Maps · head to head
Fused vs Kepler.gl
Fused
Maps
Serverless Python for geospatial: write a UDF, get a map tile endpoint and an HTTP API
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Kepler.gl
Maps
Powerful open-source geospatial analysis tool for large-scale datasets, enabling beautiful data visualizations without coding
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Fused has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Fused the price steps are brutal: $20 to $200 to $2,000 a month with no intermediate tier, so a two-person team that outgrows Starter faces a tenfold increase for what is often a modest capacity gap.; Kepler.gl kepler.gl is a free open source library with no vendor-sold edition; confirmed by the absence of any App Store, marketplace or G-Cloud listing, support is limited to community GitHub issues rather than a purchased SLA.
- They diverge on capability: Fused covers User defined functions, Kepler.gl covers Core Functionality.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Fused and Kepler.gl actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Maps).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Fused
- User defined functions
- Instant tile endpoints
- HTTP API
- Caching
- Workbench
- Data stack connectors
- Public UDF catalogue
- Local execution
Only in Kepler.gl
- Core Functionality
- User Interface
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Fused
- A data team that wants to publish a dynamic layer computed from a large Parquet dataset without standing up and operating a tile servernot Kepler.gl
- An analyst prototyping against Overture, Sentinel or Census data who needs a working map in an afternoon rather than a data engineering ticketnot Kepler.gl
- An application that needs a geospatial computation exposed as an HTTP endpoint, where the alternative is a container, a queue and an on-call rotanot Kepler.gl
- A consultancy delivering an interactive constraint or suitability map to a client, computed live from source data rather than pre-baked into static tilesnot Kepler.gl
Kepler.gl
No use cases recorded yet. See the Kepler.gl review.
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Fused
- The price steps are brutal: $20 to $200 to $2,000 a month with no intermediate tier, so a two-person team that outgrows Starter faces a tenfold increase for what is often a modest capacity gap.
- Published tiers do not state the actual compute, storage or request allowances, so the only way to know whether $200 covers your workload is to run it and find out.
- Fused is at pre-seed stage with a small team, and putting a customer-facing map behind a startup’s serverless platform is a continuity risk that a procurement review will flag.
- It is Python-only and assumes competence with cloud-native geospatial formats; there is no path for an analyst who works in a desktop GIS and not in code.
- Serverless execution means cold starts and per-tile latency on uncached views, so a first load of a heavy UDF over a wide area is noticeably slower than a pre-rendered tile set.
Kepler.gl
- Kepler.gl is a free open source library with no vendor-sold edition; confirmed by the absence of any App Store, marketplace or G-Cloud listing, support is limited to community GitHub issues rather than a purchased SLA.
Pricing, plan by plan
Fused
Free- FreeFree
- Workbench access
- AI assistant
- Local UDF runs
- Starter$20/month
- Secrets management
- Higher compute limits
- Office hours support
- Developer$200/month
- Dedicated jobs
- GitHub integration
- Expanded compute, storage and AI token allowance
- Professional$2000/month
- Team collaboration
- Dedicated training
- Substantially increased usage limits
Kepler.gl
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Kepler.gl review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Fused if
- You need user defined functions.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Linux, macOS, Windows.
- You also want instant tile endpoints.
Questions people ask
- Is Fused or Kepler.gl better?
- Neither clearly leads. Fused starts at Free and Kepler.gl at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Fused or Kepler.gl?
- Fused has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Fused and On request for Kepler.gl.
- Does Fused or Kepler.gl run on more platforms?
- Fused runs on Web, Linux, macOS, Windows. Kepler.gl runs on Web.
- Can I use Fused for free?
- Yes. Fused has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Kepler.gl starts at On request.
- What is Fused best used for?
- Fused is most often used for a data team that wants to publish a dynamic layer computed from a large parquet dataset without standing up and operating a tile server, an analyst prototyping against overture, sentinel or census data who needs a working map in an afternoon rather than a data engineering ticket, an application that needs a geospatial computation exposed as an http endpoint, where the alternative is a container, a queue and an on-call rota, a consultancy delivering an interactive constraint or suitability map to a client, computed live from source data rather than pre-baked into static tiles. Of those, a data team that wants to publish a dynamic layer computed from a large parquet dataset without standing up and operating a tile server and an analyst prototyping against overture, sentinel or census data who needs a working map in an afternoon rather than a data engineering ticket are not what Kepler.gl is typically brought in for.
- What can Fused do that Kepler.gl cannot?
- Fused covers User defined functions, Instant tile endpoints, HTTP API, Caching. Kepler.gl covers Core Functionality, User Interface.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Fused: What does Fused actually give me?
A Python function becomes a map tile endpoint and an HTTP API on managed infrastructure, with caching, without you running a server.
Fused: How much does it cost?
Free, then $20, $200 and $2,000 per month for Starter, Developer and Professional. Usage allowances are not itemised publicly.
Fused: Can I run UDFs locally?
Yes, through the Python SDK, which is how most development is done before deploying.
Fused: Does it replace PostGIS or BigQuery?
No. It reads from them. Fused is the compute and serving layer, not the store.
Fused: Is it a mature company?
No. It is a small pre-seed San Francisco company. The technology is real; the vendor risk is real too.
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