Stay organized with collections
Save and categorize content based on your preferences.
You can adjust various basemap settings from the basemap panel in the bottom
left.
Change basemap type
You can change the basemap type between satellite mode, which shows
photorealistic Earth imagery, and map mode, which shows a two-dimensional map
without terrain elevation.
Open a Google Earth map and select the basemap icon in the bottom left
corner to open Basemap settings.
In the Basemap settings panel, under Basemap type, select either
Satellite or
Map.
To see an abstract 3D representation, toggle on 3D buildings.
Change basemap level of detail
You can add or remove details, including borders, labels, places, roads, and
more. In the basemap panel, under Details, select one of the following
options:
Clean: No borders, labels, places, or roads.
Exploration: Borders, labels, places, and roads.
Everything: All borders, labels, places, roads, transit, landmarks, and
water.
Custom: Choose your own look and feel.
Pin commonly used reference projects
You can pin reference projects to
your map, so that they are visualized on the map regardless of which project you
are working in. Both projects saved in Google Drive and local KML files saved on
your device can be pinned as reference projects.
In the Basemap settings panel, toggle Reference projects on.
Click Manage reference projects to open a list of your reference
projects.
Select the projects you want to pin to the map, then click Save.
Turn on 3D buildings and trees
To show 3D buildings and trees, toggle on 3D buildings in the Basemap
settings panel.
Show additional layers
You can access additional details and features such as historical imagery,
photos, 3D coverage areas (where 3D buildings are enabled), gridlines, and
animated clouds.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-09-04 UTC."],[],[],null,["# Adjust basemap settings\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n| This product or feature is Experimental (pre-GA). Pre-GA products and features might have limited support, and changes to pre-GA products and features might not be compatible with other pre-GA versions. Pre-GA Offerings are covered by the [Google\n| Maps Platform Service Specific Terms](https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform/terms/maps-service-terms). For more information, see the [launch stage descriptions](/maps/launch-stages).\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nYou can adjust various basemap settings from the basemap panel in the bottom\nleft.\n\nChange basemap type\n-------------------\n\nYou can change the basemap type between satellite mode, which shows\nphotorealistic Earth imagery, and map mode, which shows a two-dimensional map\nwithout terrain elevation.\n\n1. Open a Google Earth map and select the basemap icon in the bottom left corner to open **Basemap settings**.\n2. In the **Basemap settings** panel, under **Basemap type** , select either **Satellite** or **Map**.\n3. To see an abstract 3D representation, toggle on **3D buildings**.\n\nChange basemap level of detail\n------------------------------\n\nYou can add or remove details, including borders, labels, places, roads, and\nmore. In the basemap panel, under **Details**, select one of the following\noptions:\n\n- **Clean:** No borders, labels, places, or roads.\n- **Exploration:** Borders, labels, places, and roads.\n- **Everything:** All borders, labels, places, roads, transit, landmarks, and water.\n- **Custom:** Choose your own look and feel.\n\nPin commonly used reference projects\n------------------------------------\n\nYou can pin [reference projects](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tpgqpe6yDAA) to\nyour map, so that they are visualized on the map regardless of which project you\nare working in. Both projects saved in Google Drive and local KML files saved on\nyour device can be pinned as reference projects.\n\n1. In the **Basemap settings** panel, toggle **Reference projects** on.\n2. Click **Manage reference projects** to open a list of your reference projects.\n3. Select the projects you want to pin to the map, then click **Save**.\n\n| **Note:** Reference projects are only visible to you, and won't be included if you share a project with others.\n\nTurn on 3D buildings and trees\n------------------------------\n\nTo show 3D buildings and trees, toggle on **3D buildings** in the **Basemap\nsettings** panel.\n\nShow additional layers\n----------------------\n\nYou can access additional details and features such as historical imagery,\nphotos, 3D coverage areas (where 3D buildings are enabled), gridlines, and\nanimated clouds."]]
