About the Osm file format
- Name
- OpenStreetMap Map File
- Extension
- .osm
- Category
- GIS
- Developer
- OpenStreetMap
- Description
- An OSM file contains street map information in the OpenStreetMap (OSM) format. It saves XML-formatted data in the form of "nodes" (points), "ways" (connections), and "relations" (street and object properties, such as tags).
- MIME Type
- application/octet-stream
- Wikipedia
- .osm on Wikipedia
OSM is a free map displaying the streets of the whole world created by volunteers who’ve released it with an open-content license. It’s editable and one can access all underlying map data including map images. This format was purposely developed to bit Google Maps in terms of details provided on hiking trails, bicycle infrastructure, poor country’s streets, and much more. Google Maps can be very limited when it comes to such details. With OSM being created using community efforts, the maps keep getting bigger and better as it’s continuously being developed. Data in an OSM file includes ways/ connections, nodes or points, streets, and objects properties like tags. The file is available freely and can be downloaded from the OpenStreetMap Project page in a file called Planet.osm. There are numerous FTP sites that can hold OSM data for download. You can open the OSM file using QGIS, GeoVisu, Merkaartor, Gosmore, or Safe Software FME Desktop.