Mapbox Integration Patterns Skill

This skill provides official patterns for integrating Mapbox GL JS into web applications using React, Vue, Svelte, Angular, and vanilla JavaScript. These patterns are based on Mapbox's create-web-app scaffolding tool and represent production-ready best practices.

Core Principles

Every Mapbox GL JS integration must:

1. Initialize the map in the correct lifecycle hook
2. Store map instance in component state (not recreate on every render)
3. Always call map.remove() on cleanup to prevent memory leaks
4. Handle token management securely (environment variables)
5. Import CSS: import 'mapbox-gl/dist/mapbox-gl.css'

React Integration (Primary Pattern)

Pattern: useRef + useEffect with cleanup

Note: These examples use Vite (the bundler used in create-web-app). If using Create React App, replace import.meta.env.VITE_MAPBOX_ACCESS_TOKEN with process.env.REACT_APP_MAPBOX_TOKEN. See Token Management Patterns for other bundlers.

import { useRef, useEffect } from 'react';
import mapboxgl from 'mapbox-gl';
import 'mapbox-gl/dist/mapbox-gl.css';

function MapComponent() {
  const mapRef = useRef(null); // Store map instance
  const mapContainerRef = useRef(null); // Store DOM reference

  useEffect(() => {
    mapboxgl.accessToken = import.meta.env.VITE_MAPBOX_ACCESS_TOKEN;

    mapRef.current = new mapboxgl.Map({
      container: mapContainerRef.current,
      center: [-71.05953, 42.3629],
      zoom: 13
    });

    // CRITICAL: Cleanup to prevent memory leaks
    return () => {
      mapRef.current.remove();
    };
  }, []); // Empty dependency array = run once on mount

  return <div ref={mapContainerRef} style={{ height: '100vh' }} />;
}

Key points:

• Use useRef for both map instance and container
• Initialize in useEffect with empty deps []
• Always return cleanup function that calls map.remove()
• Never initialize map in render (causes infinite loops)

React + Search JS

import { useRef, useEffect, useState } from 'react';
import mapboxgl from 'mapbox-gl';
import { SearchBox } from '@mapbox/search-js-react';
import 'mapbox-gl/dist/mapbox-gl.css';

const accessToken = import.meta.env.VITE_MAPBOX_ACCESS_TOKEN;
const center = [-71.05953, 42.3629];

function MapWithSearch() {
  const mapRef = useRef(null);
  const mapContainerRef = useRef(null);
  const [inputValue, setInputValue] = useState('');

  useEffect(() => {
    mapboxgl.accessToken = accessToken;

    mapRef.current = new mapboxgl.Map({
      container: mapContainerRef.current,
      center: center,
      zoom: 13
    });

    return () => {
      mapRef.current.remove();
    };
  }, []);

  return (
    <>
      <div
        style={{
          margin: '10px 10px 0 0',
          width: 300,
          right: 0,
          top: 0,
          position: 'absolute',
          zIndex: 10
        }}
      >
        <SearchBox
          accessToken={accessToken}
          map={mapRef.current}
          mapboxgl={mapboxgl}
          value={inputValue}
          proximity={center}
          onChange={(d) => setInputValue(d)}
          marker
        />
      </div>
      <div ref={mapContainerRef} style={{ height: '100vh' }} />
    </>
  );
}

Search JS Integration Summary

Install:

npm install @mapbox/search-js-react      # React
npm install @mapbox/search-js-web        # Vanilla/Vue/Svelte

Both packages include @mapbox/search-js-core as a dependency. Only install -core directly if building a custom search UI.

