As seen in our blog previously, crowdsourced mapping has the power of gathering knowledge in large amounts with highly detailed maps that are inclusive, from environmental changes to cultural heritage sites. If you have missed it, tap here to go into our deep dive into Crowdsourced Mapping and its impact.
Now, let's look into some of the tools that make crowdsourced mapping possible. Whether you are a cartographer or just eager to participate, with these collective mapping tools, you can create, update, and share maps that reflect the real-world experiences and knowledge of contributors worldwide.
With ArcGIS StoryMaps by Esri, you can create visually appealing maps combined with narrative text, images, and multimedia content; thus, it is an engaging tool within storytelling and data visualization. While ArcGIS StoryMaps focused on storytelling, it allows users to crowdsource data collection by connecting through the Survey123 tool.
To create a crowdsourced map in ArcGIS StoryMaps, you need to develop a form through Survey123 that enables the other users to provide location information with other information. You would then embed that form in your ArcGIS StoryMaps.
Pros:
Interactive Storytelling: Blends maps with multimedia content for a richer user experience.
Professional Customization: Offers a wide range of customization options for maps and narratives, creating visually compelling and polished results.
Educational & Advocacy Power: Great for projects that combine storytelling with data visualization, such as public awareness campaigns.
Powerful Integration: Integrates seamlessly with other ArcGIS tools, allowing advanced mapping functionality.
Cons:
Cost: After a 21-day free trial, a paid subscription to ArcGIS Online is required, which can be expensive for individuals or small organizations.
Learning Curve: Requires some technical knowledge to fully utilize the platform’s mapping and crowdsourcing features.
Separate Crowdsourcing Platform: Crowdsourced data collection requires the use of an additional tool called Survey123, which can complicate workflows.
Hard to Find Maps to Contribute: ArcGIS StoryMaps lacks an easy way to browse or discover ongoing crowdsourced mapping projects, making it challenging for casual users to contribute.
Needs Promotion for Contributions:Â Users often need to promote their maps externally (e.g., on social media) to gather contributions.
Mobile Accessibility: While ArcGIS StoryMaps’ web tool can be viewed on mobile, editing and creating maps are more efficient on a desktop.
Difficulty with Real-Time Updates: Mobile usage limitations may hinder real-time collaboration and timely updates to the map.
Auglinn is a powerful collective mapping tool that enables users to create thematic maps enriched with virtual notes, questions, and event boxes, all through augmented reality (AR). Whether you're on-site or remote, Auglinn offers flexibility with its mobile app and web tool (Skyview).Â
The mobile app allows users to leave unlimited notes at their current location, making it perfect for real-time data collection. Meanwhile, the Skyview web tool lets you place boxes remotely anywhere in the world and analyze the engagement of your maps. This combination makes Auglinn particularly well-suited for crowdsourced mapping projects, as it supports real-time, and location-based contributions.
Pros:
Mobile and Web Compatibility: Provides integrated mobile app and a web tool, allowing users to contribute in real-time or remotely.
Unlimited Free Notes via App: The mobile app allows users to drop unlimited notes for free, making it ideal for extensive crowdsourced contributions.
Real-Time Collaboration: Users can add notes in real-time, keeping maps dynamic and continuously updated with real-world data.
Augmented Reality Integration: The app lets users drop note boxes with AR, allowing them to explore these notes in 3D using the app’s AR camera, creating an immersive experience.
Interactive Question Boxes: Users can engage with the environment by leaving location-specific question boxes, encouraging crowd contributions.
Rich User Engagement: Supports interaction with notes through likes, comments, bookmarks, and replies, fostering a highly engaging community-driven experience.
Discovery Features: Public and view-only spaces (maps) are easily searchable and discoverable within the app. So, users can discover and easily contribute to the maps of others, if allowed. (The admin, the creator, of the map can delete notes left on the map).
Drag-and-Drop Map Creation: Users can easily create maps by dragging and dropping photos into the map via Skyview which is Auglinn’s web tool. That offers a simple way to pin locations with relevant content.
Activity Analytics: Auglinn Skyview provides tools to analyze user engagement with maps, tracking interactions like likes, comments, and bookmarks.
No Technical Skills Required: Auglinn’s user-friendly interface ensures that anyone can easily create or contribute to maps.
