Import a shapefile

You might have geographic data stored in Esri shapefile format on your machine that you want to add to a map, so you can combine it with other datasets and share it with other users. You can do this by uploading data to ArcGIS Online.

See an overview of adding content to ArcGIS Online

You can also upload GPS Exchange (GPX) files, and tabular geographic data that is stored in comma-separated values (CSV) format.

Learn more about importing CSV data

Learn more about importing GPX files

To import local data

1. Zip the files that comprise the shapefile you want to upload into a ZIP archive (.zip) using the standard ZIP file creation tools on your computer.
   Note:

   The ZIP archive must contain the .shp, .shx, .dbf, and .prj files that comprise the shapefile.

2. Open the map that you want to import the data into.
3. On the Mapping toolbar, click the Add Content button , click Import, then click Shapefile.

   

4. On the Open dialog box, browse for the ZIP file containing the shapefile you want to import, then click Open.
   Note:

   If your ArcGIS Online account is part of an organization, and your organization administrator has granted you permissions for publishing, an option to store the features in the map or to create a feature service will be displayed. If you choose to create a feature service, options are also displayed to set a title, summary, and tags, and specify the folder in which to create the new service. Ask your organization administrator for more information about publishing to a feature service.

5. In the Import Shapefile dialog box, choose one of the following options:
   • Generalize features for web display (default): Features are generalized when they are imported. This option can help improve performance of your map by reducing the number of similar points in a polygon or polyline shapefile, without changing the visible appearance of the features for the scales at which the map can be displayed.
   • Keep original features: Features are imported to the map exactly as they are defined in the shapefile. (Data is still reprojected to the coordinate system used by the map.)

   

After importing is complete, the data is shown in the map using a default symbol.

Configuring imported data

After you have imported your data, you can configure it to be displayed and behave the way that you want:

• Decide how the features should be displayed.
• Configure pop-up windows for the layer.
• Share the map or service with other users.
• Edit the features of the layer.

Tips on importing shapefiles

• There is a 1000 feature limit on features imported to the map. You can import files with more than 1000 features only if your account is part of an organization in ArcGIS Online, you have publishing permissions for the organization, and you are publishing to a hosted feature service.
• The ZIP archive must contain the .shp, .shx, .dbf, and .prj files that comprise the shapefile.
• There should only be one shapefile in a ZIP archive.
• The ZIP archive must be no larger than 10 MB in size.
• The files must be stored directly in the root (the central directory) of the ZIP archive, not in directories within the archive. If your ZIP file viewer shows Path information, the Path should be blank.
• You can import standard compressed archive .zip files; other compression formats are not supported at this time.
• The name of the new layer is the same as the name of the .zip file you imported. You can rename the file before uploading, or alternatively rename the layer once you have imported it.
• You cannot import shapefiles containing multi patch or multipoint geometries.
• The shapefile should contain valid geometries. Currently, self-intersections in polygon shapefile are not supported.

  If you have ArcGIS Desktop, you can use the Repair Geometry tool to correct invalid geometries in shapefiles.

  Learn more about the Repair Geometry tool

• The shapefile must have an accompanying .prj file in which the coordinate system of the data is defined. If you have ArcGIS Desktop, you can define the coordinate system of a shapefile, which creates an appropriate .prj file for the shapefile. You need to know the appropriate coordinate system to choose for your data.

  Learn more about defining the coordinate system for a shapefile by selecting an existing coordinate system

• Currently only the ASCII character set is supported. If your data contains non-English characters, for example characters specific to the French, Russian, Greek, Japanese, or Arabic alphabets, it may display attribute values using unexpected characters.