]. Public domain info: {{PD-USGov-CIA}} and {{PD-USGov-CIA-WF}}.
United Nations Cartographic Section Web Site: [3]. Public domain info: Commons:Copyright tags#United Nations and {{UN map}}
Maps and Graphics library [4] of the United Nations Environment Programme.
Government Maps [5]. Paul V. Galvin Library at Illinois Institute of Technology. {{PD-USGov}}.
U.S. Library of Congress maps: [6]. Public domain info: [7]: "The maps in the Map Collections materials were either published prior to 1922, produced by the United States government, or both (see catalogue records that accompany each map for information regarding date of publication and source)." Publications of the U.S. federal government are in the public domain. {{PD-USGov}}.
planiglobe online map creation Generates maps from public domain data. Postscript and Adobe Illustrator versions can be downloaded. {{Planiglobe}}.
For a variety of U.S. federal government image license templates see: Commons:Copyright tags#United States.

Resources with public-domain statements

See Public Domain.

Create Custom Map - MapChart at mapchart.net – see Terms of service. Use {{Mapchart.net}}.
Perry-Castañeda Library – the Map Collection [8] is in the public domain (see FAQ: [9]): "Most of the maps scanned by the University of Texas Libraries and served from this web site are in the public domain. No permissions are needed to copy them. You may download them and use them as you wish. We appreciate credit to "University of Texas Libraries" as the source of the scanned images. A few maps are copyrighted, and are clearly marked as such."
Map Maker Trust [10] – "The Map Maker Trust is a source of free map data and mapping software for developing countries. The idea behind the Map Maker Trust is that the lack of good, simple maps is a serious obstacle to development in all kinds of fields, from health care to urban management, from de-mining to environmental protection. The Trust's purpose is two fold: to make public domain mapping data more readily available for developing countries, and to provide free, easy to use software to facilitate map making by non-experts."

Resources with unclear free-image statements

These resources may need further clarification. If you upload images from these resources to the commons, then there is a possibility that they may be put up for deletion. Consider this an opportunity to show that they are truly free images, and that they can be used both non-commercially and commercially. The Wikimedia Commons also requires that the images can be modified without asking permission (derivative use). To prove all this you may have to contact the resource and send their reply to the VRT.

UC Atlas of Global Inequality – home page [11]: "The Atlas of Global Inequality explores some aspects of inequality using online, downloadable maps and graphics. All these materials can be used freely providing they are attributed to the UC Atlas of Global Inequality." University of California, Santa Cruz.
Free blank maps of countries and continents at geography.about.com: [12]. Overall map portal at geography.about.com:
- [13]. It is not at all clear which maps are completely free, and which are not.
- Someone might ask at the Geography forums at About.com: [14].
- Guest entry to view forums: [15]
Maps of Canada and Atlas of the World maps. Online Historical Map Digitization Project Publisher queries and map re-use information

Lists of public domain and other free maps

Sources of public domain maps. Public Domain Sherpa.
Public Domain – Copyright Guide – Research Guides at Library of the Marine Corps. See the map links and sections.

Resources for clickable image maps

See:

Commons:Image map resources

Adding map legends to map captions

On the file description page there are several examples of map legends:

File:2016 US map of drug overdose deaths per 100,000 population by state.gif

Free open-source tools for map and chart creation

The Our World in Data-Grapher. By en:Our World in Data.