I get emails all the time asking about free GIS software for Mac OS X. Unfortunately, since I don’t have a Mac, I don’t spend a lot of time looking for Mac-compatible software. From what little I’ve seen, there’s far less GIS-related software for OS X than Windows, or even Linux, and that’s unlikely to change soon. But for what it’s worth, here’s a list of free GIS-related software I’ve run across that claims to come in a Mac-compatible version (no GPS-related software). Unless noted, there are Windows version of these as well, and usually Linux, too. As I come across more Mac programs, I’ll put up posts on those additional ones, but will also eventually add them here as well.
- ArcGIS for Desktop has been developed for Windows Operating systems, but there are many users out there running ArcGIS Desktop on Macs. Two options are available. The user can install Windows in Boot Camp, a native feature of the Apple Inc.’s OS X operating system, or they can use a virtualization program, such as Parallels or VMWare Fusion.
- GIS Software for Mac. GIS Software for Mac. Find the best GIS Software for Mac. Compare product reviews and features to build your list. See all GIS Software. All Products; Sort by: Why Capterra is Free. Recommended Filters.
- GvSIG is a Geographic Information System (GIS), that is, a desktop application designed for capturing, storing, handling, analyzing and deploying any kind of referenced. Free Mac Windows Linux Mapping Add a feature 5 Like.
- As @Aaron and @Vince said in the comments, no ArcGIS does not run on Mac OS X without some variation of Parallels/BootCamp. For further details see the link that @Aaron shared about current system requirements for ArcGIS Desktop (10.7.x) or the link that @Vince shared about running ArcPro on a Mac.
ArcExplorer Java Edition – ESRI’s Java-based GIS viewer.
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Cartes And Donnees – Bills itself as “Geographical Analysis Software” instead of GIS. Statistical analysis and display of geographical data (choropleths, cartograms, pie charts/histograms superimposed on maps, etc.). Free personal version available for Mac and PC.
Mac users warning: currently the addon does not work on Mac with Blender 2.80 to 2.82. Please do not report the issue here, it's already solved with Blender 2.83. Mac themes for mac os x. Check the bug report. GIS datafile import: Import in Blender most commons GIS data format: Shapefile vector, raster image, geotiff DEM.
CoastWatch– “The CoastWatch Software Library and Utilities is a package of software tools for working with earth data sets distributed by the NOAA/NESDIS CoastWatch program.” Added 4/22/09.
GeoJasper – Converter between GeoTiff and GeoJPEG2000. Added 4/22/09.
Geomajas – “… an open source, web-based GIS framework specialized in editing and complex attribute relations.” Apparently works with Firefox in Mac, but has issues in Safari. Added 4/22/09.
GeoMapApp: “GeoMapApp provides direct access to the Global Multi-Resolution Topography (GMRT) compilation that includes high resolution (~100 m node spacing) topography from multibeam data for ocean areas and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) data over land.” Added 4/22/09.
GeoVISTA Studio – “GeoVISTA Studio is an open software development environment designed for geospatial data. Studio is a programming-free environment that allows users to quickly build applications for geocomputation and geographic visualization.” Note: Seems to have issues with the most recent versions of Java, at least on my PC. Added 4/22/09.
GISLook and GISMeta– GISLook adds preview capability to GIS data to the finder, supporting:
Vector data
• ESRI Shape (.shp)
• E00 ArcInfo Interchange (.e00)
• ArcInfo Coverage (.adf)
Raster grids, such as digital elevation models or land cover data with a single band
• BIL (.bil), BIP (.bip) and BSQ (.bsq) with .hdr file
• ESRI ASCII Grid (.asc)
• ESRI Binary Grid (.flt with .hdr file)
• PGM (.pgm)
• SRTM (.hgt and .dem)
• Surfer Grid (.grd)
• USGS DEM (.dem)
GISMeta lets you see the size of raster data files in the Finder. Added 4/19/09.
GMT (Generic Mapping Tools) – Set of command-line tools for visualizing geographical data. iGMT GUI available for Mac.
