Best GIS Software

How Many GIS Software Products Does G2 Track?

Total Products under this Category: 414

Category Stats (Sep 2026)

  • Average Rating: 4.29/5 The average rating of products in this category, based on all submitted ratings
  • Top Trending Product: Smappen (+9.51%) - Among all products in this category, Smappen recorded the largest rating increase compared to last month

Last updated: September 01, 2026

How Does G2 Rank GIS Software Products?

Why You Can Trust G2's Software Rankings:

  • 30 Analysts and Data Experts
  • 8,100+ Authentic Reviews
  • 414+ Products
  • Unbiased Rankings

G2's software rankings are built on verified user reviews, rigorous moderation, and a consistent research methodology maintained by a team of analysts and data experts. Each product is measured using the same transparent criteria, with no paid placement or vendor influence. While reviews reflect real user experiences, which can be subjective, they offer valuable insight into how software performs in the hands of professionals. Together, these inputs power the G2 Score, a standardized way to compare tools within every category.

G2 Grid® for GIS Software

G2 Grid® for GIS Software plotting products by satisfaction and market presence

Highlighted products: Google Earth Pro, Google Maps Platform, Esri ArcGIS, AutoCAD, Maptitude, DroneDeploy, Mapme, and BatchGeo.

Underlying data: [Grid® JSON](https://www.g2.com/categories/gis/grids.json?focus%5B%5D=google-earth-pro&focus%5B%5D=google-maps-platform&focus%5B%5D=esri-arcgis&focus%5B%5D=autocad&focus%5B%5D=maptitude&focus%5B%5D=dronedeploy&focus%5B%5D=mapme&focus%5B%5D=batchgeo)

Google Earth Pro

Google Earth Pro is a comprehensive desktop application that offers an immersive 3D representation of the Earth's surface, combining high-resolution satellite imagery, aerial photography, and geographic information system (GIS) data. Designed for professionals and enthusiasts alike, it provides advanced tools for geographic analysis, visualization, and presentation. Users can explore diverse terrains, urban landscapes, and historical imagery, making it a versatile platform for various applications. Key Features and Functionality: - High-Resolution Printing: Export and print map images up to 4800x3200 pixels, suitable for detailed reports and presentations. - Historical Imagery Viewer: Access archived satellite and aerial images to analyze changes over time, such as urban development or environmental shifts. - GIS Data Import Support: Import various spatial data formats, including ESRI Shapefiles, for comprehensive geographic analysis. - Movie Creation: Record and export guided tours or area walkthroughs as video files, enhancing presentations and storytelling. - Advanced Measurement Tools: Measure 3D buildings, calculate areas of polygons or circles, and assess distances with precision. Primary Value and User Solutions: Google Earth Pro empowers users to conduct in-depth geographic analyses without the need for expensive GIS software. Its advanced features facilitate tasks such as site selection, environmental monitoring, urban planning, and educational projects. By providing access to high-resolution imagery and robust analytical tools, it enables users to visualize and interpret spatial data effectively, supporting informed decision-making and comprehensive presentations.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 372

How Do G2 Users Rate Google Earth Pro?

  • Data Capture: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Google Earth Pro?

  • Seller: Google
  • Year Founded: 1998
  • HQ Location: Mountain View, CA
  • Twitter: @google
    31,899,995 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    301,144 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NASDAQ:GOOG

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Project Manager, Project Engineer
  • Top Industries: Civil Engineering, Construction
  • Company Size: 42% Medium, 42% Small

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Google Earth Pro?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the 3D visualization in Google Earth Pro for effective sewer line design and drone scouting.
  • Users value the detailed geospatial analysis capabilities of Google Earth Pro for effective exploration and decision-making.
  • Users value the address validation feature in Google Earth Pro for easily locating places by postcode or name.
  • Users value the customization options in Google Earth Pro, enabling tailored analysis for business and network needs.
  • Users find the ease of use of Google Earth Pro enhances their sewer line design and ground level visualization.
Cons
  • Users find Google Earth Pro not user-friendly, struggling with difficult file saving and frustrating language display issues.
  • Users find the lack of cloud synchronization cumbersome, needing to export KLM documents to share saved places.
  • Users face image quality issues in Google Earth Pro, making it challenging to locate places effectively.
  • Users express frustration over licensing issues that prevent displaying maps solely in English, complicating usability.
  • Users find Google Earth Pro's outdated information can lead to slow performance on older systems.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Google Earth Pro?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Google Earth Pro?

Google Maps Platform

Google Maps Platform is a comprehensive suite of APIs and SDKs that enables developers to integrate dynamic, real-world mapping and location-based services into their applications. Leveraging Google's extensive geospatial data, it offers tools for creating interactive maps, providing accurate routing, and delivering detailed place information, thereby enhancing user engagement and functionality. Key Features and Functionality: - 3D Maps: Developers can create immersive, photorealistic 3D maps, offering users a more engaging and realistic navigation experience. - Aerial View: Provides pre-rendered, 3D cinematic videos of points of interest and their surroundings, enriching applications with dynamic visual content. - Dynamic Maps: Allows customization and real-time styling of interactive maps across all devices and platforms, ensuring a consistent and personalized user interface. - Dynamic Street View: Embeds 360° panoramic imagery, enabling users to explore locations virtually with real-world visuals. - Elevation Data: Offers access to elevation information for specific locations, useful for applications requiring topographical context. - Map Tiles: Enables the design of unique interfaces and interactions tailored to specific brand and design requirements, enhancing visual appeal and usability. - Maps Embed: Facilitates the addition of interactive maps or Street View panoramas to websites with simple HTTP requests, simplifying integration processes. - Photorealistic 3D Tiles: Provides access to a 3D mesh model of the real world, allowing the creation of cinematic experiences using preferred rendering tools. - Static Maps and Street View: Allows embedding of static map images or Street View panoramas into web pages without the need for JavaScript, streamlining content inclusion. - Street View Tiles: Utilizes street-level images and tile metadata to create immersive experiences, enhancing user interaction with real-world visuals. Primary Value and Solutions Provided: Google Maps Platform empowers developers to build applications that offer users accurate, real-time, and interactive mapping experiences. By integrating these tools, businesses can enhance user engagement, improve navigation and location-based services, and provide detailed geospatial insights. This platform is particularly beneficial for industries such as logistics, travel, real estate, and retail, where precise location information and mapping are crucial for operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 57

How Do G2 Users Rate Google Maps Platform?

  • Data Capture: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Google Maps Platform?

