About features

A map can include features that represent geographic entities, or that can represent something important that’s on the map for others to see, or to simply remind yourself of something you’ve observed.

Features can be stored in a map, or reference features that come from a feature service running on a GIS Server. You work with both types of features in much the same way. Features can have pop-up windows that show information about the feature when you click it in the map.

Learn more about pop-up information windows

All features in a map are contained within feature layers or feature service layers. These layers are listed in the Layers panel. You can change the visibility of an entire layer of features by checking or unchecking the check box next to the layer. You can change the opacity of an entire layer in the Layer Details view of the Layers panel.

You can change how features are drawn, adjusting things like the picture, shape, color and size of points, color and thickness of lines, and the color and outline of polygons. All feature layers can be configured to only display features within a particular scale range. Additionally for configurable feature layers, you can also choose to apply an attribute based filter, so that not all features are shown.

Learn more about setting a scale range for a layer

Learn more about changing how features are displayed

Learn more about filtering features

When you create a new map, an editable layer called Map Notes is included in the map by default, that stores features in the map. You can use this layer to create point, line, area, and text features. Some layers that reference feature services are also editable.

Learn more about creating and editing features

Each feature stored in the map is listed in the Layer Details view of the Layers panel; you can double-click a feature to zoom to it, and change the feature visibility by checking or unchecking the check box beside it. For feature service layers (layers that reference features in a feature service), individual features are not listed in Layer Details. The visibility of individual features cannot be controlled. If a layer was created by importing features into the map, you can instead apply a filter, as described above.

Map Notes layers can be useful for drawing attention to certain areas or points in presentations, as both the layer visibility and the visibility of individual features can be changed for different slides in a presentation.

Learn more about creating presentations.