{"slug": "id-editor", "name": "iD editor", "category": "editors", "category_name": "Editors and IDEs", "description": "", "recommenders": 3, "commenters": 5, "warners": 0, "score": 3.416, "rising": 1.67, "first": "2026-02-26", "latest": "2026-09-13", "why": "the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more.", "why_is_quote": true, "has_verdict": false, "sentiment": {"recommend": 3, "neutral": 2, "compare": 0, "warn": 0}, "spark": [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 2, 0], "listed": true, "loved": [], "caveat": "", "short_quote": "the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more.", "kind": "", "icon": true, "domain": "ideditor.com", "github_repo": null, "official_url": "https://ideditor.com", "pricing": "", "aliases": ["iD", "iD editor"], "verdict": null, "praise": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 794791713, "item_id": 49674482, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49674482", "by": "0l", "date": "2026-09-12", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more.", "excerpt": "I would honestly not recommend beginners use JOSM - the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more. [1]: https://learnosm.org/en/beginner/id-editor/", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "Make your first edit to OpenStreetMap"}, {"id": 780983827, "item_id": 48811489, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48811489", "by": "an_ko", "date": "2026-07-06", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "much less friendly to new contributors than the web-based iD editor", "excerpt": "Last I checked, not with StreetComplete. But the OSM wiki has a table of Android apps https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Android which column \"Record tracks\" can be sorted by, to see which apps have that feature. How I've done similar before is to record a GPS trace with an OsmAnd plugin, upload it to OSM servers, import it as an overlay in the web-based editor on desktop, and used that and satellite imagery as refe", "context": "", "use_case": "Web map editing", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}], "caveats": [], "who": [], "tags": [], "use_cases": ["editing openstreetmap", "web map editing"], "compared": [{"slug": "josm", "name": "JOSM", "co": 3, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "streetcomplete", "name": "StreetComplete", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}], "makers": [], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49674050", "title": "Make your first edit to OpenStreetMap", "mentions": 3}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48808928", "title": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47170157", "title": "OsmAnd's Faster Offline Navigation", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {}, "2026-01": {}, "2026-02": {"neutral": 1}, "2026-03": {}, "2026-04": {}, "2026-05": {}, "2026-06": {}, "2026-07": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-08": {}, "2026-09": {"recommend": 2, "neutral": 1}, "2026-10": {}}, "versions": [], "version_unnamed": 0, "family_ref": null, "runs_on": null, "lines": [], "quotes": [{"id": 794921728, "item_id": 49682608, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49682608", "by": "pietervdvn", "date": "2026-09-13", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "", "excerpt": "Be very careful with \"automated edits\". We have a bit of a collective trauma and doing it completely right takes a ton of work. See https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Import/Guidelines", "context": "", "use_case": "Editing OpenStreetMap", "switched_from": "", "story": "Make your first edit to OpenStreetMap"}, {"id": 794825680, "item_id": 49676605, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49676605", "by": "nutjob2", "date": "2026-09-12", "version": null, "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I used the web editor recently to add a street and path and to fix some names.", "excerpt": "I think your tutorial would have more impact if you had a super short intro making a quick mod using the web page. The existing stuff is excellent for those who get a surge of dopamine from updating the map and want more power and control. The web editor is far from ideal but the app has a greater learning curve. Even installing it can be onerous. I used the web editor recently to add a street and path and to fix som", "context": "", "use_case": "editing OpenStreetMap", "switched_from": "", "story": "Make your first edit to OpenStreetMap"}, {"id": 794791713, "item_id": 49674482, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49674482", "by": "0l", "date": "2026-09-12", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more.", "excerpt": "I would honestly not recommend beginners use JOSM - the web based iD editor [1] is much easier to learn and will hold your hand a lot more. [1]: https://learnosm.org/en/beginner/id-editor/", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "Make your first edit to OpenStreetMap"}, {"id": 780983827, "item_id": 48811489, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48811489", "by": "an_ko", "date": "2026-07-06", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "much less friendly to new contributors than the web-based iD editor", "excerpt": "Last I checked, not with StreetComplete. But the OSM wiki has a table of Android apps https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Android which column \"Record tracks\" can be sorted by, to see which apps have that feature. How I've done similar before is to record a GPS trace with an OsmAnd plugin, upload it to OSM servers, import it as an overlay in the web-based editor on desktop, and used that and satellite imagery as refe", "context": "", "use_case": "Web map editing", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 754747888, "item_id": 47171743, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47171743", "by": "pwg", "date": "2026-02-26", "version": null, "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Web: https://ideditor.com/", "excerpt": "> I wonder, how difficult is it to make minor edits to the map data? The map data is OpenStreetMap, so you can make edits via the standard OSM methods: Web: https://ideditor.com/ Local: https://josm.openstreetmap.de/", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "OsmAnd's Faster Offline Navigation"}]}