Style data layers

This document explains how to change the visual appearance of data layers in your Google Earth projects, whether they are from the Google Earth data catalog or layers you've imported yourself. Styling helps you emphasize patterns, differentiate features, and create compelling maps.

Access styling options

To style a data layer:

  1. Open your project in Google Earth.
  2. In the Map Contents panel on the left, select the data layer you want to style to open an inspector panel with details and options for that layer.
  3. Click the Style tab or icon within the inspector panel to access the style editor.

Key styling concepts

  • Project-specific styles: Any style changes you make to a layer are saved only within the current project. The layer's default appearance in other projects or in the Google Earth data catalog remains unaffected.
  • Real-time updates: As you adjust style settings, the map and the layer's legend will update immediately to reflect your changes.
  • Collaboration: All editors in a shared project see the same layer styles. Changes made by one editor are visible to others. Similar to other project edits, a refresh may be necessary.
  • Reset to default: You can usually find an option to revert your layer's style back to its original default appearance. This is particularly useful for Google Earth data catalog layers with pre-configured styling.

Styling methods

You can choose different methods to apply styles across your layer. To choose a method, select the attribute you want to style.

Method Description
Uniform styling
  • Apply a single, consistent style to all features in the layer. This is useful for making a whole layer distinct or for basic visualizations.

Example: Style all water bodies in an imported layer with a semi-transparent blue fill.
Categorical styling
  • Style features based on unique values in a specific data attribute (field). This works for attributes containing text or numbers.
  • Distinct colors or styles are assigned to each category. You can typically style up to 20 unique categories, with any additional values grouped into an "Other" category.

Example: Color a "Zoning" layer by the "Zone Type" attribute (for example, Residential, Commercial, Industrial).
Numerical styling
  • Visualize numerical data attributes using a color gradient. Features with lower values will be shaded towards one end of the ramp, and higher values towards the other.

Example: Style a layer of census tracts by "Median Income" using a ramp from light yellow to dark blue.

Adjust style properties

Once you've chosen a method, you can adjust various visual properties.

Points, lines, and polygons

  • Fill color: Change the interior color of polygons or the color of points.
  • Stroke color: Change the color of lines or the outlines of polygons.
  • Stroke width: Adjust the thickness of lines or outlines.
  • Opacity: Control the transparency of fills and strokes.

Labels

  • Visibility: Toggle all labels for the layer on or off.
  • Font size and color: Adjust the size and color of the label text to improve readability.

Dynamic legends

The legend displayed for your data layer in the Layers panel will automatically update to reflect the styling method and properties you apply, helping viewers understand the map. For user-imported layers, attribute names in the legend will appear as they are in the source file.