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CARTO alternatives: 6 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Nov 8, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rankAll GIS software

Top picks

  • Felt logo

    Best overall

    Felt

    Starting price: $199/month billed yearly (Team)

  • Google BigQuery logo

    Best free option

    Google BigQuery

    Starting price: $6.25 per TiB scanned (on-demand)

  • QGIS logo

    Best open source

    QGIS

    Open source

Common reasons people leave CARTO: needs a cloud data warehouse to get the most from it, and committed plans are quote-only with a 12-month contract. We ranked 6 alternatives by how directly each one replaces CARTO, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. Felt currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingVerified priceOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1Felt logoFeltFree plan + paid$199/month billed yearly (Team)NoWeb5 of 568.8
2Google BigQuery logoGoogle BigQueryFree plan + paid$6.25 per TiB scanned (on-demand)NoWeb4 of 466.2
3ArcGIS Pro logoArcGIS ProPaid—NoWindows4 of 464.8
4QGIS logoQGISOpen source—YesWindows, macOS, Linux4 of 461.8
5kepler.gl logokepler.glOpen source—YesWeb, Self-hosted5 of 557.5
6MapTiler logoMapTilerFree plan + paid$30/month (USD)NoWeb, Self-hosted, Windows +24 of 457.5
  1. Felt logo

    1. FeltTop pick

    Best for: Teams that need to share and edit maps with non-GIS colleagues in the browser

    Free plan + paidWeb

    68.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    Easier collaborative web mapping for teams that don't need warehouse-scale analytics.

    Pros

    • Real-time co-editing and commenting with free viewers
    • Imports common GIS formats and live data sources on paid plans
    • QGIS plugin and REST API connect it to existing workflows

    Cons

    • Free plan can't upload your own data or export
    • Paid plans are costly for individuals
    • Far less analysis depth than a desktop GIS
    Visit Felt Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Felt a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    Free plan
    Yes, 3 seats and 25 viewers
    Checked Nov 8, 2026felt.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $199/month billed yearly (Team)
    Checked Nov 8, 2026felt.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Extra seat
    $49/month yearly or $59 monthly
    Checked Nov 8, 2026felt.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free trial
    7 days of Business
    Checked Nov 8, 2026felt.com(opens source in a new tab)
    QGIS integration
    QGIS plugin on paid plans
    Checked Nov 8, 2026felt.com(opens source in a new tab)
  2. Google BigQuery logo

    2. Google BigQuery

    Best for: Teams on Google Cloud or GA4 who want a warehouse with no servers to manage

    Free plan + paidWeb

    66.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    Built-in geography functions let you run spatial SQL where your data already lives, without a separate platform.

    Pros

    • Fully serverless, with nothing to size or keep running
    • Monthly free query and storage allowance for small projects
    • Native exports from Google Analytics 4 and other Google products
    • Machine learning models can be trained in plain SQL

    Cons

    • Tied to Google Cloud; there is no self-hosted version
    • On-demand billing by data scanned can surprise teams that query wide tables
    • Less control over performance tuning than with your own cluster
    Visit Google BigQuery Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.341
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.15100
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Google BigQuery a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Serverless
    Yes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cloud.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free query allowance
    First 1 TiB per month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cloud.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $6.25 per TiB scanned (on-demand)
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cloud.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free storage
    First 10 GiB per month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cloud.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
  3. ArcGIS Pro logo

    3. ArcGIS Pro

    Best for: Organisations standardised on Esri that need enterprise GIS and vendor support

    PaidWindows

    64.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    The industry-standard GIS suite with the deepest analysis toolset and Esri ecosystem.

    Pros

    • Deep integration with ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise
    • 2D, 3D and time-aware maps in one app
    • Automation with Python and ModelBuilder
    • Built-in AI models for imagery analysis

    Cons

    • Runs on Windows only
    • Licensed through ArcGIS user types, which costs more than free alternatives
    • Tied to Esri's platform for sharing and collaboration
    Visit ArcGIS Pro Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.387
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is ArcGIS Pro a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Platforms
    Windows only
    Checked Nov 8, 2026esri.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free trial
    21 days
    Checked Nov 8, 2026esri.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Licensing
    Three license levels
    Checked Nov 8, 2026esri.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Automation
    Python and ModelBuilder
    Checked Nov 8, 2026esri.com(opens source in a new tab)
  4. QGIS logo

    4. QGIS

    Best for: Analysts, researchers and organisations that want full desktop GIS without licence fees

    Open sourceWindows, macOS, Linux

    61.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    Free open-source desktop GIS for analysts who don't need a cloud platform.

