Installation

From the QGIS plugin repository

Open QGIS
Menu Plugins → Manage and Install Plugins
Search for "Universal Map2web"
Click Install

Or view the plugin page directly: plugins.qgis.org/plugins/universal_map2web

From GitHub

Download the ZIP from GitHub
QGIS → Plugins → Install from ZIP
Select the downloaded ZIP file
Restart QGIS if prompted

Requires QGIS 3.0 or higher (compatible up to QGIS 4.x). The plugin interface automatically follows the language of your QGIS installation (French / English).

Usage

1. Launch the plugin

Click on the Universal Map2web icon in the QGIS toolbar, or open it from the Web menu.

General tab

Choose the web library used to render the map (Leaflet)
Select the basemap: OpenStreetMap, Google Satellite, or a custom tile URL (e.g. https://{s}.tile.example.com/{z}/{x}/{y}.png)
Enable the tools you want embedded in the exported map (see Tools & Options)

Customization tab

Set the map title shown in the browser tab and header
Add an optional logo displayed in the header
Pick the header color
Choose one of the four UI themes (see Themes)

Layers tab

Check the layers to export (use "Select all" / "Deselect all" / "Invert" to speed this up)
For each layer, configure which attribute fields appear in the popup when a feature is clicked

Advanced tab

Simplify geometries — reduces vertex count for faster loading
Compress JSON data — smaller GeoJSON output files
Round coordinates — trims decimal precision
Load PostGIS layers dynamically from PostgreSQL — keeps layers already connected to PostgreSQL/PostGIS in QGIS live on the exported map instead of freezing them into static GeoJSON (see PostGIS Dynamic Mode)
Export as ZIP — packages the whole export in a single archive
Open automatically in browser — starts a local server and opens the map once export finishes

Wiki tab

Built-in quick-reference documentation, available in French or English depending on your QGIS language.

Exporting

Once everything is configured, click "OK"
Choose the destination folder
The map opens automatically in your default browser (if enabled)

Tools & Options

Each tool below can be enabled or disabled independently in the General tab before export.

Option	Effect on the exported map
Address search	Adds a search bar to locate an address on the map
GPS geolocation	Adds a button to center the map on the visitor's current position
Measure (distance/area)	Adds interactive distance and area measurement tools
Print button	Adds a button that triggers the browser's print dialog for the map
Fullscreen mode	Adds a control to expand the map to fullscreen
Overview (MiniMap)	Displays a small overview map in a corner of the main map
Scale bar	Displays a graphic distance scale (enabled by default)
Cursor position	Displays live latitude/longitude under the mouse pointer
Attribution	Displays the map/library credits (enabled by default)
Advanced filter	Adds the attribute filtering panel — see Advanced Filtering

Layer management on the exported map

Show / hide a layer: toggle its checkbox in the legend panel
Point clustering: enable "Cluster points" per layer (point layers only)
Legend: colors and categories are generated automatically from your QGIS symbology (Simple, Categorized, Graduated, and Rule-based renderers are all supported)
Expand / Collapse all: quickly fold or unfold every layer group in the legend

Themes & Customization

Light

Clean, bright interface — best for printed screenshots and daytime presentations.

Dark

Low-glare dark interface, well suited for satellite basemaps and long viewing sessions.

Professional

Neutral, corporate look for official reports and institutional web maps.

Colorful

Vibrant accent colors, ideal for public-facing or promotional map dashboards.

Tip: the header color, title, and logo are independent from the theme, so you can mix your organization's branding with any of the four base themes.

Advanced Filtering

When enabled, a filter panel appears in the exported map's sidebar, letting visitors query features without touching QGIS.

How to use it

Select a layer
Select a field
Select an operator
Type or click a value
Click "Apply" — matching features are highlighted on the map

Available operators

Operator	Meaning
`=`	equal to
`≠`	different from
`⊃`	contains
starts with	text starts with the given value
`>`	greater than
`<`	less than
`≥`	greater than or equal to
`≤`	less than or equal to

Reset: click "Reset" at any time to clear the filter and show all features again.

PostGIS Dynamic Mode New in 1.2.1

For layers already connected to PostgreSQL/PostGIS in QGIS, Universal Map2web can now keep them live on the exported web map instead of freezing them into a static GeoJSON snapshot taken at export time.

