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Applications (presentation)

ArcGIS includes a wide range of applications that are configurable and ready-to-use. These include web, mobile, and desktop applications for use in the office or the field and that deliver capabilities to just about every type of user in an organization regardless of their role or level of comfort with technology and maps. These apps are designed to meet your users where they are, ensuring that maps and the power of location is accessible by anyone, at any time, on any device.

ArcGIS provides a broad collection of software development kits (SDKs) that can be used to extend existing applications or create new ones.

ArcGIS apps architecture

For additional context, please see the ArcGIS architecture overview.

Web applications

ArcGIS includes many ready-to-use, configurable web applications for a variety of needs, from general purpose to focused, task-specific applications. ArcGIS also includes no-code and low-code web application builders, along with a complete JavaScript SDK for full-code development.

  • Ready-to-use web experiences. ArcGIS includes numerous web applications and sites that come ready-to-use. This includes the portal website, a general web interface into ArcGIS systems that supports a wide variety of use cases for viewers, editors, creators, professionals, as well as administrators. The portal website commonly serves as a content discovery, creation, and sharing experience in ArcGIS systems, as well as a map visualization and editing experience. ArcGIS also includes a number of more focused web applications for specific needs and workflows, like ArcGIS Business Analyst for location-based market intelligence, ArcGIS Excalibur for image exploitation, and ArcGIS Urban for smart city planning.
  • No-code and low-code app builders. ArcGIS makes it easy to create web apps for just about any workflow using no-code and low-code app builders. All of the ArcGIS app builders described below provide a no-code configuration experience, with some app builders also providing low-code extensibility options using the lightweight ArcGIS Arcade expression language. Some app builders provide additional low-code extensibility options, with ArcGIS Experience Builder also supporting full JavaScript-based web development for advanced customization. Learn more about app builders.
    • ArcGIS Instant Apps quickly transforms maps into focused, interactive web apps through a collection of purpose-driven templates.
    • ArcGIS Dashboards effectively conveys information through an interactive and easy-to-read dashboard using a wide range of configurable tools including maps, lists, charts, and gauges.
    • ArcGIS StoryMaps creates interactive stories that inform and inspire by weaving together text, photos, and videos with an organization’s 2D and 3D data, surveys, dashboards, and more.
    • ArcGIS Experience Builder creates immersive web experiences by unifying web apps, web pages, interconnected widgets, and both 2D and 3D data through a flexible drag-and-drop interface.
    • ArcGIS Hub and ArcGIS Enterprise Sites unify apps and content in easy-to-create websites.
  • Custom web apps. ArcGIS includes fully-featured web SDKs for building 2D and 3D mapping and spatial analysis applications with ArcGIS services. The ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScript is Esri’s flagship web SDK on which a majority of Esri’s web applications and app builders are built. It empowers organizations to build compelling web apps that unlock data’s full potential with interactive user experiences and stunning 2D and 3D visualizations. Additionally, With the ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScript, organizations can build analytical apps using client-side querying, filtering, and geometric operations. Esri also supports a number of open source and third-party libraries for building applications with ArcGIS services, including Esri Leaflet, MapLibre GL JS, OpenLayers, and CesiumJS. Learn more about mapping APIs and SDKs.

Mobile and desktop applications

ArcGIS includes native mobile and desktop applications that are supported on a variety of devices and operating systems. These apps range from lightweight mobile applications for field data collection to the world’s leading professional GIS desktop tool, ArcGIS Pro.

  • Native mobile apps. ArcGIS includes several, ready-to-use native mobile applications designed to digitally transform field operations. This includes ArcGIS Field Maps, the all-in-one app that uses data-driven maps and mobile forms to help workers perform data capture and editing, find assets and information, and report their real-time locations. ArcGIS also provides other native apps for planning, navigation, understanding, and capture that are designed to work together and that support field activities in connected or disconnected environments. Learn more about field operations with ArcGIS.
  • Professional desktop GIS app. ArcGIS includes a powerful, industry leading, desktop GIS application called ArcGIS Pro. ArcGIS Pro supports data visualization, advanced analysis, and authoritative data editing and management in 2D, 3D, and 4D. It supports data sharing across ArcGIS systems and products and enables users to work across the ArcGIS system via the web. Learn more about ArcGIS Pro.
  • Additional desktop apps. ArcGIS includes a number of focused desktop-based applications and integrations for specific needs and workflows. This includes ArcGIS Earth, a lightweight, interactive experience for visualizing, editing KML, and sharing on a 3D globe. ArcGIS for Microsoft 365 connects spatial and business intelligence by bringing the power of location to Excel, Power BI, SharePoint, and Teams. Other desktop applications include ArcGIS AllSource for investigative, geospatial, and link analysis, and more. Explore all Esri products.
  • Custom mobile and desktop apps. ArcGIS provides a variety of options for creating custom mobile and desktop applications. This includes ArcGIS Map SDKs for Native Apps, including .NET, Kotlin, Swift, Java, and Qt, that empower developers to build mapping and spatial analysis applications for native devices. ArcGIS Pro can also be extended with the ArcGIS Pro SDK for Microsoft .NET as well as ArcPy using Python. Learn more about ArcGIS add-ins and automation.

XR and immersive experiences

Extended reality (XR) is the spectrum of digital visualization in relation to the physical world. Extended reality includes:

  • Augmented reality (AR) uses mobile devices (phones/tablets) to superimpose static virtual objects and information, such as a city scene, onto a tabletop, or inserts a virtual object into a physical location, such as a digital representation of a community center next to a city park.
  • Mixed reality (MR) uses a head-mounted display (HMD) that enables the user to interact with superimposed digital objects (for example, to scroll through the choices on a virtual menu or moving a digital object to a different location) while at the same time seeing the physical world around them.
  • Virtual reality (VR) uses goggles to immerse users within an entirely virtual world.

ArcGIS supports XR and immersive experiences through its Map SDKs for game engines, specifically the ArcGIS Maps SDK for Unity and the ArcGIS Maps SDK for Unreal Engine. These ArcGIS Map SDKs for game engines deliver a premium set of developer tools that can bring data from ArcGIS directly into game engine development environments. Developers can use these SDKs to build world-scale AR, tabletop AR, and VR experiences for industries as diverse as AEC (Architecture, Engineering and Construction), Utilities, Transportation, Defense, Public Safety, Natural Resources, and Education.

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