# Create a style
Last updated:
October 13, 2026
\| 3 minutes read
You make a style in the portal, from a template, and it opens in Studio. This page covers what you need before you begin, creating a style from a template, and starting from a style file instead.
## Before you begin[](#before-you-begin "Direct link to Before you begin")
* A Magic Lane portal account. When you are signed in to the portal, you are signed in to Studio.
* An API key is not needed to edit a style: the map in Studio draws without one. Your app needs one to show the map, and in Studio place search and route previews use it. [Get started](/docs/guides/get-started.md) explains how to create a project and a key.
## Step by step[](#step-by-step "Direct link to Step by step")
### Create a style from a template[](#create-a-style-from-a-template "Direct link to Create a style from a template")
1. In the portal, open **Map styles** in the sidebar. The Styles page lists your styles.
2. Click **New style**.
3. Under **Style template**, pick a template: **Basic 1**, **Basic 2** or **Basic 3** for a general map, **Satellite 1** or **Satellite 2** for imagery, **Wind** for weather, or **Blank** to start from scratch. The preview on the right shows the template.
4. Under **Choose a variation**, pick a look: **Base**, **Modern**, **Night Blues**, **Nocturnal** or **Oldtime**, each also offered **with Elevation**, which adds terrain shading.
5. Click **Create new style**. The style is named after the template and the variation, such as "Basic 1 Modern", and opens in Studio. Click its name in the top bar to rename it.
**Basic 1 with the Base variation is the template the tutorials use.**
### Start from a style file[](#start-from-a-style-file "Direct link to Start from a style file")
1. On the Styles page, click **Upload** and choose a style JSON file, for example one saved with **Download › Style (JSON)** in Studio (see [Download and use in your app](/docs/guides/map-studio/getting-started/download-and-use.md)).
2. The style appears in the list. Click it to open it in Studio.
A style made from a JSON file starts without Studio's additions: themes, shared colour names and the default map position.
## Your styles[](#your-styles "Direct link to Your styles")
**The Styles page: Upload and New style at the top, one row per style.**
Every style you create is listed on the Styles page, with when it was last updated and its tags. Click a style to open it in Studio; the back arrow in Studio's top bar brings you back here. The ⋮ menu at the end of a row holds the portal's own actions for the style.
See also: [Studio overview](/docs/guides/map-studio/getting-started/what-studio-is.md) · [Opening and saving](/docs/guides/map-studio/getting-started/opening-and-saving.md) · [Your first style in 10 minutes](/docs/guides/map-studio/tutorials/first-style.md)