CARTOvs
Google Maps Platform
Google Maps Platform: Comprehensive set of APIs and SDKs that allow developers to embed Google
CARTO
Location Intelligence Platform
As of 30 August 2026, CARTO's pricing is not published; the vendor quotes on request. CARTO (formerly CartoDB) provides a location intelligence platform that helps government agencies analyze and visualize spatial data. Softwr lists it under Maps. CARTO is launched in 2012, available on Web.
Overview
What CARTO does
CARTO (formerly CartoDB) provides a location intelligence platform that helps government agencies analyze and visualize spatial data. The cloud-native platform enables geospatial analysis, interactive mapping, and location-based decision making for urban planning and public services.
What people use it 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
- Self-hosted geospatial analytics for regulated environments
Related searches
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about 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
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of CARTO
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
- CARTOvsMapbox
Mapbox: Location data platform for mobile and web applications
- CARTOvsHERE Technologies
HERE Technologies: Location data and technology company that provides mapping and location services to businesses globally
- CARTOvsApple Maps
Apple Maps: Web mapping and navigation application developed by Apple Inc
Pricing
What CARTO costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
Pay As You Go
On request
- Metered, capped location data services
- Limited API access and tokens
- Standard support
- Agentic GIS
- SSO
- Activity data
Enterprise
On request
- Limited location data services with quota
- Limited API access and tokens
- Standard or Premium support
- Custom branding
- Audit logs
- Usage metrics
Strategic
On request
- Unlimited API access and tokens
- Premium or Elite support
- Custom branding
- Audit logs
- Usage metrics
Custom
On request
- Up to unlimited location data services
- Unlimited API access and tokens
- Elite support
- Full admin and security features
Capabilities
Features
Spatial Analysis
Interactive Maps
Data Observatory
Workflows
APIs
Snowflake
Integration with Snowflake
BigQuery
Integration with BigQuery
PostgreSQL
Integration with PostgreSQL
Web support
Available on web
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
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.
SourceDoes 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.
SourceWhat 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.
SourceBehind it
Who makes CARTO
- Company
- CARTO
- Based in
- New York, New York
Timeline
CARTO over time
- Funding2021-12-14$61m
Series C funding round
Source
Keep looking
Where to go from CARTO
- CARTO alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- CARTO pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- CARTO badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Maps softwareThe full category
- Best Maps softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Maps software for
Compare CARTO with
- Foursquare Spatial Studio
- Atlas.co
- Felt
- Mapbox
- HERE Technologies
- Google Maps Platform
- Apple Maps
- Leaflet
- Fused
- Lonboard
- Esri ArcGIS
- Global Mapper
- Navmii GPS
- Nominatim
- OpenLayers
- OpenRouteService
- OpenStreetMap
- OsmAnd
Other Maps software
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Free plan12 researched notesLocation data and technology company that provides mapping and location services to businesses globally
Free plan15 researched notesComprehensive set of APIs and SDKs that allow developers to embed Google
Free, then $100/mo13 researched notesLeading open-source JavaScript library for mobile-friendly interactive maps, used by millions of developers worldwide
Free plan11 researched notesServerless Python for geospatial: write a UDF, get a map tile endpoint and an HTTP API
Free, then $20/mo13 researched notesPython map rendering in Jupyter that skips GeoJSON and moves millions of features without choking
Open source12 researched notesA GIS and lidar desktop that still sells a genuine perpetual licence with published prices
From $700/one-time12 researched notesOpen-source geocoding tool for OpenStreetMap data, providing address search and reverse geocoding capabilities
15 researched notesHigh-performance, feature-packed JavaScript library for creating interactive maps on the web with
Free plan8 researched notesOpen-source routing, geocoding, and isochrone APIs based on OpenStreetMap data for developers and enterprises
Free plan9 researched notesCollaborative project to create a free editable geographic database of the world
Free plan10 researched notesOpen-source map and navigation application based on OpenStreetMap data
Free, then €2.99/mo11 researched notes
Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for CARTO, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
More on CARTO
CARTO alternatives
What people switch to, and what they give up
CARTO pricing
Every tier, and where the cost actually lands
Compare CARTO
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