ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online are two extremely effective tools for mapmaking and analyzing spatial data. Creating a useful and distributable map includes many decisions by the designer and stakeholders beyond the initial map design and analysis. One of the most important steps in mapmaking is ensuring that the end product is understandable, accessible, and applicable. This is where ArcGIS Instant Apps comes into play: a tool that allows audiences to easily view and interact with a map and its data.
Instant Apps provides templates for publishing web maps from ArcGIS Online. Users have 18 templates to choose from (displayed at bottom), and each template includes specific properties that allow the user to customize the app based on their goals. Each template contains the same mission: to create a useful and interactive map for the viewer based on the data that the map is displaying.
Instant Apps experienced it’s most recent update in December of 2021, which makes its usefulness all the more relevant. This update included the finalization of three important templates (Chart Viewer, Countdown, and Slider) as well as the rollout of the newest template, Exhibit. Exhibit is the biggest release to come out of the recent update. This template is especially interesting, as it allows the user to create a presentation across the map using slides and images, essentially mimicking a museum exhibit. Since this template is still in its first stages, a personalized example is not included in this post, however an interesting example from the ArcGIS Instant Apps Gallery can be explored here. Examples of the other 17 templates, in addition to what is included within this post, can be explored in the rest of the Instant Apps Gallery.
To demonstrate the different functionality of Instant Apps, I have created an interactive web map in ArcGIS Online using a dataset of plant-based restaurants across the neighborhoods in Denver, Colorado. Included in this dataset is the attribute information of each restaurant’s vegan-friendly rating. With this data as my basis, I applied the map to 4 different Instant App templates to illustrate the versatility of the tool. These four templates- Basic, Zone Lookup, Nearby, and Interactive Legend- only touch the surface of what Instant Apps has to offer.
Basic
The Basic template is one of the most applicable Instant Apps, as it can be applied to any online map regardless of the data type and layout. This Instant App allows the viewer to engage with the map at a basic level, with the ability to explore the map and select the data points to view the attribute information attached to them.
When configuring an Instant App, there are several parameters that the user can adjust to create the final product. While this template is relatively straightforward, some of the highlights the user can customize include the viewer interactivity- search capabilities, screenshot options, and scroll limits- as well as general layout. Adjusting the general layout means that the user can change the location of features like the zoom buttons, home button, and legend. One last notable feature that I utilized on this template is the basemap toggle option. While this is not exclusive to the basic template, it is an important feature that allows the viewer to change the basemap of the map, which can be useful for a variety of reasons.
Zone Lookup
For any map that includes geographic boundaries- whether they be political, social, or environmental- the Zone Lookup template is an incredibly useful tool. This template requires that the data on the map is incorporated within a “zone”- in this case, I utilized the neighborhoods of Denver, Colorado. Zone Lookup allows the viewer to either search for a location or pin a location on the map to discover more about the zone that the location is in. In the example I created, the viewer can select a specific neighborhood, which reveals the plant-based restaurants that are located within that neighborhood. Once a zone is selected, the attribute information for the restaurants are displayed in the search box to the left.
This template requires close attention to the configuration in order to present a useful result. The user must choose which zone to use as the look up tool (I.e. the neighborhood) as well as which data to use as the return result (I.e. the restaurants). The user can also choose how to emphasize the returned results, such as creating a halo or emphasis around the selected neighborhood. The Instant App I created utilized the previously mentioned basemap toggle, as well as the “dark theme.” The theme for each template can either be light or dark, and the user can choose this based on what they believe is most user friendly for their map’s intended use.
Nearby
The Nearby template functions in a similar fashion to zone lookup, however this template does not require predetermined “zones”, just data with a feature layer. The purpose of this map is to allow viewers to discover what data points are “nearby” a location that they choose. This instant app allows the viewer to pin a location on the map and view the return results that appear within a specified radius around the center point. The distance threshold is set by the creator (i.e. 0.25 miles-2 miles), however the user can choose which distance to select as the radius using the sliding scale.
In the example below, I used this Instant App to demonstrate how many plant-based restaurants there are within a mile radius of the Denver Botanical Gardens. The Nearby template functions in a similar fashion to zone lookup, where the attribute information for the return results are displayed in the search box to the left. The Nearby template can be an incredibly useful tool for a variety of categories; not just for finding restaurants near you, but also for public health purposes, as demonstrated here.
Interactive Legend
The final Instant App I created utilizes the Interactive Legend template. This is an incredibly useful tool when the user creates data that is meant to be explored based on the attribute data on the map. This template allows the viewer to choose what components from the legend they want to view and focus on. In the example below, I have selected that the map only displays plant-based restaurants that have the highest vegan-friendly ratings (5). While this is just one way this template can be used, this would also be an extremely beneficial tool when the map contains a feature layer with distinct attributes that the viewer may want to view individually. This is also a useful template when the map may display several different categories of information, and the viewer only wants to see the data that is important to them.
