LiDAR sources for England
Check the survey date, tile coverage, resolution, horizontal CRS and vertical datum before using ground levels. A DTM represents terrain; a DSM includes surface features. This shortlist also includes terrain and elevation alternatives: confirm how each product was made, whether it is LiDAR-derived, and whether its licence permits your intended commercial use.
Showing 23 of 23 matching sources from the build-time catalogue snapshot, capped at 40. Half the places are reserved for each publisher group; unused places go to the other group. Each section is ordered by the existing evidence score and catalogue tie-breaks. Sponsored listings and placeholders are excluded. Bulk imports are excluded except for three named national LiDAR products in the government section. Scores describe catalogue evidence, not fitness for a particular site.
Selection requires terrain, elevation, LiDAR or height products with recorded England or UK coverage, or global land coverage that includes England. Global terrain alternatives are labelled Global (includes England); they are not necessarily LiDAR-derived. Check each listing’s evidence and upstream terms: enrichment may be inferred, and Unknown means the catalogue has no clear value. Wrappers provide access to upstream data, not an independent survey or monitoring network.
Connect to TerraMCP to use sources marked live via the router. Availability here records an implemented adapter, not a live service-health check.
Lesser-known sources
Independent and other sources not classified as government or regulator publishers. “Lesser-known” is a discovery grouping, not a measure of popularity.
| Source | What it gives | Coverage & cadence | Access / API / format | Licence / commercial use | Live via TerraMCP router | Evidence score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenTopography API data api | global DEM Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: API key; licence per dataset Authentication: api key Formats: Unknown | Licence: Per dataset Commercial use: no | Yes Tools: dem_clip Keys required; check connection and upstream terms. | 53.8/100 |
| Google Maps Platform (incl. Elevation, Air Quality, Solar) data api | geocoding Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Unknown Authentication: api key Formats: Unknown | Licence: Commercial Commercial use: Unknown | No | 46.3/100 |
| Core-DEM data api | elevation (Copernicus DEM GLO-30 derived, int16 metres, 30 m); per-sample geoenrich attributes: elevation, cisi, precipitation, temperature, soil_clay, soil_sand, soil_carbon, soil_bulk_density, soil_ph, gdp, human_modification, population, admin_countries, admin_states, admin_districts Resolution: 30 m; each sample is a 10 km cell of 352 × 352 pixels (10,560 m per side) | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: monotemporal (single epoch; acquisition dates not stated) Cadence: Unknown | Access: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop; no API key; free and open under the Copernicus DEM open licence (per DOCS credits; entry defers to product README) Authentication: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop Formats: TACO v3; Rumi | Licence: see product README Commercial use: Unknown | No | 45/100 |
| DEM-Terrain data api | terrain elevation (elev, m); slope (degrees); aspect (degrees); Terrain Ruggedness Index (tri, m); Topographic Position Index (tpi, m) Resolution: Source DEM 30 m; H3 resolutions 1–10 (one file per resolution); DEM sampled at ~500 m for res 1–5, ~110 m for res 6–7, native ~30 m for res 8–10 | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Public, anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop; licence CC BY 4.0 (walkthru.earth) Authentication: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop Formats: Apache Parquet | Licence: see product README Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 43.3/100 |
| elevation-data-ASTER-compressed-retiled dataset | world elevation above sea level (m); estimated elevation from a coordinate (python helper) Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open download; Apache-2.0 licence per dataset card. Helper library installed from GitHub (peaknav-tools). Authentication: Unknown Formats: JPG; PNG; web map tiles (zoom level 8) | Licence: apache-2.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 39.6/100 |
