Spatial analysis software is software written to enable and facilitate spatial analysis. Currently, there are several packages, both free software and proprietary software, which cover most of the spatial data infrastructure stack.
| Package | Free of charge | Operating Systems | Developer institution/person | Website | Field of interest (if any specific) | Main Features | Language | License | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CARTO | No | Web-based (Cloud SaaS) | CARTO | www.carto.com | Spatial data science & location intelligence | Spatial SQL, spatial data science, location analytics, site selection, data visualization, mapping, geocoding and app development. Access to a catalog of 1,000s of spatial datasets. | Proprietary (with free trial available). | ||
| Fract | No | Linux, Windows, Unix, iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Cloud | Fract, Inc. | www.fract.com | Geospatial AI Analytics for Business Intelligence | Ease of use, AI feedback, Territory Mapping | Proprietary | ||
| Mapcite | Yes for Excel addin | Linux, Windows, Unix, iOS, Android, Windows Phone | Mapcite Ltd - London and Sydney | www.mapcite.com | Geospatial data analytics, location data sets, geocoding | Ease of aggregation and harmonisation of disparate data sets to expose insights and create new data. | Proprietary | ||
| 360FranTerra20/20iSite MarketMentor | No | GbBIS | GbBIS | Custom web applications used for a range of spatial analysis including franchise territory design and management, location analysis and site selection, market analysis and more. | |||||
| LuciadLightspeed | No | Linux, Windows, Unix, iOS, Android, Windows Phone | Luciad | Luciad | LuciadLightspeed is widely recognized as the leading set of high-performance geospatial software components. | LuciadLightspeed consists of over 100 different software components and connectors to fuse, visualize and analyze geospatial data. This can include static and moving data, maps, satellite imagery, crowd-sourced data, full motion video, weather data and terrain elevation in many different geodetic references and map projections. Geo-fencing, line-of-sight calculations, geo-triggered events, dynamic and complex route calculations and automated anomaly detection are just a mouse click away. Independent benchmark tests by academia and industry leave no doubt: LuciadLightspeed is over 100 times faster and more accurate than traditional GIS software. | Web API, Java-J2EE, .NET, JavaScript, HTML5 | Proprietary. | |
| Polaris Intelligence | No | Linux, Windows, Unix, iOS, Android, Windows Phone | Polaris Intelligence | Polaris Intelligence | Geospatial data analytics, business intelligence | Easy to use. Polaris Intelligence consists of multiple modules including mapping (thematic maps, heat maps, POI maps, trade area maps), customer profiling, gravity models, customer allocation models, feature selection, data mining, and targeting. A key strength is the vast quantities of consumer geo-demographic and behaviour data native to the platform. | |||
| No | Linux, Windows, Unix, iOS, Android, Windows Phone | Esri | Esri | A GIS system to create, visualize, manage, and analyze spatial data. Supports desktop, web, and mobile applications. | In addition to spatial data editing and visualization, ArcGIS provides spatial analysis and modeling features including overlay, surface, proximity, suitability, and network analysis, as well as interpolation analysis and other geostatistical modeling techniques. | Python, Web API, .NET | Proprietary. Analytical extensions can be purchased separately. | ||
| ClusterPy (non-GUI, open source) GeoGrouper (GUI, free) | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | RiSE group (@gmail:rise.group.eafit), Dr. Juan C. Duque and Boris Dev | ClusterPy Geogrouper | Spatial clustering | Library of algorithms to aggregate areas into regions, where each region is geographically connected, while optimizing a predefined objective function. | Python | BSD license | |
| R-Analysis of Spatial Data | yes | Roger Bivand (maintainer) | CRAN site for Analysis of Spatial Data, R-Forge site | Analysis | Full integration of spatial data analysis tools with the R: classes for spatial data; handling spatial data; reading and writing spatial data; point pattern analysis; geostatistics; disease mapping and areal data analysis; spatial regression and ecological analysis. | R | GPL-2 | ||
