Overview
What is ArcGIS?
Esri in Redlands, California offers ArcGIS, a geographic information system.
ArcGIS Review
Trusted Leader
ArcGIS is teacher approved!
ArcGIS, I couldn't live without it. Best product in the world
Not for small business!
Great software package with many uses
ArcGIS does geography better than anyone else, but not always the fastest or easiest
ArcGIS offers seamless geocoding on premises for PHI with Open Streetmap Premium
A great product for managing geospatial data.
Happy Esri User
Internally, we use ArcGIS to manage university …
ArcGIS great for data mapping and statistical spatial analysis!
ArcGIS: an incredibly useful, limited-support, field-monopolizing spatial analysis system.
ESRI ArcGIS is the set of tools you need to keep track of and analyze spatial data.
My Thoughts on ArcGIS
The world at your fingertips, literally
- Audience and reach generation using census data
- Proximity Reports
- Spatial Analysis
- Market insights
- …
Awards
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Pricing
Viewer
$100
ArcGIS for Personal Use
$100
ArcGIS for Student Use
$100
Entry-level set up fee?
- No setup fee
Offerings
- Free Trial
- Free/Freemium Version
- Premium Consulting/Integration Services
Product Demos
ArcGIS Online Join Features Demo 3 – Join to a table based on common attribute
How to use Symbology demo in ArcGIS 10 - GT-101 - Washington College
ArcGIS Collector App (iOS & Android)
ArcGIS Maps for Power BI Demo - Drive Time Analysis
Introduction to Python in ArcGIS Pro
Curso online DEMO: ArcGIS aplicado a la Cartografía Geológica l Explorock
Product Details
- About
- Tech Details
- FAQs
What is ArcGIS?
ArcGIS Technical Details
Deployment Types | On-premise |
---|---|
Operating Systems | Windows |
Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Comparisons
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Reviews and Ratings
(139)Community Insights
- Business Problems Solved
- Pros
- Cons
ArcGIS is widely used across various industries and departments for a range of tasks. Users have found it valuable for assessing distances between clinic sites and patient locations, generating maps, integrating data, and conducting spatial data analysis. It has become the go-to tool for logistics network optimization at FedEx and is extensively used in architecture, engineering, and civil engineering projects. In educational settings, ArcGIS is commonly used for completing projects and research tasks. It also plays a crucial role in research projects related to geography and groundwater chemistry analysis. Furthermore, ArcGIS facilitates collaboration between different fields of research and offers sophisticated visualization and statistical analysis capabilities. The software is integrated with mapping platforms to optimize operations across industries. Additionally, it has been instrumental in solving location and planning problems, promoting organized development, facilitating cartography, creating infographics, and presenting data in a visually engaging manner.
Versatile Tool: Users have found ArcGIS to be a versatile tool for planning and promoting organized development in various territories. It allows for the visualization, management, editing, calculation, and analysis of georeferenced entities and attributes. Many reviewers appreciate its wide range of possibilities with geographic data.
Intuitive Interface: ArcGIS is praised for its easy-to-use interface and intuitive menus. Users find it easy to learn, with localized tools that make navigation straightforward. The intuitive user interface has been mentioned by multiple reviewers as a positive aspect of using ArcGIS.
Powerful Integration: Reviewers highly value ArcGIS's powerful integration with other systems. They appreciate the continuous enhancement and upgrades that keep the software up-to-date. Additionally, the rock-solid ArcGIS.com cloud technology has been commended by users for its reliability and convenience.
Confusing User Interface: Many users have expressed frustration with the user interface of ArcGIS, finding it confusing and difficult to get used to. Some reviewers have suggested that a usability study should be conducted to improve the work process.
Expensive Cost: The high cost of ArcGIS is a common concern among users, especially for small companies and professionals in underdeveloped countries. Reviewers mention the expensive price of the software itself as well as the high annual maintenance fees compared to the new features provided.
Installation and Technical Support Issues: Users have reported problems with the installation process for new versions of ArcGIS, often requiring technical support. They have requested training materials and user-friendly videos to better utilize and understand the software.
