To change these settings using the Simple level method:

1. Select the Contours layer in the Contents window.
2. In the Properties window, click the Levels tab.
3. Expand the Labels section and change one or more of the following settings:
   • Increase the Curve Tolerance to a larger value (e.g. 1.5).
   • Decrease the Label to Label Distance to a value well within the size of your map. This is the distance between labels along the length of any given contour line.
     
   • Decrease the Label to Edge Distance to a value well within the size of your map. This is the distance between the map edge and the labels on the map.
   • You may also want to expand the Font properties section and reduce the Size (points).

To change these settings in Surfer 15 and previous, or when using the Advanced level method:

1. Select the Contours layer in the Contents window.
2. In the Properties window, click the Levels tab.
3. Set the Level method to Advanced.
4. Click the Edit Levels button.
5. In the Levels for Map dialog, click the Label column header.
6. In the Labels dialog you can edit the label settings.
   • Increase the Curve Tolerance to a larger value (e.g. 1.5).
   • Decrease the Label to Label Distance to a value well within the size of your map. This is the distance between labels along the length of any given contour line.
     
   • Decrease the Label to Edge Distance to a value well within the size of your map. This is the distance between the map edge and the labels on the map.
   • Check the Affected Levels section to be sure the First value is the first level you want labeled, and the Skip value is not too high (this is the number of levels to skip between labeled levels).  
   • You may also want to click on the Font button to reduce the Size (points) and click OK.
7. Click OK to close the Labels dialog.
8. Click OK to close the Levels for Map dialog and apply the changes.

If adjusting those settings do not help, you can manually add labels to the map by right-clicking the Contour layer and clicking Edit Contour Labels. Hold the CTRL key on your keyboard and click on a contour line to add a label at that location. You can also drag labels along the contour line to reposition them. Press ESC on the keyboard to save the changes. Be aware that the Edit Contour Labels command should be performed last. Any other editing of the contour map will remove the custom labels.  

See the Labels - Contour help page for more information.

Updated December 19, 2021