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How to make a custom map

2026-11-01

Maps are a good way to show where you have been, what you want to see, or how any data varies from place to place. This guide shows how to make a map with MapsMake, from picking the area to sharing the finished picture. You can start without an account.

Pick the right map maker

MapsMake has a separate maker for each area, so you start with the right shapes:

• The world map maker colours countries and territories. The visited countries map starts with a counter and a ready-made legend.
• The US map maker shows the 50 states plus DC, and the US county map maker shows counties. The visited states map is a ready-made travel map.
• There are makers for individual continents: Europe, Africa, Asia, North America, South America and Oceania.
• The general map maker lets you choose the area, including a single country divided into its regions, and use your own map file.

Step 1: paint regions

A map has categories, and each category has a name and a colour. A new map starts with a couple of categories, for example "Visited" and "Want to go". To paint:

1. Pick a category in the Paint with list.
2. Click a region, or click and drag across several, to paint them with that colour.
3. Right-click to clear a region.

You can use the keyboard too. Use the arrow keys to move between regions, press Enter to paint, press Delete to clear, or just start typing a region's name.

Step 2: paint many regions at once

If you already have a list in your head, use Paste to paint. Type or paste one line for each category in the form Texas, Ohio: Visited or Japan = Want to go, and MapsMake paints the matching regions. It understands common names and abbreviations, and if it can't match something it tells you which names were not recognised and suggests the likely region ("did you mean…").

Step 3: set up your categories and legend

Open the map settings to change how the map reads:

• Add categories for each group you need, and rename or recolour them. Drag to reorder.
• Give categories a pattern such as hatching or dots as well as a colour. Patterns help people who can't tell certain colours apart, and they survive black-and-white printing.
• Turn the legend on, change its title and position, and show a count of regions for each category.
• Add a counter to show a headline number such as "37 countries".

Pick colours with enough contrast between categories. If you have more than four or five categories, patterns are especially helpful.

Step 4: choose how borders are drawn

Borders in some places are disputed, and different governments draw them differently. MapsMake lets you choose a point of view under "Borders as seen by", for example the default de facto view or the view used by a specific country. The choice is stored in the chart, so readers see the map as you intended. It is a presentation setting and not a statement about any territory.

Other settings let you:

• show or hide labels on regions, with a minimum size so that small regions do not crowd the map;
• add zoom insets for small regions that would be hard to see, such as islands;
• change the border colour, background colour and the default colour of unpainted regions.

Step 5: colour by data instead of by hand

You do not have to paint every region yourself. If your map is about data such as population, sales or scores, you can import a table (CSV or a Google Sheets link) with a column for the region name and a column for the value, and colour the map from it. MapsMake matches names and codes (country names, ISO codes, US postal codes) for you.

Step 6: use your own map file

If the area you need isn't built in, upload a GeoJSON or TopoJSON file in the general map maker. Choose a projection that suits the area: Equal Earth for the world, Albers for countries such as the United States, Lambert azimuthal equal-area for regional maps, or Mercator for familiar web-map shapes. Keep files simple, because very detailed boundaries make the chart slow to load and edit; MapsMake simplifies large shapes for you.

Step 7: export and share

When the map is ready:

• Export it as PNG, SVG or PDF. SVG keeps the shapes sharp when you print or edit them.
• Publish it to get a link, and choose whether it is public, unlisted or private.
• Embed it on a website using the embed code.

Every published map has a text description for screen readers, and the data behind it can be reached with the keyboard.

Tips for better maps

1. Fewer categories read better. Three or four is a good target.
2. Tell readers what the colours mean. Always show the legend unless the meaning is obvious.
3. Mind small regions. Add insets or labels for places that are tiny at world scale.
4. Say where the data comes from in the description, and give the date.
5. Check the borders. If your audience cares about disputed areas, select a suitable point of view.

Ready to start? Open the map maker and click your first region.