Features
Everything Groundwork can do — a map your whole organisation can keep up to date, built on the QGIS projects and cloud storage you already have.
Connect the data you already have
No migration, no new database, no server to stand up. Groundwork reads the sources your team already publishes to.
Open QGIS projects directly
Point Groundwork at a project file and your layers load with their symbology, field aliases and display fields intact.
The project is the configuration
The more your team sets up in QGIS, the more the app already knows — there is no second setup to keep in step.
WFS and QGIS Server
Load layers from the services your organisation already publishes.
Dropbox, OneDrive and SharePoint
Use the folders your organisation already has, rather than moving data somewhere new.
GeoJSON, styling included
A layer picks up its matching style file automatically, so it opens looking the way you published it.
Quick connections
Preset WFS endpoints, recently used URLs, and broad server support including Esri-hosted services.
Capture and edit
The people who know the ground make the change themselves, and it lands in your live data.
Add, move and reshape
Draw new features and adjust existing ones directly on the map.
Writes straight to your source
Full WFS transaction support, so there is no copy of the data to keep in sync.
Data entry that stays clean
Dates and times are stored consistently, and fields carry readable labels instead of database column names.
An edit mode that stays put
Pan and zoom without dropping out, so a run of changes across an area is one smooth pass.
Access matched to sensitivity
Public folders open to everyone with no login; private shared folders need a one-time sign-in.
Build your forms in QGIS Coming soon
Control exactly how each field behaves and what values it accepts, defined by your administrator and applied in the app.
Find what you're looking for
Long lists and dense layers stay workable, in your organisation's own terms.
Search, filter and inspect
Search across attributes to find a record, filter a layer down to what matters, and read every field in a side panel.
Sort by what's actually nearest
Order features by real travel distance from a searched location. Walking, cycling and driving are all measured together, so you can see the five closest and compare every way of getting there — then draw the route for whichever one you choose.
Sort by anything else
Order by any field, by size, or by straight-line distance.
Speak your organisation's language
Choose which field titles each feature and which field groups them, so lists read in plain terms.
Stay oriented
A collapsible legend, address search, a scale bar and per-feature style icons keep the map readable at a glance.
Maps that look right
What you see here is what you published — no re-styling for the web.
Your published symbology
Styling comes straight from the server the data comes from, so features look the same as in the maps you already publish.
QGIS styling carried through
Symbology, marker sizes and labels defined in QGIS Desktop render faithfully in the browser, down to label fonts, colours and halos.
Flexible basemaps
Vector styles, tile templates and aerial imagery, configured by name and URL — and shared maps carry their choices with them.
Share and organise
Get a view in front of the person who needs it, without an account or an install.
Share a map as a link
Send a ready-made view with its layers, filters, sort order and extent preserved. No GIS knowledge needed to open it.
Several maps, one workspace
Different teams, projects or sites each get their own view, and you switch between them.
Take your data with you
Download any layer as GeoJSON for offline use or hand-off to another system.
Open standards, no lock-in
Groundwork slots into the OGC-based publishing your organisation already runs, rather than replacing it. It speaks WFS and GeoJSON, negotiates coordinate systems automatically, and reads QGIS projects directly — so your data stays in formats you control, never trapped in one vendor's platform.
Try it on your own data
The app is free to use with a Dropbox or OneDrive folder. If you need SharePoint, live WFS servers or Microsoft sign-in, that's the Teams plan.
Or read the User Guide to see how it works day to day, and the Administrator Guide to set it up.