Key configuration options:

• accessToken: Your Mapbox public token
• map: Map instance (must be initialized first)
• mapboxgl: The mapboxgl library reference
• proximity: [lng, lat] to bias results geographically
• marker: Boolean to show/hide result marker
• placeholder: Search box placeholder text

Positioning Search Box

Absolute positioning (overlay):

<div
  style={{
    position: 'absolute',
    top: 10,
    right: 10,
    zIndex: 10,
    width: 300
  }}
>
  <SearchBox {...props} />
</div>

Common positions:

• Top-right: top: 10px, right: 10px
• Top-left: top: 10px, left: 10px
• Bottom-left: bottom: 10px, left: 10px

Reference Files

Load these for framework-specific patterns and additional details:

• references/vue.md — Vue Integration (mounted/unmounted lifecycle)
• references/svelte.md — Svelte Integration (onMount/onDestroy)
• references/angular.md — Angular Integration with SSR handling
• references/vanilla.md — Vanilla JS (Vite) + Vanilla JS (CDN)
• references/web-components.md — Web Components (basic + reactive + usage in React/Vue/Svelte)
• references/nextjs.md — Next.js App Router + Pages Router
• references/common-mistakes.md — Common Mistakes 4-7 + Testing Patterns
• references/token-management.md — Token Management per bundler + Style Configuration

When to Use This Skill

Invoke this skill when:

• Setting up Mapbox GL JS in a new project
• Integrating Mapbox into a specific framework (React, Vue, Svelte, Angular, Next.js)
• Building framework-agnostic Web Components
• Creating reusable map components for component libraries
• Debugging map initialization issues
• Adding Mapbox Search functionality
• Implementing proper cleanup and lifecycle management
• Converting between frameworks (e.g., React to Vue)
• Reviewing code for Mapbox integration best practices

Related Skills

• mapbox-cartography: Map design principles and styling
• mapbox-token-security: Token management and security
• mapbox-style-patterns: Common map style patterns

Resources

• Mapbox GL JS Documentation
• Mapbox Search JS Documentation
• create-web-app GitHub

Version Requirements

Mapbox GL JS

Recommended: v3.x (latest)

• Minimum: v3.0.0
• Why v3.x: Modern API, improved performance, active development
• v2.x: Legacy; no longer actively developed (see migration notes below)

Installing via npm (recommended for production):

npm install mapbox-gl@^3.0.0    # Installs latest v3.x

CDN (for prototyping only):

<!-- Replace VERSION with latest v3.x from https://docs.mapbox.com/mapbox-gl-js/ -->
<script src="https://api.mapbox.com/mapbox-gl-js/vVERSION/mapbox-gl.js"></script>
<link href="https://api.mapbox.com/mapbox-gl-js/vVERSION/mapbox-gl.css" rel="stylesheet" />

Framework Requirements

React: GL JS works with React 16.8+ (requires hooks). create-web-app scaffolds with React 19.x. Vue: GL JS works with Vue 2.x+ (Vue 3 Composition API recommended). Svelte: GL JS works with any Svelte version. create-web-app scaffolds with Svelte 5.x. Angular: GL JS works with Angular 2+. create-web-app scaffolds with Angular 19.x. Next.js: Minimum 13.x (App Router), Pages Router 12.x+.

Mapbox Search JS

npm install @mapbox/search-js-react@^1.0.0      # React
npm install @mapbox/search-js-web@^1.0.0        # Other frameworks

Version Migration Notes (v2.x to v3.x)

• WebGL 2 now required
• optimizeForTerrain option removed
• Improved TypeScript types, better tree-shaking support
• No breaking changes to core initialization patterns

Token patterns (work in v2.x and v3.x):

const token = import.meta.env.VITE_MAPBOX_ACCESS_TOKEN; // Use env vars in production

// Global token (works since v1.x)
mapboxgl.accessToken = token;
const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ container: '...' });

// Per-map token (preferred for multi-map setups)
const map = new mapboxgl.Map({
  accessToken: token,
  container: '...'
});

Common Mistakes (Critical)

Mistake 1: Forgetting to call map.remove()

// BAD - Memory leak!
useEffect(() => {
  const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })
  // No cleanup function
}, [])

// GOOD - Proper cleanup
useEffect(() => {
  const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })
  return () => map.remove()  // Cleanup
}, [])

Why: Every Map instance creates WebGL contexts, event listeners, and DOM nodes. Without cleanup, these accumulate and cause memory leaks.

