20 Map Styles: From Minimal to Satellite
A map's style determines how the result looks: building colors, road line thickness, whether street labels are visible. The right style choice depends on the task: an analytical map requires one approach, a wall poster — something completely different.
Overview of 20 Styles
osm2cdr offers 20 map styles. Each is optimized for a specific use case.
Group 1: Universal
Default — standard style similar to OSM Carto. All map elements are visible: roads, buildings, parks, water, labels. Suitable for navigation and general area overview.
Clean — simplified style without excessive detail. Thin road lines, muted building colors, minimal labels. Good for printing and analytical maps.
OSM Carto — an exact replica of the standard openstreetmap.org style. Familiar look for OSM users.
Group 2: Minimalist
Minimal — only road and water contours. No fills, no labels, no POIs. Black lines on white background. Ideal for art posters and laser engraving.
Light — light background with very thin gray lines. Buildings and parks are barely noticeable fills. Good background for overlaying your own data.
Grayscale — all colors converted to shades of gray. Preserves all map elements but without color distraction. Suitable for black-and-white printing.
Group 3: Dark
Dark — dark gray background, light lines. Roads are white or light gray, buildings are dark gray with thin outlines. Water is dark blue. Stylish and modern.
Neon — dark background with neon colors. Roads are blue, buildings purple, parks green with a glow effect. Evokes Cyberpunk and Tron vibes.
Midnight — deep black background with minimal elements. Only major roads as thin silver lines. Elegant night style.
Group 4: Artistic
Blueprint — engineering drawing simulation: white lines on blue background, scale grid, coordinate marks.
Vintage — aged map: beige background, brown roads, classic typography. Yellowed paper effect.
Watercolor — watercolor technique simulation: blurred boundaries, transparent layers, pastel colors.
Ink — ink drawing style: hatching instead of fills, uneven lines, contrasting black-and-white tones.
Group 5: Specialized
Satellite — satellite imagery with semi-transparent vector layers on top. Roads and buildings are visible, but the base is a real photograph.
Terrain — relief map with hillshading and contours. Mountains highlighted with shadows, plains smooth. Suitable for tourist maps.
Transit — emphasis on public transport: bus routes, metro lines, stops. Everything else is muted.
Cycling — bicycle map: bike paths highlighted in bright colors, elevation changes marked. Car roads are muted.
Hiking — tourist map: trails, marked routes, elevation marks, POIs (springs, shelters, peaks).
Cadastral — cadastral style: thin parcel lines, minimal background, emphasis on boundaries and numbers.
High Contrast — high-contrast style for visually impaired: large labels, bright distinguishable colors, thick lines.
Comparison Table
| Style | Background | Buildings | Labels | Screen | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default | White | Gray | Yes | ++ | +++ |
| Minimal | White | None | No | +++ | ++ |
| Dark | Dark | Dark | Yes | + | +++ |
| Neon | Black | Purple | No | + | +++ |
| Blueprint | Blue | White | Yes | ++ | +++ |
| Vintage | Beige | Brown | Yes | +++ | ++ |
| Satellite | Imagery | Semi-trans. | Yes | ++ | +++ |
| Terrain | Relief | None | Yes | +++ | ++ |
Color Customization
With a recent update, osm2cdr supports color customization through 6 color pickers:
6 Color Parameters
- Background — map background
- Roads — road color (main network)
- Buildings — building fill
- Water — water features
- Green — parks and green areas
- Text — labels and markers
How to Use
- Select a base style (e.g., Minimal)
- Click "Customize colors"
- Change colors via the pickers
- Preview updates in real time
- Export with custom colors
Example: Corporate Map
For a company with brand blue (#003087) and white: - Background: #ffffff - Roads: #003087 - Buildings: #e6ecf5 - Water: #ccd6e8 - Green: #d4e6d4 - Text: #003087
Result — an elegant monochrome map in brand colors.
Choosing a Style by Task
For Poster Printing
Best: Minimal, Blueprint, Vintage, Ink
Dark styles (Neon, Dark, Midnight) require a lot of ink and may look different on paper than on screen. Light styles are more economical and predictable in print.
For Web Applications
Best: Default, Light, Dark, Clean
Interactive maps need labels and recognizable elements. Minimalist styles without labels make navigation difficult.
For Analytics
Best: Light, Grayscale, Clean
The background map shouldn't distract from data. Muted colors allow overlaying heatmaps, markers, or isolines.
For Gifts
Best: Neon, Blueprint, Vintage, Watercolor
Artistic styles create emotional impact. Choose based on the recipient: techie — Blueprint, romantic — Watercolor, gamer — Neon.
For Academic Work
Best: Clean, Grayscale, Default
Academic publications require neutral styles without decorative elements. Grayscale is ideal for black-and-white journal printing.
For Navigation
Best: Default, Transit, Cycling, Hiking
Navigation tasks require maximum information: street labels, directions, POIs.
Style and Format Compatibility
Not all styles work equally well in all formats:
| Format | All Styles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SVG | Yes | Full support, editable |
| Yes | Embedded fonts, print-ready | |
| PNG/JPEG | Yes | Raster, DPI-dependent |
| DXF/DWG | Partial | No fills, lines only |
| GeoJSON | No | Style not applied (data only) |
For CAD formats (DXF, DWG), styles with fills (Vintage, Watercolor) will be simplified to outlines. Minimalist styles (Minimal, Blueprint) work best for CAD.
Creating Your Own Style
For advanced users, osm2cdr allows uploading custom QML styles (QGIS format):
- Create a style in QGIS Desktop
- Export as a QML file
- Upload via API (endpoint /api/custom-style)
- Use when exporting
This gives full control: symbology, filters, scale rules, labels — everything is configurable in QGIS.
Conclusion
20 styles cover the main scenarios: from minimalism to satellite imagery, from poster printing to navigation. Customization through 6 color parameters lets you adapt any style to a specific brand or task. If built-in styles aren't enough — upload your own QML.