| Landmark Envirocheck dataset | Contaminated land desk study (Envirocheck Report): sources, pathways and receptors; Historical maps (1840s to present); Historical Data Report: contaminative industrial uses, infilled land, historical tanks and energy facilities; UXO threat assessment (40+ datasets); Site location plans (Ordnance Survey mapping); Flood screening; Flood data; Geology maps; Mining and ground stability (BGS-produced data); Coal mining: seam depth, mine gas, mine water, subsidence; Utilities (PAS 128 Survey Category Type D); Digital Surface Model and Digital Terrain Model; Current and historical aerial photography; Environmental constraints; Administrative boundaries; Height data contours; Green Belt constraints; Land use constraints; Local development plans; Planning applications; Points of interest; Code-Point with Polygons Resolution: site | Coverage: England, Wales and Scotland (historical maps); Great Britain (height contours); England, Scotland and Wales (coal reports); Northern Ireland not stated Record period: 1840s to present (historical maps) Cadence: Unknown | Access: Subscription or per-report purchase; commercial licence; login or registration required Authentication: subscription / per-report purchase Formats: SHP; KML; DWG; DXF; layered PDF; GIS format (ECGIS) | Licence: Commercial Commercial use: Unknown | No | 37.9/100 |
| Getmapping aerial imagery & height data dataset | aerial imagery; height data Resolution: 12.5-25 cm | Coverage: United Kingdom Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Licensed download or WMS; paid licence (terms not verified) Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF; ECW | Licence: paid Commercial use: Unknown | No | 36.8/100 |
| Core-DEM dataset | Copernicus DEM 30 m Digital Surface Model (DSM) tiles; compressed hillshade thumbnail images Resolution: 30 m spatial; tiles 356 x 356 px | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open, licence cc-by-sa-4.0 Authentication: Unknown Formats: parquet | Licence: cc-by-sa-4.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 34.2/100 |
| MERIT DEM dataset | terrain elevation (DEM) Resolution: 3 arc-sec | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Download with registration; free non-commercial licence Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF | Licence: free non-commercial Commercial use: Unknown | No | 32.8/100 |
| Mapterhorn data api | terrain tiles (raster DEM, terrarium encoding) Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Public, anonymous HTTPS/S3 access; licence per the open-data sources listed on the attribution page (product README says 'see product README') Authentication: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop Formats: PMTiles; WebP | Licence: see product README Commercial use: Unknown | No | 26.9/100 |
| Ensemble Digital Terrain Model (EDTM) of the world dataset | Layers include: Ensemble Digital Terrain Model (EDTM) in 250-m resolution. Unit is in metre(m) and precision is in decimetre (dm). Maps are downscaled from 30-m resolution to 250-m in order to fit the size limit. We provide 30-m EDTM and its standard deviation as links: 30-m EDTM https://s3.eu-central-1.wasabisys.com/openlandmap/dtm/dtm.bareearth_ensemble_p10_30m_s_2018_go_epsg4326_v20230221.tif Standard deviation https://s3.eu-central-1.wasabisys.com/openlandmap/dtm/dtm.bareearth_ensemble Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Unknown Authentication: Unknown Formats: Unknown | Licence: cc-by-4.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 26.5/100 |
| Global Ensemble Digital Terrain Model 30m (GEDTM30) dataset | Disclaimer This is the first release of the Global Ensemble Digital Terrain Model (GEDTM30) . Use for testing purposes only. A publication describing the methods used has been published in PeerJ ( https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.19673 ). This work was funded by the European Union. However, the views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority ca Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Unknown Authentication: Unknown Formats: Unknown | Licence: cc-by-4.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 26.5/100 |
| Terrabotics dataset | DEM; DSM; bare-earth DTM; contours; topographic grids Resolution: DEM grids 50cm to 5m | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: On-demand, fresh to-order; no fixed update schedule stated | Access: Paid, licensed; quote-based via contact form. Catalogue lists API access, but no API is documented on the page Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF; XYZ | Licence: paid Commercial use: Unknown | No | 22.3/100 |
Known sources: Government and regulators
| Source | What it gives | Coverage & cadence | Access / API / format | Licence / commercial use | Live via TerraMCP router | Evidence score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OS Terrain 50 dataset | 50 m digital terrain model; 10 m contours Resolution: 50 m grid; 10 m contours | Coverage: Great Britain Record period: Unknown Cadence: Annual | Access: OpenData terrain downloads under the Open Government Licence. Authentication: none Formats: ASCII grid; GML; Shapefile | Licence: OGL-3.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 80/100 |
| Environment Agency - England LiDAR-derived DEMs data api | DTM (Digital Terrain Model); First Return DSM (Digital Surface Model) Resolution: 1 m (national composite; other survey resolutions available) | Coverage: England Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open Government Licence terrain and surface model downloads; check acquisition dates for each survey tile. Authentication: Public; anonymous HTTPS/S3 access via data.source.coop Formats: GeoTIFF; LAZ | Licence: OGL-3.0 Commercial use: Unknown | No | 77.1/100 |
