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Maps · head to head

Kepler.gl vs Lonboard

Kepler.gl logo

Kepler.gl

Maps

Powerful open-source geospatial analysis tool for large-scale datasets, enabling beautiful data visualizations without coding

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lonboard logo

Lonboard

Maps

Python map rendering in Jupyter that skips GeoJSON and moves millions of features without choking

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Lonboard has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Lonboard it is a notebook visualisation library, not a mapping application, so there is no editing, no layout, no map export for print and no sharing beyond distributing the notebook or an HTML file
  • They diverge on capability: Kepler.gl covers Core Functionality, Lonboard covers GeoArrow binary transfer.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kepler.gl and Lonboard actually diverge.

Attributes where Kepler.gl and Lonboard differ
AttributeKepler.glLonboard
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelfreemiumOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows

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 Kepler.gl

  • Core Functionality
  • User Interface

Only in Lonboard

  • GeoArrow binary transfer
  • GeoPandas input
  • deck.gl layers
  • Jupyter widget
  • Large dataset handling
  • Styling by attribute
  • Open source licence

What people use each for

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

Kepler.gl

No use cases recorded yet. See the Kepler.gl review.

Lonboard

  • An analyst exploring a national road or parcel dataset in a notebook where pydeck or ipyleaflet becomes unusable at that sizenot Kepler.gl
  • A researcher publishing a reproducible analysis where the visualisation must run from the same script as the processingnot Kepler.gl
  • A data scientist joining spatial data to model outputs in pandas and needing to see the result immediately without exporting to a GISnot Kepler.gl
  • A team building an internal analysis pipeline on GeoParquet that wants rendering without a serialisation step in the middlenot Kepler.gl

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Lonboard

  • It is a notebook visualisation library, not a mapping application, so there is no editing, no layout, no map export for print and no sharing beyond distributing the notebook or an HTML file
  • Maintenance sits with Development Seed as an open source side output of a consultancy, so roadmap priorities follow client projects and there is no support contract to buy
  • Layer coverage is a subset of deck.gl, so an analyst needing a less common layer type has to drop to pydeck or write JavaScript rather than staying in Python
  • It expects data already in GeoPandas or Arrow form, which means the performance benefit depends on the rest of your pipeline being Arrow-friendly; reading a large Shapefile is still the slow step
  • Rendering happens in the browser, so very large datasets are ultimately limited by the client machine's memory and GPU rather than by the server, and a laptop will still fail on data a workstation handles

Pricing, plan by plan

Kepler.gl

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Kepler.gl review.

Lonboard

Free
  • LonboardFree
    • Open source, no licence fee
    • No usage limits
    • Installed from PyPI or conda

Which should you pick?

Choose Kepler.gl if

  • You need core functionality.
  • You also want user interface.
Kepler.gl review

Choose Lonboard if

  • You need geoarrow binary transfer.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want geopandas input.
Lonboard review

Questions people ask

Is Kepler.gl or Lonboard better?
Neither clearly leads. Kepler.gl starts at On request and Lonboard at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kepler.gl or Lonboard?
Lonboard has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Kepler.gl and Free for Lonboard.
Does Kepler.gl or Lonboard run on more platforms?
Kepler.gl runs on Web. Lonboard runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Lonboard for free?
Yes. Lonboard has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Kepler.gl starts at On request.
What can Kepler.gl do that Lonboard cannot?
Kepler.gl covers Core Functionality, User Interface. Lonboard covers GeoArrow binary transfer, GeoPandas input, deck.gl layers, Jupyter widget.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lonboard: Why not just use pydeck?

pydeck serialises geometry to GeoJSON to reach the browser. Lonboard uses a binary GeoArrow pipeline, which is the reason it handles far larger datasets in the same notebook.

Lonboard: Who maintains it?

Development Seed, a geospatial engineering consultancy, as an open source project. There is no commercial support offering.

Lonboard: Does it work outside Jupyter?

It is built as a Jupyter widget. Exporting to standalone HTML is possible, but the intended environment is a notebook.

Lonboard: Is it free for commercial use?

Yes, it is open source with no licence fee.

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