Placement
North arrows are best left in a less conspicuous area of the layout. Sometimes you
might use one to conveniently balance out some other element. Grouping the north
arrow with other ancillary map information such as the scale bar and legend is
another common practice. In a very small layout meant for a slide or in an in‑line
report graphic, the north arrow can be placed directly on the map element, in a
corner, perhaps with a white box behind it if it is unreadable against the background
(or alternatively change the color as in white on black or black on white). This is also
a technique used sometimes in 8.5‑inch by 11‑inch layouts and more rarely on larger
layouts. The larger layouts tend to show the north arrow outside of the map element
and grouped with the scale bar and other supporting information.