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Maps · head to head

Global Mapper vs Potree

Global Mapper logo

Global Mapper

Maps

A GIS and lidar desktop that still sells a genuine perpetual licence with published prices

From
$700/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Potree logo

Potree

Maps

Open source WebGL viewer for publishing very large point clouds in a browser

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Potree has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Global Mapper it is Windows only with no macOS or Linux build, so mixed-platform teams end up running a virtual machine and lose graphics performance on large point clouds; Potree there is no vendor, no support contract and no service level, so anything you build on Potree is your organisation’s responsibility to maintain when a browser update breaks rendering.
  • They diverge on capability: Global Mapper covers Format breadth, Potree covers Octree streaming.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Global Mapper and Potree actually diverge.

Attributes where Global Mapper and Potree differ
AttributeGlobal MapperPotree
Starting price$700/one-timeFree
Pricing modelOne-time purchaseOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindowsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux

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 Global Mapper

  • Format breadth
  • Lidar processing
  • Pixels to Points
  • Coordinate transformation
  • Terrain analysis
  • Scripting
  • Mobile companion

Only in Potree

  • Octree streaming
  • Large dataset rendering
  • Measurement tools
  • Clipping and profiles
  • Annotations
  • Attribute colouring
  • PotreeDesktop
  • Self-hosting

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Global Mapper

  • A survey office that receives lidar in a different format from every client and needs reliable conversion without writing scriptsnot Potree
  • A consultancy that wants to classify ground points and extract building footprints from a drone survey without an Esri enterprise agreementnot Potree
  • An organisation with an irregular workload that wants to buy the licence outright and skip maintenance in quiet yearsnot Potree
  • A geologist producing volumes, contours and cross sections from terrain data on a standalone office workstationnot Potree

Potree

  • A drone survey firm delivering a point cloud to a client who has no desktop software, by publishing a browser viewer link instead of a 40 GB LAZ filenot Global Mapper
  • A heritage or archaeology project publishing a scanned site for public access without paying per-gigabyte hosting to a commercial platformnot Global Mapper
  • An engineering consultancy embedding a point cloud viewer inside its own client portal without licensing a commercial web viewernot Global Mapper
  • A university or research group that needs measurement and profiling in a shareable viewer for a dataset too large to emailnot Global Mapper

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Global Mapper

  • It is Windows only with no macOS or Linux build, so mixed-platform teams end up running a virtual machine and lose graphics performance on large point clouds
  • The interface has grown by accretion over two decades and features are scattered across menus, so new users are slow to find capabilities that are already installed
  • Node-locked perpetual licences are tied to the machine identifier, so a hardware refresh or a failed workstation means a support request rather than a login on a new device
  • Multi-user and web publishing are weak relative to Esri or QGIS with a server stack, so it is a desktop analysis tool and not a platform for sharing data across an organisation
  • Published prices apply to North America and differ elsewhere, so buyers outside that market must go through a reseller and cannot rely on the listed figures for budgeting

Potree

  • There is no vendor, no support contract and no service level, so anything you build on Potree is your organisation’s responsibility to maintain when a browser update breaks rendering.
  • Conversion is a separate manual step with PotreeConverter, and building an automated publishing pipeline around it is engineering work the project does not provide.
  • Rendering quality and performance depend on the client machine and WebGL support, so a client on a locked-down corporate laptop with poor graphics may see a viewer that stutters or fails outright.
  • A WebGPU rewrite, Potree-Next, is in progress and is not a drop-in upgrade, so current integrations face an eventual migration with no vendor to manage it.
  • There is no access control, user management or audit layer; anyone with the URL sees the data unless you build authentication around the static files yourself, which is a real problem for confidential sites.

Pricing, plan by plan

Global Mapper

$700/one-time
  • Global Mapper Standard, node-locked$700/one-time
    • Perpetual licence tied to one machine
    • First year of maintenance and support included
    • Renewal 245 USD per year, optional
  • Global Mapper Standard, floating or dongle$1050/one-time
    • Shared between users or carried on a USB dongle
    • Maintenance renewal 365 USD per year
    • Network licence 2,100 USD with a two-seat minimum
  • Global Mapper Pro, node-locked$1750/one-time
    • Adds lidar classification, feature extraction and Pixels to Points
    • Maintenance renewal 610 USD per year
    • Upgrade from Standard version 26 costs 1,050 USD
  • Global Mapper Pro, floating or dongle$2625/one-time
    • Shared or dongle licence
    • Maintenance renewal 915 USD per year
    • Network licence 5,250 USD with a two-seat minimum

Potree

Free
  • PotreeFree
    • BSD-style open source licence
    • Unlimited datasets and viewers
    • Self-hosted on any static web server

Which should you pick?

Choose Global Mapper if

  • You need format breadth.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want lidar processing.
Global Mapper review

Choose Potree if

  • You need octree streaming.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want large dataset rendering.
Potree review

Questions people ask

Is Global Mapper or Potree better?
Neither clearly leads. Global Mapper starts at $700/one-time and Potree at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Global Mapper or Potree?
Potree has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $700/one-time for Global Mapper and Free for Potree.
Does Global Mapper or Potree run on more platforms?
Global Mapper runs on Windows. Potree runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux.
Can I use Potree for free?
Yes. Potree has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Global Mapper starts at $700/one-time.
What is Global Mapper best used for?
Global Mapper is most often used for a survey office that receives lidar in a different format from every client and needs reliable conversion without writing scripts, a consultancy that wants to classify ground points and extract building footprints from a drone survey without an esri enterprise agreement, an organisation with an irregular workload that wants to buy the licence outright and skip maintenance in quiet years, a geologist producing volumes, contours and cross sections from terrain data on a standalone office workstation. Of those, a survey office that receives lidar in a different format from every client and needs reliable conversion without writing scripts and a consultancy that wants to classify ground points and extract building footprints from a drone survey without an esri enterprise agreement are not what Potree is typically brought in for.
What can Global Mapper do that Potree cannot?
Global Mapper covers Format breadth, Lidar processing, Pixels to Points, Coordinate transformation. Potree covers Octree streaming, Large dataset rendering, Measurement tools, Clipping and profiles.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Global Mapper: Is there still a perpetual licence?

Yes. Blue Marble sells perpetual node-locked, floating, dongle and network licences that keep working after maintenance lapses.

Potree: Does Potree cost anything?

No. It is open source and free. You supply the hosting, which for a static viewer is inexpensive.

Global Mapper: What is the difference between Standard and Pro?

Pro is an add-on to a matching Standard licence and carries the lidar classification, feature extraction, Pixels to Points photogrammetry and advanced terrain tools.

Potree: Is there commercial support?

No. There is no vendor and no support contract. Support is GitHub issues and the community.

Global Mapper: Do I have to pay maintenance?

Only for the first year, which is included. After that it is optional; without it the software continues to run but you receive no upgrades or support.

Potree: Who maintains it?

It originated at TU Wien and is maintained principally by Markus Schütz, with community contributions.

Global Mapper: Can it replace ArcGIS?

For desktop format conversion, lidar and terrain analysis, often yes. For enterprise data management, web services and organisation-wide sharing, no.

Potree: Can it handle very large clouds?

Yes, hundreds of millions of points, because PotreeConverter builds a multi-resolution octree that streams only what is visible.

Potree: Is my data private?

Only if you make it so. Potree serves static files with no built-in authentication, so access control is entirely your responsibility.

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