WMS Layer Map Layout

Last Updated: October 2025

This recipe will show you how to add a WMS layer to a map layout. WMS Layers are often used to display GeoServer or THREDDS server assets on a map.

Start with the Map Layout Recipe and the GeoServer Shapefile Upload Recipe.

Add WMS Layer to MapLayout

Add the following code to your MapLayout class:

class MyMapLayout(MapLayout):

    ...

    def compose_layers(self, request, map_view, *args, **kwargs):
        """
        Add layers to the MapLayout and create associated layer group objects.
        """
        geoserver_layer = self.build_wms_layer(
            endpoint='http://localhost:8181/geoserver/wms',
            server_type='geoserver',
            layer_name='topp:states',
            layer_title='U.S. States',
            layer_variable='us_states',
            visible=True,
        )

        map_view.layers.append(geoserver_layer)

        layer_groups = [
            self.build_layer_group(
                id="geoserver-layer-group",
                display_name='U.S. States',
                layer_control='radio',
                layers=[
                    geoserver_layer
                ],
            )
        ]

        return layer_groups

And that's it! Open your app and you should see this: