Bounding Box Tool — Get BBox Coordinates on a Map
Draw a rectangle on the map or enter coordinates; copy the bounding box output in GeoJSON, WMS/WFS and Overpass API formats with a single click.
Manual Coordinate Input
Use the draw tool on the left side of the map to draw a rectangle.
Area
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Center Point
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What Is a BBOX?
A bounding box defines the smallest rectangular extent of a geographic area with four coordinates: min longitude, min latitude, max longitude and max latitude. It is common in GIS, web map services and spatial queries.
Related Tools
Online Bounding Box (BBOX) Tool
What is a Bounding Box?
A bounding box (BBOX) is the smallest axis-aligned rectangle that completely encloses a geographic feature or area. It is expressed as four decimal-degree values — minimum longitude, minimum latitude, maximum longitude, and maximum latitude — and acts as the fundamental spatial filter in virtually every GIS workflow.
GIS analysts, backend developers, and cartographers encounter bounding boxes constantly. When you request a WMS or WFS layer for a specific region, the service expects a BBOX parameter. When you query OpenStreetMap data through the Overpass API, a bounding box defines the geographic scope. When you publish a GeoJSON dataset, the optional bbox property helps downstream applications quickly determine whether a feature falls within their viewport without parsing every coordinate.
- GeoJSON: Array format
[minLon, minLat, maxLon, maxLat]— used in the top-levelbboxproperty of any GeoJSON object. - WMS / WFS: Query-string parameter
BBOX=minLon,minLat,maxLon,maxLat(axis order may flip in WMS 1.3.0 depending on the CRS). - Overpass API: Reversed latitude-first order
(minLat,minLon,maxLat,maxLon)required by Overpass QL. - Tile index: Min/max X and Y tile numbers at a chosen zoom level, useful for pre-caching raster tiles in ArcGIS Online or other web mapping applications.
How to Use This Tool
Open the map and click the rectangle draw icon on the left-hand toolbar. Click and drag to define your area of interest — the tool instantly calculates all four output formats along with the approximate area and the center point of your selection. Alternatively, type known decimal-degree values into the four coordinate fields and click Show on Map to visualize the extent and generate all formats in one step. Every output can be copied to the clipboard with a single click.
Who Uses Bounding Box Tools?
Spatial data engineers use BBOX values to clip large datasets before processing. Web map developers use them to scope WMS layer requests and control initial map extents. OpenStreetMap contributors and data journalists use Overpass API bounding boxes to extract features for a neighborhood or city. GIS consultants working with ArcGIS Server or similar platforms define service extents as bounding boxes when configuring map services.
Other Tools
Need to work with projected coordinates? Use the Coordinate Converter to transform between WGS84, UTM, and other systems. To measure the area enclosed by your bounding box or any polygon, try the Area Calculator. To find the UTM zone that covers your extent, see the UTM Zone Finder.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a bounding box used for?
A bounding box defines the rectangular extent of a geographic area. It is used in WMS/WFS map services to request data for a specific area, in Overpass API to query OpenStreetMap data, in spatial database queries for area filtering, and in GeoJSON data to define extent information.
How is the WMS/WFS BBOX format written?
In WMS and WFS services, the BBOX parameter is typically written as BBOX=minLon,minLat,maxLon,maxLat. For example: BBOX=28.5,40.8,29.5,41.2. Note that in some WMS 1.3.0 implementations, the order may change based on the CRS (BBOX=minLat,minLon,maxLat,maxLon).
How do I get a bbox from GeoJSON?
In the GeoJSON specification, the "bbox" property is defined in the [minLon, minLat, maxLon, maxLat] format. You can calculate it by finding the min/max values of all coordinates in your dataset. With this tool, you can create a GeoJSON-compatible bbox by drawing a rectangle on the map and copying the generated output.
What is the Overpass API bbox format?
The Overpass API uses a different coordinate order than GeoJSON: (minLat,minLon,maxLat,maxLon). This format is used in Overpass QL queries to filter OpenStreetMap data within a geographic bounding box. This tool automatically outputs the bbox in Overpass format so you can paste it directly into your queries.
What is a tile index and how is it calculated from a bounding box?
A tile index defines the range of map tiles (X/Y tile numbers) that cover a bounding box at a given zoom level. Web map tiling systems such as those used by ArcGIS Online divide the world into a grid of tiles; knowing the tile range lets you pre-cache or download only the tiles you need. This tool calculates the min/max X and Y tile numbers from your drawn bounding box at any zoom level from 0 to 22.
Can I enter coordinates manually instead of drawing on the map?
Yes. The tool provides four input fields for Min Longitude (West), Min Latitude (South), Max Longitude (East), and Max Latitude (North). Enter the decimal degree values and click "Show on Map" to visualize the bounding box and generate all output formats automatically.
What coordinate system does this bounding box tool use?
This tool works exclusively in geographic coordinates (longitude/latitude) referenced to WGS84, the standard used by GPS and most web mapping applications. If your project uses a projected coordinate system such as UTM, you will need to convert your coordinates first using our Coordinate Converter tool.