ROUTEOGRAPH / FAQ

The things people write in and ask. If yours is not here, hello@routeograph.com reaches a person.

Making a poster

What do I need to start?

One GPX file from the run, ride, or hike you want on the wall. Drop it into the studio and the poster appears in a few seconds. Turning on terrain contours or the tilted view can add several more while we go and fetch the survey data. You do not need an account to look at it.

Where do I find my GPX file?

Apple Watch is the awkward one. The Fitness app does not hand you a GPX file, so either use a helper app such as HealthFit or RunGap, or send the workout to Strava and export it from there.

On a phone, save the file first, then come back and drop it in.

What if my activity has no elevation?

The poster still works, with less in it. The route line goes one flat color instead of shading with height, the elevation profile band drops off the sheet, and the climb column disappears from the stats. The oblique view needs elevation too, so it falls back to the plan view. Distance stays, and time and pace stay if your file has timestamps.

Can I change what the poster says?

Yes. The title, the subtitle, the date, and the small word in the footer are all yours to type. You also choose which stats appear, so if you would rather not publish your pace, switch it off.

How long can a route be?

Longer files take a little longer to draw, and anything over 25 MB is refused at upload. Past about 200 miles the studio draws the poster and flags it, because a file that long is usually a whole season merged into one track rather than one outing.

At the short end it warns rather than refuses. Under 20 recorded points, under a tenth of a mile, or inside a box about 100 meters across, you still get a poster, but the trace is mostly GPS jitter and we say so. A 2 mile loop is well clear of that and makes a good desk print.

Downloads and credits

Is it free?

Previewing is free and stays free. Every preview carries a light watermark across it. Spending one credit gets you the clean file.

What does a credit cost?

$5 for one. $10 for three, which comes to $3.33 each. Credits do not expire.

Is there a subscription?

Yes. The power user plan is $12 a month and covers up to 40 poster exports every 24 hours, for as long as the plan is live. That is worth it from about four posters a month. Re-downloading posters you already have never counts towards the 40, however many times you do it.

You can cancel any time from the studio, and the plan runs to the end of the month you have paid for. Prints and gift codes are charged separately.

Why is there a limit on an unlimited-sounding plan?

Because 40 posters a day is more than anyone makes, and a number we can promise is worth more than a word we cannot. Drawing a poster holds one of a small number of render slots and can send a request to the open elevation and map data services, so an account running a script would slow the studio down for everybody using it. If you have a real reason to need more, write to us.

What happens to my posters if I cancel?

They stay yours. Any poster you exported while the plan was live is free to download again afterwards, as often as you like. Cancelling stops new exports being included, and takes nothing away.

What does one credit buy?

One poster, in both formats. The first download spends the credit, and after that you can download that same poster as often as you like at no further charge. You get a 300 DPI PNG and an SVG. Print shops usually ask for the SVG.

I bought credits and changed my mind.

Unused credits are refundable within 14 days of the purchase. Write to us and we will send the money back. A credit you already spent is not refundable, because the file is already yours.

Can I give credits to someone else?

Yes. Tick the gift box at checkout and the credits arrive as a code in an email instead of landing in your balance. Whoever you send it to redeems the code on their own account.

Prints

Can you print it for me?

Yes, to United States addresses. A printing partner makes it and ships it to you, and the price at checkout already includes shipping.

What sizes and papers?

Four sizes: 5x7, 8x10, 12x18, and 18x24 inches. Two papers: a textured fine art stock and a lustre photo stock. Prices start at $27 for a 5x7 and reach $64 for an 18x24 on fine art.

Do I still need a credit if I order a print?

No. A print comes with the digital file of that poster at no extra charge. It appears in your exports once the payment clears, and downloading it later is always free.

Will the print look like my screen?

Close, but not identical. A screen emits light and a press lays down ink, so expect a small shift, most visible on the dark colorways. That is normal and we do not treat it as a defect.

Can I change or cancel an order?

No. Each print is made to order and goes to the printer the moment your payment completes. Check your title and your numbers before you pay.

It arrived damaged, or it never arrived.

Write to us within 30 days and we will reprint it or refund it, whichever you prefer. A photo of the damage helps us sort it out quickly.

Your data

Do you keep my GPX file?

No. We read it, draw the poster, and let it go. Some routes start at a front door and say exactly when you leave it. Others are a week somewhere you will never go again. We have no way of telling which is which, so we keep none of them.

How long do you keep the poster?

Posters you have not bought delete themselves after 30 days, files and all. Ask and they go sooner. Anything you paid for stays in your exports.

Do I own the poster?

Yes, for the wall or for sale. Where the poster carries terrain contours, streets, or water, the source data asks for credit, and the small line in the margin covers it. Take that line off and the attribution becomes your problem.

Everything else

Where do the contours and streets come from?

Terrain comes from public elevation surveys published as open data. Streets and water come from OpenStreetMap. Both are named in the margin of any poster that uses them, and the data credits page has the full terms.

Why are your numbers different from Strava's?

Distance, climb, time, and pace all come out of your device's recording, and every platform smooths that recording its own way. Ours are measured carefully and shown plainly, but they are still estimates, and a small gap between us and Strava is normal.

Can I navigate with it?

Please do not. It is a picture of somewhere you already went. Contour resolution varies with the survey behind it, and the route is simplified for drawing. Take a real map.

Something looks broken.

Check the status page first to see whether the problem is ours. If everything there is green, write to us and send the file along if you can spare it.

How do I reach a human?

hello@routeograph.com. A person reads it.

The binding versions of any of this are the terms of service and the privacy policy. Where this page and those disagree, those win.

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