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Tool Guide

Marker Tool (M)

Drop interactive pins, custom icons, and numbered points of interest at exact coordinates. Learn how to add, move, delete, style, and set default presets for new markers.

Marker Tool

Hotkey: M

Drop interactive pins, points of interest, numbered locations, and custom icons with rich interactive cards.

All Editor Tools

Overview & Activation

The Marker tool is the cornerstone for adding distinct points of interest (POIs) to your floorplans, schematics, event layouts, and campus maps. Markers support customizable pin silhouettes, built-in icon options, persistent or hover labels, pulse animations, and rich multi-media popups.

Activation Shortcut

Press M on your keyboard anywhere in the map editor, or click the MapPin icon on the top floating toolbar. Your mouse cursor will switch to a crosshair indicator.

Adding Markers to the Map

Add markers to your map canvas in three simple steps:

  1. 1
    Activate the Marker Tool
    Press Hotkey M, click the Marker icon in the top toolbar, or click '+ Add Marker' in the left sidebar's Build tab.
  2. 2
    Click to Place on Canvas
    Click directly on the image where you want the pin to sit. The marker is created at that exact location.
  3. 3
    Automatic Inspector Opening
    Once placed, the editor automatically returns to the Select tool (V) and opens the configuration inspector on the right.
Coordinate Precision: Marker positions and geometry coordinates are saved as normalized 0–100 map units (0.00 to 100.00 map units) relative to the base image. When you scale, rotate the viewport, or open the map on mobile, pins stay locked onto the exact location of your graphic.

Moving & Nudging Markers

Need to fine-tune the exact placement of a marker? You can reposition pins fluidly with mouse dragging or micro-step nudging:

Direct Canvas Dragging

Ensure the Select tool (V) is active. Click and hold the marker icon, drag it to its new location on the canvas, and release.

Keyboard Micro-Nudge (Arrow Keys)

Select the marker and press Arrow Keys for 0.25 map units micro-steps. Hold Shift + Arrow Keys to move faster in 1.0 map unit increments.

Deleting Markers

Layerpin provides multiple ways to delete pins without interrupting your creative flow:

  • Keyboard:Click the marker to select it and hit Delete or Backspace.
  • Inspector Header:Click the Trash icon in the top header of the right-hand item inspector.
  • Eraser Tool:Press E to activate the Eraser tool and click directly on the marker to instantly remove it.
  • Undo Protection:Accidentally deleted a marker? Press Cmd/Ctrl + Z to instantly restore it and all its associated content.

Styling: Icons, Colors, Sizes & Borders

When a marker is selected, switch to the Style tab in the right-hand inspector to customize its visual presentation:

Iconography & Shape Silhouettes

Choose container silhouettes: classic teardrop Pin, Circle, Square, Hexagon, or Star. Search over 100 built-in vector icons or display text initials and digits.

Colors, Fill & Opacity

Set custom hex or HSL brand colors for the pin body, icon glyph, and borders. Adjust fill opacity for semi-transparent overlay badges.

Size & Scaling Mode

Slide size between 16px and 64px. Choose Fixed Pixels (keeps consistent screen size regardless of zoom) or Zoom-Scaled (grows and shrinks proportionally with the map).

Animations & Attention Grabbing

Activate Idle animations such as Pulse (smooth glowing halo ring), Bounce, or Radar to highlight main entrances or critical points.

Save as Default Style for New Items

One of the most powerful time-saving features in Layerpin is the ability to turn any styled marker into the default template for all future markers on your map.

How Preconfig Defaults Work:
  1. Style a marker with your preferred color, icon, border, size mode, and label placement.
  2. At the bottom of the inspector in the "New items" card, click the "Save as default" button.
  3. A confirmation alert dialog appears. Click "Save as default" to confirm; a toast notification confirms: "Saved as default marker style for new markers".
  4. From this moment on, whenever you press M and drop a new marker, it will automatically spawn with these exact styles!
  5. To revert a customized marker back to standard settings, click "Reset" anytime.
You can also copy and paste styles between existing markers using hotkeys: press Opt/Alt + Cmd/Ctrl + C on a styled marker, select another marker, and press Opt/Alt + Cmd/Ctrl + V. See all hotkeys in our Keyboard Shortcuts guide.

Info Cards & Media Attachments

Markers are more than visual dots; they are entry points to your content. Configure how information opens when visitors interact with the pin, or explore layout types in our dedicated Info Cards & Popups guide:

Side Drawer

Slides in from the right viewport edge. Keeps the map visible while showing extensive descriptions, photos, and specs.

Centered Modal

Focuses visitor attention with a dimmed backdrop. Ideal for rich video players, photo carousels, and reservation forms.

Hover Tooltip

Lightweight floating pill that appears instantly when the visitor mouses over the pin, perfect for quick name previews.

Multi-Language Content

Need your markers to display in different languages for international visitors? Marker titles, descriptions, custom tags, and action links can all be localized across 16 world languages. Learn more in our Multi-Language Maps & Translation guide.

Zoom-Dependent Visibility

Avoid cluttered viewports on complex floorplans with dense POIs. In the Style tab, expand Zoom Visibility (learn how high-resolution maps maintain performance in our Deep Zoom guide):

  • Minimum Zoom Level:Hide micro-details until the visitor zooms in close enough to read them comfortably.
  • Maximum Zoom Level:Show broad overview badges that gracefully disappear once the visitor zooms in past a threshold.
  • Independent Label Visibility:Keep pins visible from afar while deferring text labels until high zoom levels.

Spreadsheet & CSV Import / Export

Instead of placing dozens or hundreds of pins manually, you can author your entire point-of-interest inventory in Google Sheets, Excel, or Apple Numbers and import it into Layerpin in seconds:

Spreadsheet Batch Import

Click More (…) → Import markers in the left sidebar to upload your file. Supported formats include CSV (.csv), Excel (.xlsx), and Apple Numbers (.numbers) up to 12 MB.

name: Required marker label or title
x, y: Normalized map units (0.00 to 100.00)
description: Markdown or rich notes
tags: Comma-separated search keywords
interaction_url: External link or CTA URL
field:* / filter:*: Dynamic custom fields & categories
Downloadable CSV template provided inside the import dialog
Export Markers to CSV

Click More (…) → Export marker CSV to download an active spreadsheet containing all existing pins on your canvas with their exact coordinates, descriptions, and custom field values.

Append vs Replace: Choose Append to keep existing pins and add new rows, or Replace to cleanly swap out all markers with the imported sheet.
Pre-Flight Validation: The dialog previews exact error rows, invalid coordinates, and column warnings before writing changes to your map.
Action: More → Export marker CSV