"}],"short_description":"Six practical tips for enhancing your web map pop-ups to serve your storytelling goals","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Web map pop-ups are a powerful and all-too-often underappreciated storytelling device. They\u2019re unobtrusive but can reward readers\u2019 curiosity by enriching maps with additional context, information, and perspectives. But when pop-ups are implemented without careful thought or intention \u2014 or are left unconfigured \u2014 they can do more harm than good, interrupting the flow of a story or overwhelming readers with extraneous information.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Like many narrative and cartographic elements, pop-ups should be structured to serve the needs of the reader \u2014 and in many cases, this means less is more.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Here are six practical tips for transforming your web map pop-ups from unstructured attribute tables into effective narrative elements that add color and context to your map and strengthen your story\u2019s main messages. The good news is that many of these suggestions are easy to implement, regardless of whether you\u2019re building a pop-up from scratch or sculpting a pre-configured pop-up from a Living Atlas layer.<\/span><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2980720,"id":2980720,"title":"PopUpComparison","filename":"PopUpComparison.png","filesize":473684,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-online\/mapping\/pop-ups-for-storytelling\/popupcomparison","alt":"A graphical comparison of two pop-ups against a colorful blurred background. The pop-up on the left is titled \"before\" and contains a table of attribute-value pairs. The pop-up on the right is titled \"after\" and features a simple-language description and chart.","author":"7231","description":"","caption":"Comparing an unconfigured pop-up and a configured pop-up for a county-level map of unemployment","name":"popupcomparison","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2979811,"date":"2026-08-21 16:54:28","modified":"2026-08-23 19:29:00","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1280,"height":660,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":239,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":396,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","large-width":1280,"large-height":660,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":660,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":660,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison-826x426.png","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":426,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/PopUpComparison.png","wide_image-width":1280,"wide_image-height":660}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/home\/item.html?id=993b8c64a67a4c6faa44a91846547786#overview"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Not every map needs a pop-up; sometimes labels, annotations, or narrative text can communicate a map\u2019s message more effectively. Because pop-ups are typically displayed only as the result of intentional user interaction, they should add value to the experience and deepen readers\u2019 understanding of the map\u2019s core themes and messages. By default, pop-ups are enabled on feature layers, so be sure to disable them if they\u2019re unnecessary.<\/span><\/p>\n Web map pop-ups should be optimized for quick, at-a-glance interactions. Keep your content focused and resist the temptation to turn every pop-up into a miniature report. If a reader needs to spend several minutes parsing a pop-up, consider whether some of that information would be better suited to the surrounding narrative. Similarly, avoid enabling pop-ups on more than one layer at a time.<\/span><\/p>\n Just because pop-ups <\/span>can <\/span><\/i>contain a wealth of information doesn\u2019t mean they <\/span>should<\/span><\/i>. It\u2019s almost always a good idea to prune your pop-ups to include only the attributes or information that are directly relevant to the theme and purpose of your map. Removing extraneous fields such as object IDs and other metadata will ensure that your readers don\u2019t need to hunt for the information they seek when they select a feature on the map.<\/span><\/p>\n Put yourself in the reader\u2019s shoes: If you decide to click on a feature, what pieces of information are you most likely looking for? Start with those \u2014 and then remove everything else.<\/span><\/p>\n Learn more: Configure pop-ups (Map Viewer documentation)<\/a><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2980727,"id":2980727,"title":"HousingPopUp_Composite","filename":"HousingPopUp_Composite.png","filesize":348417,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-online\/mapping\/pop-ups-for-storytelling\/housingpopup_composite","alt":"A screenshot of a choropleth map centered on Portland, Oregon. The web map has a pop-up active that describes the economic state of the selected ZIP code.","author":"7231","description":"","caption":"The web map pop-ups in \"Through the roof\" provide focused insights, rather than tables of statistics","name":"housingpopup_composite","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2979811,"date":"2026-08-21 17:59:28","modified":"2026-08-21 20:55:26","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1280,"height":660,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":239,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":396,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","large-width":1280,"large-height":660,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":660,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":660,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite-826x426.png","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":426,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/HousingPopUp_Composite.png","wide_image-width":1280,"wide_image-height":660}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":"https:\/\/esri.github.io\/through-the-roof\/"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" By default, feature layer pop-ups include a rudimentarily formatted table of attribute fields and values. Not only can this be an overwhelming amount of data \u2014 see the previous point about removing the noise \u2014 but it can also be difficult to interpret, especially when a layer uses abbreviated or coded field names.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Instead of relying on default attribute tables, consider reformatting your pop-ups to use natural, human language. This is especially important if your story is written with a distinct narrative voice. The language in your pop-ups should feel like it belongs to the same story as the rest of your content.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Learn more: Pop-ups: the essentials<\/a><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2980723,"id":2980723,"title":"MentalHealthPopUp_Composite","filename":"MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","filesize":226927,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-online\/mapping\/pop-ups-for-storytelling\/mentalhealthpopup_composite","alt":"A screenshot of a county-level choropleth map of the United States. The web map has a pop-up active that describes in simple language several mental health-related attributes of the selected county in Arkansas.","author":"7231","description":"","caption":"In \"America's mental health crisis, mapped,\" natural-language pop-ups help clarify key statistics","name":"mentalhealthpopup_composite","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2979811,"date":"2026-08-21 17:04:21","modified":"2026-08-23 19:29:54","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1280,"height":660,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":239,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":396,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","large-width":1280,"large-height":660,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":660,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":660,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite-826x426.png","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":426,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MentalHealthPopUp_Composite.png","wide_image-width":1280,"wide_image-height":660}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":"https:\/\/storymaps.arcgis.com\/stories\/f991326818c24aa1852335d1ef45f23b"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" <\/p>\n Without appropriate context, data can lose its meaning \u2014 or worse, mislead. Rather than show isolated values in your pop-ups, try to give readers some context for what those values mean. This may be as simple as appending appropriate units or clarifying what a number represents.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n With Arcade, you can go even further by comparing a selected feature\u2019s values with meaningful benchmarks, such as regional or national averages, rankings, thresholds, or historical trends \u2014 or even combining values from multiple layers in a single map. You can also use Arcade to add dynamic, location-specific charts, tables, or simple graphics to your pop-ups to add even more detail and context to your map.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n1. Consider whether they\u2019re necessary at all<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n2. Remove the noise<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n3. Speak like a storyteller<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n4. Provide context<\/span><\/h2>\n