Plot addresses on a map from Excel, step by step

To plot addresses from Excel on a map, you need a sheet with one row per location and separate columns for street, ZIP or postcode, city and country. Load it into a mapping tool that turns the addresses into coordinates and pins: Google My Maps reads the .xlsx file directly, while a store locator such as My Store Locator takes a CSV file, ideally saved as "CSV UTF-8". Inside Excel, 3D Maps (Excel for Windows only) plots addresses as points; the map chart just shades regions.

For the whole store finder project, see how to add a store finder to your website.

Set up the sheet: one row per location

Every row becomes one pin. So:

• The first row holds the column headers, and the first location starts right below.
• No merged cells, blank rows, subtotals or notes under the list.
• All locations sit on one worksheet. When you save as CSV, Excel keeps only the active sheet.

Extra columns such as phone or category can come along.

Clean up the addresses in Excel

Four built-in tools do most of the work.

Split an address that sits in one cell

For "1 Example Street, Boston, MA 02108" in one cell, select the column and choose Data > Text to Columns, then "Delimited" with the comma as delimiter. The split keeps the space after each comma, so clean the new columns with =TRIM() first (see below). Then run Text to Columns once more on the "MA 02108" column, split on the space, and in the last step set the ZIP column to Text so 02108 keeps its zero. UK postcodes such as "SW1A 1AA" contain a space, so don't split those on spaces.

Remove stray spaces

Invisible double spaces confuse address lookups. =TRIM(A2) removes every space except single spaces between words; paste the result back as values.

Keep the leading zero of ZIP codes

Excel reads ZIP codes as numbers and drops leading zeros, a problem for many ZIP codes in New England and New Jersey: 02108 turns into 2108. Format the ZIP column as Text before you type or paste data. If the zero is already gone, reformatting won't bring it back, according to Microsoft support (external link). Use a helper column with =TEXT(C2,"00000") and paste the result as values.

Find duplicates

Duplicate rows become duplicate pins. Home > Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Duplicate Values shows which names or addresses repeat. Data > Remove Duplicates deletes them for good, so save a copy first.

Coordinates: latitude and longitude in the sheet

If coordinates are missing, the mapping tool works them out from the address (geocoding). If you already have them, for example from your ERP, keep them as two columns and check three things:

• Decimal degrees: 42.3570, not 42° 21' 25".
• Enough decimals: four decimal places of latitude are roughly 10 metres; two are about a kilometre.
• Plausible values: in the US, latitude is positive and longitude negative. Boston sits at about 42 and -71. Drop the minus sign and the pin lands in Central Asia; swap the columns and it ends up in Antarctica.

Save the sheet as CSV UTF-8

Mapping tools read CSV files. To save one properly:

1. Keep your working file as .xlsx. The CSV is only a copy for uploading.
2. Choose File > Save As and pick "CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited)" as the file type.
3. If the workbook has several sheets, Excel warns that only the active sheet will be saved; click OK.
4. Make later changes in the .xlsx and save a fresh CSV from it.

Why UTF-8? The older "CSV (Comma delimited)" format uses a different character encoding. Many web tools expect UTF-8, so "Zürich" turns into something like "Z�rich".

Commas or semicolons? Excel takes the separator from your regional settings. With US or UK settings it writes commas; where the comma is the decimal separator, as in Germany, it writes semicolons (Microsoft support (external link)). Good tools detect either, some only accept commas.

If you need to open a CSV in Excel, use Data > From Text/CSV and set Data Type Detection to "Do not detect data types" in the preview, so ZIP codes stay text. Double-clicking the file reads ZIP codes as numbers again.

Free and paid ways to map multiple addresses from Excel

For figures by region the map chart is enough, for a presentation 3D Maps. Google My Maps is a quick way to a shared pin map; what changes when you put it on your site is covered in Google Maps DIY vs. store locator. If customers should find their nearest location on your website, you need search, distance and filters, which is what a store locator does. The free options are Google My Maps (with a Google account, up to 2,000 rows per import file), 3D Maps if you have Excel for Windows, and the My Store Locator Free plan for up to 25 locations you enter by hand.

Plot addresses from Excel for free: 3D Maps and Google My Maps

In Excel with 3D Maps

1. Click any cell in your location table.
2. Choose Insert > 3D Map (Tours group). The first click enables 3D Maps.
3. In the Layer Pane, check that street, ZIP, city and country are mapped to the right field types, and fix any mismatch with the drop-down arrows.
4. Excel geocodes the data with Bing, then your locations appear as dots on the globe.

3D Maps is only available in Excel for Windows, not on a Mac or in Excel for the web.

With Google My Maps

1. Sign in to Google My Maps and create a new map.
2. In the map legend, click Import under the layer and upload your .xlsx or CSV file.
3. Choose the columns that position your pins: street, ZIP, city and country, or latitude and longitude.
4. Choose the column that titles each pin, usually the name, and click Finish.

According to Google (external link), an import file should not have more than 2,000 rows, and a Google Sheet can be imported instead of a file. To embed the map on your website, it has to be public.

Bring the sheet into My Store Locator

In My Store Locator you upload the CSV file under Import & Export and map your columns to its fields. Sample file there gives you a template. Only name and city are required. If the country is missing, the import assumes DE (Germany), so always fill in the country for locations outside Germany. The import does not take .xlsx files, which is why you save as "CSV UTF-8" first. If coordinates are missing, the app finds the position from the address during the import (address search based on OpenStreetMap), so spot-check a few pins afterwards. The import is included from the Starter plan and can be used during the 14-day trial with all Pro features; on the Free plan you add locations by hand, as shown in getting started. Step by step: import help.

Want to try it without an account first? With the free tool store map from Excel you see your list on a map right away, also straight from an .xlsx file, and save it in a free account afterwards.

Whether you need a simple pin map or a searchable one, which template fits and how the map gets onto your website is explained in how to create a map with multiple locations.

Check the result

Compare the map with the sheet before you publish:

1. Count: select the name column. The status bar count, minus the header, should match the number of pins.
2. Outliers: zoom right out. Pins in the sea or on another continent point to swapped coordinates, a missing minus sign or the wrong country.
3. Clusters in town centres: several pins stacked in the middle of a town usually mean incomplete addresses.
4. Sample: sort the sheet by ZIP code and check one location per range, including accents and leading zeros.

If an import went badly wrong, undo it in My Store Locator under History. This works for up to 90 days and removes the newly created locations; updates to existing locations are kept.

Keep the map in sync with the spreadsheet

Editing the Excel file does not change the map by itself. So decide which side leads:

• Excel stays the source. You edit the .xlsx, save a new CSV and upload it again. Keep location names stable and unique, because My Store Locator recognises existing entries by name. The import only creates or updates locations, so a closed location doesn't disappear just because its row is gone; in My Store Locator, give it a status that is hidden from the map, or delete it in the app.
• The mapping tool becomes the source. You maintain locations there and export a list for Excel when needed. This suits teams where several people edit the data.

A fixed review, for example once a quarter, keeps both sides aligned.

Common errors and quick fixes

FAQ