US State Map with Bubbles

A map of the United States shows a comparison of measurement values among US States.

The following steps demonstrate how to create a new map visual on the dataset US County Population [data source samples.us_counties]. This produces a map with bubble marks that correspond to the total population of each state.

Tip. Remember that to map state information, the dimension must be named state. This article demonstrates how to use the Alias setting to make the dataset field stname conform to this requirement.
  1. Start a new visual based on dataset US County Population [data source samples.us_counties]; see Creating Visuals.
  2. In the visuals menu, find and click Map (row 5, column 1).

    selecting map chart type
  3. Note that the shelves of the visual changed. They are now X, Y, Geo, Measures, Drill, Tooltips, and Filters.

    The only mandatory shelf for map visuals is Geo.

    shelves of map visual type
  4. Populate the shelves from the available fields (Dimensions, Measures, and so on) in the Data menu.

    • Under Dimensions, select stname and drag it over the Geo shelf on the main part of the screen. Drop to add it to the shelf.

      Click on the field to open the Field Properties menu, expand the Change Type option, and select the Geo Type State.

      assigning geo type to field in visual
    • Under Measures, select tot_pop and drag it over the Measures shelf on the main part of the screen. Drop to add it to the shelf.
  5. For population, click the icon (down arrow), select Display Format,Category Number, remove decimal places, and select the thousands separator option. Click Save.

    Number formating for population
  6. Change the map from choropleth to bubble marks, as described in Displaying Bubbles on Maps.
  7. Adjust the size range of the marks to 1-10, as described in Changing the Mark Size Range.
  8. [Optional] Change the color palette or simple reverse it, as described in Change Color Palette and Reverse Color Palette.
  9. [Optional] Alias the field stname as State, and sum(tot_pop) as Population; see Alias.

  10. [Optional] Enable panning and zooming option, as described in Customizing Zoom.
  11. Click Refresh Visual.

    The map visual appears.

  12. Click (pencil icon) next to the title of the visualization to edit it, and enter the new name.

  13. Change the title to US State Population - Bubbles.
  14. At the top left corner of the Visual Designer, click Save.

Your visual should appear somewhat like this:

You can move the visual (pan), zoom in and out, and see the details in the Tooltips text.