When configuring this app, the user has to be mindful of how to display the results when the viewer interacts with the legend. I decided to completely remove any data points that did not match with the components selected on the legend, however it is also possible to simply blur the background results or emphasize the selected features with a halo.
Instant App Fundamentals
When using Instant Apps to configure a publishable map, there are several parameters that the user can set and/or change to ensure the template fits the map’s purpose. While each template has its own specific data requirements and capabilities, there are several parameters that are either identical or similar between all 18 templates. These are the basic steps to look our for when creating an Instant App.
Interactivity: Deciding how viewers can interact with the web app is the first step in configuring a template and is based off of the creator’s intended purpose of the map. Instant Apps allows the user to choose if they want to display the following features: bookmarks, a home button, a scale bar, zoom controls, a search feature, screenshot capabilities, a legend, a basemap toggle button, a current location finder, a navigation boundary, and scroll limitations. If the user chooses to include an option for basemap toggling, they are given the Esri Basemap collection library to choose from.
Theme and Layout: After choosing which interactive elements will be a part of the app, the user can then choose the theme and layout of the map. This includes setting the theme to either light or dark, as well as positioning each previously mentioned feature on each corner of the map. Instant Apps provides an easy-to-use tool for moving these features around, allowing the creator to test out multiple options to choose what is best for the final app. The theme choice of either light or dark can be decided by the user to help best emphasize the overall aesthetic of the app. While creating the web app, there is also an option to view how the app would function on different screens, including desktop view, portrait view, and landscape view. This is especially important to consider when thinking about how the audience will be more likely to view the map, whether it be on a desktop, tablet, or smart phone.
Final Thoughts
Even as someone who has used ArcGIS Online to create Web Maps for years, Instant Apps was a tool that I had never experienced or worked with. Despite this, working with Instant Apps and each of the different templates was a seamless process. Configuring the app was an easy process guided by built-in steps in the configuration process. When creating the app, the user can choose to either view all of the settings at once to individually set each parameter, or to follow along with the “express” configuration process. The express mode makes Instant Apps an even more accessible feature for map makers of any skill level, as it eases the configuration process while still including all of the necessary steps to finalize a useful map. More information on Instant Apps can be found here.
Instant App Templates
| Template Name | Data Requirements | App Capabilities |
| 3D Viewer | Web Scene (layers, basemap, ground) | Allows for easy interaction in 3D web scenes, accompany with images and slides |
| Attachment Viewer | Web Map with a Feature layer with attachments | Allows users to flip through a layer’s features to view the image and/or video attachments |
| Basic | Web Map | Creates a basic explorable layout with features like a legend, scale bar, and basemap toggle |
| Category Gallery | Web Map with a group (collection of items) | Creates an interactive gallery of maps, apps, and layers |
| Chart Viewer | Web Map with at least one configured chart | Include up to 10 charts, histograms, or scatterplots across the map |
| Countdown | Web Map with ranked features | Locations on a map are ranked by a specified field, users can compare ranked features |
| Exhibit (New) | Web Map | Creates an interactive presentation of slides, which are composed of different layers or attributes of the map |
| Imagery Viewer | Web Map with at least one imagery layer | Displays layers with imagery across time and space |
| Interactive Legend | Web Map with a feature layer | Allows for focused view of a specified feature on the legend |
| Media Map | Web Map | Creates a basic map with a navigation boundary and basic tools- great for smaller maps used in a StoryMap or other media |
| Minimalist | Web Map | Similar to the basic template, but utilizes a sliding scale for the zoom feature |
| Nearby | Web Map with a feature layer | Helps to locate features in a specific radius around an area of interest. |
| Portfolio | Web Map | Allows user to view several different maps, images, and other apps within the same display |
| Sidebar | Web Map | Assigns the map a sidebar that gives users options to interacts with and filter the data |
| Slider | Web Map with a feature layer with at least one numeric field | Allows users to interact with data that contains time intervals- useful for historical or live data to display a change in time |
| Zone Lookup | Web Map with a feature layer | Identifies features of a specified zone or area based on the users choosing |
Table adapted from Esri
Mac Caughey is a third-year student at Penn State majoring in Geography and minoring in Environmental and Renewable Resource Economics. He is pursuing certificates in Geographic Information Science, Landscape ecology, and Global Environmental Systems. Mac’s interests include environmental sustainability, conservation, and food science. Mac has been working at the Donald W. Hamer Center for Maps and Geospatial information since November 2021.
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