Grid Analysis and Display System (GrADS) – “The Grid Analysis and Display System (GrADS) is an interactive desktop tool that is used for easy access, manipulation, and visualization of earth science data. The format of the data may be either binary, GRIB, NetCDF, or HDF-SDS (Scientific Data Sets).” Added 5/9/09.
Saga Gis For Mac
GRASS – Very powerful GIS, but extremely steep learning curve.
gvSIG – Java-based GIS viewer/editor. Started based on OpenJump, but a lot of effort and money is going into this project.
HEG – “… a tool developed to allow a user to reformat, re-project and perform stitching/mosaicing and subsetting operations on HDF-EOS objects. The output GeoTIFF file is ingestible into commonly used GIS applications. HEG will also write to HDF-EOS Grid & SWATH formats (i.e for Subsetting purposes) and native (or raw) binary. HEG presently works with MODIS (AQUA and TERRA), ASTER, MISR, AIRS, and AMSR-E HDF-EOS data sets.” Added 4/19/09.
HyperCube – US Army software for aerial/satellite imagery analysis.
JGrass – A Java implementation of GRASS with emphasis on hydrological and geomorphological analysis; uses uDIG as a framework. Added 4/19/09.
KyngChaos– A source of Mac OS X builds of GIS-related software like GDAL/OGR and MapServer. Added 4/19/09.
LandSerf – Full-featured Java-based terrain visualization and analysis program. Been meaning to do some posts on this as soon as version 2.3 comes out.
MacMap – In French, billed as a simple and easy GIS for Mac OS X only. Can’t tell for sure, but there may be a free limited version (maximum of 1500 objects) available for educational purposes.
MARPLOT – “MARPLOT is the mapping application. It allows users to “see” their data (e.g., roads, facilities, schools, response assets), display this information on computer maps, and print the information on area maps. The areas contaminated by potential or actual chemical release scenarios also can be overlaid on the maps to determine potential impacts. The maps are created from the U.S. Bureau of Census TIGER/Line files and can be manipulated quickly to show possible hazard areas.” Added 5/9/2009.
Minerva -”Minerva is an open-source program for viewing geospatial data that works on Windows, Mac, and Linux. It unifies standard GIS capabilities with high-performance, 3D visualization”. Added 4/22/09.
MSphinx – MODIS Satellite Process Handling Images uNder Xwindow. Added 4/22/09.
MultiSpec – Aerial/satellite imagery analysis software from Purdue University.
OpenJump – Java-based GIS. Has installation instructions for Mac OS X.
OSSIM: “OSSIM provides advanced geo-spatial image processing for remote sensing, photogrammetry, and Geographic Information Systems. Backed by an active open source software development community, OSSIM solutions have been deployed on a number of critical commercial and government systems.” Added 4/19/09.
OrbitGIS Explorer – Free GIS data viewer.
PASSAGE – Spatial statistics and analysis.
Puzzle-GIS – “Puzzle is a Java Geographic Information Systems (GIS) development platform build on top of NetBeans6. The main goal of Puzzle GIS is to create a free, production ready and competitive tool as a valid alternative to commercial software.” Added 5/9/2009.
Quantum GIS (qGIS) – Basic GIS viewer and editor for now; new features added with every release. Also has built-in interface for GRASS
R – An open-source statistical analysis package. See this page for references on using it for geospatial analysis. Added 4/19/09.
SeaDAS – “ The SeaWiFS Data Analysis System (SeaDAS) is a comprehensive image analysis package for the processing, display, analysis, and quality control of ocean color data.” Added 4/22/09.