Attribute Ratings
Reviews
(1-24 of 24)ArcGIS is teacher approved!
- Geo-inquiry lessons are already made and easy to integrate in the classroom.
- Map manipulation allows students to fully understand geographical relationships.
- Story maps are extremely easy for students to use and create their own.
- PD training for me to better utilize and understand.
- User friendly videos for my students to watch to better understand.
- General training since some are difficult to implement.
ArcGIS, I couldn't live without it. Best product in the world
- Easy to use and learn
- Extremely powerful for integration with other systems
- Always being enhanced and upgraded
- The ArcGIS.com cloud technology is rock solid
- If your not on an Enterprise License Agreement, it can be expensive
- If you are migrating to, this can be difficult. Use a consultant to assist
Not for small business!
- Powerful.
- Intuitive.
- User friendly.
- GIS software for big or specialized business.
- Expensive.
- Weak service.
- Weak and slow technical support.
- Complex method to licensing (6 months later, we don't have access to all purchases).
- Dependence on technical support.
Licensing methods are very complex and technical support is very slow. Dependent on technical support but it is hard to work with in low communication service territories.
ArcGIS does geography better than anyone else, but not always the fastest or easiest
- ArcGIS is world-class with geographic analyses.
- ArcGIS works well with web applications.
- ArcGIS takes forever to open, and it seems to be getting slower with every new release.
- The creators of the ArcGIS software make it more difficult to create add-ins for the product than what could be done with an open-source solution.
- Geocoding is very fast with StreetMap Premium.
- Easy to use interface good for novices and experts alike.
- Allows for geocoding to building location vs. mapping address which is useful for several of our applications.
- Exporting data into excel as a CSV is a little clunky there should be a more intuitive way to do this.
- License configuration is impossible to do for the end user. I needed customer support to walk me through every step is was much too complicated.
- Updating street maps is confusing I would prefer a more intuitive interface that launches directly from ArcGIS to do this.
Happy Esri User
Internally, we use ArcGIS to manage university needs, such as campus mapping and inventory. We also use the suite of products for teaching and production work.
Externally, it is used as a core solution for extramural projects - like building a county GIS or similar client needs.
- Enterprise GIS - multi-user, multi-versioned geodatabase access through a host of apps and web tools really help people stay connected to data.
- Cartography - fantastic control and customization available with the ability to automate workflows.
- Training - tons of training videos, seminars, and other learning materials are easily accessed. The help documentation is superb.
- Ability to manage an organization through dashboards is extremely helpful.
- Hard to find things in Pro that I used frequently in ArcMap.
- Dislike increasing reliance on having everything run as a script.
- User management can get buggy.
ArcGIS: an incredibly useful, limited-support, field-monopolizing spatial analysis system.
- ArcGIS Online simplifies complicated functions in ArcMap.
- Allows you to layer various data points on top of each other
- Enables for some spreadsheet calculations within the platform (instead of having to do every single step in Excel before bringing it in as a CSV.)
- Faster processing speeds.
- Ability to work in multiple maps at once.
- A "tips" indicator and better help blog posts.
- ArcGIS has continuously developed its toolset to provide an effective and easy to use GIS application to solve any problems that present themselves in a spatial format (the where in a who what where problem).
- The tools themselves while complex in nature are fairly easy to learn and ESRI provides excellent training for them as well.
- The software itself is an industry-standard and this makes it easy to find educated, experienced, and skilled employees.
- Their support is very good. They are responsive, knowledgeable, and good with follow-through.
- The newest user interface is well designed, easy to pick up and very comprehensive.
- As the software has developed, the primary application has gone a couple of different directions. The latest versions have seemed to bring that back together. Hopefully, that will continue for the foreseeable future.
- Cost is something that can be a hindrance to smaller organizations. We hope they would continue to work on their cost model to improve it in particular as it relates to the smaller government space.
Robust and comprehensive, but a steep learning curve
- ArcGIS has so many tools to manipulate spatial data.
- ArcCatalog makes it easy to find files.
- Creating tools and modeling are a breeze in ArcGIS.
