---
title: "How to set the Copyright text on a map"
description: "Add one line of attribution to the bottom of a map to credit imported data, a licence, or a citation. Use plain text, or basic HTML for links and bold or italic text."
seo:
  title: "Set the Copyright text"
sidebar:
  label: "Copyright text"
---

Copyright adds one line of attribution at the bottom of the map. Use it to credit imported data, a licence, or a required citation. MangoMap credits the basemap automatically, so do not add that credit here. Add it from the map's Extensions page and type the attribution text. The text can be plain, or basic HTML for links, bold, italic, and line breaks. Print and export show it as plain text.

**[See it on an example map](https://mangomap-staging.com/examples-staging/maps/4jwk0nxy/utilities-showcase)**

Open the Utilities Showcase. Look at the bottom right of the map. The line of data credit text there is the copyright text. It shows before the basemap credits.

## Before you start

- You need edit access to the map.
- Have the attribution text ready. Keep it to one short line — long attributions wrap and clutter the map. To add a link or bold or italic text, see [Add links and formatting](#add-links-and-formatting).
- If you need to credit multiple sources, combine them in one line ("Data © Source A; Imagery © Source B") rather than enabling a separate tool per source.

## Open the Extensions page

From the map's admin sidebar, click `Extensions`. The Copyright card is below Measure.

## Enable Copyright

Click the `Add` button on the Copyright card. The Copyright settings page opens. Unlike Scale bar, Copyright is not active on the map until you save the settings — there's no default attribution to fall back to.

## Type the attribution text

Type in the **`Attribution text`** field. It's a single line and required: you can't save it empty.

<img src="/_assets/map-extensions/set-the-copyright-text--settings.png" alt="Copyright settings page with the Display custom attribution card, the Attribution text field holding the start of a swisstopo credit with a link tag, helper text about plain text and basic HTML below it, and Cancel and Save changes buttons" width="1600" height="960" />

Type or paste your attribution. Common formats:

- `© <Year> <Owner>` — for proprietary data.
- `Data © <Source>; <Licence>` — for openly licensed data with a licence notice.
- `Source: <Provider>; Imagery: <Provider>` — for combining multiple data sources.

## Add links and formatting

The `Attribution text` field accepts plain text or basic HTML. Use these tags:

| To show | Type |
| --- | --- |
| A link | `<a href="https://example.com">Source</a>` |
| Bold text | `<b>text</b>` or `<strong>text</strong>` |
| Italic text | `<i>text</i>` or `<em>text</em>` |
| A line break | `<br>` |

The field also keeps `u`, `s`, `small`, `sub`, `sup`, `span`, `div`, and `p`. For example, this credit links the licence name to the licence page:

```html
Data © City Survey Office, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">CC BY 4.0</a>
```

A link with `target="_blank"` opens in a new tab. Links show in the same colour as the rest of the credit and are underlined when you hover over them.

MangoMap cleans the text before it shows it on the map:

- Images, scripts, styles, iframes, and forms are removed. Any other tag that is not in the list is removed too, but its text stays.
- A link keeps only its `href`, `title`, `target`, and `rel`. Attributes such as `style`, `class`, and `onclick` are removed.
- A link address must start with `https://`, `http://`, `mailto:`, or `tel:`, or be a relative link. Any other address, such as `javascript:`, is removed, and the text shows without a link.
- `div` and `p` do not start a new line. Only `<br>` breaks the line.
- A web address that you type as plain text does not become a link. Put it in an `<a>` tag.

The `Attribution text` field keeps what you typed. Only the map shows the cleaned text.

### In print and export

Prints and exports show the credit as plain text. The tags are removed, the link text stays, and a `<br>` becomes a space.

## Save

Click `Save changes`. Copyright is now on for the map.

## Verify the result

Open the map in a viewer-state session (a new tab or incognito window). Your text shows at the bottom right of the map, before the basemap's own credits.

<img src="/_assets/map-extensions/set-the-copyright-text--viewer.png" alt="Interlaken Raster Lab in the viewer with the copyright line, with no HTML tags showing, © swisstopo; © ESA WorldCover (CC BY 4.0); © MeteoSwiss; Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR, Airbus, EU and ESA; © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) at the bottom right, before the Stadia Maps credits" width="1600" height="960" />

Confirm:

- The text matches what you saved.
- The text doesn't wrap awkwardly — if it does, consider a shorter wording.
- Each link opens the right page, and no HTML tags show as text.

If you change the attribution later, click `Settings` on the Copyright card to return to the form, edit the text, and save again.

## Removing Copyright

To remove the attribution from the map, click `Remove` on the Copyright card on the Extensions page. The text is cleared and the overlay disappears for viewers.

The text isn't preserved on remove — re-adding the tool starts with an empty `Attribution text` field, so make sure you have a copy of the text if you might want to re-add it.

## What this doesn't cover

- **Images and longer text** — images are removed from the credit, and it is one line. For a logo or a longer "About this map" section, use the [Information sidebar](/docs/map-extensions/set-up-the-information-sidebar).
- **Per-layer attribution** — Copyright is map-level. There's no per-layer attribution; a map shows one combined attribution line for everything on it.
- **Account-wide attribution** — for an account-wide credit footer in the portal, see [Customisation](/docs/customisation).