H3: Uber's hexagonal hierarchical spatial index. Protomaps: Self-host an entire world basemap as a single PMTiles file.
| H3 | Protomaps | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Spatial Analysis & GeoAI | Basemaps & Map Tiles |
| Pricing model | Open source | Open source |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free tier | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Software licence | Apache-2.0 | BSD-3-Clause (code); ODbL (OSM data) |
| API | — | — |
| Platforms | Python, JavaScript, Command line | Web, JavaScript, Command line |
| Made by | — | — |
| Commercial use | Check terms | Allowed |
| Export / print images | Check terms | Allowed |
| Offline / caching | Check terms | Allowed |
| Visits from MapTools | 2 | 9 |
| Visit | Visit |
H3 features
- Hexagonal global grid
- Hierarchical resolutions
- Bindings for many languages
- Supported in BigQuery, Snowflake, DuckDB
Protomaps features
- PMTiles single-file tile archives
- Daily world basemap builds from OpenStreetMap
- Serve from S3, R2 or any static host
- Open basemap styles for MapLibre
When you host the tiles yourself, only the OpenStreetMap attribution and ODbL terms apply.
Protomaps alternativesSummary based on public information. Check each provider's current pricing and terms.