- There is a steep learning curve for ArcGIS users.
- It takes a lot of computing power for ArcGIS, as it can't be installed on every computer.
- At times, tools can be outdated and there are many similar competitors making more web-based tools that can replace ArcGIS.
- ArcGIS makes exporting maps to PDF documents very simple - file-export and 30 seconds later you have a PDF.
- The editing tools for ArcGIS are very powerful and allow us to make changes on the fly with little effort.
- ArcGIS online publishes our maps to the internet with only a few clicks within the client application.
- If you don't have any existing ArcGIS products, it's a very expensive piece of software to acquire.
- Annual maintenance fees are rather high compared to the new features that you get.
- You will need a computer with a powerful graphics card to fully utilize all of the software's capabilities.
If you are looking for a CAD replacement, ArcGIS is not a suitable replacement. It does not have the accuracy tolerance that a CAD application will have.
ArcGIS is the most advanced tool for geographic analysis, just make sure that's your main focus before going with it
- ArcGIS has such a large user base that accomplishing a geographic task is much easier than using other competing tools. Whenever you have a question, almost always, perhaps always, someone else has had the same question and had it answered by the ESRI professionals.
- ArcGIS is perhaps the most advanced tool for geographic analyses. You can just about do anything you want to with geographic data.
- ArcGIS's recent move towards online interactivity is awesome. They've made data transparency much simpler.
- ArcGIS takes forever, not kidding, to open. Especially if you have tons of data in the system. If you plan on using ArcGIS with big data sets make sure you have an awesome computer.
- ArcGIS offers so many advanced analytics tools that it's hard not to use it over other tools. But, those other tools come with costs. I wish ArcGIS came with all the analytical toolsets in the base package.
- Learning the python coding side of ArcGIS isn't for the faint of heart. It's not hard, but it's not exactly easy to become completely competent at either.
ArcGIS- Powerful Mapping and Data Integration Tool
- ArcGIS is very effective at efficiently manipulating maps and display details of layers in order to make both aesthetically pleasing and extremely customizable in order to convey all of the necessary information to the end map viewer.
- ArcGIS allows for easy compilation of data from many different sources (spreadsheets, database servers), as well as many options for combining/linking this data.
- The learning curved surrounding manipulating certain elements of layer displays can be somewhat steep. In some cases, these display options do not act the same between shapefiles from different software sources.
- Formatting of Excel spreadsheets in order to join and use them in ArcGIS can be difficult.
Geographical information system for the planning, analysis, evaluation and development of the territory.
- Geo-referencing of data for the exact location of an object for the planning and development of the territory.
- Is a program with excellent work tools for visualization, administration, editing, calculation, analysis of entities and attributes geo-referenced in different jobs.
- Contains multiple work tools that allow the elaboration of cartography with thematic layers previously identified by a characteristic indicated when starting to work in ArcGIS.
- I consider it difficult to use, it has an interface that needs to be studied to offer the user the use of the applications in a simpler and simpler way.
- It is an expensive program that requires the investment of a large sum of money, which can be used to modify other work areas.
- Is a program that requires a greater installed capacity of the computer so that the tools work correctly, being a disadvantage that can generate a delay in the delivery of the work.
ArcGIS changes the way we make images!
- Data display and customization
- Editing data files such as merging, joining, and separating them
- Data sharing with other programs such as Google Earth
- Uses an insane amount of RAM
- Constantly needs internet access to use a license, which can be a problem when working in the field
- Confusing use of different generations of files
ArcGIS Review - Powerful but Slow and Expensive
- ArcGIS can handle multiple data types natively and usually without error. This mixing allows for more in-depth analysis than with a less robust software suite.
- ArcGIS has ready-to-use basemaps that save time when doing quick work.
- ArcGIS often allows multiple solutions to a problem. This user flexibility makes for a more comfortable experience.
- There are frequently errors when using some tools, and the descriptions on these errors are often vague and unhelpful. This makes troubleshooting very difficult.
- ArcGIS is slow for many tasks, which makes for an annoying experience - particularly with large datasets.
