A GIS App for Every Need: Choosing the Right Web App – Part 1

December 3, 2024

Alex Moore

Have you ever started designing a web application, only to realize towards the end that you need to change almost everything? Proper planning and choosing the right web app can help ensure that your next project is efficient and effective. In part one of this two-part series, we outline four critical considerations for creators when planning their next project with an ArcGIS web application.

When it comes to working with spatial data, Esri offers an ever-growing variety of web applications through ArcGIS Online. In our recent webinar A GIS App for Every Need: Choosing the Right App in the ArcGIS Web Ecosystem, we highlighted four applications that are used to present data, convey information and tell spatial stories. Applications like ArcGIS Survey123 and ArcGIS Field Maps are extremely popular for collecting data, but what applications can be used to present that data after it has been collected and which one is right for you and your project?

Before jumping right into the configuring phase of your project, there are four important concepts to consider when choosing an application to present your work. Creators should think about what skills they bring to the table, who might end up using their application and how much time do they have to invest in developing the app. And of course, having a clearly defined purpose for any project will help you stay organized and work efficiently.

Purpose

Having a clearly defined purpose for your application is the first step in choosing the right web app. To help define purpose, consider the following questions:

What is the number one thing that users should get out of using your application?
What functions will need to be performed on the data. Is there a specific function or tool that you intend to make available?
Is your application interactive or is it simply informative?

Knowing your data will help determine the purpose of your application; 3D data vs demographic statistics will require considerably different workflows, for example. Maybe you have 3D data and demographic statistics. If creating one app seems too difficult, create two! A clearly defined purpose will help engage your audience, which is the next consideration for choosing the right web application.

Audience

Who will be using your application once it’s published?
Do you need an interactive app for high school students or an informative app for law enforcement decision makers?
How familiar is my audience with the data?

An internal application for staff to use amongst themselves might include the ability to edit sensitive data and a function to export or print. An application on a public facing website on the other hand needs to ensure data security and might restrict what functionality is available. Maybe your app needs to be configured in multiple languages on mobile devices for a tourist attraction.

The user experience is arguably the most important aspect of measuring if an application is successful. Your application is the link between the user and your data. If the audience will be using the application once, it needs to be simple and easy to use. If it’s an application designed to be part of a corporate team’s daily workflow, you can assume that users will learn the intricacies of how your application works; they will have more time invested in using the application.

Time

How much time the audience will spend using the application is particularly important, but so is the time required to create the application. Your availability as the developer can be one of the most crucial factors to consider when choosing the right web application. As the developer, consider the following questions and how they might resemble your next project:

How many tasks do I have on the go at work? Do I need this application done by tomorrow or in a month from now?
Am I only in charge of the user interface / user experience (UI/UX) design or is it my responsibility to collect, process and analyze the data?
Do I want to create something from scratch or am I looking for an ‘out of the box’ template to get me started?

Some web applications allow developers to fully customize the layout of the application, others require the use of a template and limit what can be changed. Another thing to consider is how the application might change over time. Public facing applications might never change, or changes might be limited to the data and not the user interface. Developers might want to continually update internal applications as the needs of their organization grow. With the latter, more time will be required to continually update and improve the application.

Ability

The final consideration is your ability as the developer creating the application.

Do you want to use Arcade expressions in your application?
Are you familiar with HTML and how this can be used in the ArcGIS web app space?
Maybe you are migrating existing apps from one application to another and have never used the new web application.

Making sure you have the right skills and knowledge to create the application is very important for your audience, your employer and yourself. Knowing which applications offer no-code environments can be a key factor in choosing the right web application.

Choosing the right web application for presenting your spatial data is a critical step that can significantly influence the effectiveness of your project. By carefully considering the purpose of your application, understanding your audience, evaluating the time you have for development and assessing your own ability, you can make an informed decision that aligns with your specific needs. Stay updated for part two of this series where we take a close look at ArcGIS Instant Apps, ArcGIS Dashboards, ArcGIS Story Maps and ArcGIS Experience Builder.