UNITED KINGDOM · IRELAND · SPAIN · PORTUGAL · FRANCE
Every designation.
One map.
Merestone puts the official environmental designations of five countries on one map: protected sites, habitats, heritage, flood and planning constraints, live from each government's own open data. Built for ecologists, planners, land agents, surveyors and anyone who works outdoors.
WHAT YOU GET
The official data, without the fifteen browser tabs.
A designation check normally means a slow government web map for each agency, one country at a time. Merestone is the same authoritative data on one fast map, each shape opening its record and, where the publisher provides one, a link to the official page.
Live from the source
Every layer streams from the publishing agency's own service. Nothing is copied, nothing goes stale quietly, and the date each answer was fetched is shown.
Tap anything for its record
Each shape opens its record: names, codes, areas and condition, with a link to the publisher's own page wherever the publisher provides one.
Presets that answer a real question
Desk study, woodland, flood, heritage, Condicionantes, Contraintes: one tap switches on the set of layers a professional reaches for first.
Licensed properly
Open Government Licence, CC BY, Licence Ouverte: every layer carries its licence and attribution, and layers whose publisher does not permit re-use are held back rather than shown.
Your language, your country
English, Spanish, European Portuguese and French, with each country's own designation names kept exactly as the law writes them.
The app for the field
The iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch app adds offline downloads, radius search and the desk-study PDF. It is a separate purchase for now; linking app and web purchases is being built.
COUNTRY BY COUNTRY
Five countries, each on its own terms.
Each country is built from its own agencies and its own vocabulary, never a translation of another's. The free tier is the statutory core across the UK and a starter set in each other country; Merestone Pro unlocks the rest of a country for good.
PAY ONCE, OR SUBSCRIBE
Buy a country and keep it. Or subscribe to every country.
Merestone Pro is a one-off purchase per country, yours for as long as Merestone exists. Merestone Worldwide is a subscription covering every country, including the ones added later. Both are the same price here and in the app.
PLAIN FACTS
What it is, and what it is not.
- Merestone is an independent product. It is not affiliated with Defra, Natural England, NatureScot, NRW, NPWS, MITECO, ICNF, the Ministère de la Transition écologique or any other public body.
- Boundaries should be verified against the official source before professional reliance. Every layer links to it.
- The website shows what the services answer right now. The app is the one that works with no signal and keeps what you downloaded.
COMMON QUESTIONS
About Merestone
What is Merestone?
Merestone maps the official environmental designations of the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and France, with each country's known gaps listed openly. Each boundary is drawn live from the government body that publishes it, so you see what that body currently publishes. It is free to start, and a single payment unlocks a whole country.
Which countries and designations does it cover?
5 countries: the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and France. It carries 483 live layers, 77 of them free, including SSSIs, SACs, SPAs, Ramsar sites, national parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (National Landscapes in England), ancient woodland and flood zones.
Where does the data come from?
From each country's own public open-data services, such as Natural England, NatureScot, Natural Resources Wales, DAERA, the NPWS, MITECO and the autonomous communities, the ICNF and APA, and France's INPN and IGN. Every layer names its publisher and links to the official source.
Is Merestone free?
Yes, to start. 77 layers are always free. Merestone Pro unlocks a whole country for a single payment, and Merestone Worldwide is a subscription that covers every country, including ones added later.
What is the difference between the website and the app?
The website opens the map in any browser with nothing to install. The iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch app adds offline use, a radius search around any point and a downloadable desk-study report.
Is Merestone affiliated with any government?
No. Merestone is an independent product, not affiliated with any government body. It presents official open data and links to the source for every layer.