Map layers in Tableau - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

Sample data showing cities with their latitude, longitude, and population for mapping.

Cell	Value
A1	City
B1	Latitude
C1	Longitude
D1	Population
A2	New York
B2	40.7128
C2	-74.0060
D2	8419000
A3	Los Angeles
B3	34.0522
C3	-118.2437
D3	3980000
A4	Chicago
B4	41.8781
C4	-87.6298
D4	2716000

Formula Trace

MAP(Layers: Base Map + City Points + Population Heat)

Step 1: Base Map layer loads geographic map background

Step 2: Plot City Points using Latitude and Longitude from sample data

Step 3: Add Population Heat layer using Population values

Step 4: Combine all layers into one map visualization

Cell Reference Map

     A          B           C           D
1 | City     | Latitude | Longitude | Population |
2 | New York | 40.7128  | -74.0060  | 8419000   |
3 | Los Angeles | 34.0522  | -118.2437 | 3980000   |
4 | Chicago  | 41.8781  | -87.6298  | 2716000   |

The map layers use Latitude (B) and Longitude (C) to place points, and Population (D) to create heat intensity.

Result

[Map Visualization]
+---------------------------------------+
| Base Map: country and state borders   |
|                                       |
|   * (New York)                        |
|                                       |
|           * (Los Angeles)             |
|                                       |
|       * (Chicago)                     |
|                                       |
| Heat overlay: brighter near New York |
+---------------------------------------+

The final map shows a geographic base map with city points plotted and a heat layer representing population density.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

Which data columns are used to place city points on the map?

A City and Population

B City and Latitude

C Latitude and Longitude

D Longitude and Population

Key Result

Map layers combine base geographic map with data-driven layers like points and heat maps for visualization.