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16. Layout Design

Goal: Compose a polished map page with map frames, legend, scale bar, north arrow, title, and source — ready for PDF or print.

→ For design principles, see Cartography & Map Design.

Layout vs Map

Map Layout
2D drawing surface, just the data A page that displays one or more maps
Endless extent Fixed paper size (Letter, Tabloid, A3, custom)
One per project (or many) One per project (or many)

You build analysis in a map. You publish it in a layout.

Create a layout

Insert ribbon → New Layout → pick a paper size and orientation.

A layout has:

  • A page of fixed size
  • One or more map frames (windows into a map)
  • Layout elements: text, legend, scale bar, north arrow, image, dynamic text, table

Map frames

Insert ribbon → Map Frame → drag a rectangle on the page → pick a map.

Each map frame is independent: zoom, extent, rotation are set per frame.

To zoom inside a frame:

  1. Activate it (right-click → Activate Map Frame) — the map becomes interactive inside the layout.
  2. Pan/zoom to your desired view.
  3. Layout ribbon → Close Activation to lock the view.

The 6 essential elements (ribbon → Insert)

Element Tip
Title Big, bold, top-left or top-center
Legend Right side, only the layers visible in the active map frame
Scale Bar Pick "Scale Line 1" or "Stepped Scale Line", attach to the map frame
North Arrow Subtle, small, only when needed
Text Sources, projection note, author. 8pt+.
Map Frame Inset Locator/inset map showing context

Dynamic text

In Insert → Text → Dynamic Text dropdown, you can drop in tags that auto-update:

  • <Date> → today's date
  • <MapFrame Name="..."> → name of the frame
  • <Project Name>
  • <MapFrame Name="MainMap" Property="ScaleText"> → 1:24,000 (live)

Use these so your map metadata stays in sync.

Guides and snapping

Layout ribbon → Guides → drop horizontal/vertical guides at fixed positions. Layout ribbon → Snap to Guides = on. Now elements line up perfectly.

Locator (inset) map

For a city map with a state inset:

  1. Insert → Map Frame → make it small, in a corner.
  2. Inside the small frame, set extent to the state.
  3. Add a rectangle showing the city's extent.
  4. Right-click frame → Properties → Extent → Linked to the main frame so the rectangle auto-updates.

Ungrouped vs grouped legends

A long legend can be split into multiple columns or grouped (Legend → Format Legend Item → Show Headings).

Tips:

  • Drop the legend title (it's redundant with the map title).
  • Round numeric labels ($50K, not $49,873).
  • Hide the layer name if it's obvious from the legend symbols.

Color & branding

Save your palette and fonts as a Style (.stylx) to reuse across maps. Insert → Symbol → New Style. Add styles you've built. Apply across projects.

Confirm your scale before exporting. The map's scale bar and the map frame's scale should match. Set explicit scale: select map frame → ribbon → Activate → set the Scale dropdown at bottom-left.

Practice

First professional layout

  1. Open your choropleth map.
  2. Insert → New Layout (Letter, Landscape).
  3. Add a map frame using the choropleth map.
  4. Add: title, subtitle, legend, scale bar, north arrow, source line, dynamic date.
  5. Add a small inset showing the state location.
  6. Align everything with guides.

You'll keep tweaking. The first one always takes a while; the second is half the time.

→ Next: Exporting Maps.