Static maps - Amazon Location Service
Common use casesUnderstand the requestUnderstand the response

Static maps

Note

Static maps only support Satellite style. For more information, see AWS map styles and design.

Static maps offer a pre-rendered representation of geographic data with the option to overlay markers (or pins), routes, and polygon areas, as needed for your application. The Static Map lets you generate static (non-interactive) map images based on customizable parameters and data inputs. By customizing overlays, shapes, or applying custom styles, Static Map enables you to create map visualizations that meet specific needs, enhancing the end-user experience and effectively communicating geographical information. The server customizes the requested map images and delivers them to the client as JPEG files. You can programmatically request and generate map images tailored to your specific requirements.

The GetStaticMap API generates a static image of a map based on specified parameters like center coordinates, bounding boxes, or overlays. The API allows customization of map features and style, enabling use in web or mobile applications without interactive map functionality.

Common use cases

  • Embedded maps in web or mobile application: Static map images can be efficiently embedded in websites or mobile applications to provide visualizations of locations, routes, or points of interest with non-interactive maps, reducing load times and data usage. Examples include search engines (such as Yahoo) showing map images with search results for POIs.

  • Location details in e-mails: Static map images can be used to share location information via email to help your end users understand the context of the email. For example, food delivery or ride-sharing apps use static map images to display pickup/drop-off locations, routes, or surrounding areas in post-trip or delivery emails containing bill and summary.

  • Marketing materials and printed documents: Customized static map images can be incorporated into brochures, flyers, or other printed materials, providing visually appealing representations of geographical information relevant to the content.

Understand the request

The request includes optional URI parameters, like BoundedPositions, BoundingBox, and Center, among others, to define the visible area and overlays of the map. The parameters Height and Width are required for defining the image size. To learn more, see Customize static maps and Overlay on the static map.

  • BoundedPositions: Coordinates to encompass in the image.

  • BoundingBox: Coordinates defining the south-west and north-east edges of the map.

  • Height: Specifies the height of the image.

  • Width: Specifies the width of the image.

  • GeoJsonOverlay: A valid GeoJSON object for adding overlays.

Understand the response

The response contains headers like CacheControl, ContentType, and ETag, and returns the static map as a binary blob in either JPEG or PNG format. The headers provide metadata like cache control, content type, and version for static images.

  • CacheControl: Specifies caching configurations for the map image.

  • ContentType: Indicates the format of the map image (JPEG or PNG).

  • ETag: An identifier for the version of the static map image.

  • Blob: Represents the map image in either JPEG or PNG format.