VCE Exam Suite; VCE Testing System; VCE Designer; VCE Manager. VCE Manager is an old name for the software currently known as VCE Player. This is a part of VCE Exam Simulator kit that allows users to play VCE exams. Although VCE Manager does not allow for creation and editing of new VCEs, it supports a wide range of functions that enable user. VCE Exam Simulator is a macOS app designed to open these files and run the included exams. You can choose from multiple test modes and access score reports that give you an idea of which areas need to be improved upon. Useful tool specifically designed to run VCE files that, unfortunately, lacks an exam. Vce exam for mac. VCE Exam Simulator Crack is an incredible tool that can help the user in preparing most important tests, by allowing training in assessment conditions and ranking responses to improve knowledge. You get permission to start taking the exam, then revealing the score can configure the running preference and load the edited valuation, the wide array of questions to ask in a small time after the. This VCE software is included in the VCE Exam Simulator package, available in the BASIC and PRO options. From looking up a few questions from an upcoming exam to sharing your own experience by creating a sample exam, VCE test engine and practice exam solution have been developed to.
SGeMS – “SGeMS is a software for 3D geostatistical modeling.” Source code only is provided; website says that you should be able to compile it for Mac OS X, but apparently no one has tried it yet, and no Mac binaries are available. Added 4/22/09.
Spatial Commander – A free German GIS program. This link (in German) lists its features. Added 5/9/2009.
Spatial Data Integrator – “Spatial Data Integrator (SDI) is an ETL (Extract Transform Load) tool with geospatial capabilities. Added 5/9/2009.
STARS – “Space-Time Analysis Of Regional Systems (STARS) is an open source package designed for the analysis of areal data measured over time. STARS brings together a number of recently developed methods of space-time analysis into a user-friendly graphical environment offering an array of dynamically linked graphical views.” Added 4/22/09.
StarSpan – “StarSpan is designed to bridge the raster and vector worlds of spatial analysis using fast algorithms for pixellevel extraction from geometry features (points, lines, polygons). StarSpan generates databases of extracted pixel values (from one or a set of raster images), fused with the database attributes from the vector files.” Added 4/22/09.
STEM – “The Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeler (STEM) tool is designed to help scientists and public health officials create and use spatial and temporal models of emerging infectious diseases. These models could aid in understanding, and potentially preventing, the spread such diseases.” Added 5/9/2009.
Thuban – GIS data viewer, raster and vector.
TNTmips (aka TNTlite) – Free full-featured version of TNTmips Pro with limits on the number of geographical objects, size of raster data.
uDIG – Java-based GIS viewer/editor.
VAPOR– Visualization and Analysis Platform for Ocean, Atmosphere, and Solar Researchers. Added 4/22/09.
- A visual data discovery environment tailored towards the specialized needs of the geosciences CFD community
- A desktop solution capable of handling terascale size data sets
- Advanced interactive 3D visualization tightly coupled with quantitative data analysis
- Support for multi-variate, time-varying data
- Close coupling with RSI’s powerful interpretive data language, IDL.
- Support for 3D visualization of WRF-ARW datasets
WorldWatcher – “WorldWatcher, a supportive scientific visualization environment for geospatial data, is available for both Macintosh and Windows. The software provides an accessible and supportive environment for students to explore, interpret, and analyze scientific data in a manner which allows them to emulate the work of actual scientists.” Note: This appears to be a free, but I can’t tell for sure. Added 4/22/09.
If you know of any other free Mac GIS software, drop me a line, and I’ll add it to the list.
Commercial Mac GIS software (i.e. not free)
Avenza – Add-ons like MAPublisher and Geographic Imager for Photoshop and Illustrator
Cartographica – A Macintosh-only GIS editor/viewer.
GAIA – “GAIA (Geographic Access Image and Analysis) Software …capabilities are focused on displaying any earth imagery including full SPOT or LANDSAT images and allowing users to combine spectral classes into meaningful covertypes and analyze a given area for acreage. GAIA also has full rastor/vector integration and can overlay vector maps (from MapGraphix and Microstation) onto the raster imagery to superimpose roads, geopolitical borders, hydrography, etc.”. Note: No download link, original website is down, may no longer be available. Added 4/22/09.
MyWorld GIS – “My World GIS™ is a Geographic Information System (GIS) designed specifically for use in educational settings. My World allows learners to explore and analyze geographic data about our world.” Added 4/22/09.
Quantum Gis For Mac
Ortelius – Mapmaking software (coming soon).
Arcgis Pro For Mac
TNTMips – Full version of the freeware TNTlite.
Gis Software Mac
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