| Defra Data Services Platform data api | flood zones Resolution: various | Coverage: England Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Free/open, no authentication required; licence OGL-3.0 Authentication: none Formats: Unknown | Licence: OGL-3.0 Commercial use: Unknown | Yes Tools: ea_flood_features; flood_zone_at_point | 76.8/100 |
| National LIDAR Programme dataset | LIDAR point cloud (classified ground, low, medium and high vegetation); DSM (last or only return); DTM (ground-classified last return, manually filtered); First return DSM (FZ DSM); Intensity surface model; Survey index catalogue (tile metadata) Resolution: 1 m spatial resolution | Coverage: England Record period: Phase 1 surveys captured January 2017 to February 2023; repeat surveys of specific blocks since then Cadence: Quarterly | Access: Free, open access under the Open Government Licence; no public access constraints Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF; LAZ; Shapefile; GeoPackage; GeoJSON; File Geodatabase; WFS; WMS | Licence: ["There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the licence identified.", "There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 71/100 |
| LIDAR Composite Digital Surface Model (DSM) - 2m dataset | DSM elevation raster (heights of buildings, vegetation and terrain) Resolution: 2m spatial | Coverage: England (~99%) Record period: Source surveys from 6 June 2000 to 2 April 2022 Cadence: annually | Access: Open Government Licence v3.0; no public access constraints Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF; WCS; WMS; WMTS | Licence: ["There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the licence identified.", "There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 66.8/100 |
| LiDAR based Digital Surface Model (DSM) data for South West England dataset | LiDAR-derived Digital Surface Model (DSM) heights, including buildings and vegetation where present Resolution: 1 m grid cell; average vertical height accuracy 25 cm | Coverage: South West England: all land west of Exmouth (west of circa 3°21' W), 9424 km2 Record period: Survey acquired 2013-07-01 to 2013-08-31 Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open Government Licence (OGL). Free download is not explicitly stated. Browser download, WMS, or scripted bulk download (wget/curl) using a personal access token as a Bearer header. Authentication: Unknown Formats: ESRI grid | Licence: Open government licence Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 58/100 |
| LiDAR based Digital Terrain Model (DTM) data for South West England dataset | Digital Terrain Model (DTM), bare-earth height; Digital Surface Model (DSM), companion dataset covering the same area Resolution: 1 m grid cell; average height accuracy 25 cm vertical | Coverage: South West England: all land west of Exmouth (west of circa 3 degrees 21 minutes West), 9424 km2 Record period: 2013-07-01 to 2013-08-31 (temporal extent of the LiDAR acquisition) Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open Government Licence (OGL). Free direct file download and WMS. Scripted bulk download via eidchub uses a personal access token (Bearer token). Authentication: Unknown Formats: ESRI grid; WMS (web map service) | Licence: Open government licence Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 58/100 |
| Merged LiDAR based Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and Digital Surface Model (DSM) for England and Wales dataset | DTM (bare-earth elevation), 1 m; DSM (surface elevation including buildings and vegetation), 1 m Resolution: 1 m spatial resolution | Coverage: England and Wales Record period: 2000-06-06 to 2022-04-02 Cadence: Unknown | Access: Open Government Licence (per DOCS). Bulk download via EIDC datastore with a personal access token (Bearer auth) using wget/curl; files are very large, so DOCS recommend the Jupyter notebook code instead. Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF | Licence: Non-Open government licence Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 57.3/100 |
| EA National LIDAR Programme DTM/DSM dataset | DTM (digital terrain model); DSM (digital surface model); LIDAR-derived elevation Resolution: 1 m | Coverage: England Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Free download under Open Government Licence (OGL); WCS access via DSP per catalogue entry; no authentication listed Authentication: Unknown Formats: GeoTIFF; LAZ | Licence: free (OGL) Commercial use: Yes (docs-verified) | No | 54.9/100 |
| Copernicus DEM dataset | Copernicus digital elevation model products; product resolution and licence determine access. Resolution: Unknown | Coverage: Global (includes England) Record period: Unknown Cadence: Unknown | Access: Unknown Authentication: Unknown Formats: Unknown | Licence: Unknown Commercial use: Unknown | No | 39/100 |
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