The quick answer
- Use square grids for dungeon crawls, tactical combat, D&D 5e encounters, and indoor maps
- Use hex grids for overland travel, exploration maps, wargame-style battles, and systems designed for hex
Most DMs default to square for good reason — D&D's rules assume it. But hex has real advantages in specific situations.
Square grids: strengths
Rules compatibility
D&D 5e, Pathfinder 2e, and most popular TTRPGs write their rules around 5-foot squares. Area-of-effect spells, movement speeds, reach, and flanking all reference square geometry. Using squares means you never have to interpret rules for a different grid type.
Architectural alignment
Buildings have right angles. Corridors are straight. Doors are flat against walls. Square grids align naturally with human-made structures, making dungeon mapping intuitive.
VTT support
All VTTs support square grids with full token snapping. Hex support varies — some VTTs handle it well, others have quirks with token placement or measurement.
Simpler math
Counting squares is easy. 5 squares = 25 feet. No diagonal ambiguity (using the optional 5/10/5 rule is straightforward). Players can quickly calculate movement and range.
Square grids: weaknesses
Diagonal distortion
Moving diagonally on a square grid technically covers more distance than moving orthogonally (√2 × 5 ≈ 7 feet vs 5 feet). D&D handwaves this, but it creates corner-cutting advantages in tactical play.
Unnatural outdoor terrain
Natural landscapes don't have right angles. Rivers, coastlines, and forest edges look jagged on a square grid. Hex smooths these curves.
Direction bias
Square grids create 4 "easy" directions and 4 "diagonal" directions. This can make formation play and flanking feel artificial in open terrain.
Hex grids: strengths
Equal distances
Every hex cell is equidistant from all six neighbors. Movement costs the same in every direction — no diagonal discount or penalty. This is mathematically cleaner for open-field movement.
Natural terrain
Coastlines, rivers, and organic terrain boundaries look better on hex. There are no jaggy stair-step edges. Overland maps benefit enormously from hex.
Exploration focus
Hex maps are ideal for travel-oriented play: domain-level exploration, wilderness crawls, and point-to-point navigation. Each hex represents a discrete area to discover.
Wargaming heritage
Many wargames and hex-native RPGs (GURPS, some OSR systems, Traveller) use hex explicitly. If your system supports it, hex is the natural fit.
Hex grids: weaknesses
Rule translation
D&D spells say "20-foot radius" or "30-foot cone." Translating these to hex requires interpretation. Is a cone 3 hexes wide at the end, or 4? Groups need to agree on conversions.
Indoor mapping
Buildings with hex grids look odd. Walls don't align to hex edges cleanly. Rooms become irregular shapes. Most DMs switch to square for interiors even in hex-heavy campaigns.
VTT inconsistency
Not all VTTs handle hex equally well. Token snapping, line-of-sight tools, and measurement widgets may have bugs or limitations with hex grids.
Player familiarity
Most players learned RPGs on square grids. Hex requires a brief learning curve for movement counting and area effects.
Practical recommendations
Use square when:
- Running D&D 5e or Pathfinder with standard combat rules
- Mapping dungeons, buildings, or urban encounters
- Players are new to grid-based combat
- Your VTT's hex support is limited
Use hex when:
- Running overland exploration or wilderness crawls
- Playing hex-native systems (GURPS, Traveller, OSR hex-crawls)
- Movement direction equality matters for your encounter design
- Building world maps or regional maps
The hybrid approach
Most experienced DMs use both:
- World map: Hex (6-mile hexes for exploration)
- Regional map: Hex (1-mile hexes for travel)
- Battle map: Square (5-foot squares for combat)
This gives you the best of both systems without forcing either into a role it's not suited for.
In RPG Map Editor
RPG Map Editor uses square grids optimized for battle map creation and PNG handoff to VTTs. For tactical encounter prep — which is what most battle maps are for — square grids give you a cleaner workflow and more predictable VTT alignment.
For a deeper dive into grid decisions, see our hex map vs square grid guide.
Try it yourself
Open the editor and start painting your next battle map — free, in your browser.