GIS Formats
Comprensive list of GIS formats for your geospatial data
CSV
While not inherently a GIS format, CSV files are often used to store tabular data including coordinates that can be converted to GIS data.
Census data formats
Generally found as part of shapefile datasets in GIS; DBF is a standard database file used to store tabular data.
Digital Elevation Models
A representation of terrain elevations for geographic digital information.
ESRI File Geodatabase
A collection of files in a folder used to store collections of geographic datasets.
AutoCAD DXF
Drawing Interchange Format used in computer-aided design.
GeoJSON
A format for encoding a variety of geographic data structures using JSON.
GML (Geography Markup Language)
An XML grammar for expressing geographical features.
GeoPackage
An open format for geographic information system data based on SQLite.
Esri Grid
A raster GIS file format developed by Esri, which has a binary and an ASCII format.
Erdas Imagine
A raster data format used in ERDAS IMAGINE software.
KML and KMZ
Used by Google Earth and other GIS applications, KML is for geographic visualization, including points, lines, polygons, and images.
JPEG 2000
A raster image compression standard and coding system.
LiDAR data formats
Used for storing LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data.
Portable Network Graphics
Commonly used for storing raster graphics and images.
ESRI Personal Geodatabase
Stored in Microsoft Access data format, containing geometry data.
PostGIS
A spatial database extender for PostgreSQL object-relational database, storing GIS objects.
SQL Database formats
Used in spatial databases like PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server with spatial extensions, etc.
Shapefile
A popular vector data format developed by ESRI for geographic information system (GIS) software.
MapInfo Tab
A format used by MapInfo GIS products for vector data.
GeoTIFF
A metadata standard which allows georeferencing information to be embedded within a TIFF file.
TopoJSON
An extension of GeoJSON that encodes topology.
Web Coverage Service (WCS)
Unlike WMS, which delivers static map images, WCS provides raw raster data that can be used for detailed analysis in GIS applications.
Web Feature Service (WFS)
WFS allows users to request and retrieve vector features, such as points, lines, and polygons, along with their associated attribute data.
Web Map Service (WMS)
A standard protocol developed by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) for serving static map images over the Internet.
XML based formats
For specialized applications such as aviation (AIXM) or urban modeling (CityGML).
