How to Export a Map Animation as a Video
When your animation is ready, Mapimator renders it as a downloadable MP4 (or a GIF) in two phases: a prewarm pass that loads and caches the map, followed by a frame-by-frame render. Knowing what happens in each phase helps you get a clean export every time.
5 min read · Updated September 29, 2026
What you'll learn
- Choose the right format, resolution, and frame rate
- Understand the prewarm phase and why it matters
- Know what the progress screen shows while it renders
- Find your file and troubleshoot common export issues
Step-by-step guide
- 1
Finish and preview your animation
Click Play Preview in the bottom bar, or press Spacebar, to watch the whole animation. Click each slide card to jump to it and check its camera position, routes, and stickers. Export Video stays disabled until the animation has at least two slides.
- 2
Click Export Video
Click Export Video in the top right of the header. The Export Video dialog opens. On a free account that has already used its monthly export, an upgrade notice opens instead.
- 3
Choose a format and file type
Under Format, pick Web for landscape 16:9 (YouTube and presentations), Mobile for vertical 9:16 (Reels, TikTok, Shorts), or Square for 1:1 posts. The dialog opens on the frame you last picked in the bottom bar, so switch it there if you also want the Studio preview to match. Under Export Format, choose MP4 for video or GIF for a looping image. GIF exports are capped at 1080P and 30 FPS, so 4K and 60 FPS are greyed out.
- 4
Choose resolution and frame rate
Pick 720P, 1080P, or 4K, then 30 FPS or 60 FPS. On Pro every option is open, and the dialog starts on 4K at the frame rate you built the project in. Free accounts export at 480P and 30 FPS only: 480P is selected, the higher resolutions and 60 FPS show a lock, and choosing one turns the button into Upgrade to Export. If your export frame rate differs from the FPS button in the bottom bar, a note explains that motion will look smoother or less smooth than your preview. The length of the video stays the same. At 1080P, Web comes out at 1920x1080 and Mobile at 1080x1920.
- 5
Click Export MP4: Prewarming Map
Click Export MP4 (the button reads Export GIF for a GIF). The dialog closes and a progress screen takes over the map area. For the first 30% it reads Prewarming Map: the camera sweeps through every frame so the map tiles, labels, and 3D geometry load and cache before capture. You can switch tabs while it runs, but do not close the tab, because closing it stops the export.
- 6
Rendering Frames
From 30% to 100% the label changes to Rendering Frames. Each frame is captured at your chosen resolution and encoded into the file. The percentage also shows on the red Cancel button in the header, and Cancel Export in the bottom bar stops the render. Time depends on the animation's length, resolution, and frame rate, and on how fast your computer is.
- 7
Download your video
When rendering finishes, your browser downloads map-animation-[timestamp].mp4 (or .gif) automatically. An Export ready banner also appears at the bottom right with a Download button, in case the browser blocked the download. Click the x to dismiss it.
Interactive walkthrough coming soon
A visual step-by-step guide with annotated screenshots will be available here. In the meantime, follow the written steps above or watch the video tutorials.
Watch video tutorials →Pro tips
- Free accounts get 1 export a month, at 480P and 30 FPS with a small Mapimator watermark. Pro and Agency plans export without a watermark. A cancelled or failed export does not count toward your monthly limit.
- Wide in the bottom bar is a roomier editing frame, not an export format. Export uses Web, Mobile, or Square.
- If you see gray areas in the export, try again on a more stable internet connection. The prewarm runs again with every export.