| Google Earth | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | Google Earth | 3D visualisation | Easy to use, dynamic graphics, historical maps, users can create dynamic "tours," integrated with the Web. | - | Freeware | ||
| PySAL | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | GeoDa Center | pysal.org | Analysis | Modules for: computational geometry, spatial weights, ESDA, inequality,mobility and spatial econometrics | Python | BSD license | |
| Minerva | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | Fulton High Performance Computing Initiative(Arizona State University) | Minerva Project | Visualization (3D) | High performance; ability to display large amounts of raster and vector from multiple sources | C++ | BSD license | |
| GMap Creator | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | CASA | CASA website for GMap Creator | Web Mapping | Thematic mapping. Creates image pictures from shapefiles and creates Google Maps websites with the data linked to the shapefile | - | Freeware | |
| QGIS | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | QGIS Development Team | qgis.org | Visualization | Easy to use, ability to expand functionality with Python plugins. Geo-processing functions included. | C++ | GPL | |
| GRASS | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | GRASS Development Team | http://grass.osgeo.org | GIS | Extensive set of GIS tools for both raster and vector data, SQL, visualization, voxel | C, C++, Python, Tcl | GPL | |
| GeoDa https://geodacenter.github.io/ | yes | Windows, MAC OS, Linux | Center for Spatial Data Science, University of Chicago | website https://geodacenter.github.io/ | Analysis | Interactive exploratory spatial data analysis, dynamic linking and brushing for cross-section data, local cluster stats, basic spatial regression capabilities. | C++ | GPL | |
| STARS | yes | GeoDa Center | Website at REGAL | Analysis | ESTDA (Exploratory Space-Time Data Analysis). Interactive linking, brushing and travelling for space-time data | Python | GPL | ||
| GeoDaSpace https://geodacenter.github.io/GeoDaSpace/ | yes | MAC OS, Windows | Center for Spatial Data Science, University of Chicago | Download | Spatial Econometrics | Advanced spatial models for cross section (GMM, IV and spatial HAC) | Python | Freeware | |
| SANET | yes | Windows | Atsu Okabe | Website | Point patterns in networks | Analysis of events that occur on networks or alongside networks. Includes 14 tools for point patterns in networks(list) | - | Freeware (terms) | |
| CrimeStat | yes | Windows | Ned Levine and Associates | Website | Spatial analysis of points, zones, and lines | Basic spatial description, hot spot analysis, kernel density interpolation, space-time interaction, journey-to-crime analysis (Geographic profiling), crime travel demand modelling, and spatial regression. | - | Freeware | |
| SaTScan | yes | Windows, Linux, MAC OS | Martin Kulldorff and Information Management Services Inc. | satscan.org | Applications by Field of Study | Spatial, temporal and Space-Time Scan Statistics | C/C++, Java | Freeware | |
| Croizat | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | Mauro J. Cavalcanti | Website at SourceForge | Panbiogeography | Ability to integrate and analyze spatial data on species or other taxa andto explore geographical patterns in diversity under a panbiogeographic andgraph-theoretic approach | Python | GPL | |
| Hawths Tools | yes (Requires ArcGIS, which is not free) | Windows | Hawthorne Beyer | Website | Ecology | Analysis, sampling, animal movements, kernel, raster, table, vector editing, specialist and other tools. | Freeware | ||
| Fragstats | yes | Windows | Dr. Kevin McGarigal - University of Massachusetts | Website | Landscape metrics for categorical map patterns | Area, density, edge metrics. Shape metrics (Fractal dimension index) and much more. | Visual C++ | Freeware | |
| Patch Analyst | yes | Windows | Rob Rempel - Centre for Northern Forest Ecosystems Research | Website | Patch metrics for categorical map patterns | Mean patch size, Number of patches, Indices of patchiness, edge metrics, and much more. | Visual C++ | Freeware | |
| SAGA | yes | Windows, Linux | Institute of Geography at the University of Hamburg, Germany | Website | GIS, Analysis | Grid analysis, Geostatistics, Terrain Analysis, Hydrology simulation, TIN tools. | C++ | OpenSource | |
