Sample CSV
| Country | CO2 per Capita (tonnes) |
|---|---|
| United States | 14.2 |
| Germany | 8.1 |
| China | 7.6 |
| Brazil | 2.2 |
| India | 1.9 |
| Nigeria | 0.6 |
How to Create a Choropleth Map
A step by step walkthrough for turning a spreadsheet of place names and numbers into a published choropleth map in PlotSet, from matching region names to exporting or embedding the finished map.
About 8 minutesPlace names and numbers go in; how to create a choropleth map in PlotSet comes out the other side as a published, interactive map you can share or embed. You will end up with regions shaded by your own values, a color scale that actually fits the data, and a legend that tells the reader what the shading means: not a screenshot of somebody else's country list with your numbers dropped in.
If your spreadsheet already uses the exact place names PlotSet's map template recognizes, this takes about eight minutes. Add another ten if you are starting from a report full of abbreviations, ISO codes or older country names: matching those to the template's region list is the part that eats time, not the styling. Budget the eight minutes below and treat the rest as a buffer.
The data you need
One row per region, two columns: the place name first, matching how the template labels its regions, and the number second. One header row, no totals row.
Use the same place names the map template uses, not abbreviations or codes. "USA" or "US" often will not match a region labeled "United States", and a mismatch drops that row's shading instead of throwing an error.
One number per region. If you want two years side by side, that calls for two separate maps or a time slider, not two columns crammed into one choropleth.
Leave regions you have no data for out of the sheet entirely, rather than filling them with a zero. PlotSet gives any region with no matching row a distinct no-data color; a zero would shade it like a real low value instead.
Delete any totals or world-aggregate row before uploading. A "Global" or "World" row has no matching region on the map, so it gets ignored, but it is cleaner to remove it at the source than to rely on that.
The steps
The exact click path in PlotSet, from a blank template to a finished chart.
- 01
Open the Choropleth Map template
From the PlotSet dashboard, start a new project and choose the Choropleth Map template. It loads with a world map and sample data already in place, so you can see the place-name and value columns the template expects before swapping in your own file.
Every guide starts here. Pick the category, then the template: it is the same grid whichever chart type you are after. - 02
Pick the map that matches your data's geography
Choose world countries, or one of the state, province and county maps in the template library if your rows sit below the country level. Settling this first avoids a second round of place-name matching once you realize the template you started with is the wrong scale.
- 03
Shape your sheet into a place column and a value column
Put the region name in the first column and its number in the second, one row per region. Use standard names rather than abbreviations, ISO codes or postal codes: whatever format the map template's region list expects.
- 04
Upload the file, or connect a sheet
Use the data panel to import a CSV or .xlsx file, paste rows directly from a spreadsheet, or connect a Google Sheet so the map can pick up updated figures later without a re-upload.
The data view, shown here on a bar chart project. Upload a CSV, lift the numbers out of an image with Magic Import, or sync a Google Sheet. The panel is identical for every chart type. - 05
Check the unmatched-region list
After upload, confirm which column PlotSet read as the place name and which as the value. Then look at the unmatched list it shows: any row whose name did not find a region on the map lands there, and it is almost always a spelling or naming difference you can fix in seconds.
Bindings decide which column becomes the label, which supplies the values and which drives the colour. Auto Binding guesses them from your headers, so check it rather than assume it. - 06
Choose a color scale and set the no-data color
Use a single-hue sequential scale, light to dark, for ordinary low-to-high figures, and switch to a diverging scale only when your numbers have a real midpoint, such as zero or a national average. Set a distinct gray for regions with no matching data so missing never reads as low.
The Preview tab for a Choropleth Map. Every styling control lives in the outlined panel, each on its own tab: appearance, header, footer and the options specific to this chart type. - 07
Add a legend and a title that names the measure
Turn on the legend so the shading has a key, and title the map with what is being measured, "CO2 emissions per capita" rather than just "Map". A reader should know what the color means before they hover over a single region.
- 08
Publish, embed or export the map
Publish for a live, interactive map with hover tooltips and a shareable link, grab the embed code to drop it into a page, or export a PNG, SVG or PDF if you need a static image for a deck or a report.
Start from the Choropleth Map template with sample data already loaded, then swap in your own.
Open the templatePublish, embed or export it
The last stretch is the same for every chart type: Share turns the chart into a live public link and an embed code, Export writes it out as a static file.
Share: public link and embed code
Activating the embed code and public link publishes the chart. The link is safe to send to anyone, and the embed code drops into any page as an iframe that keeps the hover tooltips and the interactivity. Edit the chart later and hit Recreate to push those changes out to both.
Export: SVG, PNG or JPG
Export writes a static copy at whatever size you need. SVG stays sharp at any scale and can still be edited in a design tool; PNG and JPG are the safe choices for slides and documents. The scale multiplier is what gets you a crisp image on a retina screen.
Styling tips for a Choropleth Map
Match names to the template, not to each other
PlotSet's map templates use a fixed list of region names per geography. Before uploading, check your trickier entries (small countries, disputed territories, recently renamed regions) against the template's own list rather than assuming your source spreadsheet's spelling counts as standard.
Shade rates, not raw counts
Land area does not track population, so a map colored by total count usually just redraws where people live. Convert to a rate, share or per-capita figure before shading, and save the raw totals for a bar chart instead.
Keep one level of geography per map
A single choropleth should shade one scale at a time: country, or state, not both mixed together. If you need a national overview and state-level detail, build two maps rather than combining region sizes on one, which breaks the color scale's comparison.
Label the no-data color in the legend
A gray swatch with no explanation leaves the reader guessing whether it means zero or unknown. Label it "No data" directly in the legend so the distinction is stated, not inferred from context.
Common mistakes when making a Choropleth Map
Regions are missing shading even though they're in your sheet
This is almost always a name mismatch: your sheet says "USA" or "Ivory Coast" while the map template expects "United States" or "Côte d'Ivoire". Open the unmatched-rows list PlotSet shows after upload and correct the spelling for each name it flags, then re-upload.
The map looks like a population map, not your actual metric
Check whether you uploaded a raw count instead of a rate. Totals shade almost any map the same way a population map would, since bigger, denser regions post bigger numbers regardless of what you meant to measure. Divide by population or another sensible denominator and re-upload.
Missing regions look identical to low values
If every unshaded region sits at the same pale end of the scale as your lowest real values, the no-data color was probably never set. Open the color settings, assign a distinct gray to no-data, and leave regions you have no figure for out of the sheet entirely.
Learn more about the Choropleth Map
Not sure the Choropleth Map is the right choice? See what it is, when to use it and when not to.
Choropleth Map: common questions
One column of place names and one column of numbers, with one row per region and one header row. The place names need to match the names the map template uses, standard country or state names rather than abbreviations or ISO codes, or that row's region will not get shaded.
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