  • Seller: Google
  • Year Founded: 1998
  • HQ Location: Mountain View, CA
  • Twitter: @google
    31,899,995 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    301,144 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NASDAQ:GOOG

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 58% Small, 32% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Google Maps Platform?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of Google Maps Platform, especially for seamless navigation and integration with apps.
  • Users value the accuracy and reliability of Google Maps Platform, enhancing operational efficiency and user experience.
  • Users praise the navigation ease of Google Maps Platform, benefiting from accurate, real-time traffic and intuitive routes.
  • Users benefit from real-time location tracking in Google Maps, enhancing navigation and reducing travel time effectively.
  • Users value the accuracy and reliability of Google Maps Platform, enhancing navigation for personal and professional use.
Cons
  • Users often face mapping issues with inaccuracies and confusing features that hinder effective navigation and experience.
  • Users are frustrated with the inaccurate geolocation leading to wrong turns and misleading addresses in Google Maps.
  • Users experience accuracy issues with Google Maps, particularly in rural areas and with outdated Street View information.
  • Users find the high costs and pricing complexity of Google Maps Platform challenging, especially with increased usage.
  • Users find the high cost of Google Maps Platform challenging, especially with complex features and unexpected pricing spikes.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Google Maps Platform?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Google Maps Platform?

Esri ArcGIS

ArcGIS is a comprehensive suite of mapping and location intelligence tools and capabilities. ArcGIS can be deployed on local machines (ArcGIS Pro), on your remote or on-premises servers (ArcGIS Enterprise), or as SaaS hosted by Esri (ArcGIS Online). ArcGIS includes focused apps to deliver complete solutions for your business or organization. Along with software, Esri provides a comprehensive collection of data and content to geo-enrich your own data. ArcGIS also provides rich software development tools for you to configure and create your own mapping and location intelligence products.

Average Rating: 4.5/5.0

Total Reviews: 516

How Do G2 Users Rate Esri ArcGIS?

  • Data Capture: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Esri ArcGIS?

  • Seller: Esri
  • Year Founded: 1969
  • HQ Location: Redlands, CA
  • Twitter: @Esri
    188,738 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    7,396 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: GIS Analyst, GIS Specialist
  • Top Industries: Government Administration, Environmental Services
  • Company Size: 39% Medium, 32% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Esri ArcGIS?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find Esri ArcGIS easy to use, with a user-friendly interface that simplifies geospatial tasks and analysis.
  • Users value the high-quality 3D visualization in ArcGIS, enhancing their decision-making for professional use cases.
  • Users value the excellent data visualization capabilities of Esri ArcGIS Pro, enhancing clarity and user experience significantly.
  • Users find Esri ArcGIS to be extremely user-friendly, appreciating its ease of learning and implementation.
  • Users value the superior visualization capabilities of Esri ArcGIS, enhancing clarity and usability in geospatial analysis.
Cons
  • Users face issues with stability and integration, leading to crashes and complications when managing large datasets.
  • Users find Esri ArcGIS to be costly for small businesses, limiting access for those wanting to learn geospatial analysis.
  • Users often face integration issues with ArcGIS, making file management and sharing a frustrating experience.
  • Users find the learning curve steep, indicating a need for better training resources and tool compatibility.
  • Users find Esri ArcGIS to have a learning difficulty, suggesting additional training opportunities to improve usability.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Esri ArcGIS?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Esri ArcGIS?

AutoCAD

Redefine how you create with Autodesk® AutoCAD®. Autodesk AI empowers you to reimagine your creative process in AutoCAD, delivering advanced automation and meaningful performance enhancements that help you design faster and work smarter. Intelligent features reduce repetitive tasks and surface actionable insights, so you can spend more time creating with precision and confidence. Use natural, conversational interactions to ask questions, check standards unique to your team, and quickly validate designs against established workflows. Securely managed data supports informed decision making and helps turn ideas into high quality results more efficiently. A truly collaborative design experience brings teams together through Forma Data Management. Purpose built cloud storage makes it easy to save, manage, and access project files while supporting collaborative design processes. Multiple users can add markups to a single drawing on desktop or web with Multi-user Markup, improving transparency and reducing errors. Checkout transforms collaborative drafting by allowing contributors to work on specific geometry, submit edits for review, and merge changes smoothly by eliminating manual collation and file conflicts. Your data and intellectual property remain secure and governed, giving you confidence across every stage of design. Optimize productivity with seven specialized toolsets, including Electrical, Mechanical, and Plant 3D. Automate routine tasks with AutoLISP, tailor workflows to your discipline, and extend AutoCAD through APIs and thousands of apps on the Autodesk App Store.

Average Rating: 4.4/5.0

Total Reviews: 1,851

How Do G2 Users Rate AutoCAD?

  • Data Capture: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind AutoCAD?

  • Seller: Autodesk
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 1982
  • HQ Location: San Francisco
  • Twitter: @autodesk
    273,215 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    15,757 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Architect, Designer
  • Top Industries: Architecture & Planning, Civil Engineering
  • Company Size: 45% Small, 34% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About AutoCAD?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find AutoCAD to be easy to use, enhancing productivity with its intuitive tools and extensive features.
  • Users appreciate AutoCAD for its precision and professional standards, significantly enhancing their design skills and career prospects.
  • Users appreciate AutoCAD for its precision and professional standards, enhancing accuracy in engineering and architectural designs.
  • Users value the powerful 3D modeling capabilities of AutoCAD, benefiting from its precision and flexibility in design.
  • Users commend AutoCAD for its detailed engineering drawings, enhancing precision and understanding in design and drafting.
Cons
  • Users find the high subscription cost of AutoCAD to be a significant barrier, especially for students and freelancers.
  • Users struggle with the steep learning curve of AutoCAD, making it difficult for newcomers to effectively begin using the software.
  • Users find the high cost of AutoCAD to be prohibitive for freelancers and small businesses.
  • Users find the difficult learning curve of AutoCAD challenging, especially for newcomers trying to navigate its complexity.
  • Users face high hardware requirements for AutoCAD, necessitating costly, powerful computers for optimal performance.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of AutoCAD?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About AutoCAD?

