---
title: "Map design | Guides"
description: "Design custom map styles with our no-code editor tool."
---

> For AI agents: a documentation index is available at [/llms.txt](https://docs.maptiler.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of all pages are available by appending .md to any URL.

# Map design

Need a map with custom look? No problem, our no-code [**Map Designer**](https://cloud.maptiler.com/maps/editor) tool makes that possible. You can define every single aspect of a map’s visual style to get exactly the result you need. 👉 [Get started with Map Designer](https://docs.maptiler.com/guides/map-design/maps-and-styles-basics/)

Note

Note that map design is about styling elements on the map, such as lines or icons, which is only possible on maps that use [vector tiles](https://docs.maptiler.com/guides/how-maps-work/raster-vector-tiles/). Customizability of maps that only consist of raster tiles (standard images) is very limited. Likewise, if you need to create a map using your own imagery, you won’t be “designing” the map but rather [adding your images](https://docs.maptiler.com/guides/map-data/add-your-data/#add-images) on top of an existing map as an overlay.

## Tutorials

Many tasks in map design can be achieved in two ways: programmatically using our [SDK JS](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/), or in our visual [map design editor](https://cloud.maptiler.com/maps/editor). We have tutorials for both:

-   [Developer tutorials](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/) and code examples for the SDK JS
-   [No code tutorials](https://docs.maptiler.com/guides/map-design/) for the visual editor

### Use dark mode

We have distinctive [light](https://www.maptiler.com/maps/light/) and [dark](https://www.maptiler.com/maps/dark/) map modes, so you can simply use them via presets in our [SDK JS](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/) without having to design them first. 👉 [How to use the dark mode](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/?q=dark+mode)

## Advanced resources

Our online resources include all our maps, additional data that you can enhance the maps with, and detailed specifications of both to help you out with advanced design tasks.

### Map styles

A map consists of two things: raw map data and a **map style** document (JSON), which defines the design of the map and visual styling of the data in it.

-   [Available map styles](https://cloud.maptiler.com/maps/) for instant use or customization
-   [GL style specification](https://docs.maptiler.com/gl-style-specification/) for advanced style config and creating map styles by hand

### Datasets

Raw map data come in **datasets** of several types. Most MapTiler data is packaged in **tilesets** containing [map tiles](https://docs.maptiler.com/google-maps-coordinates-tile-bounds-projection/) ready for building zoomable maps.

-   [Available datasets](https://cloud.maptiler.com/tiles/) with global, up-to-date data to add to your maps
-   [Dataset documentation](https://docs.maptiler.com/guides/how-maps-work/maptiler-datasets/) to learn what datasets we offer and how to use them
-   [Schemas](https://docs.maptiler.com/schema/) with detailed description of our vector tilesets