Guided tour

Note:

ArcGIS AppStudio will be retired in February 2025. AppStudio 5.5 is a long-term support release focusing exclusively on bug fixes and minor updates. For more information see the Product Life Cycle document. Current developers of AppStudio apps should consider migrating their apps to one of the ArcGIS Maps SDKs. It is strongly recommended that developers starting new app projects use one of the ArcGIS Maps SDKs. For more information, see the AppStudio 5.5 and beyond blog post.

Introduction to ArcGIS AppStudio

With AppStudio, you can convert maps into consumer-friendly mobile apps that are ready for Mac, iOS, Android, Windows, and Ubuntu operating systems and publish them to all the popular app stores using your own brand—no developer skills required.

You can use AppStudio to create apps on your desktop, before performing as much configuration and customization as you want. An app based on a template can be created immediately in ArcGIS AppStudio. You can optionally configure this app further within AppStudio, or customize the source code for the app to make it entirely your own.

Install ArcGIS AppStudio

To use AppStudio on your desktop, download the installation file for your operating system: Windows (x86 or x64), macOS, or Ubuntu and double-click the file to install.

For additional details, see Install ArcGIS AppStudio.

Once the installation is complete, the following two shortcuts are added to your desktop:

• ArcGIS AppStudio—For configuring and managing your apps
• Qt Creator (ArcGIS AppStudio)—For editing your apps

Start ArcGIS AppStudio to begin.

To use all the features of AppStudio, you'll need to sign in using your ArcGIS Online account that has been provisioned with an ArcGIS AppStudio Developer Edition license.

Create an app

When you start AppStudio for the first time, you'll have no available apps. To create an app, complete the following steps:

1. Double-click this title to open the New App dialog box.
2. From the Starter category, choose Hello World (Runtime).
3. Click Create.

Your new app will now appear in AppStudio. If you don't see it, click the Refresh button to ensure it's available. You can now do the following:

• Double-click the app, or select the app and click Run to try out your app.
• Rename the app by clicking the button to the right of the title.
• Change the app settings to customize your app.

Change the app settings

Click Settings in the app's side panel to configure app properties such as title, description, images, device capabilities, and app signing information.

You may notice that apps created from samples do not have a lot of settings. These samples are designed to allow more free editing and less configuration. Conversely, the featured templates that you can use to create apps in AppStudio have a lot of settings that you can change. Depending on which of the featured templates you choose, there are different properties to configure. For example, if you've already created a Quick Report app, you can choose your own public point feature service in which to collect features.

For more details on the properties of each of the featured apps, see the following:

• Quick Report
• Map Viewer
• 3D Scene Viewer
• Attachment Viewer
• Zone Lookup
• Nearby
• Sidebar

Upload the app to ArcGIS

To share your app, or to build installation files, you must upload it to ArcGIS. Click Upload to manage the upload of your app.

Note:

Upload requires an ArcGIS AppStudio Developer Edition license.

Test the app in AppStudio Player

AppStudio Player is available from Google Play and the App Store. You can install AppStudio Player directly on your device from either of these stores.

AppStudio Player is also available for the desktop and can be downloaded from the AppStudio Resources page. Any apps created in AppStudio on any platform can be used on any platform in AppStudio Player.

Note:

There are now two versions of AppStudio Player. AppStudio Player supports the current ArcGIS Runtime and Qt version, lacks iOS 32-bit support, and will be continually updated. AppStudio Player Classic is the same version from the AppStudio 2.1 release; supports Runtime versions 100.1 and 10.2.6, Qt 5.9.1, and iOS 32 bit; and will not be updated.

Install AppStudio Player on your chosen device, sign in with your ArcGIS account, and select the app that you uploaded to ArcGIS. Double-click the app to download and start it in AppStudio Player.

Build an app using cloud Make

Cloud Make is a service offered by Esri to create stand-alone apps from your AppStudio projects. When you create a stand-alone app, AppStudio Player is not used. Your app is wholly contained in an installation file that can be run on a device. Click Make to select which platforms to build for, and request Esri's cloud Make to generate files for you.

Note:

Make requires an ArcGIS AppStudio Developer Edition license.

Manage your apps

All AppStudio apps can be managed in ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise. You can find your apps in your organization's root folder, and the app installation files in the My Apps folder.