Maptitude

Maptitude is the best mapping software and GIS, on both desktop and online/SaaS/Cloud, to: • Optimize sales territories, vehicle routes, and site locations • Visualize, analyze, and present mission-critical data • Maximize profits, time, and resources Maptitude GIS and mapping software gives you the tools, maps, and data you need to analyze and understand how geography affects you and your organization. Maptitude is the most capable, and least expensive, full-featured mapping software available. With Maptitude you can create maps and map images from spreadsheets and you can see external data on the map from a variety of sources including Google Maps KML/KMZ files. Designed for data visualization and geographic analysis, Maptitude comes with a comprehensive library of maps and GIS data for your country. What Can You Do with Maptitude Mapping Software Features? • Optimize sales territories, districts, service areas, vehicle routes, and site locations • Map customer locations, visualize sales performance, and identify over- and under-served areas • Reveal hidden geographic patterns, trends, data density, and hotspots from spreadsheets and databases • Visualize and analyze population, income, and other demographic data • Plan efficient travel routes with advanced proximity, navigation, and travel time tools • Customize every aspect of your maps including symbols, themes, layers, annotations, and 3D graphics to tailor both appearance and functionality to your specific needs • Customize maps with flexible color schemes, layers, and annotations to highlight mission-critical data • Connect to corporate databases, add your own data, and answer geographic questions impacting operations • Find growth opportunities by spotting patterns you can't see in tables • Create, edit, and manage interactive maps with zoom, pan, filter, query, and layer toggle features for dynamic exploration and improved decision-making • Create, edit, and manage interactive, shareable maps for better decision-making

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 150

How Do G2 Users Rate Maptitude?

  • Data Capture: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Maptitude?

  • Seller: Caliper
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 1983
  • HQ Location: Newton, MA
  • Twitter: @Maptitude
    1,195 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    40 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: President, Owner
  • Top Industries: Hospital & Health Care, Higher Education
  • Company Size: 54% Small, 26% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Maptitude?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find Maptitude's extensive feature set invaluable for logistics and spatial analysis with user-friendly tools.
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of Maptitude, finding it straightforward for logistics and analytical tasks.
  • Users love the clear data visualization in Maptitude, enabling informed decisions and impressive narrative creation from mapping.
  • Users appreciate the data accuracy of Maptitude, which enhances their analytical capabilities and project outcomes.
  • Users appreciate the powerful GIS analysis capabilities of Maptitude, enhancing logistics and demographic project efficiency.
Cons
  • Users face limited accessibility with Maptitude, needing to deactivate licenses and lacking sufficient sharing options.
  • Users find Maptitude to be expensive due to limited sharing options and costly annual license upgrades.
  • Users find the limited sharing options in Maptitude restrictive, desiring more flexibility for collaboration without extra costs.
  • Users find the learning curve challenging, particularly for beginners, but training resources can help ease the transition.
  • Users find Maptitude a bit bewildering for newcomers, though online training helps to improve familiarity quickly.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Maptitude?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Maptitude?

DroneDeploy

DroneDeploy powers field teams with robotics and AI. As the only platform that combines robotic automation, AI agents and truly unified reality capture, DroneDeploy allows critical industries to operate with speed and confidence. From construction and energy to agriculture, the world’s largest companies use DroneDeploy to simplify field operations, improve safety and make smarter decisions, faster. By combining aerial drones, 360 and fixed cameras, ground robots and proprietary AI, we’re bringing the power of automation and visual intelligence to all stakeholders, from the field to the boardroom.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 110

How Do G2 Users Rate DroneDeploy?

  • Ease of Use: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind DroneDeploy?

  • Seller: DroneDeploy
  • Year Founded: 2013
  • HQ Location: San Francisco, US
  • Twitter: @DroneDeploy
    34,433 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    386 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Project Engineer
  • Top Industries: Construction, Architecture & Planning
  • Company Size: 44% Small, 39% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About DroneDeploy?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of DroneDeploy, enjoying intuitive features for planning and collaboration.
  • Users praise the user-friendly interface and exceptional customer service of DroneDeploy, enhancing their overall experience.
  • Users value the responsive and knowledgeable customer support from DroneDeploy, enhancing their overall experience and productivity.
  • Users value the intuitive flight planning and rapid map processing of DroneDeploy, significantly enhancing their workflow efficiency.
  • Users value the user-friendly flight management and mapping tools of DroneDeploy for efficient collaboration and accurate measurements.
Cons
  • Users find the service expensive, leading to difficulties in retention and understanding pricing plans.
  • Users report missing features like bulk GCP processing and account restrictions, making tasks tedious and less efficient.
  • Users experience slow processing times with DroneDeploy, impacting efficiency and usability in critical situations.
  • Users report upload issues with DroneDeploy, finding it sometimes slow and complicating their project workflows.
  • Users find 3D integration issues frustrating, with limitations on mobile and manual adjustments needed for PDFs.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of DroneDeploy?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About DroneDeploy?

Mapme

Mapme is an interactive map-building platform that empowers organizations to transform location-based information into engaging, visual experiences - without writing a single line of code. Designed for teams that want to communicate data, stories, places, and programs with clarity, Mapme offers a seamless way to build customizable maps, embed multimedia, visualize datasets, and publish digital experiences that inform, inspire, and drive action. With Mapme, users can create dynamic maps for tourism, real estate, government, education, community initiatives, events, foundations, and more. From showcasing local businesses and development projects to displaying property listings, university campuses, or cultural landmarks - every map is intuitive to build, beautiful to navigate, and accessible across devices. The platform supports photos, videos, custom branding, geo-layers, categories, filters, routing, 3D buildings, and advanced search capabilities, allowing audiences to explore locations in depth. Map editors can collaborate in real time, manage updates effortlessly, and integrate data from spreadsheets, CRMs, or GIS tools. Embedding maps on websites or sharing them as standalone experiences takes seconds, making Mapme a scalable solution for campaign rollouts, stakeholder communication, and public storytelling. Organizations choose Mapme for its balance of simplicity and power. What traditionally required GIS expertise or custom development can now be achieved visually - with the flexibility to grow from small single-map use cases to large multi-map environments. Whether you are mapping 50 local nonprofits or 50,000 global assets, Mapme ensures performance, clarity, and a premium user experience. Trusted by marketing teams, city planners, real estate groups, tourism boards, and digital experience leaders worldwide, Mapme turns static data into living information. It helps organizations increase engagement, improve transparency, strengthen community participation, and showcase impact at a glance. In a world where customers expect clarity, interactivity, and ease of use, Mapme offers a modern way to visualize location intelligence and bring stories to life - beautifully and at scale.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 42

How Do G2 Users Rate Mapme?

  • Data Capture: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Mapme?

  • Seller: Mapme
  • Year Founded: 2014
  • HQ Location: N/A
  • Twitter: @mapme
    57 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    13 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 63% Small, 30% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Mapme?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users highlight the ease of use of Mapme, appreciating its intuitive interface and excellent customer support.
  • Users commend the excellent customer support from MapMe, appreciating the team's responsiveness and assistance.
  • Users love the variety of customization options in MapMe, allowing for unique and tailored map experiences.
  • Users find MapMe's easy implementation seamless, enabling smooth setup and customized map presentations effortlessly.
  • Users appreciate the easy integration of Mapme, allowing seamless content adaptation across multiple platforms effortlessly.
Cons
  • Users face a learning curve with customization options, though the interface remains user-friendly overall.
  • Users find the editing of outdated landmarks on the base map difficult, causing frustrating learning challenges.
  • Users desire more customization options for the directions tool, wishing for walking directions instead of default GPS routes.
  • Users find the offline issues in Mapme inconvenient, but data availability mitigates the impact.
  • Users find that the outdated information on the base map complicates their mapping experience despite possible edits.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Mapme?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Mapme?

