---
title: "Variable label placement | JavaScript maps SDK"
description: "Dynamically shift label positions to keep them visible."
---
> 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.
# Variable label placement
Use [`text-variable-anchor`](https://docs.maptiler.com/gl-style-specification/layers/#layout-symbol-text-variable-anchor) feature to enable the relocation of high-priority labels to ensure their visibility on the map.
### NPM module setup
```bash
npm install --save @maptiler/sdk
```
#### main.js
```js
import { Map, MapStyle, config } from '@maptiler/sdk';
import '@maptiler/sdk/dist/maptiler-sdk.css';
config.apiKey = 'YOUR_MAPTILER_API_KEY_HERE';
const places = {
'type': 'FeatureCollection',
'features': [
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': "Ford's Theater",
'icon': 'theatre'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.038659, 38.931567]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': 'The Gaslight',
'icon': 'theatre'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.003168, 38.894651]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': "Horrible Harry's",
'icon': 'bar'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.090372, 38.881189]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': 'Bike Party',
'icon': 'bicycle'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.052477, 38.943951]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': 'Rockabilly Rockstars',
'icon': 'music'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.031706, 38.914581]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': 'District Drum Tribe',
'icon': 'music'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.020945, 38.878241]
}
},
{
'type': 'Feature',
'properties': {
'description': 'Motown Memories',
'icon': 'music'
},
'geometry': {
'type': 'Point',
'coordinates': [-77.007481, 38.876516]
}
}
]
};
const map = new Map({
container: 'map',
style: MapStyle.STREETS,
center: [-77.04, 38.907],
zoom: 11.15
});
map.on('load', function () {
// Add a GeoJSON source containing place coordinates and information.
map.addSource('places', {
'type': 'geojson',
'data': places
});
map.addLayer({
'id': 'poi-labels',
'type': 'symbol',
'source': 'places',
'layout': {
'text-field': ['get', 'description'],
'text-variable-anchor': ['top', 'bottom', 'left', 'right'],
'text-radial-offset': 0.5,
'text-justify': 'auto',
'icon-image': ['get', 'icon']
}
});
map.rotateTo(180, { duration: 10000 });
});
```
#### index.html
```html
Variable label placement | NPM example
```
#### style.css
```css
body {margin: 0; padding: 0;}
#map {position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; width: 100%;}
```
### Basic JavaScript setup
```html
Variable label placement
```
## Related examples
### [Icon image URL inside a rich text format label](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/rich-text-format/)
Examples
Display rich text labels with texts and icons.
### [Display and style rich text labels](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/display-and-style-rich-text-labels/)
Examples
Display multilingual rich text labels using format expressions.
### [Change the case of labels](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/change-case-of-labels/)
Examples
Modify label text casing using upcase and downcase expressions.
### [Add a stretchable image to the map](https://docs.maptiler.com/sdk-js/examples/add-image-stretchable/)
Examples
Use stretchable images as background for map text labels.