Map tools for the questions people ask about places
MapToolHub is a collection of map tools that run in your web browser. Each one answers a practical question — how far, how big, how high, who is closest, what time it is there — on a live map you can share with a link.
Who makes it
Hi, I'm Jiang Da. I have worked as an urban planner for about fifteen years, and I build web tools on the side as an independent developer.
Planning work is full of small spatial questions. How many people live within a ten-minute walk of this site? Which school is closest to each block? How steep is this road? The answers usually need desktop GIS software, a data set and an afternoon. I wanted most of them to take a minute in a browser.
The same questions turn up outside planning: when you choose a flat, plan a run, open a shop, meet friends from two towns, or explain map projections to a class. So MapToolHub is built for anyone, with the care for accuracy a planner needs.
What you'll find here
Measure and analyse
Distances, areas, rings and terrain.
Voronoi toolkit
Catchments, Thiessen polygons, patterns and the geometry behind them.
World and travel
People, places and time across the globe.
How the tools work
- In your browserEvery tool is a web page. It works on desktop, tablet and phone, with nothing to install and no account to create.
- Measured on the globeDistances follow great circles and areas are computed on the Earth's surface, so results are not distorted by the flat map.
- Your work stays with youPoints, routes and settings are kept in your own browser. When you search for a place, the search text is sent to the map provider to find it.
- Share with a linkMost tools can store your map in a link, so anyone who opens it sees exactly what you made.
Data and credits
MapToolHub stands on excellent open and commercial mapping work.
- MapboxBasemaps, satellite imagery, terrain, place search and routing. © Mapbox
- OpenStreetMapStreet and place data inside the Mapbox maps. © OpenStreetMap contributors
- D3.jsMap projections, Voronoi and Delaunay geometry.
- Open-MeteoTime zone lookup for any point on the map.
Ideas and fixes
The tools are improved all the time, and many changes start with a message from someone using them. If a result looks wrong, a feature is missing, or you need a map tool that does not exist yet, write to me.
Terms and privacy details are on the legal page.
Suggest a tool or report a bug
Tell me which tool you used, what you expected and what happened. A screenshot or a shared link helps a lot.