| Whitebox GAT | yes | Linux, MAC OS, Windows | John Lindsay - Centre for Hydrogeomatics, University of Guelph, Canada | Website | GIS and remote sensing package | GIS analysis, hydrological tools, image processing tools, LiDAR tools, statistical analysis, stream network analysis, terrain analysis | .NET framework 3.5 | GPL | |
| ILWIS Open | yes | Windows | ITC - Netherlands | Website | Remote sensing and GIS software which integrates image, vector and thematic data. | Integrated raster and vector design; import and export of widely used data formats; on-screen and tablet digitizing; image processing tools; orthophoto, image geo-referencing, transformation and mosaicing; Advanced modelling and spatial data analysis; 3D visualization; projection and coordinate system library; geo-statistical analyses; production and visualization of stereo image pairs; spatial Multiple Criteria Evaluation; WMS; Surface Energy Balances. | - | GPL | |
| Map Comparison Kit (MCK) | yes | Windows | Research Institute for Knowledge Systems | MCK Website | Map comparisons for categorical and numerical maps. | A large number of map comparison algorithms for categorical and numerical maps, including Kappa, variations to Kappa, and landscape metrics. | C++ | Freeware | |
| IDRISI | No | Windows | Clark Labs/Clark University | Clark Labs | GIS, Image Processing, Spatial Modelling | A GIS analysis package for basic and advanced spatial analysis, an Image Processing system with extensive hard and soft classifiers including machine learning classifiers, integrated modelling environments including the Earth Trends Modeller for image time series of environmental trends and Land Change Modeller for land change analysis and prediction. | Delphi | Proprietary | |
| Biodiverse | Yes | Linux, Windows, Unix, macOS | Shawn Laffan | Biodiverse | Biogeography, Biodiversity, Environmental | Biodiverse is a tool for the spatial analysis of diversity using indices based on taxonomic, phylogenetic and matrix-based (e.g. genetic distance) relationships, as well as related environmental variations. Biodiverse supports: linked visualisation of data in geographic, taxonomic, phylogenetic and matrix spaces; Spatial moving window analyses; Spatially constrained agglomerative cluster and region grower analyses; and Randomisations for hypothesis testing. | Perl | LGPL | |
| ERDAS IMAGINE | No | Windows | Intergraph | ERDAS IMAGINGE | Remote Sensing, Image Processing, Spatial Modelling, GIS | ERDAS IMAGINE incorporates geospatial image processing and analysis, remote sensing, and GIS capabilities into a single powerful, convenient package. ERDAS IMAGINE enables users to easily create value-added products such as 2D and 3D images, 3D fly-through movies, and cartographic-quality map compositions from geospatial data. | C, C++ | Proprietary | |
| TerraLens | No | Linux, Windows, Unix, MacOS, Android, Windows Phone | Kongsberg Geospatial | Kongsberg Geospatial | TerraLens is a real-time computing geospatial software platform optimized for mission-critical applications and performance on low-end hardware and chipsets. | TerraLens is a geospatial platform that includes a comprehensive core API, as well as additional tools like a Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) tile server, a map styling and packaging tool, and a UI development middleware toolkit. TerraLens is designed to easily fuse and integrate a wide range of real-time data sources, including SONAR, RADAR, and LIDAR data, full-motion video, and proprietary or open-source data that includes geolocation elements with terrain elevation and satellite imagery in a wide range of formats and map projections. TerraLens is used extensively for real-time applications including naval and air defence, beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) mission management for unmanned systems, and air traffic management. | C++, Java-J2EE, .NET, QT (software), Web GL | Proprietary | |
| GIS Spatial Analytics & Analysis | No | Web-based | Marketing Systems Group | GIS Spatial Analytics & Analysis | Spatial analysis and data visualization for an array of business and government sectors | Leverage the power of geographic and demographic data using MSG’s full suite of GIS services: reports and maps, geocoding, spatial analytics, geographic frame design and much more. From simple maps and reports to multifaceted data, spatial projects, and custom consulting, MSG’s GIS group has you covered. | - | Proprietary |
Further resources may be found in the following links: