Outline maps
A selection of free, downloadable, small-scale maps that are ideal for educational or
business use.
All of the maps can be viewed on-screen or printed, for example with a common desktop
printer. They are available in a choice of two paper sizes: either A3 (297mm x 420mm) or A4
(210mm x 297mm), and in a choice of two formats, PDF or TIFF, as explained below.
PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF) is a widely-used file format for sharing vector graphics,
text and raster images.
The PDFs available on this page are both Layered PDFs as well as Geospatial PDFs. They
work just like normal PDFs but have extra functionality should you choose to use it.
‘Layered’ means that they consist of more than one layer. These layers, for example text
(labels), can be switched on or off by the user. So if you wanted a version of the map
without the text, you can switch the text layer off before printing. To view the layers panel,
choose View > Navigation Panels > Layers. Click on the small eye icon in the box to turn a
layer off, and click back in the empty box to turn it on again.
‘Geospatial’ means that they are georeferenced and so latitude and longitude coordinates
can be read using the Geospatial Location Tool. To use this tool, choose Tools > Analysis >
Geospatial Location Tool. It also offers further functionality as described on the Adobe
website help pages.
TIFF
Tagged Image File Format (TIFF or TIF) is a popular publishing format for raster images and
photographs. Most photo, picture or image software can open them, for example Microsoft
Office Picture Manager.
These images do not have any interactivity, so you won’t be able to turn off the text (labels)
for example, but they can be opened in a wide variety of software.
All of the TIFFs available on this page are GeoTIFFs. This means that they are
georeferenced. Advanced users may wish to load them into GIS software, in which case
they will know their spatial referencing, i.e. their geographic coordinates and map
projection. However they still work just like regular TIFF files (or any other image file type
such as JPEG) when loaded into image software.
The maps
Great Britain: Administrative Authorities
The local authorities (unitary authorities, districts and boroughs) of Great Britain.
Europe
The countries, coastlines and national land boundaries of Europe. The PDF version also
shows the extent of the physical continent of Europe.
UK and vicinity coastlines
The coastlines of the United Kingdom and surrounding countries.
Note: This one has no layers.
UK Overview Map
An overview of the United Kingdom along with some geographic context.
Note: This one is in full-colour.
United Kingdom: Historic Counties
The historic county areas of the United Kingdom, circa 1970.
Terms of use
Please Note: You must not use the images for financial gain. All hard copies and
electronically published material produced from Ordnance Survey data must carry the
acknowledgement:
Reproduced from Ordnance Survey map data by permission of Ordnance Survey © Crown
copyright 2013.
Please also be aware that:


You may not reproduce the Ordnance Survey logo in any form without our
permission
If you need to extend this licence for other uses not defined here, please check the
copyright information
If you would like larger small-scale mapping with more detail for the classroom or office,
then our OS Wall Map series may also be of interest.