- ArcGIS is expensive. Licenses may be out of reach for some researchers or organizations.
Hurricane winds through a GIS
- It allows to work and analyze phenomena on a large scale.
- The fact that one is able to work in geographical coordinates makes it much more versatile for these tasks than programs such as AutoCAD or similar, designed to work in smaller domains.
- The interpolation functions that it has can be extended and improved.
- The interface with the user can also be improved so that any user who uses it for the first time, can access to understand the program more easily.
Its weakness, in my opinion, lies in the methods of interpolation that it has because they can lead to erroneous interpretations, depending on the skill and experience of the user.
The best GIS tool
- I think it's easy to use, has a friendly interface and a wide range of geoprocessing tools available.
- I also like that it has several options to achieve the same result, being able to choose the best one according to the circumstances
- In addition, the cartographic output is very professional. It is incomparable.
- It can be very slow. It requires a powerful computer to execute tasks quickly, because It uses a lot of RAM
- The costs of this software are enormous for the initial purchase price and the subsequent yearly fees for the product.
- Limited options for incorporating graphics into maps
ArcGIS Multi professional software
- Cartographic output
- Data process
- Attribute fields
- Load field data information
- Create raster procesed information from basic data
- Every project occupied lots of computer memory
- Makes the computer run slow
- It's a very expensive software
ArcGIS is great for mapping once the program is learned
- ArcGIS is very good at allowing one to incorporate data from different sources, for example matching parcel shapefiles to Excel-based data on certain parcels.
- When used properly, ArcGIS can be good at showing compelling stories visually. This is useful when one needs to convey geographical information quickly.
- ArcGIS does a good job of maintaining a consistent interface over different updates. This makes it easier for someone, once trained in ArcGIS, to adapt quickly to a new version.
- ArcGIS can be a difficult interface to get used to for new users. There are many tools at one's fingertips, but it takes a while to learn them. A standard tutorial program may be available, but should be marketed more to companies that use ArcGIS.
- I'd like to see ArcGIS connect more to publicly available shapefile data that could be accessed and incorporated directly through the program.
- I think a user forum, with input from administrators, similar to what IMPLAN provides, would be very useful. This could help users ask questions and get answers on tips for using ArcGIS.
- I don't really like the credit-based subscription system to which ArcGIS transitioned. Perhaps it's more fair overall, as it links usage to cost, but the fact that credits do not carry over seems like a punishment for the subscribers who use ArcGIS moderately.
The best GIS on the market
- ArcGIS has an excellent core of tools to make possible everything you need in spatial analysis, from analysis of raster data to the conversion of CAD file to shapefile to simplify their use
- The simple use of the software is its other great virtues, it is very easy to use, very friendly with the user, the localizations of the tools, the intuitive nature of the menus and the facility to open and save the files
- The exit format of the maps maybe it is other of the great advantages of ArcGIS in comparison with other GIS, you have a big range of formats to save your map images, and that allows you to uses in any way you like
- The first thing is the cost, it is a very expensive software for countries of the underdeveloped world, so the professionals of GIS who want to use it, sometimes observe a big range of limitations, because we can use only a few tools that the organization pay and our analysis sometimes are limited because of that.
- For a rookie user, maybe the software can be overwhelming, seeing so many tools and so many options and features maybe can be afraid or do not know where to start, so it is necessary to prepare a big range of tutorials for people that do not know anything about the GIS, because they can be a possible users but maybe they can be afraid of the software
- The process of installation of a new version in our case bring us a big problem because the software does not want to be uninstalled so we have to contact technical support to make the transition from version 9.3 to 10 and that delay many of our work
On the other hand, maybe ArcGIS can be a threat to politicians because the big quantity of data you allow makes an analysis of everything you want including the behavior of people and what their needs are. Sometimes that is something that politicians do not want the public to know for security reasons.
ArcGIS, a great Enterprise GIS application/platform
- ArcGIS is a great for displaying large amounts of geographic data. The online interactive platform ArcGIS Online is very useful.
- The documentation of ArcGIS is very helpful and detail.