BatchGeo

BatchGeo is the easiest way to get your list of addresses on a map. Since 2006 BatchGeo has hosted millions of maps for Fortune 50 companies, non-profits, and individuals. The idea behind BatchGeo is most geographic data is stored in some sort of spreadsheet, list, or simple table (ex: Excel, CSV, Google Spreadsheets, etc.) So its optimized for those formats, making it super easy to drag in or copy/paste your tabular data into a map. Once your data is mapped the real fun begins. Your data points are spread out on an easy to navigate Google Map. Data can be color coded by groups or ranges, or even heat mapped. If routing is what you are interested in, BatchGeo can give you optimized routes for up to 23 points at a time. This ensures you don't waste time when visiting your customers. Finally, if you want to share your map it's easy to do. You can choose if your map is to be secured (password protected) or generally available to the public. BatchGeo can even be used for a store locator for your website.

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 998

How Do G2 Users Rate BatchGeo?

  • Data Capture: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind BatchGeo?

  • Seller: BatchGeo
  • HQ Location: VANCOUVER, Washington
  • Twitter: @batchgeo
    552 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    1 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Manager, Analyst
  • Top Industries: Real Estate, Marketing and Advertising
  • Company Size: 59% Small, 27% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About BatchGeo?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find BatchGeo to be extremely easy to use, efficiently transforming data into interactive maps without technical skills.
  • Users value the easy sharing capabilities of BatchGeo, enhancing their ability to communicate geographic insights effectively.
  • Users love how BatchGeo effortlessly transforms data into interactive maps, streamlining visualization and sharing of location insights.
  • Users value the easy-to-use location services of BatchGeo, transforming data into interactive maps effortlessly.
  • Users appreciate the variety of mapping options in BatchGeo, enhancing their ability to visualize and share location data.
Cons
  • Users find the feature limitations of BatchGeo restrict advanced usage, with capped records and minimal customization options.
  • Users find the high cost of BatchGeo's Pro plan burdensome, especially for small businesses with limited budgets.
  • Users find BatchGeo to offer limited customization, especially when compared to more advanced mapping tools.
  • Users find the manual input requirement tedious as they must re-upload data after every update to BatchGeo.
  • Users find the update issues frustrating due to lack of live-sync and restrictive record limits, impacting usability.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of BatchGeo?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About BatchGeo?

Octave Alto SDKs (Luciad)

Octave is a global technology leader focused on turning geospatial and operational data into actionable intelligence. With decades of experience in high‑performance visualization, spatial analytics, and mission‑critical system integration, Octave supports organizations worldwide in building, operating, and safeguarding complex real‑world systems. Its global footprint and long‑standing technical heritage enable modern, scalable solutions that evolve alongside today’s fast‑moving data and hardware ecosystems. The Octave Alto SDKs (formerly the Luciad Portfolio) provide a comprehensive suite of developer toolkits for building high‑performance geospatial applications across desktop, web, and embedded environments. Alto Server enables secure data management and on‑the‑fly fusion of large spatial datasets; Alto Lightspeed delivers advanced 2D/3D/4D visualization and analytics for complex, time‑dynamic environments; Alto Browser offers lightweight, high‑performance geospatial web visualization; and Alto Universal gives developers a cross‑platform graphics engine with native C++ and C# APIs for demanding visualization workloads. Together, they offer support for rich geospatial formats, real‑time data handling, styling, analytics, and precision rendering. The Octave Alto SDKs empower developers to turn massive, complex geospatial datasets into fast, interactive applications that support real‑time decision‑making. By providing optimized engines, open APIs, and ready‑to‑use geospatial capabilities, the SDKs drastically reduce development time, eliminate integration bottlenecks, and ensure reliable performance in mission‑critical environments. Whether used for defense command systems, mobility solutions, public safety operations, utilities, or digital twin platforms, the Alto SDKs give teams the speed, flexibility, and accuracy they need to build modern geospatial experiences with confidence.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 30

How Do G2 Users Rate Octave Alto SDKs (Luciad)?

  • Data Capture: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.5/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.0/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 9.7/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Octave Alto SDKs (Luciad)?

  • Seller: Octave
  • Company Website:
  • HQ Location: Madison, US
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    3,835 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer Software
  • Company Size: 36% Large, 33% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Octave Alto SDKs (Luciad)?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the fast performance of Octave Alto SDKs, enjoying real-time mapping with minimal lag and effective deployment.
  • Users admire the stunning 3D visualization capabilities of Octave Alto SDKs, enabling effective project deployment with high performance.
  • Users appreciate the high precision and accuracy of Octave Alto SDKs, enhancing their data visualization and performance.
  • Users value the real-time mapping capabilities of Octave Alto SDKs, enabling efficient performance in complex scenarios.
  • Users appreciate the high precision and accuracy of Octave Alto SDKs, especially for effective data visualization and rendering.
Cons
  • Users find the high cost of Octave Alto SDKs a barrier, feeling it lacks transparency and is not beginner-friendly.
  • Users find the feature limitations of Octave Alto SDKs unnecessary for basic mapping needs, complicating simple tasks.
  • Users find the learning difficulty of Octave Alto SDKs frustrating, with complex pricing and lack of beginner guidance.
  • Users find the licensing issues of Octave Alto SDKs frustrating due to pricing transparency and complexity for beginners.
  • Users find that for basic mapping needs, Luciad’s SDKs can be overly complex and resource-intensive, hindering efficiency.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Octave Alto SDKs (Luciad)?

