geopandas

name	geopandas
description	Python library for working with geospatial vector data including shapefiles, GeoJSON, and GeoPackage files. Use when working with geographic data for spatial analysis, geometric operations, coordinate transformations, spatial joins, overlay operations, choropleth mapping, or any task involving reading/writing/analyzing vector geographic data. Supports PostGIS databases, interactive maps, and integration with matplotlib/folium/cartopy. Use for tasks like buffer analysis, spatial joins between datasets, dissolving boundaries, clipping data, calculating areas/distances, reprojecting coordinate systems, creating maps, or converting between spatial file formats.
license	BSD-3-Clause license
metadata	{"skill-author":"K-Dense Inc."}
verified	false
lastVerifiedAt	"2026-02-19T05:29:09.098Z"
source	builtin
trust_score	100
provenance_sha	952641bd03900449

GeoPandas

GeoPandas extends pandas to enable spatial operations on geometric types. It combines the capabilities of pandas and shapely for geospatial data analysis.

Installation

uv pip install geopandas

Optional Dependencies

# For interactive maps
uv pip install folium

# For classification schemes in mapping
uv pip install mapclassify

# For faster I/O operations (2-4x speedup)
uv pip install pyarrow

# For PostGIS database support
uv pip install psycopg2
uv pip install geoalchemy2

# For basemaps
uv pip install contextily

# For cartographic projections
uv pip install cartopy

Quick Start

import geopandas as gpd

# Read spatial data
gdf = gpd.read_file("data.geojson")

# Basic exploration
print(gdf.head())
print(gdf.crs)
print(gdf.geometry.geom_type)

# Simple plot
gdf.plot()

# Reproject to different CRS
gdf_projected = gdf.to_crs("EPSG:3857")

# Calculate area (use projected CRS for accuracy)
gdf_projected['area'] = gdf_projected.geometry.area

# Save to file
gdf.to_file("output.gpkg")

Core Concepts

Data Structures

• GeoSeries: Vector of geometries with spatial operations
• GeoDataFrame: Tabular data structure with geometry column

See data-structures.md for details.

Reading and Writing Data

GeoPandas reads/writes multiple formats: Shapefile, GeoJSON, GeoPackage, PostGIS, Parquet.

# Read with filtering
gdf = gpd.read_file("data.gpkg", bbox=(xmin, ymin, xmax, ymax))

# Write with Arrow acceleration
gdf.to_file(, use_arrow=)