GDAL-RASTER-AS-FEATURES(1) GDAL GDAL-RASTER-AS-FEATURES(1)
NAME
gdal-raster-as-features - Create features representing the pixels of a
raster
Added in version 3.12.
SYNOPSIS
Usage: gdal raster as-features [OPTIONS]
Create features from pixels of a raster dataset
Positional arguments:
-i, --input Input raster datasets [required] [not available in pipelines]
-o, --output Output vector dataset [required] [not available in pipelines]
Common Options:
-h, --help Display help message and exit
--json-usage Display usage as JSON document and exit
--config = Configuration option [may be repeated]
Options:
-f, --of, --format, --output-format Output format ("GDALG" allowed) [not available in pipelines]
--co, --creation-option = Creation option [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--lco, --layer-creation-option = Layer creation option [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--overwrite Whether overwriting existing output dataset is allowed [not available in pipelines]
--update Whether to open existing dataset in update mode [not available in pipelines]
--overwrite-layer Whether overwriting existing output layer is allowed [not available in pipelines]
--append Whether appending to existing layer is allowed [not available in pipelines]
--output-layer Output layer name [not available in pipelines]
-b, --band Input band(s) (1-based index) [may be repeated]
--geometry-type Geometry type. GEOMETRY-TYPE=none|point|polygon (default: none)
--skip-nodata Omit NoData pixels from the result
--include-xy Include fields for cell center coordinates
--include-row-col Include columns for row and column
Advanced Options:
--if, --input-format Input formats [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--oo, --open-option = Open options [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
--output-oo, --output-open-option = Output open options [may be repeated] [not available in pipelines]
DESCRIPTION
gdal raster as-features creates features representing the pixels in a
raster dataset. Features may be created as polygons, points, or with
no geometry at all. Unlike gdal raster polygonize, adjacent pixels
having the same values are not combined.
This algorithm can be part of a gdal pipeline.
PROGRAM-SPECIFIC OPTIONS
-b, --band
Specifies the bands for which pixel values should be added as
fields of the created features. By default, values will be added
for all bands.
--geometry-type
Specifies the geometry type of the created features. Options
available are "none" (default), "point", or "polygon".
--include-row-col
If set, ROW and COL fields will be added with the cell
positions.
--include-xy
If set, CENTER_X and CENTER_Y fields will be added with the
center coordinates of each pixel.
--output-layer
Provides a name for the output vector layer. Defaults to
"pixels".
--skip-nodata
If set, no features will be emitted for pixels equal to the
NoData value.
STANDARD OPTIONS
--append
Whether appending features to existing layer(s) is allowed.
This also creates the output dataset if it does not exist yet.
--co, --creation-option =
Many formats have one or more optional creation options that can
be used to control particulars about the file created. For
instance, the GeoTIFF driver supports creation options to
control compression, and whether the file should be tiled.
May be repeated.
The creation options available vary by format driver, and some
simple formats have no creation options at all. A list of
options supported for a format can be listed with the --formats
command line option but the documentation for the format is the
definitive source of information on driver creation options.
See Raster drivers format specific documentation for legal
creation options for each format.
--if, --input-format
Format/driver name to be attempted to open the input file(s). It
is generally not necessary to specify it, but it can be used to
skip automatic driver detection, when it fails to select the
appropriate driver. This option can be repeated several times
to specify several candidate drivers. Note that it does not
force those drivers to open the dataset. In particular, some
drivers have requirements on file extensions.
May be repeated.
--lco, --layer-creation-option =
Many formats have one or more optional layer creation options
that can be used to control particulars about the layer created.
For instance, the GeoPackage driver supports layer creation
options to control the feature identifier or geometry column
name, setting the identifier or description, etc.
May be repeated.
The layer creation options available vary by format driver, and
some simple formats have no layer creation options at all. A
list of options supported for a format can be listed with the
--formats command line option but the documentation for the
format is the definitive source of information on driver
creation options. See Vector drivers format specific
documentation for legal creation options for each format.
Note that layer creation options are different from dataset
creation options.
--oo, --open-option =
Dataset open option (format specific).
May be repeated.
-f, --of, --format, --output-format
Which output vector format to use. Allowed values may be given
by gdal --formats | grep vector | grep rw | sort
--output-open-option, --output-oo =
Added in version 3.12.
Dataset open option for output dataset (format specific).
May be repeated.
--overwrite
Allow program to overwrite existing target file or dataset.
Otherwise, by default, gdal errors out if the target file or
dataset already exists.
--overwrite-layer
Whether overwriting the existing output vector layer is allowed.
--update
Whether to open an existing output dataset in update mode.
RETURN STATUS CODE
The program returns status code 0 in case of success, and non-zero in
case of error (non-blocking errors emitted as warnings are considered
as a successful execution).
EXAMPLES
Example 1: Create points at the center of pixels having a value less than
150
gdal pipeline read input.tif !
reclassify -m "[-inf, 150)=1; DEFAULT=NO_DATA" !
as-features --geometry-type point --skip-nodata !
write out.shp
Example 2: Create a polygon grid dividing the globe into 1-degree chunks
gdal pipeline create --bbox -180,-90,180,90 --size 360,180 !
as-features --geometry-type polygon !
write grid.shp
AUTHOR
Dan Baston
COPYRIGHT
1998-2026
August 18, 2026 GDAL-RASTER-AS-FEATURES(1)