mapbox-gl

What is mapbox-gl?

The mapbox-gl npm package is a powerful library for interactive, customizable maps and geospatial data visualization. It leverages WebGL to render maps from vector tiles and allows for dynamic styling and interactivity.

What are mapbox-gl's main functionalities?

Display a Map

This code initializes a basic map using Mapbox GL JS. It sets the map container, style, center coordinates, and zoom level.

const mapboxgl = require('mapbox-gl');
mapboxgl.accessToken = 'your-access-token';
const map = new mapboxgl.Map({
  container: 'map',
  style: 'mapbox://styles/mapbox/streets-v11',
  center: [-74.5, 40],
  zoom: 9
});

Add a Marker

This code adds a marker to the map at the specified longitude and latitude coordinates.

const marker = new mapboxgl.Marker()
  .setLngLat([-74.5, 40])
  .addTo(map);

Add a Popup

This code creates a popup with a text message and attaches it to a specific location on the map.

const popup = new mapboxgl.Popup({ offset: 25 })
  .setText('Hello, World!')
  .setLngLat([-74.5, 40])
  .addTo(map);

Draw a Polygon

This code draws a polygon on the map by defining its coordinates and adding it as a layer when the map loads.

const polygon = {
  'type': 'Feature',
  'geometry': {
    'type': 'Polygon',
    'coordinates': [
      [
        [-74.5, 40],
        [-74.5, 41],
        [-73.5, 41],
        [-73.5, 40],
        [-74.5, 40]
      ]
    ]
  }
};
map.on('load', function () {
  map.addLayer({
    'id': 'polygon',
    'type': 'fill',
    'source': {
      'type': 'geojson',
      'data': polygon
    },
    'layout': {},
    'paint': {
      'fill-color': '#088',
      'fill-opacity': 0.8
    }
  });
});

Other packages similar to mapbox-gl

leaflet

Leaflet is a widely used open-source JavaScript library for mobile-friendly interactive maps. It is lightweight and easy to use, but it does not support vector tiles and WebGL rendering natively like mapbox-gl.

openlayers

OpenLayers is a high-performance, feature-rich library for displaying map data in web browsers. It supports a wide range of map types and data sources, including vector tiles, but it can be more complex to set up compared to mapbox-gl.

cesium

Cesium is a JavaScript library for creating 3D globes and 2D maps. It is highly performant and supports WebGL, making it suitable for complex geospatial visualizations. However, it is more focused on 3D rendering compared to mapbox-gl.

README

Mapbox GL JS is a JavaScript library for interactive, customizable vector maps on the web. It takes map styles that conform to the Mapbox Style Specification, applies them to vector tiles that conform to the Mapbox Vector Tile Specification, and renders them using WebGL.

Mapbox GL JS is part of the cross-platform Mapbox GL ecosystem, which also includes compatible native SDKs for applications on Android, iOS, macOS, Qt, and React Native. Mapbox provides building blocks to add location features like maps, search, and navigation into any experience you create. To get started with GL JS or any of our other building blocks, sign up for a Mapbox account.

In addition to GL JS, this repository contains code, issues, and test fixtures that are common to both GL JS and the native SDKs. For code and issues specific to the native SDKs, see the mapbox/mapbox-gl-native repository.

• Getting started with Mapbox GL JS
• Tutorials
• API documentation
• Examples
• Style documentation
• Open source styles
• Contributor documentation

License

Mapbox GL JS is licensed under the 3-Clause BSD license. The licenses of its dependencies are tracked via FOSSA:

Changelog

1.12.0

✨ Features and improvements

• Add methods for changing a vector tile source dynamically (e.g. setTiles, setUrl). #8048 (h/t @stepankuzmin)
• Add a filter option for GeoJSON sources to filter out features prior to processing (e.g. before clustering). #9864
• Vastly increase precision of line-gradient for long lines. #9694
• Improve raster-dem sources to properly support the maxzoom option and overzooming. #9789 (h/t @brendan-ward)

🐞 Bug fixes

• Fix a bug where bearing snap interfered with easeTo and flyTo animations, freezing the map. #9884 (h/t @andycalder)
• Fix a bug where a fallback image was not used if it was added via addImage. #9911 (h/t @francois2metz)
• Fix a bug where promoteId option failed for fill extrusions with defined feature ids. #9863

🛠️ Workflow

• Renamed the default development branch from master to main.