What is the difference between GPX and KML?

GPX is the GPS Exchange Format used by Garmin, Strava and most GPS devices. KML (Keyhole Markup Language) is Google's format for Google Earth and Maps. Both store points and lines but use different XML tags, so a conversion remaps the elements.

Does this keep my track timestamps and elevation?

Track point coordinates and elevation are preserved as KML uses lon,lat,ele tuples in LineString coordinates. KML LineStrings do not carry per-point timestamps, so time data on individual track points is not represented in the output geometry.

Are waypoints and routes converted too?

Yes. GPX waypoints (wpt) become KML point Placemarks with their name and description, and both tracks (trk) and routes (rte) become Placemarks containing a LineString of the ordered coordinates.

Is my GPS data uploaded anywhere?

No. The entire conversion happens in your browser using DOMParser and string templating. Your route and location data never leaves your device and nothing is logged or transmitted.

Why is my output empty?

An empty result usually means the input was not valid GPX or contained no wpt, trkpt or rtept elements. Check that you pasted the full XML including the gpx root element and at least one point.

GPX to KML Converter

GPX (GPS Exchange Format) is what most GPS devices and apps export, while KML (Keyhole Markup Language) is what Google Earth and Google My Maps read. This free converter turns one into the other entirely in your browser, so you can view a recorded hike or drive on Google Earth without uploading your private location history to any server.

How it works

The converter parses the GPX XML and rebuilds it as KML:

The browser’s DOMParser reads the GPX document and finds every wpt (waypoint), trk (track) and rte (route).
Each waypoint becomes a KML point Placemark: its lat/lon attributes and elevation become a Point with coordinates in lon,lat,ele order, and its name/desc carry across.
Each track segment (trkseg) and route is flattened into an ordered list of points and emitted as a Placemark containing a LineString with all coordinates.
The pieces are wrapped in a kml/Document envelope with the correct namespace.

KML uses longitude first (lon,lat,ele), the opposite of how GPX stores attributes (lat, lon) — the tool handles that swap for you.

Tips and example

A minimal GPX waypoint like this:

<wpt lat="48.2082" lon="16.3738"><name>Vienna</name></wpt>

becomes a KML Placemark whose Point coordinates are 16.3738,48.2082,0. Note the reversed order. If your viewer shows points in the ocean off Africa, you are almost certainly feeding lat,lon into something expecting lon,lat — KML always wants longitude first.

Everything runs locally; your GPS data is never uploaded.