Choosing a map type
Compare the ten map types by the data they expect and the features they support, and see what changes when you switch.
The quickest way to choose is to ask what a reader should take away from the map: individual places, how dense something is, how regions compare, how far you can travel, how something changed over time, or a story.
The ten map types
| Map type | Best for | Data it expects |
|---|---|---|
| Draw | Maps you build by hand: event sites, routes, annotated plans | Shapes you draw, or any file you import |
| Cluster | Many locations, from hundreds to thousands | Points |
| Heatmap | Where something is concentrated | Points, optionally with a numeric weight |
| Choropleth | Comparing countries, states or districts | One value per region |
| Isochrone | How far you can travel from a few places | Up to five starting points |
| Store Locator | A searchable directory of locations | Points with details such as address and opening hours |
| Time Slider | Change over time | Features with a date or time column |
| Story Map | A narrative, or a trip told stop by stop | Places, each with text and images |
| Crowdsourced Map | Collecting reports or suggestions from the public | Nothing — visitors submit pins |
| Compare | Before and after, or two datasets side by side | Two datasets, one per side |
Choropleth and Isochrone appear in the editor under their descriptive names, Region Map and Travel Time Map.
Features by map type
| Map type | Google Sheets sync | Search and filters for visitors | Data added with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | No | Yes | Drawing tools, or Import in the toolbar |
| Cluster | Yes | Yes | Import |
| Heatmap | Yes | Yes | Import |
| Choropleth | Yes | Yes | Regions picked from the catalog or imported, values from Import |
| Isochrone | No | Yes | Starting points placed on the map or imported |
| Store Locator | Yes | Built-in search and filter panel | Import, or locations added one by one |
| Time Slider | Yes | Yes | Import |
| Story Map | No | No | Chapters written in the editor, or imported |
| Crowdsourced Map | No | No | Visitor submissions |
| Compare | No | No | An upload for each side |
Importing files lists the file formats, and Search and filters explains the visitor search.
Changing the map type later
You can switch an existing map to another type under Map settings → General → Map type. Mapji asks you to confirm, then changes only the type.
Switching keeps the settings of the old type, so they come back if you switch back. Whether your data carries across depends on the two types:
- Draw, Cluster and Heatmap share one dataset. Switching between them shows the same features, drawn the new way.
- Every other type keeps its own data. Switching a Cluster map to a Store Locator, for example, shows an empty Store Locator. The cluster points are still there and return when you switch back.
Switching can lose data in three cases:
- Importing after a switch. Because Draw, Cluster and Heatmap share a dataset, an import into a Cluster or Heatmap map can replace a drawing. The import dialog selects Replace N existing features by default; choose Add to N existing features to keep what is there.
- Switching to Crowdsourced Map. A Crowdsourced Map uses the same dataset for its approved submissions. The first time you save its form, the dataset is replaced with the approved submissions, so a drawing or the points from a Cluster or Heatmap map are gone.
- A connected Google Sheet. The sheet keeps syncing after a switch. If the new type also supports Sheets, the next change to the sheet is written into the new type's data — and on a Cluster or Heatmap map that was a Draw map, it replaces the drawing. Disconnect the sheet first if you don't want that.