Satellite, Terrain or Street Map: Which Should You Use?

Updated 6 October 2026

Use Light for print and slides, Satellite when the real landscape matters, Terrain for hills and rivers, and Streets for city detail. There are ten views in all, and switching between them is instant, so you can try several in seconds.

The main views

• Satellite. Real photographs from above. It shows forests, fields, coastlines and buildings, so it is ideal for sites, estates, farms and trips where the landscape is part of the story.
• Hybrid. Satellite with place and road labels added, helpful when readers need to recognise where they are.
• Terrain. Hills, valleys and rivers drawn with shading and contour lines. Excellent for hiking, cycling and geography.
• Streets. A familiar road map with names and landmarks. The clear choice for city maps and directions.
• Light. A pale grey, minimal map. It is calm and uses little ink, so your pins and shading stand out. The best all-rounder for print, reports and slides.
• Dark. A dark minimal map that makes bright markers glow. It suits dark slides, dashboards and dramatic images.

The Oceans, Regions, Antique and Charted views are specialist styles. Try them when the standard views do not fit the mood, for example an old-chart look for a history project.

Choose by purpose

• Printing at home or at a print shop: Light, or Streets for a busy city. Satellite uses a lot of ink and can look dark on paper.
• Slides and presentations: Light on a white deck, Dark on a dark deck.
• Outdoor and adventure maps: Terrain, or Hybrid when you need to see trails and tree cover.
• Property, farm or site plans: Satellite or Hybrid.
• Business locations and service areas: Light or Streets, so your zones are easy to read.
• Travel keepsakes: Light for a clean look, Satellite for a dramatic one.

Match the view to your markers

Bright red, orange and yellow markers pop on Light and Dark. On Satellite, avoid green markers over fields and blue ones over water, and choose white, yellow or red instead. On Terrain, the shading is busy, so use larger markers with a clear outline. The colour guide has safe pairs for every view.

How zoom changes things

Each view has a maximum zoom. Satellite and Streets go deepest, while some specialist styles stop sooner. If the map goes blank when you zoom in, step back one level.

Credits come with the view

Every image carries the credits for its map source automatically, so you can publish it confidently. Please leave them in place.

A quick way to decide

1. Will it be printed? Choose Light or Streets.
2. Does the landscape matter? Choose Satellite, Hybrid or Terrain.
3. Do people need street names? Choose Streets or Hybrid.
4. Is the slide dark? Choose Dark.
5. Still unsure? Choose Light. Almost every marker colour looks good on it.

Real-world examples

• A hiking club showing a weekend trail uses Terrain, with large orange markers at the start, the summit and the finish.
• A property agent showing a plot and the road beside it uses Satellite with a bright yellow marker.
• A charity listing its clinics across a country uses Light, one colour per region and a legend.
• A teacher making a map for a history lesson uses the Antique view to give it an old-chart feel.

Changing the view never moves your markers, so there is no cost to experimenting. Make two or three versions, compare them at the size they will be seen, and keep the one that reads best.

Final checks before you download

Zoom in and out once to be sure the markers still read clearly at the size the image will be seen. Check that names do not sit on top of busy areas such as dense streets or forests, and use Auto-arrange if they do. Make sure the credits at the foot of the image are visible, and look at the result on the screen or paper where it will really appear. A thirty-second review catches most problems before anyone else sees them.

Common questions

Which view is the fastest to load?

Light and Streets are the lightest. Satellite photographs take a little longer on a slow connection.

Can I change the view after placing markers?

Yes. Your markers stay exactly where they are. Switch views as often as you like and download the one you prefer.

Which view looks best for one highlighted country?

Light, with a medium shade colour. See the country highlight guide for the steps. You can try every view in the Map Studio.