Appearance
Map Provider - OpenStreetMap
How maps, address search, and geocoding work - powered entirely by OpenStreetMap, with no API key required.
Overview
Every map, address suggestion, and geocoded location in BRIX: Store Locator & Maps runs on OpenStreetMap-based services: Leaflet for map rendering, Nominatim for turning addresses into coordinates (and back), and Photon for autocomplete suggestions. There's no Google Maps or Mapbox option today, and no API key to set up - maps work out of the box.
Benefits
- No map API key, billing account, or third-party signup required to get started
- Address autocomplete and geocoding work automatically, in both the admin and on the storefront
- Four built-in map styles, all genuinely OpenStreetMap-based, let you match your map's look to your brand without switching providers
Where to Find It
Apps → BRIX: Store Locator & Maps → Settings → Appearance → Map Style Settings
How to Use
- Open Settings → Appearance.
- Under Map Style Settings, choose one of four looks - Natural (default), Terrain, Humanitarian, or Community - and set an accent color.
- Under Map Pin Settings, choose a pin style, or upload a custom pin icon.
- Under Map Radius and Map Zoom, set your default search radius/unit and default zoom levels.
- Addresses you enter on the location form, and addresses customers search on the storefront, are geocoded automatically - there's nothing to configure for this part.
Available Settings
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Map Style | Natural, Terrain, Humanitarian, or Community basemap skin |
| Accent Color | Overall map accent color |
| Address autocomplete | Automatic, as you type an address on the location form or storefront search |
| Geocoding | Automatic, converts a saved address into map coordinates |
| Reverse geocoding | Automatic, converts a dragged map pin back into an address/state |
Best Practices
- Natural gives the clearest, most neutral backdrop if you want your own pin colors and accent color to stand out.
- Terrain is a good fit if your locations are spread across a region where elevation/topography is meaningful to customers (trailheads, rural routes); it's visually busier than Natural in dense urban areas.
Notes
- All four map styles are genuinely sourced from OpenStreetMap data - Natural is the standard OSM street rendering, Terrain adds elevation shading (OpenTopoMap), and Humanitarian/Community are two differently-styled OSM renderings maintained by other OSM-affiliated teams. A handful of additional styles (including a satellite view) exist in the code but are currently hidden from this picker - they relied on a "free" third-party tile service that started requiring an API key with no warning, so they were pulled from the merchant-facing list rather than risk the same thing happening again. Address search and geocoding always use OpenStreetMap's Nominatim and Photon services, regardless of which map style you pick.
- There's currently no merchant-facing choice between different map providers (like Google Maps or Mapbox) - the app runs entirely on OpenStreetMap.
- Address search quality depends on OpenStreetMap's own coverage, which can be sparser in some rural or newly developed areas than with a commercial provider.
Troubleshooting
A location's pin looks slightly off after auto-geocoding. Open the location and drag the pin in Map Preview to correct it - see Adding & Editing a Location.
My map looks different than expected after changing the style. Terrain adds elevation shading that Natural doesn't have, and Humanitarian/Community use different colors and label styles than the standard Natural rendering - try each to see which fits your brand.