How to Add Custom Labels and Callouts to Map Videos

A map without labels makes viewers guess, and a map with default labels looks like a screenshot. Custom labels and callouts are what make a map video read like a finished graphic.

Open the Text panel

Click any pin or label on the map and the Text panel opens. This is Label Styler, and everything below happens inside it. There's no layer wrangling and no separate title tool. The text lives on the map and animates with it.

Style, then time

1. Pick a font and size that survive small screens. Bold weights and generous sizing beat elegance at 9:16.
2. Add a halo in a contrasting color so text stays legible over busy terrain and road networks.
3. Draw a callout line when the label needs to sit away from a crowded pin. Coastal cities and dense metro areas usually need one.
4. Set each label's reveal animation so names appear exactly when the story reaches them, not all at once.

Where callouts do the most work

Lesson maps are the classic case, with dates and facts attached to places, as covered in the teacher's guide to animated maps in the classroom. Labels also pair naturally with region reveals: when you highlight a country with an animated border, a delayed label reveal gives the name its own beat.

Make sure the basemap flatters your text. You can adjust land, water, and road colors in Theme Studio.