    Pros

    • Free for any use under the GPL, with no seat licences
    • Runs on Windows, macOS and Linux
    • Strong cartography with layouts, atlases and reports
    • Large plugin library and Python scripting

    Cons

    • Less integrated with Esri's ArcGIS Online and Enterprise services
    • Support comes from the community or third-party firms, not one vendor
    • Frequent releases mean plugins can lag behind new versions
    Visit QGIS Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.377
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is QGIS a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    GPL-2.0
    Checked Oct 30, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Platforms
    Windows, macOS, Linux
    Checked Nov 8, 2026qgis.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Release tracks
    Long-term and latest releases
    Checked Nov 8, 2026qgis.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Price
    Free and open source
    Checked Nov 8, 2026qgis.org(opens source in a new tab)
  5. kepler.gl logo

    5. kepler.gl

    Best for: Analysts and developers who want fast, free visual maps of large point and trip datasets

    Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted

    57.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    Free, open-source map explorer that renders millions of points in the browser, for visual analysis without a subscription.

    Pros

    • Free and MIT licensed
    • Renders millions of points in the browser
    • Embeddable React component and a Jupyter widget
    • No account needed for the demo app

    Cons

    • No spatial analysis toolbox like a desktop GIS
    • Collaboration and sharing need your own hosting setup
    • Embedding requires React and Redux knowledge
    Visit kepler.gl Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.363
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is kepler.gl a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    MIT
    Checked Nov 6, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Built on
    MapLibre GL and deck.gl
    Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.kepler.gl(opens source in a new tab)
    Scale
    Millions of points
    Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.kepler.gl(opens source in a new tab)
    Embedding
    React component
    Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.kepler.gl(opens source in a new tab)
    Jupyter
    Yes, widget
    Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.kepler.gl(opens source in a new tab)
  6. MapTiler logo

    6. MapTiler

    Best for: Developers who need hosted or offline basemaps and geocoding without Google Maps or Mapbox pricing

    Free plan + paidSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted, Windows, macOS, Linux

    57.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from CARTO

    Cheaper hosted maps and data hosting with a free tier and self-hosted server option.

    Pros

    • Free plan with no billing details required
    • Self-hosted and offline option via MapTiler Server
    • Usage-based pricing with published per-session rates
    • Works with QGIS, ArcGIS and MapLibre

    Cons

    • Free plan is for non-commercial use and pauses at its quota
    • Free maps carry the MapTiler logo
    • Fewer navigation and routing features than Mapbox
    Visit MapTiler Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.363
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is MapTiler a good CARTO alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Free plan
    $0, non-commercial use
    Checked Nov 8, 2026maptiler.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Flex plan
    $30/month (USD)
    Checked Nov 8, 2026maptiler.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free plan sessions
    5,000 per month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026maptiler.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Self-hosting
    Windows, macOS, Linux, Docker, Kubernetes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026maptiler.com(opens source in a new tab)

The best CARTO alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

Felt logo

Best CARTO alternative for most people

Felt

Easier collaborative web mapping for teams that don't need warehouse-scale analytics.

QGIS logo

Best CARTO alternative for a free option

QGIS

Free open-source desktop GIS for analysts who don't need a cloud platform.

Google BigQuery logo

Best CARTO alternative for a free plan you can upgrade

Google BigQuery

Built-in geography functions let you run spatial SQL where your data already lives, without a separate platform.

kepler.gl logo

Best CARTO alternative for open source

kepler.gl

Free, open-source map explorer that renders millions of points in the browser, for visual analysis without a subscription.

MapTiler logo

Best CARTO alternative for self-hosting

MapTiler

Cheaper hosted maps and data hosting with a free tier and self-hosted server option.

QGIS logo

Best CARTO alternative for Mac

QGIS

Free open-source desktop GIS for analysts who don't need a cloud platform.

ArcGIS Pro logo

Best CARTO alternative for Windows

ArcGIS Pro

The industry-standard GIS suite with the deepest analysis toolset and Esri ecosystem.

QGIS logo

Best CARTO alternative for Linux

QGIS

Free open-source desktop GIS for analysts who don't need a cloud platform.

Felt logo

Best CARTO alternative for working in the browser

Felt

Easier collaborative web mapping for teams that don't need warehouse-scale analytics.

CARTO alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to CARTO?

Felt ranks first right now. Easier collaborative web mapping for teams that don't need warehouse-scale analytics. Google BigQuery and ArcGIS Pro follow it in our ranking.

CARTO vs Felt: what's the difference?

CARTO is a paid product; Felt is free with paid plans. Both run on Web.

Is CARTO free?

CARTO is a paid product. Free trial: 30 days; Marketplace billing: Google Cloud, AWS, Azure, Snowflake. Checked on CARTO's own site, November 2026.

How much do CARTO alternatives cost?

Verified prices for the top-ranked CARTO alternatives: Felt, $199/month billed yearly (Team); Google BigQuery, $6.25 per TiB scanned (on-demand); MapTiler, $30/month (USD). Each price was checked on the app's own site; see each card below for the date and source.

Is there a free alternative to CARTO?

Yes. Felt (free plan + paid), Google BigQuery (free plan + paid), QGIS (open source) and kepler.gl (open source) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to CARTO?

Yes: QGIS and kepler.gl. kepler.gl can also be self-hosted.

Which CARTO alternatives work on Linux?

QGIS and MapTiler run on Linux.

Why do people switch from CARTO?

The complaints we hear most: needs a cloud data warehouse to get the most from it; committed plans are quote-only with a 12-month contract; trials can't be extended or used in production.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces CARTO, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.