MapTiler

MapTiler is a professional-grade geospatial platform and cloud ecosystem engineered for the creation, hosting, and deployment of sophisticated digital maps. It is the preferred solution for organizations requiring granular customization, rigorous data privacy, and robust offline functionality. Leveraging high-fidelity OpenStreetMap data, MapTiler provides the foundational infrastructure necessary to power interactive mapping experiences across web, mobile, and specialized GIS environments. MapTiler makes maps easy to help everyone understand the world better. Core Products and Services: MapTiler isn't just one tool; it’s an ecosystem of products designed for different stages of the mapping process: MapTiler Cloud: A hosting platform that provides ready-to-use map styles (Streets, Satellite, Outdoor) via APIs and SDKs. MapTiler Engine: A desktop application that converts your own data - such as drone imagery, scanned paper maps, or large TIFF files—into "map tiles" that can be easily loaded on the web. MapTiler On-Prem: self-hosting solution that allows you to run maps on your own hardware. This is essential for secure environments or apps that need to work entirely offline. MapTiler SDK: A JavaScript library (based on MapLibre) that developers use to add interactive features, markers, and 3D terrain to their web applications. Why People Use It: Privacy & Security: Unlike other mapping providers, MapTiler does not collect any hidden information about people who interact with the maps. No Telemetry, saved activity, or any other data, other than voluntarily sharing their location. In addition, MapTiler supports fully on-premises hosting. This means your data (and your users' location data) never has to leave your own servers. Customization: You can edit every detail of the map’s appearance - changing colors, hiding labels, or adding your own branding - using the Map Designer tool. Scalable Financial Predictability: MapTiler offers a sustainable pricing structure that eliminates the 'success tax' common in pay-per-load models, making it the preferred choice for high-traffic applications that require cost certainty. Open Source Roots: MapTiler is a major contributor to the OpenMapTiles project, which defines how map data is structured for modern vector styling.They also helped found and continue to contribute to MapLibre, and other components of the modern OpenSource Geospatial stack.

Average Rating: 4.8/5.0

Total Reviews: 25

How Do G2 Users Rate MapTiler?

  • Data Capture: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 7.5/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind MapTiler?

  • Seller: MapTiler
  • Year Founded: 2020
  • HQ Location: Zug, CH
  • Twitter: @MapTiler
    5,301 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    63 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 68% Small, 28% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About MapTiler?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users commend the API efficiency of MapTiler, enhancing their development experience with robust support and variety.
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of MapTiler, finding it responsive even on low-spec devices like Raspberry Pi.
  • Users find fast performance with MapTiler, especially on low-spec devices like Raspberry Pi-4, enhancing usability.
  • Users value the good variety of map styles in MapTiler, enhancing the overall customization experience.
Cons
  • Users face feature limitations in MapTiler, particularly regarding advanced customization and visual control options.
  • Users face limited customization options with MapTiler, particularly for advanced features like globe projection and visual control.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of MapTiler?

ArcGIS Pro

ArcGIS Pro is Esri’s powerful, single desktop GIS application. Technologically ahead of everything else on the market, ArcGIS Pro supports data visualization, advanced analysis and authoritative data maintenance in both 2D and 3D. ArcGIS Pro is tightly coupled with the ArcGIS platform supporting data sharing across ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise through Web GIS.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 173

How Do G2 Users Rate ArcGIS Pro?

  • Data Capture: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 7.6/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind ArcGIS Pro?

  • Seller: Esri
  • Year Founded: 1969
  • HQ Location: Redlands, CA
  • Twitter: @Esri
    188,738 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    7,396 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: GIS Analyst, GIS Specialist
  • Top Industries: Government Administration, Environmental Services
  • Company Size: 37% Medium, 36% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About ArcGIS Pro?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the user-friendly design of ArcGIS Pro, making complex tasks more accessible and enjoyable.
  • Users value the enhanced 3D visualization features of ArcGIS Pro, benefiting from its advanced mapping and analysis tools.
  • Users value the user-friendly design of ArcGIS Pro, significantly enhancing their overall efficiency and experience.
  • Users value the powerful tools of ArcGIS Pro, enhancing geospatial analysis and 3D visualization capabilities significantly.
  • Users appreciate the wide variety of tools in ArcGIS Pro, enhancing their geospatial analysis and visualization capabilities.
Cons
  • Users find the high cost of ArcGIS Pro burdensome, particularly with additional fees for features and licenses.
  • Users often face connectivity issues due to heavy hardware requirements and reliance on cloud services with ArcGIS Pro.
  • Users face challenges with heavy hardware requirements and the reliance on cloud services for ArcGIS Pro.
  • Users find the expensive licensing of ArcGIS Pro a significant barrier, complicating access to necessary features.
  • Users find the steep learning curve of ArcGIS Pro challenging, particularly for those new to the software.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of ArcGIS Pro?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About ArcGIS Pro?

Badger Maps

Your field sales tool kit to sell more– Badger Maps is the top rated mobile app for B2B reps in the field and a total territory management for your entire field team. With Badger, outside sales & field service reps get a mobile app (available on both iPhone and Android) that cuts drive time, improves data collection, and increases sales. Activities that were once a time sink like customer mapping, route planning, scheduling, data collection, and reporting are all made easy with Badger’s mobile mapping app. Paired with a suite of territory management tools that includes performance dashboards and a robust territory mapping interface, Badger Maps will enhance the workflows of everyone on your field team with features like: Route Planner & Mobile Sales Mapping - Fit 2 more meetings into each day by optimizing routes with up to 120 stops. - Visualize all your Accounts, Contacts, Leads, and Opportunities on an interactive map on your phone. - Filter and colorize accounts by custom metrics like priority status or last order date to instantly spot your best opportunities as you plan your day. - Plan and save all your routes in advance so you never fly blind on the road. Scheduling & Reminders - Sync routes to your calendar with the touch of the button. - Get alerts for follow-ups or nearby accounts that need attention. Mobile Lead Generation - Find new, qualified leads near your route– great for downtime on the road! Data Collection & A Mobile CRM Front-End - Take notes, capture photos, and keep all your customer information up to date from your phone. - Automatically sync all your data with the leading CRMs including Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho, Microsoft Dynamics, NetSuite, Pipedrive, monday.com, Veeva, Insightly, SugarCRM, and more. - Map and access all your CRM data in the field. See the relationship between different data types so you’re never left fumbling for the information you need to serve your customers. Reporting & Mileage Tracking - Get automated reports summarizing your routes and customer activity. - Generate mileage tracking reports that make submitting your expenses easy. Territory Mapping & Management - See all your reps’ data represented in performance dashboards and customizable charts & graphs. - Use territory alignment software to automatically balance and optimize your territories. - Automate lead routing to assign new leads to the right territory instantly- no manual work needed! - Create competitions and incentivize your reps with dynamic leaderboards. - Uncover insights with territory mapping tools like heat maps, bubble maps, thematic maps & more. Get a free 14-day trial, integrated with your CRM. With optimized routes, Badger pays for itself with just the savings on gas!

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 340

How Do G2 Users Rate Badger Maps?

  • Data Capture: 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Badger Maps?

