iD

iD is the default map editor built into the OpenStreetMap website. OpenStreetMap is a free, community-maintained world map built by volunteers, covering roads, buildings, businesses, trails, and geographic features across the globe. When someone visits the OpenStreetMap website and clicks the Edit button, they are using iD. The editor runs entirely in a web browser, so no software needs to be downloaded or installed.

The editor is designed to stay approachable for people new to map editing. It covers the most common tasks, such as tracing roads from aerial imagery, outlining buildings, and adding details like shop names, road types, or points of interest. The README notes it is intentionally limited to avoid the kinds of edits that could accidentally break data left by other contributors. It works across all major desktop browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Edge.

Map data is drawn on screen using D3.js, a JavaScript library for visual data rendering. The README itself is brief and does not walk through individual editing tools in detail; a separate getting-started guide in the project wiki covers building and running a local copy.

The community is active, with regular releases roughly once a month. Contributors can join discussions in the OpenStreetMap Slack and Discord servers, and the project accepts translations so the interface can be used in multiple languages.

Initial development was funded by the Knight Foundation. The code is released under the ISC License, a short permissive license. The project bundles several open-source components including D3.js, Font Awesome icons, and geographic reference datasets, each under their own respective licenses.