OpenStreetMap

OpenStreetMap is a collaborative, volunteer-driven project creating a free, editable map of the world for developers, businesses, and humanitarian organizations needing open geospatial data.

🚀 Overview

OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a global community effort to build and maintain a detailed, editable digital map of the world. Volunteers contribute data using GPS devices, aerial imagery, and local knowledge, making it a rich source of geospatial information.

The project solves the problem of restricted access to high-quality map data from proprietary providers like Google Maps by offering freely licensed data that anyone can use, modify, and share.

It is built for volunteer mappers, developers integrating maps into applications, companies seeking affordable mapping solutions, and organizations like the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) for disaster response.

Founded in 2004 by Steve Coast in response to the lack of freely licensed map data, OSM has grown into one of the largest open data projects with over 10 million registered users.

What problem does this project solve? Proprietary map data is expensive, restrictive, and not fully editable; OSM provides a free, open alternative.
Who is it built for? Volunteers, developers, businesses, governments, and NGOs.
Why did you build it? To create accessible geospatial data for everyone (initiated by Steve Coast to challenge map monopolies).

✨ Key Features

Editable map using the web-based iD editor or powerful desktop JOSM (enables precise contributions from anyone worldwide)
RESTful OpenStreetMap API v0.6 for read/write access (powers apps, analysis tools, and integrations)
Planet.osm full data dumps and regional extracts (allows offline use and custom processing)
Overpass API and Nominatim for querying and geocoding data
Optional: StreetComplete mobile app for quick surveys, ongoing editor improvements

🛠 Tech Stack

Frontend: JavaScript, Leaflet (slippy map), iD editor
Backend: Ruby on Rails, C++ (Cgimap for API)
Database: PostgreSQL with PostGIS extension
Auth: Custom OAuth
Hosting: OpenStreetMap Foundation servers, Fastly CDN

👥 Who Is This For?

This project is useful for:

Developers who want to integrate free geospatial data into apps
Teams looking for humanitarian mapping in crises
Indie makers building navigation, games, or location services

📸 Screenshots / Demo

Live demo: https://www.openstreetmap.org
GitHub: https://github.com/openstreetmap/openstreetmap-website

🔥 Project Status

🟢 Actively building

Last updated: 2026-03-24

❓ FAQ

Is this project free?

Yes / Open Source (data under Open Database License ODbL; software MIT/GPL/etc.). (Everyone can use, edit, and share the map data and derived works with attribution.)

Is the source code available?

Yes — https://github.com/openstreetmap (core website: https://github.com/openstreetmap/openstreetmap-website; many related repos)

Can I contribute?

Edit the map directly via the website or JOSM, submit pull requests on GitHub, report issues, improve documentation on the wiki, or donate to the OpenStreetMap Foundation.