Maps & Navigation · head to head
Mapzen vs CesiumJS
Mapzen
Maps & Navigation
Mapzen was an open-source mapping platform that provided geocoding, routing, and map rendering services
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
CesiumJS
Maps & Navigation
Open-source JavaScript library for creating 3D globes and 2D maps with support
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only CesiumJS has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Mapzen the vendor's own pricing page as captured by the Internet Archive on 2 January 2018 priced its mobility APIs on a free tier plus overage model: Turn-by-Turn navigation free for the first 5,000 requests per month then 50 cents per additional 1,000 requests, and Isochrone and Optimized Route each free for the first 100 requests per month then $1.50 per additional 1,000 requests; Mapzen shut down as a project in 2018 shortly after this capture and this pricing no longer applies to any live service; CesiumJS the free Community tier does not permit commercial use
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Mapzen and CesiumJS actually diverge.
Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Maps & Navigation).
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 Mapzen
Nothing recorded that CesiumJS does not also cover.
Only in CesiumJS
Nothing recorded that Mapzen does not also cover.
Both cover
- Core Functionality
- User Interface
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Mapzen
No use cases recorded yet. See the Mapzen review.
CesiumJS
- Streaming 3D terrain, imagery and building data into web applicationsnot Mapzen
- Tiling and hosting large geospatial and reality capture datasetsnot Mapzen
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Mapzen
- The vendor's own pricing page as captured by the Internet Archive on 2 January 2018 priced its mobility APIs on a free tier plus overage model: Turn-by-Turn navigation free for the first 5,000 requests per month then 50 cents per additional 1,000 requests, and Isochrone and Optimized Route each free for the first 100 requests per month then $1.50 per additional 1,000 requests; Mapzen shut down as a project in 2018 shortly after this capture and this pricing no longer applies to any live service
CesiumJS
- The free Community tier does not permit commercial use
- The cheapest commercial plan is $149 a month for an individual and $524 for a team
- Team accounts are capped at 5 members on both the Commercial and Premium plans
- Three separate quotas apply at once, being storage, monthly streaming and monthly reality modelling gigapixels, and exceeding any one of them constrains the account
- Streaming is capped at 15 GB a month on the free tier
Pricing, plan by plan
Mapzen
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Mapzen review.
CesiumJS
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the CesiumJS review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Mapzen if
Nothing in the data separates Mapzen from CesiumJS on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is Mapzen or CesiumJS better?
- Neither clearly leads. Mapzen starts at On request and CesiumJS at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Mapzen or CesiumJS?
- CesiumJS has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Mapzen and Free for CesiumJS.
- Does Mapzen or CesiumJS run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use CesiumJS for free?
- Yes. CesiumJS has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Mapzen starts at On request.