Build models

A model is composed of model elements that are connected to form processes.

You can add analysis tools and data to a model, connect them to each other, and modify the elements' size and position.

Add tools

Map Viewer analysis tools are added to the model and chained together to form a complete workflow.

To add tools to a model, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open a model, connect to an analysis session, and activate the model if necessary.
2. Click Add tools .

   The Add tools window appears, showing the supported tools grouped into categories.

   Note:

   If Add tools is not available, it may mean that you are not connected to an analysis session or the model is not active.

3. Click a category to expand it.

   Alternatively, use the search box to search by name or keyword.

4. Click a tool name to select it.

   You can select more than one tool at a time.

5. Click Add.

The selected tools and their outputs are added to the ModelBuilder diagram.

Supported tools

Most feature analysis tools are supported to add to a model. Additional tools will be supported in future releases.

The following feature analysis tools are currently supported: Aggregate Points, Calculate Composite Index, Calculate Density, Calculate Field, Create Buffers, Create Viewshed, Create Watersheds, Dissolve Boundaries, Enrich Layer, Filter by Attributes, Find Centroids, Find Hot Spots, Find Outliers, Find Point Clusters, Find Similar Locations, Generate Tessellations, Generate Travel Areas, Interpolate Points, Join Features, Merge Layers, Overlay Layers, Plan Routes, Summarize Center and Dispersion, Summarize Nearby, Summarize Within, and Trace Downstream.

Note:

Enrich Layer, Generate Travel Areas, and Plan Routes are premium tools. Premium tools require additional privileges and consume additional credits when run in a model.

The following feature analysis tools are not currently supported to add to a model: 80-20 Analysis, Calculate Travel Cost, Choose Best Facilities, Extract Data, Find by Attributes and Locations, and Find Closest. Summarize Nearby and Enrich Layer do not support using a travel mode when run from a model. Find Hot Spots and Find Outliers do not support using Esri population data.

Raster analysis tools are not currently supported to add to a model.

Add data

Data can be added directly to the model diagram or from a tool dialog box.

When you add data to a model, an input data variable element is created and can be used as an input to an analysis tool.

Note:

Adding data to a model does not add the data to the map.

If a layer from the map with a filter applied is used in the model, the filter is honored in the analysis. Selections on map layers are not honored.

If a layer with a filter is removed from the web map before the model is run, the full dataset is used for analysis.

Add a layer from the map

To add a layer from the map to a model, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open a model, connect to an analysis session, and activate the model if necessary.
2. Click Add data on the action toolbar.

   Note:

   If Add data is not available, it may mean that you are not connected to an analysis session or the model is not active.

3. Click Add layers from map.

   A list of supported layers from the current web map appears.

4. Select the layers to add to the model.
5. Click Add.

The layers are added as input data variable elements to the ModelBuilder diagram.

Browse for data

To add data to a model, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open a model, connect to an analysis session, and activate the model if necessary.
2. Click Add data on the action toolbar.

   The Add data window appears with options to add a layer from the map or browse layers.

   Note:

   If Add data is not available, it may mean that you are not connected to an analysis session or the model is not active.

3. Click Browse layers.

   The layers from My content appear.

4. Click My content, and choose a different option from the menu (for example, My groups or My organization) if necessary.
5. Use the Search bar or Sort by menu to reduce the number of items or reorder the list of items if necessary.
6. On the item, click Select layers, and choose one or more layers from the menu.
7. Click Confirm.

The layers are added as input data variable elements to the ModelBuilder diagram.

Add data through an analysis tool

To add data through an analysis tool, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open the ModelBuilder pane and add tools if necessary.
2. Select a tool element, and click Open on the element toolbar, or double-click the tool element to open it.
3. Click the Layer button for the input parameters to select an input layer. If the input layer has not been added to the map, do the following:
   1. Click Browse layers.

      The Select layer window appears showing layers from My content.

   2. Click My content, and choose a different option from the menu (for example, My groups or My organization) if necessary.
   3. Use the Search bar or Sort by menu to reduce the number of layers, or reorder the layers if necessary.
   4. On the desired item, click Select layer, and choose a layer from the menu.
   5. Click Confirm.

   Note:

   If the Layer button is not enabled, it may mean that you are not connected to an analysis session or the model is not active.

4. Repeat the previous step for any additional input parameters.
5. In the tool pane, click Confirm.

The layers are added as tool inputs and as input data variables in the ModelBuilder diagram.

Update an input data variable

An input data variable can be updated to reference a different dataset. If the input data variable is already connected to an analysis tool, only datasets compatible with the tool and parameter will be available.

Note:

Updating an input data variable may affect downstream tools, including changing tools to a not-ready-to-run state. For example, if a downstream tool has a required parameter selecting a field from the input dataset and the field is no longer available, the parameter will need to be updated before the tool can be run.

To update an input data variable, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open the ModelBuilder pane and add an input data variable if necessary.
2. Select an input data variable, and click Open on the element toolbar, or double-click the element to open it.

   A dialog box showing the dataset name and feature count appears.

3. On the dialog box, click the input dataset.

   A list of supported layers from the current web map appears.

4. Do one of the following:
   • Select a layer from the list.
   • Click Browse layers, and select a supported layer.
5. Click Confirm.

   The input data variable updates and validates.

Supported data

The following data types are supported as inputs to analysis tools in ModelBuilder:

• Hosted feature layers
• Hosted tables

Note:

If you are using duplicated layers in your analysis, it is recommended that you apply a filter to the duplicate layers before adding them to the model from the tool dialog box or using Add layer from map.

