How to Install BlenderGIS: Step-by-Step Guide

Installing BlenderGIS takes about two minutes. All you need is Blender 2.83 LTS or newer and the addon .zip file. Follow the steps below to get the GIS menu loaded and ready for importing maps, terrain, and satellite imagery.

Step 1: Download the BlenderGIS Zip (Keep It Zipped)

Head to the download page and grab the latest stable release — that’s v2.2.15 (released Dec 20, 2025). The file downloads as a .zip archive, and this is important: do not unzip it. Blender installs addons directly from the zip file. Extracting it first is the single most common reason the install fails (see the troubleshooting section below).

Quick version check: if you’re running Blender 4.2 or newer, make sure you have v2.2.12 or newer of BlenderGIS. If you’re on an Apple Silicon Mac, use at least v2.2.10, which fixed a crash in the image loader on Mac ARM. Full details are on the update page.

Step 2: Install the Addon in Blender

1. Open Blender and go to Edit > Preferences > Add-ons.
2. Click the Install… button (top right of the Add-ons panel).
3. Browse to the BlenderGIS .zip file you downloaded and select it — still zipped.
4. Click Install Add-on. Blender will unpack it into your addons folder.

Step 3: Enable “3D View: BlenderGIS”

After installing, search for “GIS” in the Add-ons preferences search box. You’ll see an entry labeled “3D View: BlenderGIS”. Tick the checkbox to enable it. A new GIS menu should appear in the 3D Viewport’s header bar, next to Object and Mesh.

Nothing there? Jump to the “GIS menu not appearing?” checklist below before anything else.

Step 4: Set the Cache Folder

With the addon enabled, expand its preferences entry and set a Cache folder. BlenderGIS stores downloaded map tiles, elevation grids, and intermediate files here, so pick a persistent local folder where Blender has write permission — for example a folder called blendergis_cache in your user directory. Avoid syncing cloud folders (OneDrive, Dropbox) since the addon writes hundreds of small files and constant syncing slows it down. If you skip this step, basemap and elevation downloads will fail or stall.

Step 5: Verify the Install

Press F3 (Search menu) in the 3D Viewport and type “GIS”. You should see a list of BlenderGIS operators — things like GIS > Web geodata > Basemap. If operators show up in the search, the addon is loaded and working. Your first move will probably be fetching a basemap or elevation grid, which needs free API keys for OpenTopography (required since 2022) and MapTiler — both go in Addon Preferences under the Basemaps and Elevation sections.

GIS Menu Not Appearing? Quick Checklist

• You extracted the zip before installing. The #1 cause. Blender must install from the zipped file. Remove the addon in Preferences, restart Blender, and install again with the intact .zip.
• Duplicate installs. If you installed BlenderGIS more than once (for example from two different zip versions), Blender can load the wrong copy. Go to Preferences > Add-ons, remove all BlenderGIS entries, restart Blender, then install fresh once.
• Blender needs a restart. After enabling the checkbox, fully quit and relaunch Blender. The GIS menu sometimes doesn’t appear until a clean restart.
• Wrong Blender version. BlenderGIS requires Blender 2.83 LTS minimum. The v2.2.12+ releases target Blender 4.2 and newer; Blender 5 users need v2.2.11+.
• “No module named ‘requests'”. This is a known install-time error; see the troubleshooting page for the fix.

Still stuck? The troubleshooting page covers error messages like “struct.error: unpack requires a buffer of 4 bytes”, HTTP 403 errors from tile servers, and missing API keys.

Installation FAQ