How to set the default basemap

Pick the background map that loads for every viewer under Default basemap in the layer panel, and use the Labels, Roads, POIs, and Boundaries chips.

Picking a basemap under Default basemap sets the background that loads for every viewer. Supported backgrounds also provide Labels, Roads, POIs, and Boundaries chips so you can remove competing context. The pick is per-map (not account-wide); for viewers to switch their own session basemap, enable the Basemap chooser tool.

See it on an example map

Open the Utilities Showcase. Look at the map when it loads. It opens with the Outdoors basemap. Point at the basemap thumbnail at the bottom left to see the other basemaps.

Before you start

You need edit access to the map.
Decide which basemap fits the map’s purpose before opening the panel — see Available basemaps for the list with descriptions. Quiet options such as Smooth or Toner Lite work well when data layers carry the colour; OSM Bright and Outdoors provide more context.

Open the layer panel

From the map toolbar, open Manage Layers to bring up the layer panel.

Find the Default basemap section

Scroll to the bottom of the layer panel. The Default basemap section is at the bottom.

Manage layers panel on World Atlas with the Default basemap section at its foot: the Default basemap header and information icon, the Outdoors basemap dropdown, and the Labels, Roads, POIs, and Boundaries chips

The section shows:

The header Default basemap with an information icon explaining whether viewers can also switch basemaps.
A dropdown with the current basemap selected (or Select basemap if none is configured).
Variant chips when the selected basemap offers several styles.
Overlay chips for Labels, Roads, POIs, and Boundaries when the selected basemap supports them.

Pick a basemap

Click the dropdown and choose Smooth, Outdoors, Terrain, OSM Bright, Satellite, Toner, Watercolor, or Colour. If the option has variants, choose the variant chip that appears below the dropdown.

The map redraws at once and the change saves. Your overlay chip choices carry over to the new basemap.

For a full description of every basemap option, see Available basemaps.

(Optional) Pick a solid colour

If you picked the Colour option in the dropdown, a colour picker appears. Pick a colour. The map redraws with the solid fill.

A solid-colour basemap is useful for editorial-style maps where the basemap shouldn’t compete with the data. The four basemap filters don’t apply when Colour is selected — there’s nothing to filter.

(Optional) simplify the basemap overlays

For supported basemaps, active chips indicate that Labels, Roads, POIs, or Boundaries are shown. Click a chip to hide that content; click it again to restore it. A disabled chip is not available for that basemap.

Labels hides the basemap’s place, street, water, and landscape names. It doesn’t hide points of interest.
POIs hides points of interest and their names.
The chips change only the basemap. They never hide your own layers or sketches.

Watercolor and Colour do not offer overlay controls. Each overlay change saves immediately.

What happens for viewers

If Map Extensions allows the basemap chooser, viewers see a basemap chooser in the map toolbar (not the layer panel — viewers don’t see the layer panel). They can pick a different basemap for their session only.

The information icon next to the Default basemap header tells you which path is active for this map:

Default basemap information icon tooltip on World Atlas, which has the basemap chooser off: End users cannot switch basemaps. Enable in Map Extensions.

“Basemap switching is available to end users.” — viewers can switch their session basemap.
“End users cannot switch basemaps. Enable in Map Extensions.” — viewers see only the basemap you set as default.

Verify the default

Open the map in a fresh tab (or sign out and view as a viewer). The basemap should match what you saved.

If the basemap doesn’t load

A few common issues:

Browser caching. A hard refresh (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+R) usually resolves a stale basemap.