tile pack
Tile packs are binary files that encapsulate all the tiles for a specific tileset within a defined geographical area and zoom range. These files consist of a parent tile and its descendant tiles, each representing different levels of map detail over a particular geographic region.
Structure and Coverage
Organized based on predefined zoom ranges, tile packs provide varying levels of detail. Each tile pack covers the area of its lowest zoom level map tile, meaning the geographical coverage can be determined from the corresponding zoom level. See the Mapbox Offline maps guide for more information about how tile packs are defined.
For example, if a tile pack contains tiles from zoom levels 11 to 14:
- The area it covers corresponds to the area of a single tile at zoom level 11
- This is a broader geographical region with less detail than individual tiles at zoom level 14
- Higher zoom levels within the pack provide progressively more detailed views of the same area
Efficiency Benefits
Tile packs are designed to optimize the transfer, download, and storage of map data for offline use in the Mapbox Maps SDKs for iOS and Android. They are more efficient compared to downloading individual tiles because:
- Reduced overhead: Less per-tile and per-connection overhead during download
- Bundled storage: Like a ZIP file, tile packs bundle many tiles into a single file
- Fewer file operations: Reduces the number of individual tiles that need to be downloaded and stored separately on disk
- Optimized transfer: More efficient network transfer compared to multiple individual tile requests
Note that tile packs only store map tiles and do not include other offline resources like fonts or sprites, which are handled separately in offline implementations.
Related resources: