đ Section: How to Upload Vectors đ Read time: 4 min | đ Last updated: July 2026 | đ¤ Author: (Dr. Pragya Vaishanav)
Stitch3D lets you add vector data (shapefiles, GeoJSON, KML, KMZ, GeoPackage, and DXF) to any project alongside your point clouds and rasters. Before your files upload, Stitch3D reads each one and tells you exactly where it will appear: in the 2D viewer, the 3D viewer, or both. This article covers which formats work in which project, what a file must contain to reach the 3D viewer, and how to read the messages you see on the review screen.
Vector uploads work in both Quickstart and Georeferenced projects, but the two accept different formats and behave differently. See the format table below. Each file must be 100 MB or smaller, and your account must have enough storage remaining. You can upload as many vector files at once as you like.
Only the formats listed for your project type appear in the file picker. Anything else is filtered out before you can select it.
| Format | Quickstart project | Georeferenced project | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|---|
Shapefile (.zip) |
â | â | 2D and/or 3D, depending on the file's contents |
GeoJSON (.geojson) |
â | â | 2D viewer only |
KML (.kml) |
â | â | 2D viewer only |
KMZ (.kmz) |
â | â | 2D viewer only |
GeoPackage (.gpkg) |
â Not supported | â | 2D viewer only |
DXF (.dxf) |
â Not supported | â | 2D viewer only |
âšī¸ Only shapefiles can appear in the 3D viewer. Every other format renders in the 2D viewer only. GeoJSON, KML, and KMZ are always WGS 84 by specification, so Stitch3D can always place them in 2D, but they carry no reliable elevation or project CRS, so they cannot be placed in 3D.
âšī¸ Why GeoPackage and DXF are blocked in Quickstart projects: neither format carries a coordinate reference system that Stitch3D can read, and a Quickstart project has no CRS of its own to fall back on. There is nothing to position the data against, so neither viewer can show it. Use a Georeferenced project for these two formats.
The two viewers ask for different things, and they are independent of each other. Your file can qualify for one, both, or neither.
The 3D viewer needs elevation (Z) values. It does not need a CRS. Stitch3D loads your coordinates exactly as they are, so a shapefile with no .prj still appears in 3D. Note that Stitch3D reads the actual Z values from the geometry records, not from the file header, so a header that declares Z but carries no real values will not qualify.
The 2D viewer needs a CRS. Stitch3D places your file on the map using the CRS from the .prj inside your zip. If there is no .prj, a Georeferenced project falls back to the project's own CRS. A Quickstart project has no CRS to fall back on, so a shapefile with no .prj cannot be placed in 2D there.
â ī¸ The one case where a CRS does affect 3D: if your file's horizontal CRS differs from the project's, Stitch3D has to reproject it, and reprojecting into 3D requires a complete CRS. When the
.prjhas a mismatched horizontal CRS and no vertical CRS, there is not enough information to reproject in 3D, so the file is placed in 2D only. Add a vertical CRS to your.prjto get 3D.