Tableau Maps are convenient for visualizing geographical data. In this article, we will show you how to Create regular Maps with an example. For this Maps demo, we are going to use World Indicators data sources that come with the desktop.
Create Maps in Tableau
There are multiple ways to create Maps in Tableau. And in this article, we will explain all of them.
Drag and drop any Geographic field to the Row or Column shelf, and selecting the icon in the Show Me window will automatically create a Map. In this example, we will drag the Country dimension to the Columns Shelf.
Next, Drag and Drop the Total Population from Tableau Measures Region to Rows Shelf. Since it is a Measure value, the Total Population will aggregate to the default Sum.
Let me change that Bar Chart into a World. To do so, Please expand the Show Me window and select the marked option from it.
Once you choose this from the Show Me window, Tableau Map will be displayed. From the below-shown screenshot, you can see the Row and column Shelf filled with generated Latitude and Longitudes. And Country will be added to Detail Card, and Total Population will add to Columns Card.
You can highlight any country to see that Country population
Second Approach
Double-click on any Geographic field such as Postcode, City, State, or Country will automatically create a Tableau Map. In this example, we will double-click on the Country dimension. From the below screenshot, you can see that the desktop has created a Symbol for you. Here, it added the Latitude to Row shelf, Longitude to Column shelf, and Country Name to Details Card in Marks Shelf.
To convert the Symbols, you can either click on the marked one from the Show Me window or change the Marks type from Automatic to Map.
Either way, it will generate the below for you.
Let us add Population Total to the Colors card in Marks Shelf. It will add color to every country based on its Population.
Create Maps in Tableau – Third Approach
Drag and drop any Geographic field on the Details card will automatically create a Map. In this example, we will drag the Country Name dimension to the Details card present in Marks Shelf.
Now you can see the auto-generated symbol. Use either of the approaches mentioned above to convert the Symbol to Map.
Add Data labels to Maps in Tableau
To add data labels to Maps, Please click on the Show Mark Labels button in the Toolbar. Though it looks odd, you get the idea of adding data labels.
Change Colors
Until now, you saw the Tableau Maps with the default colors, but you have an option to change the default colors. To do so, click the drop-down menu beside the SUM(Population Total) color legend or right-click on the Color bar. Both of them will open the below-shown context menu. From that, please select the Edit Colors… option.
Once you choose the Edit Colors… option, the following window will open. Click the drop-down arrow under the Palette and select the color as per your specification. For now, we are choosing Gold-Purple Diverging. Remember, by clicking the Advanced button, you can specify the Start Point, End Point, and Center as well.
Now you can see it with the Gold-Purple Diverging color schema.
