geoBoundariesWilliam & Mary geoLab

Administrative boundaries

Download country boundaries, global composites, and simplified files.

Download data Visualize boundaries
Administrative boundaries across Africa, Europe, Asia, and Oceania
Boundary preview
Global composites
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GlobalBoundary coverage
ADM0–5Administrative levels
CC BY 4.0gbOpen license
GeoJSONFile format

Download data

Full resolution

Country boundaries

Full-resolution country files with source metadata.

Download country files
Global coverage

Global composites

Simplified global layers with a consistent treatment of disputed areas.

Download global files
Simplified geometry

Simplified boundaries

Country GeoJSON files with fewer vertices.

Download simplified files

About geoBoundaries

geoBoundaries is an open database of administrative boundaries maintained by William & Mary geoLab and contributors.

Files use standardized formats and include source, license, and reference-year metadata.

Submit a boundary

Administrative levels

  • ADM0CountriesThe outer boundary of a country or territory.
  • ADM1First administrative levelStates, provinces, or their local equivalents.
  • ADM2Second administrative levelCounties, districts, or their local equivalents.
  • ADM3+Additional levelsAdditional subdivisions, where data is available.

API access

Retrieve boundary metadata and download URLs over HTTP.

API documentation
Python exampleGET /api/nightly/ 
import requests

url = "https://geoboundaries-dev.org/api/nightly/gbOpen/USA/ADM1/"
boundary = requests.get(url, timeout=30).json()

# Get the GeoJSON download link
print(boundary["gjDownloadURL"])

License & attribution

gbOpen is available under CC BY 4.0. Attribution to geoBoundaries is required.

Each boundary includes its source and license evidence. Check those records when using or redistributing the data.

Attribution on websites

Place the name “geoBoundaries” and a link to geoboundaries.org prominently on the page that uses the data.

Attribution in apps, films, and other products

Include geoBoundaries in the credits or help menu. If a link cannot be clicked, include the full website address. See the Creative Commons attribution guide for more examples.

Citation

Runfola, D. et al. (2020). geoBoundaries: A global database of political administrative boundaries. PLoS ONE 15(4): e0231866. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0231866

Publication

Full author citation

Runfola, Daniel, Community Contributors, and [v4.0: Lindsey Rogers, Joshua Habib, Sidonie Horn, Sean Murphy, Dorian Miller, Hadley Day, Lydia Troup, Dominic Fornatora, Natalie Spage, Kristina Pupkiewicz, Michael Roth, Carolina Rivera, Charlie Altman, Isabel Schruer, Tara McLaughlin, Russ Biddle, Renee Ritchey, Emily Topness, James Turner, Sam Updike, Helena Buckman, Neel Simpson, Jason Lin], [v2.0: Austin Anderson, Heather Baier, Matt Crittenden, Elizabeth Dowker, Sydney Fuhrig, Seth Goodman, Grace Grimsley, Rachel Layko, Graham Melville, Maddy Mulder, Rachel Oberman, Joshua Panganiban, Andrew Peck, Leigh Seitz, Sylvia Shea, Hannah Slevin, Rebecca Yougerman, Lauren Hobbs]. "geoBoundaries: A global database of political administrative boundaries." Plos one 15, no. 4 (2020): e0231866.