IGS GNSS reference stations near me: free daily RINEX worldwide
Find the reference stations of the worldwide IGS network (International GNSS Service) closest to your survey, anywhere on the planet, with the daily RINEX to post-process your base or your point.
1 Where is the survey?
You can also click right on the map. Your location stays on your device only: nothing is sent to us (addresses are looked up on OpenStreetMap directly from your browser).
2 Data day
The daily file for a given day is published the next day (UTC), usually within the first few hours.
Nearest stations
How to use IGS stations
The IGS runs a network of more than 500 GNSS reference stations around the world, with precise ITRF coordinates, tracking day and night. The RINEX files are public and free: with them you can post-process your point (relative static) using the station as your base, without a second receiver of your own.
The closer the station, the shorter the observation you need: up to about 20 km, one or two hours of static usually do; at 100 km or more, plan on several hours and software that handles the ionosphere (or use PPP). Many IGS stations are far apart: where there is a national reference network (CORS), it usually has stations closer to you.
The RINEX links point to the BKG data centre (Germany), which needs no registration. Stations that are not at BKG are archived at NASA's CDDIS, which requires a free account (Earthdata Login).
FAQ
What is the IGS?
The International GNSS Service is a federation of more than 200 agencies and universities that runs a worldwide network of GNSS reference stations and produces very high precision orbits, clocks and coordinates. Station data are public and free.
How do I download RINEX from a station?
Pick the point and the day: each station shows the link to its daily RINEX (30 s observations, all constellations) at the BKG data centre. The file comes compressed as .crx.gz (Hatanaka): unzip the .gz and convert the .crx with CRX2RNX, or open it directly in software that already reads that format.
Which station should I use as a base?
The closest one, as long as it has data for your survey day and tracks the same constellations as your receiver. Use the station's official coordinates (in ITRF) and remember to transform the result to your country's datum if needed.
What if the nearest station is very far away?
Beyond about 100 km, relative post-processing needs many hours of observation. In that case, look for your country's national reference network (many have stations every 50 to 100 km) or use an online PPP service, which needs no base station.
Is the real-time data (NTRIP) also free?
Many IGS stations stream in real time through the IGS caster (RTS), but you need to request a free account from the IGS. Here we show which stations have real time; access is requested directly on the IGS website.