OS Product Archive

What is the OS Product Archive in OS Features API?

The Product Archive in OS Features API provides easy access to historical OS data, including:

• OS MasterMap Topography Layer

• OS MasterMap Highways Network

• OS MasterMap Integrated Transport Network - Roads

• OS MasterMap Integrated Transport Network - Urban Paths

• OS Open UPRN

The Product Archive offers the following:

• You can request specific types of features and their attributes by using spatial or layer queries. However, if you use the option, be careful not to select a very large area, as this can quickly reach API throttle limits.

• You can view and customise the styling of the returned OS MasterMap data.

• You can explore detailed feature information from OS MasterMap Topography Layer, OS MasterMap Highways Network, and OS MasterMap Integrated Transport Network data.

• You can create and apply your own styling preferences or use the existing style sheets from the OS Repositories on GitHub to style the data.

For more details about the available products, including available years and how to access the Product Archive, please refer to the What data is available? and Technical specification. The Product Archive contains the last full release of the product for the given year, typically occurring between November and December, depending on the specific release schedule for that year.

Viewing multiple years

To view data from multiple years in one GIS session, there are a couple of options:

• Set up the API endpoint and bring in data for a specific year, such as 2017. Then, edit the endpoint to another year and bring in the data again. The downside here is the need to constantly edit the endpoint string.

• Set up an endpoint for each year with the year set in the API string, and bring in each endpoint as needed to view that particular year. Since there is only one set of data for each year, this method works well and allows for easy switching between different data epochs to quickly identify changes in the landscape.

If you need help getting started with OS Features API in QGIS, be sure to check out the getting started documentation for a step-by-step guide. Don't forget to use the Product Archive Endpoint as the URL connection - GET /wfs/archive/{year}