Software Alternatives & Reviews

Owlbear Rodeo VS MapTool

Compare Owlbear Rodeo VS MapTool and see what are their differences

Owlbear Rodeo logo Owlbear Rodeo

Owlbear Rodeo is an attempt to make a web app to run tabletop encounters without the complicated setup process needed for other VTTs.

MapTool logo MapTool

MapTool is a 100% community driven and 100% free to use online, multiuser, networked, graphical, interactive, programmable virtual tabletop.
  • Owlbear Rodeo Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-29
  • MapTool Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-12-12

Community links: Wiki Forums Discord

MapTool

$ Details
Release Date
2006 January

Owlbear Rodeo videos

Owlbear Rodeo for the Lazy D&D Dungeon Master

More videos:

  • Review - Owlbear Rodeo VTT
  • Review - Using Owlbear Rodeo: Tokens

MapTool videos

MapTool Tutorial - 01. Introduction (MapTool Tutorials playlist)

More videos:

  • Tutorial - Maptool The Simple Way (Updated)
  • Tutorial - MapTool Tutorial - D&D 5e Framework 2.4
  • Tutorial - MapTools Tutorial - My Way
  • Review - MapTool - Virtual Table Top Software

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Owlbear Rodeo and MapTool)
Game Engine
67 67%
33% 33
Gaming
65 65%
35% 35
Online Games
58 58%
42% 42
Maps
71 71%
29% 29

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Owlbear Rodeo and MapTool

Owlbear Rodeo Reviews

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MapTool Reviews

10 Best Sites Like Roll20 Alternatives For Tabletop Gaming
Map Tool can be best described as a virtual dashboard. This interactive software supports multi-user interaction.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Owlbear Rodeo seems to be a lot more popular than MapTool. While we know about 209 links to Owlbear Rodeo, we've tracked only 1 mention of MapTool. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Owlbear Rodeo mentions (209)

  • I want to print battle maps of the internet
    Use something like owlbear.rodeo. It's free, fairly easy to use, and works on most all devices (laptops, tablets, and mobile). Run the DM version on your laptop, and have one of the players cast the map to a TV. Other players can use their own devices to move their tokens. Source: 5 months ago
  • [Online][EST][5e][Any skill level][LGBTQI+ friendly] One-shot for 3+ players: Investigate Mossrock Tunnel.
    Hello there! I'm a DM looking to host a one-shot for a group of people on Thursday, around 8 est (Can be earlier or later, depends on the availability). It'll be hosted over Discord, and we'll be using owlbear.rodeo to play. Source: 9 months ago
  • Interactive RPG tools?
    The way it breaks down specifically for me goes something like this: - fillable PDF form? Google sheets or VTT character sheets - collaborative notebook? Google docs or VTT note applet - world map? No idea for a moveable world map, but I use WonderDraft for regional/global cartography, and I quite like it. I upload the maps I make to the VTT of my choice. - whiteboard for battlemaps? Most VTTs have a built in... Source: 10 months ago
  • Tips for Online Play?
    Roll20 isn't terribly performance intensive, what seems to be the problem when you've tried? Maybe try not using dynamic lighting if you're using maps that support it. There are a few similar options like owlbear.rodeo that are newer and might use more efficient webcode but I don't think you're going to be able to do much better then unless the DM wants to share a webcamera with the zoom session and just move... Source: 11 months ago
  • (online)(5e)(Thursdays 6pm est)Need One More Player, Session 0 this Thursday
    Hello, I will be running session 0 for a upcoming short campaign this Thursday, and then we will meet every week after that at the same time for about 3 hours per session for about 5-7 weeks. We will be using discord for voice, and owlbear.rodeo for maps. Source: 11 months ago
View more

MapTool mentions (1)

  • 1.10.4 build virus
    "Latest Release" on rptools.net points to 1.10.4. Source: over 2 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Owlbear Rodeo and MapTool, you can also consider the following products

Foundry Virtual Tabletop - A self-hosted, modern, and developer-friendly roleplaying platform.

Roll20 - Roll20 is a suite of easy-to-use digital tools that expand pen-and-paper gameplay.

Astral Tabletop - Create, host, and manage your tabletop role-playing games — online or in person

Dungeon Scrawl - A dungeon scrawling tool by ProbableTrain

Fantasy Grounds - Fantasy Grounds is a virtual tabletop to help facilitate play of tabletop-style role-playing games...

Inkarnate - A free-form map editor for role-playing games, focusing on overland and continental maps.