Mistake 2: Initializing map in render

// BAD - Infinite loop in React!
function MapComponent() {
  const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })  // Runs on every render
  return <div />
}

// GOOD - Initialize in effect
function MapComponent() {
  useEffect(() => {
    const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })
  }, [])
  return <div />
}

Why: React components re-render frequently. Creating a new map on every render causes infinite loops and crashes.

Mistake 3: Not storing map instance properly

// BAD - map variable lost between renders
function MapComponent() {
  useEffect(() => {
    let map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })
    // map variable is not accessible later
  }, [])
}

// GOOD - Store in useRef
function MapComponent() {
  const mapRef = useRef()
  useEffect(() => {
    mapRef.current = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })
    // mapRef.current accessible throughout component
  }, [])
}

Why: You need to access the map instance for operations like adding layers, markers, or calling remove().

Mistake 4: Storing map instance in Vue's data() (Vue-specific)

// BAD - Vue's reactivity wraps data() objects in a Proxy, breaking mapbox-gl internals!
export default {
  data() {
    return {
      map: null  // Will be wrapped in a Proxy
    }
  },
  mounted() {
    this.map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... })  // Proxy breaks GL internals
  }
}

// GOOD - Assign map as a plain instance property, not in data()
export default {
  mounted() {
    this.map = new mapboxgl.Map({
      container: this.$refs.mapContainer,
      center: [-71.05953, 42.3629],
      zoom: 13
    })
  },
  unmounted() {
    this.map?.remove()
  }
}

Why: In Vue (especially Vue 3), data() properties are wrapped in a Proxy for reactivity. Mapbox GL JS internally checks object identity and uses properties that don't survive proxy wrapping. Storing the map in data() causes subtle, hard-to-debug failures. Instead, assign the map instance directly as this.map in mounted() — properties assigned outside data() are not made reactive.

Mistake 5: Silent style/tile failures (no error handler)

// BAD — blank map when the token/style fails
const map = new mapboxgl.Map({ ... });

// GOOD — surface failures
map.on('error', (e) => {
  console.error(e.error || e);
  // optionally show an on-page error message
});

Mistake 6: Broken deck.gl CDN via jsDelivr +esm

<!-- BAD — often throws: does not provide export named 'makeBatchFromTable' -->
<script type="module">
  import { MapboxOverlay } from 'https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@deck.gl/mapbox@9.0.0/+esm';
</script>

<!-- GOOD — UMD bundle (or esm.sh) -->
<script src="https://unpkg.com/deck.gl@9.1.14/dist.min.js"></script>
<script>
  const { MapboxOverlay, ScatterplotLayer } = deck;
  map.addControl(
    new MapboxOverlay({
      interleaved: false,
      layers: [
        /* ... */
      ]
    })
  );
</script>

Use MapboxOverlay (Mapbox IControl), not a bare Deck as a map control.

Mistake 7: Draw toolbar without draw.create

If you load mapbox-gl-draw, listen for draw.create (and update the UI from draw.getAll()). Half-deleted handlers that leave a dangling }); crash the page.

Mistake 8: Layers lost after setStyle (no style.load rebind)

map.setStyle(...) replaces the style tree. Custom sources/layers/handlers added earlier are wiped unless you re-attach them.

function onStyleReady() {
  // re-add sources, layers, and interaction handlers here
}

map.on('style.load', onStyleReady);

document.querySelectorAll('[data-style]').forEach((btn) => {
  btn.addEventListener('click', () => {
    map.setStyle(btn.dataset.style);
    // do NOT only add layers on the first 'load' — wait for style.load after every switch
  });
});

Agent anti-pattern: style switcher buttons that call setStyle once with no style.load rebind. The first style works; every switch after looks broken.