  • Seller: Badger Maps, Inc
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2012
  • HQ Location: San Francisco, California
  • Twitter: @BadgerMaps
    2,095 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    75 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Territory Manager, Owner
  • Top Industries: Medical Devices, Wholesale
  • Company Size: 63% Small, 24% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Badger Maps?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the ease of use of Badger Maps, praising its smooth setup and intuitive interface for efficiency.
  • Users love the visual mapping feature of Badger Maps, which enhances organization and optimizes scheduling efficiency.
  • Users value the route optimization feature of Badger Maps, enhancing efficiency and saving valuable time.
  • Users highly value the route planning capabilities of Badger Maps, enabling efficient organization and follow-ups on visits.
  • Users appreciate the exceptional customer support of Badger Maps, enhancing their experience and product utilization.
Cons
  • Users experience routing issues with backtracking and sluggish performance, complicating navigation and efficiency in their territory.
  • Users often face mapping issues with Badger Maps, leading to imprecise navigation and address inaccuracies.
  • Users find Badger Maps to be expensive, especially for those using only a fraction of its capabilities.
  • Users feel that improvement is needed in syncing mobile and online features, and loading potential clients effectively.
  • Users find the route optimizer's lack of appointment time consideration limits efficiency and planning accuracy.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Badger Maps?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Badger Maps?

Octave Imagine

Octave Imagine is an all‑in‑one geospatial software platform designed to help users understand and work with complex imagery, maps, and 3D data without needing multiple separate tools. While many competing products require users to jump between different applications for image processing, analysis, visualization, and modeling, Octave Imagine brings all these capabilities together in a single, integrated environment. This gives it a clear advantage in the marketplace, as its competitors typically only cover part of the workflow. What makes Octave Imagine stand out is its wide range of capabilities—from image classification and change detection to 3D modeling and advanced spatial analysis. Its automation features help users save significant time by reducing repetitive manual tasks, and its seamless integration with other Octave products creates a connected, efficient workflow that few alternatives can match. Users also benefit from an active community and strong support team, making it easier to learn, troubleshoot, and grow their expertise. By consolidating essential tools into one platform, Octave Imagine removes complexity and makes it easier to handle large datasets without sacrificing performance. Its precise processing tools ensure reliable results, helping users make better, faster decisions—especially for time‑sensitive projects. Automated workflows streamline everyday tasks, boosting productivity and reducing bottlenecks. The platform scales naturally as projects become more complex, serving analysts, scientists, engineers, planners, and many other professionals across industries. Ultimately, Octave Imagine helps organizations turn raw geospatial data into meaningful insight. It improves the quality of their work, speeds up their processes, and provides a clearer understanding of real‑world situations. With its unique combination of capability, automation, accuracy, and interoperability, Octave Imagine establishes itself as a leader in the geospatial market and a tool that genuinely transforms how users work.

Average Rating: 4.2/5.0

Total Reviews: 49

How Do G2 Users Rate Octave Imagine?

  • Data Capture: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 7.5/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 9.7/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Octave Imagine?

  • Seller: Octave
  • Company Website:
  • HQ Location: Madison, US
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    3,835 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Environmental Services, Research
  • Company Size: 59% Small, 25% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Octave Imagine?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users commend the robust geospatial analysis capabilities of Octave Imagine, appreciating its precision and reliability with complex datasets.
  • Users value the powerful image analysis tools of Octave Imagine, appreciating its precision and capability with complex datasets.
  • Users praise the ease of use of Octave Imagine, highlighting its intuitive interface and smooth experience.
Cons
  • Users find the learning curve steep, making it overwhelming for newcomers to navigate effectively.
  • Users find the poor design of Octave Imagine frustrating, with an outdated interface that hampers usability.
  • Users often face accuracy issues with Octave Imagine, impacting reliability and overall satisfaction with results.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Octave Imagine?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Octave Imagine?

Oracle Spatial

Oracle Spatial and Graph supports a full range of geospatial data and analytics for land management and GIS, mobile location services, sales territory management, transportation, LiDAR analysis and location-enabled Business Intelligence.

Average Rating: 4.1/5.0

Total Reviews: 33

How Do G2 Users Rate Oracle Spatial?

  • Data Capture: 8.4/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Oracle Spatial?

  • Seller: Oracle
  • Year Founded: 1977
  • HQ Location: Austin, TX
  • Twitter: @Oracle
    827,997 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    207,576 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NYSE:ORCL

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 44% Medium, 32% Large

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Oracle Spatial?

Fulcrum

Fulcrum is the Field Operations Management platform field organizations use to run, record, and close out their work. Almost 3,000 companies run on Fulcrum, including electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities and the engineering, construction, and inspection firms that serve them. Built specifically for the challenges of field teams, Fulcrum automates workflows, captures real-time location data, and integrates seamlessly with GIS and other systems to ensure a continuous, accurate flow of information before, during, and after inspections. From utilities to construction, Fulcrum supports diverse industries by offering customizable workflows that adapt to evolving field conditions. Running the whole job in one platform improves data quality at the source, builds safety into the work itself, and drives field efficiency by cutting rework and repeat trips. Non-technical users can quickly build field apps, while enterprise clients enjoy advanced scalability to manage even the most complex processes. Fulcrum’s AI-powered tools extend the platform beyond standard field operations management. Audio FastFill automatically populates forms using information captured from voice input, photos, and text, reducing manual entry in the field. Insights transforms field data into instant charts, graphs, and maps by answering plain-language questions in seconds. Teams build the workflows their jobs require and extend the platform using AI, with offline sync, geospatial data, security, and validation built in. And teams can also deploy custom AI models to support specialized workflows such as anomaly detection or vegetation management. Next, Fulcrum will introduce AI-driven photo recognition, followed by intelligent, in-the-moment guidance designed to assist field crews as they work. Organizations worldwide rely on Fulcrum to improve data accuracy, reduce operational inefficiencies, and drive digital transformation. By eliminating time-consuming manual processes, Fulcrum helps field teams work faster, smarter, and with greater confidence. Whether capturing inspection results, monitoring assets, or ensuring compliance, Fulcrum delivers the clarity and control needed to make better decisions in real time.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 245

How Do G2 Users Rate Fulcrum?

  • Data Capture: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Data Visualization: 8.0/10 (Category avg: 8.6/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)
  • Spatial Analysis: 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.4/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Fulcrum?