- The graphical interface of ArcGis is user friendly.
- ArcGIS is an powerful suite of applications and tools that all work together seamlessly for a complete desktop, mobile, and web solution.
- The Python integration and REST API are make it more powerful and flexible, allowing you programmatically to access the data in a variety of ways.
- The online help/forum changes too frequently.
- Being the major paid GIS software, there is no real competition. But sometimes random crush will make the user disappointed.
- Little bit too "black-box", any processes completed, ranging from geocoding to slope interpolations, do not have an exhaustive list of steps taken to reach the specific geo-coordinates, making understanding very difficult.
Use Mapping as a Data Tool on ArcGIS
- ArcGIS is great at mapping geo-coded data (specifically data with X,Y coordinates like addresses or events in certain places).
- Using ArcToolbox on GIS allows you to do many different analyses including spatial analysis, spatial statistics, hot-spot analysis, and joins with the many geo-processing tools.
- ArcGIS is a great application for mapping health-related data, visually. Incidence and prevalence data can easily be visualized by using symbols or colors on your map. The layout view allows you to customize your map by adding a North arrow, legend, and scale bar.
- ArcGIS can sometimes freeze or perform tasks slowly when too many geo-processing tools have been used on the MAP.
- ArcGIS could be improved by having a better support page. It is difficult to get the answers you need if you are unsure of how to, for example, perform spatial auto-correlations on your map.
- ArcGIS is only for data that can be spatially represented, and that is its limitation.
ArcGIS almost does it all
- ArcGIS has some really strong cartographic aspects. Users can print or export to various formats such as pdf for sharing with decision makers Or they may leverage some of the interactive capabilities of an ArcGIS Online app which can be made public or secured by logins.
- The current state of ArcGIS Desktop is intuitive and user-friendly. Users can add data, symbolize it and start working with tables in rapid time. In addition, users can easily push their data to a web map with a couple of clicks.
- My favorite aspect of ArcGIS is being able to quickly query out data based on a certain criteria. Users can also merge the data into another layer based on its location. For example, you may have a bunch of building all over the map that need a situs address. Users can merge the building data with underlying parcel data and grab the situs address. The number of buildings per parcel can then be extracted from the data to see if it matches the tax listing. The buildings that don't match up can then be extracted for field work.
- It would be nice if more functions from the Desktop application worked on a tablet. I understand that it is a beefy application so this would be dependent on the capabilities of the device.
Currently, I use ArcGIS in a personal/educational capacity as a tool to complete my thesis reseach. ArcGIS has proven to be absolutely critical in my thesis research as it is a fully functional GIS suite that in many regards is the industry standard (analogous to the Adobe Suite in the creative fields). Due to its long legacy, ArcGIS contains a huge suite of varied tools for analysis, display, and sharing of my data and results.
Over the years, ArcGIS has transitioned to being a bit more open in many regards. One of the biggest changes was switching the tools over to Python to ease scripting, updating, and modification of the internal tools and analyses. ArcGIS has also improved its ability to import/export various proprietary and open data formats and sources.
- Fully-featured and powerful GUI.
- Large library of integrated tools for analysis and visualization.
- Large community of experts, novices, and academics to provide tons of examples, help, and guidance for users.
- Excellent documentation.
- Industry-wide acceptance and usage means ease of deployment and exchange with others.
- Fully x64 native client is needed for large/complex datasets, which are not uncommon in GIS.
- GPU-accelerated analyses is needed as it will reduce analysis times orders of magnitude in most every case.
- Fully multi-threaded analyses where possible. Currently, analyses are almost exclusively single-threaded on the CPU with ArcGIS' GUI running in a separate thread to prevent lockup.
- Better interchange capabilities with Open Data formats and sources like OpenStreetMap.
- Product stability could use some improvement, especially when working on a very large project file.
For home use, I think ArcGIS could potentially be overkill, though recently ESRI has offered a home-use single-seat license for $100 which is an excellent deal. For use-cases like this, I would recommend QGIS from OSGeo as it would be more than sufficient for home or hobbyist uses without carrying any cost for licensing.