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Spatly

Convert KML to GPX

1

Add your KML

Drop a KML file anywhere on this page

.kml · it never leaves the browser

2

Options

≈ 11 cm on the ground
Keep every vertex
00verticesunchanged
Points → waypoints, lines → tracks
3

Your GPX

Add a KML file and the GPX appears here, with its feature counts and anything this pair cannot carry.

Converted in this tab. Your KML is never uploaded — reading, converting and writing all run in the browser, so this works offline once the page has loaded.
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FidelityKML → GPX

What comes across, and what cannot

Preserved

  • Geometry — points and lines come across coordinate for coordinate; nothing is reprojected, because both sides are WGS84 longitude/latitude.
  • Names come across as the waypoint or track name; elevation is kept where a Z ordinate exists.
  • Elevation (the Z ordinate) is preserved where the source has one.

Dropped

  • Styling. KML carries Style and StyleMap elements — icon, colour, line width, fill — and GPX has nowhere to put them, so they are dropped. Style the data on the map instead.
  • Areas. GPX has no polygon type, so each ring is written as a closed track: the shape survives, the fact that it encloses an area does not.
  • Most attributes. GPX defines a fixed vocabulary per point — name, description, elevation, time — and anything outside it has no home, so only the name field is carried across.

Keyhole Markup Language (KML)

The XML format Google Earth popularised. Placemarks carry a name, a description balloon, a geometry and — unlike GeoJSON — presentation: styles, icons, colours, altitude modes and time stamps.

.kml · application/vnd.google-earth.kml+xml

GPS Exchange Format (GPX)

What GPS units and fitness apps speak. It has exactly three containers — waypoints, routes and tracks — so it holds points and lines but has no concept of an area, and only a fixed set of fields per point.

.gpx · application/gpx+xml

AlsoGPX to KMLShapefile to GPXKMZ to GPXKML to GeoJSONAll conversions
HowHow it works

Convert KML to GPX, step by step

  1. Step 1

    Add your KML

    Drop a KML file anywhere on the page, paste it, point at a URL, or press Sample to start from real data. Several files at once are fine.

  2. Step 2

    Set what matters

    Coordinate precision and simplification on every pair, plus the handful of settings this one needs — waypoints or tracks.

  3. Step 3

    Take the GPX

    Read the feature counts and the warning list, then download, copy, or open the result in the Spatly studio to style and publish it.

PrivateRuns in your browser

Your data never leaves the page

Every conversion, measurement and export happens client-side. Nothing is uploaded, logged or stored — you can even use this offline once the page has loaded. Only “Open in Studio” sends data, and only after you sign in.

Go furtherTurn a GeoJSON into an interactive mapRead the guide
FAQQuestions

Good to know

What is preserved when converting KML to GPX?
Geometry — points and lines come across coordinate for coordinate; nothing is reprojected, because both sides are WGS84 longitude/latitude. Names come across as the waypoint or track name; elevation is kept where a Z ordinate exists. Elevation (the Z ordinate) is preserved where the source has one.
What is lost converting KML to GPX?
Styling. KML carries Style and StyleMap elements — icon, colour, line width, fill — and GPX has nowhere to put them, so they are dropped. Style the data on the map instead. Areas. GPX has no polygon type, so each ring is written as a closed track: the shape survives, the fact that it encloses an area does not. Most attributes. GPX defines a fixed vocabulary per point — name, description, elevation, time — and anything outside it has no home, so only the name field is carried across.
What happens to my folders?
Placemarks inside folders are flattened into one collection; the folder name is not carried through as a grouping. If you need the grouping, add a property for it before converting, or convert each folder separately.
Are ground overlays and network links converted?
No. Only placemark geometry and its data come through. GroundOverlay, ScreenOverlay and NetworkLink are references to other resources rather than features, so there is nothing to convert them into.
Waypoints or tracks?
Both, and you decide. Left on automatic, points become <wpt> waypoints and lines become <trk> tracks. Force waypoints and every vertex of every line is written as a separate waypoint; force tracks and your points are threaded, in order, into a single track — which is how you turn a list of stops into a route a GPS unit will follow.
Will it load on my Garmin or in Strava?
The output is GPX 1.1 with the standard namespace and no extensions, which is the dialect Garmin, Wahoo, Strava, Komoot and OsmAnd all accept. Elevation is written as <ele> when the source has a Z ordinate.
Is my file uploaded anywhere?
No. The KML is read, converted and written entirely inside this page — there is no upload, no queue, no server-side copy and no size limit imposed by a plan. Large files are parsed in a background worker so the page stays responsive. The only action that transmits anything is Open in Studio, and that happens after you sign in and press it.
Is there a limit on file size or number of files?
There is no imposed limit; the practical ceiling is your browser's memory. Files over about 5 MB are handed to a web worker so the interface keeps responding, and you can drop several files at once — each is converted separately and the set can be downloaded as one zip.