7.04.2026 | Frederik Ramm
We’ve recently added GeoPackage (gpkg) files to the download server, in addition to the shape files we’re already offering. This seems to be a popular addition; over half of the previous shape file download traffic has already migrated to the newer GeoPackage format – combining all layers in a single file, GeoPackage is more convenient than the old shape format.
But there’s more: We have updated the layer structure in the shape and GeoPackage files to include more data. You can review the details in our format specification PDF; the most important news is that the free data sets now contain an administrative area layer which was previously only available in the paid data sets*.
We’ve also added a protected areas layer and many POIs, but taken great care not to upset things too much so that people shouldn’t have to re-tool their processing chains built for previous versions of our shape files. Enjoy!
(*) Note that OSM doesn’t have a hierarchy of admin levels (i.e. city X is in county Y is in state Z) by default, and neither are boundaries clipped along the coastline. Administrative area shape files that have these extra features are available from us commercially.
