MapView: Static maps for Rails. No JS. No frontend. Just Ruby.

April 7, 2026

From the creator of ruby-libgd and libgd-gis comes native Rails integration

Many of you already know ruby-libgd – the gem that brings GD graphics power to Ruby.

Many of you already know libgd-gis – the GIS rendering layer built on top of GD.

Now there’s MapView for Ruby on Rails.

Purchase License

🛟 Ask for Support

🧪 Request DEMO

What is MapView?

A Rails helper that generates static maps from GeoJSON in one line:

<%= map_view("data.geojson", bbox: :argentina, width: 800, height: 600) %>

No JavaScript. No Leaflet. No Mapbox. No frontend.

Just Ruby.

What is it for?

• PDF reports with route, delivery, or coverage maps
• Transactional emails showing locations
• Internal dashboards without hiring a GIS frontend specialist
• Geographic thumbnails for marketplaces or classifieds

The problem it solves

Generating maps in Rails today means:

• Integrating JavaScript (Leaflet, OpenLayers, Mapbox)
• Managing tokens, APIs, and variable costs
• Dealing with interactive maps where you don’t need interactivity
• Excluding PDFs and emails (they don’t run JS)

MapView solves all of that. On the backend. As it should be.

Native integration with the Rails GIS stack

MapView isn’t just a helper. It’s the presentation layer of a complete GIS stack in Rails:

# 1. Model with PostGIS
class Store < ApplicationRecord
  scope :within_area, ->(bbox) { where("geom && ST_MakeEnvelope(?, ?, ?, ?, 4326)", *bbox) }
end

# 2. Controller
class StoresController < ApplicationController
  def index
    @stores = Store.all
    @geojson = @stores.to_geojson
  end
end

# 3. View with MapView
<%= map_view(@geojson, bbox: :argentina) %>

The complete stack:

Layer	Technology	What it does
Database	PostgreSQL + PostGIS	Spatial storage, spatial queries
ORM	ActiveRecord + activerecord-postgis	Models with geometries
GIS	RGeo	Geometry manipulation in Ruby
Rendering	libgd-gis (GD bindings)	Geometry to image conversion
Presentation	MapView	Rails helper, caching, styles

Why is this revolutionary?

If you have spatial data in PostGIS and want to display a map, you have two options:

1. Frontend JS (Leaflet, Mapbox): Need APIs, tokens, JavaScript – doesn’t work in PDFs/emails
2. Google Maps Static API: Pay per request, external dependency, rate limits

With MapView:

• Your data stays in PostGIS
• Query with ActiveRecord
• Render with MapView
• Everything in Ruby. Everything on the backend.

Real-world example:

# Stores within 10km radius
stores = Store.where("ST_DWithin(geom, ST_MakePoint(?, ?), ?)", lon, lat, 10000)

# Generate GeoJSON directly from ActiveRecord
geojson = stores.to_geojson

# Render map in a PDF
<%= map_view(geojson, bbox: :auto) %>

Commercial Model

MapView is a serious commercial offering for teams that need static maps in production.

Professional Services

• Installation & setup: We get the gem working in your infrastructure
• Custom map design: Maps with your brand identity
• Training (2 days): Your team masters GIS with Ruby
• 24/365 support: Guaranteed response in < 3 hours

Coming Soon: Public API

We’re building MapView API, a request-based map rendering service:

• POST /render → Returns PNG
• Scalable without your own infrastructure
• Perfect for teams who don’t want to install anything

Roadmap

• ✅ Q1 2026 – MapView alpha (working gem)
• 🔄 Q2 2026 – Public API (private beta)
• 🔄 Q3 2026 – Batch rendering (multiple maps per request)
• 🔄 Q4 2026 – Global CDN caching

Conclusion

MapView is the missing piece in the Rails GIS stack.

You already have PostGIS. You already have ActiveRecord. You already have RGeo.

Now you have a native way to turn your spatial data into images – without JavaScript, without external APIs, without frontend complexity.

One helper. One line of code. Static maps in Rails.

<%= map_view(@geojson, bbox: :argentina) %>

Commercial license

MapView is a commercial product.

• Free for development, testing, and personal projects
• Paid license required for commercial production use
• Enterprise options with support, custom styles, and installation assistance

Purchase License

🛟 Ask for Support

🧪 Request DEMO