Softwr

Maps · head to head

CARTO vs Lonboard

CARTO logo

CARTO

Maps

Location Intelligence Platform

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: CARTO no prices are published; the committed tiers are all quote-only; 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: CARTO covers Spatial Analysis, Lonboard covers GeoArrow binary transfer.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CARTO and Lonboard actually diverge.

Attributes where CARTO and Lonboard differ
AttributeCARTOLonboard
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows
Founded2012Unknown

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 CARTO

  • Spatial Analysis
  • Interactive Maps
  • Data Observatory
  • Workflows
  • APIs
  • Snowflake
  • BigQuery
  • PostgreSQL

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.

CARTO

  • Spatial analysis over data already in a cloud warehousenot Lonboard
  • Building interactive maps and location dashboardsnot Lonboard
  • Geocoding and routing through location data servicesnot Lonboard
  • Site selection and territory planningnot Lonboard
  • Self-hosted geospatial analytics for regulated environmentsnot Lonboard

Lonboard

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

Where each one falls short

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

CARTO

  • No prices are published; the committed tiers are all quote-only
  • Metered on four separate axes: workflow runs, map loads, API calls and location data service operations
  • API access and tokens are limited on pay-as-you-go and unlimited only from the Strategic tier
  • Self-hosting is available on Enterprise and included only on the Custom tier
  • The 14 day trial explicitly forbids production use

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

CARTO

On request
  • Pay As You Go$null/mo
    • Metered, capped location data services
    • Limited API access and tokens
    • Standard support
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • Limited location data services with quota
    • Limited API access and tokens
    • Standard or Premium support
  • Strategic$null/mo
    • Unlimited API access and tokens
    • Premium or Elite support
    • Custom branding
  • Custom$null/mo
    • Up to unlimited location data services
    • Unlimited API access and tokens
    • Elite support

Lonboard

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

Which should you pick?

Choose CARTO if

  • You need spatial analysis.
  • You also want interactive maps.
CARTO 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 CARTO or Lonboard better?
Neither clearly leads. CARTO 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, CARTO or Lonboard?
Lonboard has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for CARTO and Free for Lonboard.
Does CARTO or Lonboard run on more platforms?
CARTO 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. CARTO starts at On request.
What is CARTO best used for?
CARTO is most often used for spatial analysis over data already in a cloud warehouse, building interactive maps and location dashboards, geocoding and routing through location data services, site selection and territory planning. Of those, spatial analysis over data already in a cloud warehouse and building interactive maps and location dashboards are not what Lonboard is typically brought in for.
What can CARTO do that Lonboard cannot?
CARTO covers Spatial Analysis, Interactive Maps, Data Observatory, Workflows. Lonboard covers GeoArrow binary transfer, GeoPandas input, deck.gl layers, Jupyter widget.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CARTO: What CARTO pricing tiers are available?

CARTO offers Pay As You Go (monthly, consumption-based), Enterprise (annual commitment with limited quotas), Strategic (annual with unlimited API access), and Custom (annual with full services for large enterprises). Enterprise and higher require contacting sales.

Source
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.

CARTO: Does CARTO have a free version?

CARTO does not advertise a free tier. The Pay As You Go plan requires monthly payments based on consumption with capped services.

Source
Lonboard: Who maintains it?

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

CARTO: What is included in the CARTO Strategic plan?

Strategic tier includes unlimited API access and tokens, premium or elite support, custom branding, audit logs, and usage metrics. It requires an annual commitment and custom pricing quote.

Source
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.

Share

Related pages

More on CARTO

More on Lonboard

Keep looking

Other head to heads