ArcGIS Field Maps is a powerful, versatile, mobile app solution used to complete a variety of field workflows. ArcGIS Field Maps brings maps to life on smartphones and tablets. It enhances the situational awareness of your field workforce, streamlines field data collection workflows, and integrates directly in your existing enterprise systems.
First released in November of 2020, ArcGIS Field Maps is 4 years old! We’ve experienced remarkable growth in the use of Field Maps and want to express our gratitude to our incredible community for your support and valuable feedback. The November update is our third and last major release of 2024. For details on previous updates this year, please read our what’s new blog articles for June and February.
What’s new for November
Our November 2024 release includes new ways to get started using Field Maps Designer, additional options for controlling offline use of a map, as well as stability and performance enhancements to both the iOS and Android mobile apps. Please reference our What’s New documentation topic for additional information.
Get started using templates
Field Maps Designer allows you to configure the maps mobile workers use. Designer can also be used to create new maps and web feature layers. Starting from scratch, you can design a new map, with feature layers, their attributes, forms, and templates for data capture.
But why start from scratch? Now you can get started using map templates. When you create a new map, choose to start with a map template.
Map templates include predefined layers that are prepared with forms that include logic and calculated expressions, ready-to-use pop-ups, and simple symbology. Once created, you can easily customize the map and layers to fit your needs.
This initial release includes the following templates:
- Ground Control
- Field Notes
- Asset Inspections
Reading the details of each template, you can quickly understand it’s purpose. Once selected, simply provide a name for the new map and Designer will create it for you and open it so you configure it, create offline areas, and/or share it.
This is our introduction to map templates. We plan to add additional templates, and in a future update, we will let you select your own maps as map templates.
NOTE: ArcGIS Solutions includes a collection of industry-specific configurations of ArcGIS. You can use the ArcGIS Solutions app to deploy offerings that include Field Maps configurations.
New offline settings
Field Maps includes additional options for controlling offline use of a specific map through two new settings found in the App Settings tab in Field Maps Designer:
- New offline map areas – when disabled, this setting will prevent mobile workers from adding offline areas for the map within the mobile app. To ensure your mobile workforce use the offline map areas created for them, disable the creation of offline map areas.
- Online maps – when disabled, this setting will prevent mobile workers from using the online version of a map. It will require mobile workers have an offline map area downloaded to their device before they can open and work with the map. To ensure your mobile workforce is ready for offline map use, disable the use of online maps.
These settings are enabled by default and can only be defined when authoring the map; mobile workers cannot override them. To modify these settings in Field Maps Designer, click the App Settings tab, expand the Map group, and use the toggle next to Online maps and New offline map areas to disable settings.
In addition to the enhancements mentioned above, we’ve included several performance and stability improvements to Field Maps Designer as well as Field Maps mobile app for iOS and Android. Mobile updates include fixes for the GetUser “Failed to Calculate” issue and “User isn’t able to sign-in” issue reported on Esri Community.
To view a list of all improvements, read the What’s New section of our documentation website.
What’s coming in 2025
Looking forward, 2025 is going to be an exciting year. We’ve been busy working on some exciting new enhancements to Field Maps that include:
- Plan and coordinate field work using tasks.
- View and trace utility networks offline.
- Editing support for subtype group layers, enhancements to the Indoor editing experience.
- Forms support within the Edit Multiple tool.
- Improved experience for related records including support for Related pop-up elements.
- Geofence location-alerts that update with edits to the underlying feature layer.
- New and improved personal markup experience.
- New collaboration experience for Apple devices.
- Much more…
We’d love to have you join our public beta. Click on the following link and join the Early Adopter Community opportunity with your Esri global account.
If you have questions about ArcGIS Field Maps, please check out our Esri Community page. If you would like to connect with and learn from your fellow users, please join our LinkedIn group.
Hi Scott, you make the point that “The name “Web Editor” says it all – data editing is the focus, it’s not a secondary activity.” so is there any reason this is not available for those with a Contributor or Mobile Worker licence? The app looks great but it’s a bit odd that it has been introduced at a point when a Creator now comes with access to ArcGIS Pro so it seems like this would be perfect for those that don’t have access to the desktop software. Thanks
I’ll second this. Real oversight to lock mobile workers out, who would likely be one of the biggest users!
Going to 3rd this! Without Mobile Editor access to WebEditor, it is practically useless in our organisation. Anyone that has Creator or higher level permissions typcially will edit data direct through ArcGIS Pro (as a part of updating and producing maps via templates). Other lower level workers will continue to use existing Field Maps and WebApps built to simplify the data editing process for field-office work flows. Web Editor could have simplified some of that data editing for tasks not currently in a WebApp but also not worth them delving into ArcGIS Pro (using a concurrent Basic license).
I’m going to 4th this!
Hi Scott and rest of ESRI,
this is really ESRI in a nutshell again when it comes to licensing. Mobile workers (on mobile worker license) need access to this. It is exactly those users that need a simpler tool then ArcGIS desktop (Pro) and a flow that only adresses their work to be done. Simple, in terms of as both cost and functionality effective.
Typically the mobile workers works outside in the field parts of the year and other parts of the year in the office – seasons you know?
We need this tool to be made available to those who have a mobile worker license. The majority of the users in my organization who need this functionality are mobile workers. We cannot afford to make everyone in my organization a “Creator.” These tools are standard editing capabilities that should be included across the board.
@Scott, is there a technical reason why ArcGIS Web Editor is only available to Creators or higher? Seems like it really should be for Editor/Contributor user types.