Add graphics and text in a layout

You can add graphics and text to create a complete layout.

Note:

These instructions are for adding graphics to a layout. To add graphics to a map, see Add a graphics layer to a map.

To add graphics or text to a layout, choose an element from the Graphics and Text gallery on the Insert tab. The following elements are available:

Element type	Description
Rectangle text	Text in a rectangle. Rectangle text preserves the set font size and automatically wraps long text to new lines.
Polygon text	Text in a polygon shape you draw. Polygon text preserves the set font size and automatically wraps long text to new lines.
Straight text	Text in a straight line. The font size automatically increases or decreases as the element is resized. Set line breaks in the text are honored, but text does not wrap to new lines.
Curved text	Text on a curved line. Curved text preserves the set font size. Line breaks and word wrapping are not supported.
Circle text	Text in a circle. Circle text preserves the set font size and automatically wraps long text to new lines.
Ellipse text	Text in an ellipse. Ellipse text preserves the set font size and automatically wraps long text to new lines.
Line	A line made of straight segments.
Curved line	A curved line created by drawing a Bezier curve.
Freehand line	A line created by a freehand sketch.
Arc	A curved line created by drawing three points.
Point	A graphic point symbol.
Rectangle	A graphic rectangle.
Polygon	A graphic polygon created by drawing connected line segments.
Circle	A graphic circle. When you draw the circle, click where you want the center to be and drag to size the circle.
Ellipse	A graphic ellipse. This is similar to a circle, but the vertical radius is longer than the horizontal radius or vice versa.
Lasso	A graphic shape created by drawing a freehand sketch.
Rounded Rectangle	A graphic rectangle with rounded edges. Adjust how round the edges are on the Placement tab of the Element pane.
Triangle	A graphic triangle.
Right Triangle	A graphic right triangle.
Half-Circle	A graphic half circle.
Cross	A graphic cross.
X	A graphic X-shape.
Cloud	A graphic cloud.
Arrow	A straight line with an arrowhead. The default line symbol is used with a marker arrowhead added at the end.
Curved Arrow	A Bezier curve with an arrowhead. The default line symbol is used with a marker arrowhead symbol added at the end.
Double Arrow	A straight line with two arrowheads. The default line symbol is used with marker arrowheads added at each end.
Curved Double Arrow	A Bezier curve with two arrowheads. The default line symbol is used with a marker arrowhead added at each end.

Note:

You can also add dynamic text elements that update automatically to the layout. To learn more about dynamic text, see What is dynamic text? and Add and modify dynamic text.

Keep last tool active

By default, after you add a graphic or text to the layout, the application switches to selection mode so you can modify the graphic. If you plan to add more than one of each element to the layout, you can choose to keep the last tool active and continue adding graphics, text, or other layout elements rather than switching to selection mode.

To keep the last tool active, expand the Graphics and Text gallery on the Insert tab and choose Keep last tool active. Now, when you add an element, the tool remains active and you can continue adding the element.

Default symbol

Text, lines, polygons, and points are added using a default symbol. After adding the elements, they can be modified and the symbol can be changed. To set the default symbol for each element type, see Set the default properties for text and graphic elements.