  • Seller: Fulcrum
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2011
  • HQ Location: San Francisco, California, United States
  • Twitter: @fulcrumapp
    2,743 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    162 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Project Manager
  • Top Industries: Environmental Services, Utilities
  • Company Size: 52% Small, 29% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Fulcrum?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find Fulcrum very easy to navigate, appreciating its efficiency and ability to enhance productivity effortlessly.
  • Users find Fulcrum user-friendly, allowing easy app customization and a seamless experience for employees in the field.
  • Users appreciate the easy setup of Fulcrum, which enhances their workflow and data management during inspections.
  • Users value the high customization options of Fulcrum, tailoring apps effortlessly to meet their business needs.
  • Users value the excellent customer support of Fulcrum, ensuring quick assistance and smooth operations for their projects.
Cons
  • Users face challenges with editing after synchronization, limiting their ability to correct mistakes in Fulcrum.
  • Users find the limited features of Fulcrum hinder their ability to create complex forms and aggregated reports.
  • Users find Fulcrum's interface not user-friendly, facing challenges with navigation and report customization without coding skills.
  • Users express frustration over limited functionality and challenges in creating customized complex forms for client data aggregation.
  • Users find the form complexity in Fulcrum challenging, especially when customizing reports without coding knowledge.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Fulcrum?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Fulcrum?

Daniel Rivera
DR
Researched and written by Daniel Rivera
Updated March 4, 2025

GIS Topics

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Learn More About GIS Software

What is GIS Software?

Geographic information systems, better known as GIS software, are tools that capture, analyze, and display geospatial data to make 2D or 3D maps. These tools act as asset management platforms for the geographic data they capture, meaning GIS technology has the ability to understand patterns and improve operations in land-based operations. 

A GIS is a technology rooted in geographic information science that allows users to dig into geospatial data. The first step in this mapping technology is capturing data. These data types include cartographic, photographic, and digital data to provide a complete picture. GIS programs require both hardware and software, such as the desktop needed to display information.

Cartographic data is already in map form and includes information such as the location of rivers, roads, valleys, hills, and more. Data from photographic interpretation analyzes aerial shots of a site. Digital data is collected from satellites that show land use.

All varieties of data can be inputted into GIS mapping tools through data capture. As long as it has been digitized, it can be inputted into a GIS program. Once that data has been inputted, GIS technology can transform it into a map.

Who Uses GIS software?

GIS tools power location-based services. This technology is prevalent in a number of other professions:

GIS Specialist – A GIS specialist is an expert in geographic information systems. They analyze the spatial data stored in the geodatabases within these tools to solve problems related to a specific site or area. For example, a GIS specialist can assess the geospatial data of a region to determine the best escape route and then have the responsibility of mapping out an estimate time needed during a natural disaster. These specialists can create maps of certain areas using GIS technology and use that information to perform duties such as locating special features within a landscape.

A GIS specialist can be a full-time career, as a person in this role can act as a consultant to organizations who can benefit from the data extracted from GIS software. While the majority of this work can be conducted remotely from a computer, GIS specialists are sometimes required to visit a site in order to compare the landscape to the data in the GIS system. Those seeking this career path can obtain a GIS certificate from an accredited program; many universities offer GIS degrees as well.

Urban Planner – An urban planner develops procedures and programs for the use of land. The outcomes are typically mapping out plans to build communities, accommodate growth, revamp local physical facilities, and more. For example, an urban planner might approve plans for a new school to ensure it meets the needs of a growing population. As a community grows and changes, urban planners are there to help manage economic, social, and environmental changes that may arise. Urban planners can be utilized for communities of any size—small towns, large cities, and entire counties.

A great deal of data is needed for an urban planner to make an informed decision. They must stay up-to-date on zoning codes, environment regulations, and legal issues. Urban planners must also stay attuned to the landscape in their area and can utilize GIS technology to analyze and manipulate data. GIS software can be used to overlay a land map with population density indicators, which could show the best use for a piece of land. While an urban planner likely needs to perform site visits, they may also utilize a desktop GIS to analyze this data from their own office.

Environmental Scientist – An environmental scientist assesses the health and stability of a given landscape. This includes a great deal of fieldwork tests and surveys to gather geospatial data, like soil, water, and air samples. The data collected is then analyzed for negative indicators, such as pollution. An environmental scientist’s findings can be collected into an official report that may be presented to policymakers or other organizations concerned about environmental issues.

Environmental scientists rely heavily on GIS applications to succeed in their work. These tools capture the geographic information necessary to effectively map out the health of a physical area. This mapping technology has the ability to capture data from all aspects of a landscape—aerial, water, land—and then display as a variety of different maps. These solutions can also map changes in a specific area, which is hugely beneficial to an environmental scientist as it can fuel a course of action or anticipate future land conditions.

Public Health Professionals – Public health professionals are dedicated to protecting and improving the health of communities. Those in this field are focused more on preventing disease and injury rather than treating it. Public health intersects with a number of more specific fields to improve the health of the community. Epidemiology tracks the distribution and severity of diseases, along with how to prevent them from spreading. Biostatistics applies statistical and mathematical methods to the analysis of public health issues.

Environmental health is concerned with the quality of food supply, water and air pollution, and disease prevention. This is where GIS tools come into play. The use of a GIS and the spatial data it captures can help public health professionals come to decisions as well as predict outcomes. For example, public health officials can use GIS technology to map out potential risk from a contaminated water source. A desktop GIS program can also display information such as drug usage in a certain area.

Law Enforcement – Law enforcement officers can track crime trends within GIS software using crime mapping, which maps, visualizes, and analyzes crime incident patterns within their jurisdictions. These crime hot spots can be identified through the usage of GIS programs. Crime analysts can use a desktop GIS to overlay data sets such as census demographics. With this information, police officers are able to identify physical locations and potentially understand the underlying cause of crime in a certain area. GIS mapping software can also be useful for allocating police officers during emergency situations.

Why Use GIS software?

GIS software is vital for creating maps, but that is not the only application for this technology. These tools capture data that can be utilized by small, mid-sized or enterprise businesses in many fields.

A GIS helps users make more informed decisions. When working with a physical location, you need to understand every aspect of it—air, land, water, surrounding area, and more. A GIS captures this array of data, detailing various aspects of a landscape, and stores it all within one platform. Visualizing this data aids in identifying areas of opportunity and potential issues, such as the best route for an evacuation during an impending hurricane.

The geospatial data stored within these platforms even helps provide answers about things other than the physical landscape itself. Demographics of the surrounding population, social, real-world business problems, and political information can be gathered using a GIS. Features such as overlaying and data visualization connect the dots and create relationships between seemingly unconnected qualities, such populations with geographic features. For example, if a business needs to open up a new storefront, GIS software can be used to find a site of land near a highly populated area. Data can then be manipulated to account for inevitable population change in the surrounding area.

GIS software is specifically designed to visualize data. Reading and understanding statistics and data can be incredibly challenging. Data visualization is a key component of GIS technology, which means that the inputted data will be presented in a clear and comprehensive manner. Using a GIS solution, you can layer your datasets into one image and find the connections between each dataset. Bringing this data to life also allows you to view it from a different perspective, which can provide a fresh insight on a potential problem needing to be solved. You can create multiple maps within GIS platforms, which enables you to track and visualize the change in a certain area over time.

