Tell me more ×
Geographic Information Systems Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for cartographers, geographers and GIS professionals. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 5 down vote favorite
2

Is there a way to manually place labels in QGIS? I have a map which has almost-duplicate labels in some places (e.g. E 1st St and 1st St) and I'd like to remove some of them. Also, I'd like to move some of the labels around and maybe label some features that aren't currently. I'm using new labeling, with the labels curved along the features.

share|improve this question

1 Answer

up vote 7 down vote accepted

Yes, it's possible to manually place labels using the labeling tools in the label toolbar:

  • move label tool … move text labels to a new position
  • rotate label tool … allows for interactive rotation of labels
  • label property tool … opens a dialog where users can manipulate the properties and text of a label

BUT you won't be able to have curved labels anymore if you move/rotate the labels manually, as far as I know.

These tools allow you to mix fixed label positions and automatic label positioning inside a project. If the x or y attribute value is NULL, the position will be set automatically. When a label position is changed using “move label tool”, the position is written into the attribute fields and the label position for this feature is fixed.

To use these tools on existing layers, add x, y and rotation attribute fields (type double). By default, all values will be NULL and thus the layer will be labeled automatically. Now you’re ready to move and rotate the labels as you like. (Editing needs to be enabled while working with these tools!)

share|improve this answer
Hi underdark, do you agree that such implementation to allow move/rotate labels is at least... cumbersome? Without speaking that if you an attribute for rotation already filled, then labels will rotate automatically only if the x/y attributes are already filled too... and in normal cases this means to move by hand any label to have it rotate accordingly. – Giovanni Manghi Feb 2 '12 at 10:23
Sure it's not perfect. I would expect that it shouldn't be too much work to have auto-rotation combined with manual placement at least. A little funding should make that possible. – underdark♦ Feb 2 '12 at 10:28
You can actually use the label property tool on curved labels; the other ones don't work. – mattwigway Feb 2 '12 at 23:54
I've added x, y and rotation attribute fields (type real) and enabled editing, but the move and rotate tools are greyed out, as are the corresponding fields in Labeling Advanced. What am I missing? (QGIS 1.8.0 Mac) – johnsankey Apr 3 at 16:37
@johnsankey ....type should be double. – Jeff Cameron 1 hour ago

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.