How to Download Shapefile Data for European Countries
If you are interested in geographic information systems (GIS) and want to create maps or analyze spatial data, you will need some geospatial vector data to work with. One of the most common and widely used formats for storing geospatial vector data is the shapefile format. In this article, you will learn what a shapefile is, where you can find shapefile data for European countries, and how you can import it into Google Earth Pro for visualization.
What is a shapefile and why is it useful for GIS applications?
A shapefile is a simple, nontopological format for storing the location, shape, and attributes of geographic features. It is developed and regulated by Esri as a mostly open specification for data interoperability among Esri and other GIS software products. A shapefile can store point, line, or polygon features, representing, for example, water wells, rivers, and lakes. Each feature usually has attributes that describe it, such as name or temperature.
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A shapefile is actually a collection of several files with a common filename prefix, stored in the same directory. The three mandatory files have filename extensions .shp, .shx, and .dbf. The .shp file contains the feature geometry itself, the .shx file contains a positional index of the feature geometry to allow seeking forwards and backwards quickly, and the .dbf file contains columnar attributes for each feature in dBase IV format.
A shapefile is useful for GIS applications because it is a simple and widely supported format that can store large features with a lot of associated data. It can be easily converted to other formats using various tools and software. It can also be imported into Google Earth Pro as a layer for visualization and analysis.
What are some sources of shapefile data for European countries?
There are many sources of shapefile data for European countries on the internet. Some of them are official sources from government agencies or international organizations, while others are unofficial sources from volunteers or enthusiasts. Depending on your needs and preferences, you can choose from different sources that offer different levels of detail, accuracy, currency, and coverage. Here are two examples of sources that provide free shapefile data for European countries:
How to download shapefile data from Eurostat
Eurostat is the statistical office of the European Union that provides official statistics on various topics related to Europe. Eurostat also provides geospatial data through its GISCO service. GISCO stands for Geographical Information System of the COmmission. One of the geospatial datasets that GISCO offers is the administrative units / statistical units / countries dataset. This dataset contains boundaries of administrative units (such as regions or municipalities) and statistical units (such as NUTS or LAU) at different levels of detail (from 1:1 million to 1:60 million scale) for 55 countries and territories in Europe.
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To download this dataset as a shapefile, you can follow these steps:
Go to and click on Geodata.
Click on Reference data and then on Administrative Units / Statistical Units / Countries.
Scroll down to find the table of the dataset and select the scale and the format that you want. For example, you can choose 1:1 million and ESRI Shapefile.
Click on the Download button and save the zip file to your computer.
Extract the zip file to a folder and you will see several files with the same name but different extensions. These are the shapefile components that you need to keep together in the same folder.
The following screenshot shows the website and the download options:
How to download shapefile data from Natural Earth
Natural Earth is a public domain map dataset that provides free vector and raster data at various scales for the entire world. Natural Earth is a collaboration between many volunteers and supported by the North American Cartographic Information Society (NACIS). One of the vector datasets that Natural Earth offers is the admin 0 - countries dataset. This dataset contains boundaries of countries and dependent territories at three levels of detail (1:10m, 1:50m, and 1:110m scale) with various attributes such as name, ISO code, population, and area.
To download this dataset as a shapefile, you can follow these steps:
Go to and click on Download.
Click on Cultural Vectors and then on Admin 0 - Countries.
Select the scale that you want and click on the Download countries button. For example, you can choose 1:10m Cultural Vectors.
Save the zip file to your computer and extract it to a folder. You will see several files with the same name but different extensions. These are the shapefile components that you need to keep together in the same folder.
The following screenshot shows the website and the download options:
How to import shapefile data into Google Earth Pro
Google Earth Pro is a free desktop application that allows you to explore the world in 3D. You can also import your own geospatial data into Google Earth Pro as layers and overlay them on the globe. One of the formats that Google Earth Pro supports is the shapefile format. To import shapefile data into Google Earth Pro, you can follow these steps:
Open Google Earth Pro on your computer and click on File and then on Import.
Browse to the folder where you saved the shapefile data and select the .shp file. Click on Open.
A dialog box will appear with some options for importing the shapefile data. You can choose the name, description, style, altitude, and attribute fields for the layer. You can also preview the layer on the map before importing it. Click on OK when you are done.
The shapefile data will be imported as a layer under Places in the left panel. You can check or uncheck the box next to the layer name to show or hide it on the map. You can also right-click on the layer name and select Properties to edit the layer settings.
The following screenshot shows the Google Earth Pro interface and the imported layer:
Conclusion
In this article, you learned how to download shapefile data for European countries from two sources: Eurostat and Natural Earth. You also learned how to import shapefile data into Google Earth Pro as a layer for visualization. Shapefile data is a useful format for GIS applications because it can store large features with a lot of associated data. It can also be easily converted to other formats using various tools and software.
If you want to learn more about shapefile data and GIS applications, you can check out these resources:
: A detailed specification of the shapefile format by Esri.
: A website that provides news, tutorials, and resources on GIS topics.
: A free and open source GIS software that can read and write shapefile data.
FAQs
What are some advantages and disadvantages of shapefile data?
Some advantages of shapefile data are:
It is a simple and widely supported format that can store large features with a lot of associated data.
It can be easily converted to other formats using various tools and software.
It can be imported into Google Earth Pro as a layer for visualization and analysis.
Some disadvantages of shapefile data are:
It does not support topological relationships between features, such as adjacency or overlap.
It does not support curves or circular arcs, only straight segments.
It does not support spatial indexing, which can improve performance for querying and processing large datasets.
What are some alternatives to shapefile data?
Some alternatives to shapefile data are:
KML (Keyhole Markup Language): A XML-based format for storing geographic features and their attributes. It is developed by Google and used by Google Earth and other applications.
GML (Geography Markup Language): A XML-based format for encoding geographic information. It is developed by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and used by various applications.
GeoJSON: A JSON-based format for encoding geographic features and their attributes. It is based on the JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) and used by various web applications.
How can I convert shapefile data to other formats?
You can use various tools and software to convert shapefile data to other formats. Some examples are:
Ogr2ogr: A command-line utility that can read and write various vector formats, including shapefile, KML, GML, GeoJSON, and more.
ArcGIS: A commercial GIS software that can read and write various vector formats, including shapefile, KML, GML, GeoJSON, and more.
FME (Feature Manipulation Engine): A commercial software that can read and write various vector and raster formats, including shapefile, KML, GML, GeoJSON, and more.
How can I edit shapefile data?
You can use various tools and software to edit shapefile data. Some examples are:
QGIS: A free and open source GIS software that can read and write shapefile data. You can use QGIS to create, modify, delete, or query features and their attributes.
ArcGIS: A commercial GIS software that can read and write shapefile data. You can use ArcGIS to create, modify, delete, or query features and their attributes.
Mapshaper: A web-based tool that can read and write shapefile data. You can use Mapshaper to simplify, edit, or convert features and their attributes.
How can I validate shapefile data?
You can use various tools and software to validate shapefile data. Validation is the process of checking if the shapefile data conforms to the specification and does not contain any errors or inconsistencies. Some examples of tools and software that can validate shapefile data are:
Shapefile C Library: A C library that provides functions for reading and writing shapefile data. It also provides a function for validating shapefile data.
GDAL (Geospatial Data Abstraction Library): A library that provides functions for reading and writing various geospatial formats, including shapefile. It also provides a command-line utility called ogrinfo that can validate shapefile data.
GeoTools: A Java library that provides functions for reading and writing various geospatial formats, including shapefile. It also provides a tool called ShapeFileFixer that can validate and fix shapefile data.
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