GIS technology can assist in conserving natural resources. GIS software has the ability to manage and maintain agricultural, water, and forest resources. These tools easily manage data on forest conditions as well. The geographic distribution of water resources can be analyzed through GIS technology. These two resources are also connected—as tree cover tends to decrease stormwater runoff.

GIS software allows for better geographic information record keeping. Many organizations are required to maintain thorough geographic records, such government and environmental science agencies. GIS systems are at the foundation of creating policies such as zoning laws, population censuses, and land ownership. Record keeping is vital when creating and upholding these laws, and GIS technology can store the geographic information necessary.

GIS technology can also track the spread of infectious diseases. On top of mapping trends in geographic features, GIS technology is used to follow trends that relate to the spread of disease. Users can leverage desktop GIS solutions to compare geography with other relevant variables and predict where an infectious disease might spread next. This data enables on-the-ground personnel to quickly work to save lives of local residents.

GIS software helps automate previously tedious geographic tasks. Before this technology, gathering data needed for any land, environment, map, pipeline, or city planning could be incredibly time consuming, due to the fact that one platform was unable to capture and store data from various sources. In addition, each data sample was collected and stored individually. However, GIS programs act as a repository for this data and convert it into the correct format, if necessary. GIS technology then takes this one step further and allows users to also design, update, and edit in the same platform where their geographic data is stored. These solutions also provide analysis tools, which gives organizations more time to focus on other urgent and critical tasks.

Governments can use GIS software to plan more cost-effective communities. Governments rely on thorough planning when it comes to building and expanding their communities. However, government organizations, especially smaller municipal ones, can face difficulty when it comes to the economy. Expanding a community while sources are diminishing gets expensive. GIS technology provides a way for government organizations to expand their communities in the most cost-efficient ways possible, as the data provided by GIS software allows them to make more informed choices about decisions such as land usage and locations of physical facilities. Governments can utilize a free GIS solution to continue to drive costs down.

Districts can create more efficient schools with GIS technology. A common issue within communities is needing to redistrict school boundaries as the local population ebbs and flows. GIS programs capture and store addresses for all students at the school. Using feature-based proximity tools, you can manipulate the borders of these zones and a GIS relates the student counts by grade of this proposed boundary. Even after school district zones have been nailed down, these programs can continue to benefit schools. School administrators use GIS technology to analyze the distance students walk to school. If a student lives a certain distance away, GIS tools continue to analyze the data to determine which students are eligible to take school buses. As schools may not a lot of budget dedicated to non-essential technology, they can utilize a free GIS platform for these tasks.

Planning for for natural disasters can be done using GIS technology. One of the main uses of this software is protecting the environment. The flip side of that is protecting citizens from potential dangers of their local environment. GIS tools help with risk management by assessing which areas are at risk for natural or man-made disasters. Communities can then take this data and develop preventive measures. And when natural disasters are unavoidable, GIS technology can still help. These tools aid in the planning of emergency evacuation routes and help estimate the damage from floods. In addition, GIS helps local governments document the needs for federal disaster relief funds.

GIS Software Features

While specific features may vary across different GIS solutions, the following features are typically found in geographic information systems:

Data Capture – This is simply the act of inputting data into a GIS. Relevant data can be grabbed from a number of sources. The software should be able to convert your data to a raster or vector file that will be compatible with your tool.

Remote Sensing Integration – Remote sensing is making measurements of a specific location on the earth through airplanes or satellites. These sensors have the ability to collect data in the form of images. As part of its data capture functionality, remote sensed imagery should easily integrate with a GIS.

Data Warehouse – GIS software stores the data on geographical features and their characteristics. It uses that data to publish maps. Just as GIS solutions capture data in multiple formats, said data is stored in multiple formats as well. Map city data can be stored as points, road data formatted as lines, boundaries as areas, and so on. Storing this information is what allows a GIS to identify features located in a map.

Buffer Zone Querying – Buffer zone querying is the ability to select a point on a map and display any given data within a certain radius. These buffers are used to show an area of influence around a location. For example, a buffer can be used to section off a radius around a school to plan for the transportation of students who live farther away. Some GIS tools may refer to buffer zone querying by other names, such as feature-based proximity tools.

Editing Data – The features of the landscapes you study change, which means your data will change as well. A GIS will enable you to keep up with these changes by allowing you to edit your data. Specific revision features and processes will vary in each tool, but they should all offer the ability to edit your data.

Data Visualization – The data visualization component of a GIS is what brings your data to life, in either a 2D or 3D format. A GIS displays the data you input as an easy-to-read map right on your desktop. This function may allow for additional features, such as adding pop-ups, charts, and infographics to maps.

Geocoding – This feature assigns locations to the addresses you need to keep track of so they may be placed as points on a map. It can be thought of as a interactive digital version of putting a pin on a location on a physical map. Some tools may refer to this feature as address-matching.

Spatial Analysis – Spatial analysis is at the core of publishing a map, and may be one of the key features of a GIS. This ability allows users to dig into their data and make informed decisions, predict patterns, and more. 

Overlaying – Overlaying makes it possible to visualize many different forms of data in one image. This function superimposes multiple datasets into one image to identify the relationships between them. Most GIS software provides overlaying capabilities for both vector and raster data.

Publishing Maps – Creating maps is the end goal of GIS software. All of these features, such as overlaying and data editing, contribute to the creation of a map. Once your data is set, you can simply print the map out on a corresponding printer. Some GIS tools may run one final analysis of your data before printing the final map.

Potential Issues with GIS Software

With its wide range of capabilities and applications, GIS technology offers a plethora of benefits. But that does not mean this software does not come without its challenges.

While the data captured and stored in GIS platforms is incredibly beneficial to users, integrating with traditional maps is extremely complex. It can prove difficult to integrate a traditional map with GIS technology. It may not be possible to grab meaningful geospatial information from a GIS, as many only store and analyze the data collected from the platform itself. Reach out to the GIS vendor you select to determine if this integration is possible.

GIS software is expensive. These tools are hugely beneficial to users, as it collects a massive amount of data from various points. It can cost a lot to gather, input, and connect all of this data. Corresponding hardware, along with potentially needing to hire an expert in GIS, continues to drive those expenses up. While they may have some limited features, budget-conscious users can leverage a free GIS for their business.

Data management can be difficult. It’s great that GIS technology allows users to capture and store large amounts of data, but someone has to comb through all that information. Because there is so much data, this could lead to data generalization, which means you may be at risk for losing information. Large amounts of data also require massive storage space, which increases the cost and manpower required to run your GIS.