diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/axes/_axes.py b/lib/matplotlib/axes/_axes.py
index e762f272b7b3..5fecee6c1f66 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/axes/_axes.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/axes/_axes.py
@@ -416,7 +416,7 @@ def indicate_inset(self, bounds, inset_ax=None, *, transform=None,
 
         if transform is None:
             transform = self.transData
-        kwargs.setdefault('label', 'indicate_inset')
+        kwargs.setdefault('label', '_indicate_inset')
 
         x, y, width, height = bounds
         rectangle_patch = mpatches.Rectangle(