GPX vs GeoJSON: What's the Difference?

GeoJSON is a standardized JSON format (RFC 7946) for representing geographic data: points, lines, polygons. It's the go-to format for web mapping libraries (Leaflet, Mapbox, OpenLayers…) and developers. GPX, meanwhile, remains the reference format for consumer GPS devices.

When to use GPX

To load a route onto a watch, a bike computer, or into a hiking app, GPX is the expected format. GeoJSON is typically not supported there.

When to use GeoJSON

To display a track on a custom web map, or process it with GIS tools (QGIS, Turf.js…), GeoJSON fits natively into the JavaScript ecosystem and modern mapping libraries.

Converting between them

• GeoJSON → GPX, to load a track exported from a web tool onto a GPS device.
• GPX → GeoJSON, to display a GPS track on a web map.

Common pitfall: GeoJSON's coordinate order is [longitude, latitude], reversed from the usual latitude/longitude order. Our converter handles this automatically.