How to enable it

In the export dialog, check "Load PostGIS layers dynamically from PostgreSQL (instead of a static export)"
The plugin automatically reuses the connection already configured in QGIS — no credentials need to be re-entered
Export as usual — layers not connected to PostgreSQL, or left unchecked, are still exported as static GeoJSON

What gets generated

A single get_data.php endpoint that serves live feature data to the web map
A protected db_config.php file holding the database connection details
A random API key, generated for each export, restricting access to the get_data.php endpoint
An .htaccess file that blocks direct access to db_config.php

How it behaves

The web map queries the database live, with optional bounding-box filtering, so visitors always see current data instead of a snapshot frozen at export time. Layers left in static mode continue to work exactly as before.

Requirement: hosting the exported site in this mode requires a PHP-capable web server with the pdo_pgsql extension enabled. A plain static file host (e.g. GitHub Pages, a basic file share) is not enough for dynamic layers — use static GeoJSON export instead in that case.

Security tip: keep the generated db_config.php and .htaccess files in place and unmodified — they are what prevents direct, unauthenticated access to your database credentials and query endpoint.

Tips and Best Practices

Keep it light

Limit exports to around 10 active layers for the best browser performance.

File size

Keep individual layers under roughly 50 MB; enable "Simplify geometries" and "Compress JSON data" for large datasets.

Coordinate system

Use WGS84 (EPSG:4326) for your project — Leaflet basemaps expect geographic coordinates.

Preview first

Check symbology and labels in QGIS before exporting — the web map mirrors your current project styling.

Popups

Only select the fields visitors actually need in the popup configuration — fewer fields means a lighter, cleaner popup.

Sharing the export

Use "Export as ZIP" to get a single archive you can upload to a web server or send to a colleague.

Troubleshooting

The map doesn't open automatically after export

Symptom: export finishes without error, but no browser window appears.

Solutions:

Make sure "Open automatically in browser" is checked in the Advanced tab
Check that your firewall or antivirus isn't blocking the local port used to preview the map
Open index.html manually from the export folder in your browser

The legend or some labels stay in the wrong language

Solutions:

Make sure QGIS's interface language is set the way you want under Settings → Options → General
Restart QGIS after changing the language so the plugin reloads its translations

A layer doesn't appear in the exported map

Solutions:

Confirm the layer is checked in the Layers tab of the export dialog
Make sure the layer's visibility is turned on in the QGIS Layers panel
Vector layers only — raster layers are not exported to Leaflet by this plugin

Colors or categories in the web map don't match QGIS

Solutions:

Re-check your renderer type (Simple, Categorized, Graduated, Rule-based) is fully applied in QGIS before exporting
Refresh the layer's symbology panel in QGIS, then re-export

PostGIS layers show no data once hosted online

Symptom: the map works locally but dynamic layers stay empty once deployed to a web server.

Solutions:

Confirm the host is a PHP server with the pdo_pgsql extension enabled — a static-only host cannot run get_data.php
Make sure db_config.php and .htaccess were uploaded alongside the rest of the export, unmodified
Check that the PostgreSQL server accepts remote connections from your web host, and that its firewall allows the connection

Good to know: most issues come down to browser/firewall permissions for the local preview server, or a layer's visibility/selection state in QGIS at export time.

Requirements

Component	Requirement
QGIS	3.0 or higher (up to 4.x)
Browser	Chrome 90+, Firefox 88+, Edge 90+
Memory	4 GB RAM minimum
Internet	Required for basemaps and web libraries (Leaflet, plugins)
Hosting (PostGIS dynamic mode only)	PHP-capable web server with the `pdo_pgsql` extension enabled

Support and Contact

Phone

+226 64 41 25 14

Installation

From the QGIS plugin repository

From GitHub

Usage

1. Launch the plugin

General tab

Customization tab

Layers tab

Advanced tab

Wiki tab

Exporting

Tools & Options

Layer management on the exported map

Themes & Customization

Light

Dark

Professional

Colorful

Advanced Filtering

How to use it

Available operators

PostGIS Dynamic Mode New in 1.2.1

How to enable it

What gets generated

How it behaves

Tips and Best Practices

Keep it light

File size

Coordinate system

Preview first

Popups

Sharing the export

Troubleshooting

The map doesn't open automatically after export

The legend or some labels stay in the wrong language

A layer doesn't appear in the exported map

Colors or categories in the web map don't match QGIS

PostGIS layers show no data once hosted online

Requirements

Support and Contact

Email

GitHub

QGIS Plugin Repository

Report a bug

Phone