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The Garmin .img format is what Garmin devices use to store the maps for its GPS units. The img files contain a header and many subfiles. Img's filestore is based on FAT system.^[1] Some old GPS units are not able to work with multiple img files so they need to be merged into one file called gmapsupp.img using programs like Mapsource.^[2]

The IMG file contains the needed information for rendering a map on a Garmin GPS unit, and may support autorouting information for those GPS units that offer navigation (i.e. in-car GPS routers and some types of devices intended for hikers).^[2]

The .img file is basically a hard-disk image (complete with partition table) containing a filesystem which itself contains subfiles that provide the functionality for the Garmin GPS unit. The filesystem seems to be "flat": that is, it doesn't directly support the concept of subdirectories, however the .GMP subfiles do provide a kind-of subdirectory structure.^[2]

Programs that read .img format

• Mapsource
• GPSMapEdit

Programs that write .img format

• CGSPMapper
• Mapwel
• mkgmap

Open Source Tools for .img Format

Garmin IMG Format This program is designed to aid in the decoding of Garmin IMG files. It hexdumps the IMG file side-by-side with plain-text descriptions of what the particular bytes in the file represent.^[3]