Cons:
Limited Features in Free Web Tool: The web tool (Skyview) allows adding 50 notes per month for free, requiring a paid plan for more extensive contributions. (But the mobile app allows users to drop unlimited notes for free)
Lack of Third-Party Integration: Maps cannot be embedded on external websites.
Single-Use Map Names: Users must choose unique names for maps (spaces), which can be challenging when creating common or popular map topics.
MapMe allows users to create interactive maps that can be shared with a community. The platform enables users from the community to add pins, images, and other information, making it a true collaborative project.
Pros:
Customizable: Offers a variety of design options to match your brand or project theme.
No Technical Skills Required: Intuitive interface that requires no technical skills.
Integrated Multimedia: Users can add images, videos, and links to map pins, providing a richer user experience.
Cons:
Mobile Accessibility: While MapMe’s web tool can be viewed on mobile, editing and creating maps are more efficient on a desktop.
Difficulty with Real-Time Updates: Mobile limitations make real-time collaboration and updates challenging.
Hard to Discover Maps to Contribute: Lacks an easy way to browse or search for existing maps that need contributions.
Promotion Needed for Contributions: After creating a map, you need to promote it on your own to gather contributors.
Cost: While some basic features are free, advanced options require a subscription.
Proxi is also ideal for building community maps, local guides, and event maps, and you can embed your map on your website or application.
Pros:
Embedding the Map: Easy to embed maps on travel blogs, tourism websites, and more.
User-Friendly Design: No technical expertise required, making it accessible for a wide range of users.
Customization: Offers flexible options to customize map styles and features to suit different needs.
Cons:
Subscription Required After 7-Day Free Trial: After the trial, users need to subscribe to access advanced features.
Hard to Find Maps to Contribute:Â Proxi lacks an easy way to browse or discover ongoing crowdsourced mapping projects, making it challenging for casual users to contribute.
Needs Promotion for Contributions:Â Users often need to promote their maps externally (e.g., on social media) to gather contributions.
Mapotic is a community-driven platform designed for creating interactive maps. Contributors can add data to maps, making it suitable for a variety of community-focused projects, from environmental initiatives to cultural mapping.
Pros:
Community-Focused: Designed specifically for community and crowdsourced projects, encouraging collaborative mapping efforts.
Customizable: Offers various customization options to suit different types of projects, from small communities to larger, more complex initiatives.
Embedding the Map: With a $149 subscription, maps created on Mapotic can be integrated into your website or mobile app, expanding reach and functionality.
Custom Forms: Allows users to add custom forms for collecting specific types of data from contributors.
Discovery Features: Maps are searchable and discoverable.
Cons:
Subscription Required: A free version is available but advanced features are behind a subscription.
Mobile Accessibility: While Mapotic’s web tool can be viewed on mobile, editing and creating maps are more efficient on a desktop.
Difficulty with Real-Time Updates: Mobile usage limitations may hinder real-time collaboration and timely updates to the map.
Overwhelming for Beginners: The wide range of customization options may overwhelm users new to map creation.
Learning Curve: While powerful, it may take time to fully understand all the features.
Conclusion: Explore the Top 5 Collective Mapping Tools
Crowdsourced mapping is a powerful way to bring people together to create dynamic, real-time maps that benefit communities, organizations, and projects. With tools like ArcGIS StoryMaps, Auglinn. MapMe, Proxi and Mapotic. you can create and contribute to maps that reflect the knowledge and insights of millions of contributors.
Ready to get started? Explore these tools and take part in creating a map that makes a difference today!
FAQ
What is crowdsourced mapping?
Crowdsourced mapping is the process of creating maps through contributions from a large group of individuals. These contributions can include adding locations, updating information, or providing data about real-world experiences. The goal is to build detailed, up-to-date maps by tapping into the collective knowledge of the community.
2. Which tools are best for crowdsourced mapping?
3. Can I use collective mapping tools without technical skills?
4. Which tool is better for creating a collective map with real-time updates?
5. Can I use these tools for free?
6. Which platform allows the embedding of maps on websites?
7. Is there any augmented reality (AR) mapping tool?
8. How do I find existing crowdsourced maps to contribute to?
9. Which mapping tools support real-time collaboration?
10. Which mapping tool is better for local events or guides?
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