How to display only numbers as labels on a choropleth map

You can select a region name (like the state name) to show up on your choropleth map as a map label – but how can you show just the underlying value as a map label? This article explains how.

To show something as labels, the data column has to be a text column, which means you'd have to create two columns containing the underlying numeric values: one for plotting the map and another to display as labels. The column for labels has to be assigned a "Text" column type. 

1. Add another column with the numeric values 

Solution A: Create an additional column in the original dataset 

There are two ways to add an additional column for the labels. One is to create an additional column in your original dataset and re-upload it to Datawrapper: 

Solution B: Use added columns to duplicate the numeric column 

You can also create an additional column using the added columns feature by going to Step 2, then clicking on "Looking for the other table?" link at the bottom: 

Add a column and call it something like ' label'. Then, click on the blue placeholder and display the numeric values (in this case, the unemployment rate of each state) in the added column: 

2. Change the column type from "Number" to "Text"

If you've chosen Solution A in the previous step, go to Step 2 and click on "Looking for the other table?" link at the bottom. You should reach a page that looks like the images below. For those who've chosen Solution B, you should be on this page already. 

Make sure that the 'label' column is selected by clicking on the header and click on ' Edit column format'. Then change the Column type to "Text". Once the change is implemented, you should see the numbers turn from blue to black: 

Now go to Step 3: Visualize > Annotate tab > Map labels, then select 'label' column for labels: 

That's it! Now you can display numeric values as labels.