Alternatives to Shadowmap span a wide range: from collaborative GIS workspaces and developer-grade basemap platforms to forecast-heavy weather tools and niche astronomy planners. Some focus on team workflows and data pipelines, while others win on simplicity and purpose-built overlays.
Atlas.co vs Shadowmap
Atlas.co is a browser-based GIS workspace that leans into collaboration and day-to-day mapping operations. Instead of specializing in sun/shadow simulation, it’s designed for teams that need to bring datasets together, style layers, run lightweight spatial analysis, and share results quickly—without turning the whole task into a desktop GIS project. The product’s appeal is how quickly it clicks for new users: Atlas.co 2 is frequently described as feeling
intuitive and being
easy to get started.
Best for
- Ops, real estate, and sustainability teams building shared location dashboards
- Teams that want collaborative editing and fast stakeholder sharing
- People who need general GIS workflows (layers, styling, analysis) alongside mapping
What stands out
- Real-time collaboration and sharing workflows built in
- “Generalist” GIS versatility—useful when solar/shadow is only one layer in a broader decision
MapTiler vs Shadowmap
MapTiler is a mapping platform for developers and GIS teams who need reliable basemaps, custom styling, and the ability to integrate maps deeply into web and mobile products. Where Shadowmap is an application you use directly, MapTiler is the infrastructure layer—tiles, SDKs, hosting, and deployment options—suited to building your own mapping experience (including 3D terrain/globe). It’s also consistently well-regarded, with multiple users leaving
five‑star ratings and similarly strong signals from other reviewers who rate it
5/5 overall and
top marks.
Best for
- Product teams embedding maps into apps (web/mobile)
- GIS + engineering teams that want control over basemaps, styling, and data hosting
- Organizations that care about privacy/compliance and deployment flexibility
What stands out
- Developer tooling (SDKs/APIs) rather than a single-purpose analysis UI
- A strong fit when you’re building a custom mapping product and want to own the stack
Windy vs Shadowmap
Windy is the go-to alternative when the “what’s happening in the sky” question is about weather, not shadows. It’s a professional-grade forecast and visualization app with animated layers (wind, radar, waves, satellite), plus aviation-friendly data integrations. Users highlight that it unlocks
a lot of necessary features quickly, and it even offers a free API—Windy’s team points to an
API… completely free of charge for builders.
The trade-off is that Windy is forecast-centric: it won’t replace solar/shadow modeling, but it can be the missing context layer when clouds, wind, or marine conditions drive planning.
Best for
- Outdoor pros (pilots, sailors, kiters/surfers) and anyone planning around fast-changing conditions
- Teams that want weather layers alongside maps, plus an API option
What stands out
- Rich map-based forecast layers and aviation data in one place
- One noted limitation: it can fail to start when iOS Lockdown Mode is on
The Eclipse Map vs Shadowmap
The Eclipse Map is purpose-built for a single high-stakes planning scenario: picking the best viewing spot for a total solar eclipse. Instead of general sunlight availability over buildings, it focuses on overlays like cloud cover probability, light pollution, and eclipse timing along the path of totality.
The product is also actively shaped through community feedback—makers explicitly call out and appreciate
great feedback and respond positively to iteration notes like
love that feedback.
Best for
- Eclipse travelers optimizing for cloud odds and viewing conditions
- Astrophotographers and educators planning observation locations and timing
What stands out
- A tightly-scoped tool that merges astronomy and practical travel/location constraints
- Excellent when the event is the point (as opposed to ongoing site/real-estate analysis)
There vs Shadowmap
There is a different kind of “sun and sky” tool: a browser-native cosmic compass that uses your device sensors to point you toward planets in real time. It’s not a mapping analysis platform; it’s a lightweight, immediate, AR-like orientation experience you can open on a phone with no install or account.
Best for
- Stargazers and educators who want instant “where is that planet from here?” orientation
- Browser-first demos and classroom-friendly celestial visualization
What stands out
- Sensor-driven, real-time planetary direction without setup overhead
- A better fit for sky orientation than built-environment sunlight planning
