--- name: "gdaltransform" section: "1" platform: "linux" package: "gdal" version: "3.13.3-6" release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01" platforms: ["linux"] url: "https://new.carta.tech/gdaltransform" --- # gdaltransform(1) Transforms coordinates. ## NAME gdaltransform - Transforms coordinates. ## SYNOPSIS ``` Usage: gdaltransform [--help] [--help-general] [-i] [-s_srs ] [-t_srs ] [-to >NAME>=]... [-s_coord_epoch ] [-t_coord_epoch ] [-ct ] [-order ] [-tps] [-rpc] [-geoloc] [-gcp [elevation]]... [-output_xy] [-E] [-field_sep ] [-ignore_extra_input] [ []] ``` ## DESCRIPTION The gdaltransform utility reprojects a list of coordinates into any supported projection,including GCP-based transformations. - **--help** Show this help message and exit - **--help-general** Gives a brief usage message for the generic GDAL commandline options and exit. - **-s\_srs \** Set source spatial reference. The coordinate systems that can be passed are anything supported by the OGRSpatialReference.SetFromUserInput() call, which includes EPSG PCS and GCSes (i.e. EPSG:4296), PROJ.4 declarations (as above), or the name of a .prj file containing well known text. - **-s\_coord\_epoch \** Added in version 3.8. Assign a coordinate epoch, linked with the source SRS. Useful when the source SRS is a dynamic CRS. Only taken into account if *-s\_srs* is used. Before PROJ 9.4, *-s\_coord\_epoch* and *-t\_coord\_epoch* were mutually exclusive, due to lack of support for transformations between two dynamic CRS. - **-t\_srs \** set target spatial reference. The coordinate systems that can be passed are anything supported by the OGRSpatialReference.SetFromUserInput() call, which includes EPSG PCS and GCSes (i.e. EPSG:4296), PROJ.4 declarations (as above), or the name of a .prj file containing well known text. - **-t\_coord\_epoch \** Added in version 3.8. Assign a coordinate epoch, linked with the output SRS. Useful when the output SRS is a dynamic CRS. Only taken into account if *-t\_srs* is used. Before PROJ 9.4, *-s\_coord\_epoch* and *-t\_coord\_epoch* were mutually exclusive, due to lack of support for transformations between two dynamic CRS. - **-ct \** A PROJ string (single step operation or multiple step string starting with +proj=pipeline), a WKT2 string describing a CoordinateOperation, or a *urn:ogc:def:coordinateOperation:EPSG::XXXX* URN overriding the default transformation from the source to the target CRS. It must take into account the axis order of the source and target CRS. Added in version 3.0. - **-to \=\** set a transformer option suitable to pass to *GDALCreateGenImgProjTransformer2()*. - **-order \** order of polynomial used for warping (1 to 3). The default is to select a polynomial order based on the number of GCPs. - **-tps** Force use of thin plate spline transformer based on available GCPs. - **-rpc** Force use of RPCs. - **-geoloc** Force use of Geolocation Arrays. - **-i** Inverse transformation: from destination to source. - **-gcp \ \ \ \ \[\\]** Provide a GCP to be used for transformation (generally three or more are required). Pixel and line need not be integers. - **-output\_xy** Restrict output to "x y" instead of "x y z" - **-ignore\_extra\_input** Added in version 3.9. Set this flag to avoid extra non-numeric content at end of input lines to be appended to the output lines. - **-E** Added in version 3.9. Enable Echo mode, where input coordinates are prepended to the output lines. - **-field\_sep \** Added in version 3.9. Defines the field separator, to separate different values. It defaults to the space character. - **\** Raster dataset with source projection definition or GCPs. If not given, source projection/GCPs are read from the command-line *-s\_srs* or *-gcp* parameters. Note that only the SRS and/or GCPs of this input file is taken into account, and not its pixel content. - **\** Raster dataset with destination projection definition. Coordinates are read as pairs, triples (for 3D,) or (since GDAL 3.0.0,) quadruplets (for X,Y,Z,time) of numbers per line from standard input, transformed, and written out to standard output in the same way. All transformations offered by gdalwarp are handled, including gcp-based ones. Starting with GDAL 3.9, additional non-numeric content (typically point name) at the end of an input line will also be appended to the output line, unless the *-ignore\_extra\_input* is added. Note that input and output must always be in decimal form. There is currently no support for DMS input or output. If an input image file is provided, input is in pixel/line coordinates on that image. If an output file is provided, output is in pixel/line coordinates on that image. ## 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 ### Reprojection Example Simple reprojection from one projected coordinate system to another: ``` gdaltransform -s_srs EPSG:28992 -t_srs EPSG:31370 177502 311865 ``` Produces the following output in meters in the "Belge 1972 / Belgian Lambert 72" projection: ``` 244296.724777415 165937.350217148 0 ``` ### Image RPC Example The following command requests an RPC based transformation using the RPC model associated with the named file. Because the -i (inverse) flag is used, the transformation is from output georeferenced (WGS84) coordinates back to image coordinates. ``` gdaltransform -i -rpc 06OCT20025052-P2AS-005553965230_01_P001.TIF 125.67206 39.85307 50 ``` Produces this output measured in pixels and lines on the image: ``` 3499.49282422381 2910.83892848414 50 ``` ### X,Y,Z,time transform 15-term time-dependent Helmert coordinate transformation from ITRF2000 to ITRF93 for a coordinate at epoch 2000.0 ``` gdaltransform -ct "+proj=pipeline +step +proj=unitconvert +xy_in=deg \ +xy_out=rad +step +proj=cart +step +proj=helmert +convention=position_vector \ +x=0.0127 +dx=-0.0029 +rx=-0.00039 +drx=-0.00011 +y=0.0065 +dy=-0.0002 \ +ry=0.00080 +dry=-0.00019 +z=-0.0209 +dz=-0.0006 +rz=-0.00114 +drz=0.00007 \ +s=0.00195 +ds=0.00001 +t_epoch=1988.0 +step +proj=cart +inv +step \ +proj=unitconvert +xy_in=rad +xy_out=deg" 2 49 0 2000 ``` Produces this output measured in longitude degrees, latitude degrees and ellipsoid height in meters: ``` 2.0000005420366 49.0000003766711 -0.0222802283242345 ``` ### Ground control points Task: find one address and assign another. We pick Salt Lake City, where road names *are* their grid values. We first establish some ground control points at road intersections. We'll use *--optfile* for easy reuse of our GCPs. ``` echo -output_xy \ -gcp 0 0 -111.89114717 40.76932606 \ -gcp 0 -500 -111.89114803 40.75846686 \ -gcp 500 0 -111.87685039 40.76940631 > optfile.txt ``` Where is the address "370 S. 300 E."? ``` echo 300 -370 Address 370 S. 300 E. | gdaltransform --optfile optfile.txt -111.8825697384 40.761338402 Address 370 S. 300 E. ``` (The 370 is protected from being consumed as an elevation by placing a word before it.) Nearby, a newly constructed building needs an address assigned. We use *-i*: ``` echo -111.88705 40.76502 Building ABC123 | gdaltransform -i --optfile optfile.txt 143.301947786644 -199.32683635161 Building ABC123 ``` (i.e., 143 E. 200 S. Or 144 if across the street.) ## AUTHOR Frank Warmerdam \, Jan Hartmann \ ## COPYRIGHT 1998-2026