The following data types are not currently supported:

• Sketch layers and drawing input features
• Subtype group layers and subtype sublayers

Connect data and tools

Once you've added data and tools to a ModelBuilder diagram, you can connect them to create an analysis workflow. Connectors can be added either by drawing directly in the diagram or through a tool dialog box.

To draw a connection between variable and tool elements, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to open a model and add data and tools if necessary.
2. Click the port on the right side of a data element and drag it to the port on the left side of a tool element.

   The parameters requiring input layers are listed below the tool element.

3. Click the name of the parameter in which the layer will be used (for example, Input layer).

A connector appears between the data element and the tool element, and the tool validates. The layer name will appear for the specified parameter when the tool dialog box is opened.

Copy and paste elements

You can copy elements from a model by selecting the element and clicking Copy on the element toolbar. To copy more than one element, draw a box around the elements or press Shift while clicking the elements.

When a tool or output data variable is copied and pasted, all upstream connections and parameter settings are copied with it. When input variables are selected, only the variable is copied. Downstream elements are not copied.

If only a tool element is selected to copy, it will be pasted as a second tool element and output data variables. The pasted element will be connected to the same input data variable as the original tool element as shown in the following image (the numbers in the image correspond to the numbers in the table below it):

Number
	The Create Buffers tool element is selected and copied.
	The Create Buffers tool is pasted, creating a second Create Buffers element (Create Buffers 1) and output variable (Buffer result 1) connected to the same input data variable.

If the input data variable is selected along with the tool element, the full selection is duplicated and added to the model as shown in the following image (the numbers in the image correspond to the numbers in the table below it):

Number
	The full workflow (input data variable, tool element, and output data variable) is selected and copied.
	The full workflow is pasted, including a second input data variable (Points 1, Create Buffers 1, and Buffer result 1).

Copy between models

Model elements can also be copied from one model and pasted to a second model. A model must be active to either copy or paste elements.

To copy and paste elements between models, complete the following steps:

1. Open the model from which you will be copying elements, and click Make active.
2. Select one or more elements.
3. Copy or cut the elements by doing one of the following:
   • Click Copy on the element toolbar.
   • Press Ctrl+C (copy) on your keyboard.
   • Press Ctrl+X (cut) on your keyboard.
4. Open or navigate to the model where you will be pasting the elements.
5. Click Make active.

   If the first active model has unsaved changes, you are prompted to save or discard the changes before activating a different model.

6. Paste the elements using the Ctrl+V keyboard shortcut.

The copied elements are pasted in the active model.

Limitations

Copying and pasting must be within the same browser tab, including when pasting to a different model.

The browser tab cannot be refreshed between copying and pasting elements.

Keyboard shortcuts

The following keyboard shortcuts are supported for copying, cutting, and pasting elements:

• Ctrl+C—Copy
• Ctrl+X—Cut
• Ctrl+V—Paste

Set tool parameters

Tools have parameters that can be updated to specify how the tool runs.

To set tool parameters, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the steps to add tools to a model if necessary.
2. Do one of the following:
   • Double-click the tool element.
   • Select the tool element, and click Open on the element toolbar.

   The tool dialog box appears.

3. Update the tool parameters.

   Required parameters are indicated with a red dot. If you drew a connection between a data variable and the tool, the input layer will already be listed on the dialog box.

   As the tool parameters are set, each parameter automatically validates the data or value that is specified. If the data or value is invalid, an error message appears.

   Tip:

   Click the help button next to a parameter to view the help. You can also click Learn more to open the help topic.

   If it is the last tool in the model or you want to visualize the results of the tool on the map, choose Create new hosted layer in the Result layer parameter group.

   Learn more about model outputs

4. Click Confirm.

The tool dialog box closes and the tool validates. To close the dialog box without applying the changes, click Cancel or close .

Validate tools and data

Validation is the process of checking that data exists and tools have been configured to meet all requirements necessary to run them. Validation happens automatically when you add data and tools to the model, change tool parameters, and open models. As tool and data elements in the model are validated, the element style updates to show their current state.

Learn more about diagram element states

Validation occurs for input data variables, tools, and output data variables.

Input data variables

When a data variable is added to a model diagram, the variable validates automatically and turns blue. If the data was added using the Add layers from map option, the data will validate when a filter is applied to the map layer.

Tools

When a tool is added to a model diagram, the tool and its outputs appear gray, indicating that they are not ready to run because the required tool parameters have not been populated and are not valid. As tools are chained together, downstream tools become dependent on the outputs of upstream tools.

When you set tool parameters and click Confirm on a tool dialog box, the dialog box closes and a blue icon indicates that the tool is validating. Downstream tools will also validate if applicable.

A tool element will be marked as ready to run (the color changes to yellow) if all three of the following requirements are met:

• All required parameters have been specified.
• The data and values provided meet the requirements of each parameter.
• There are no errors remaining in the tool.

Output data variables

When the tool state is ready to run, the outputs of the tool that will be created based on the specified parameters also change to ready to run (the color is green). The status of downstream tools may change if the status of their input data changes.

Note:

Optional outputs do not need to be in a ready-to-run state for a tool to run. For more details about the outputs of a specific tool, refer to the tool documentation.

Resize and move elements

To resize a model element, select the element, and drag any of its handles.

To move a model element, select the element, and drag it to the desired location in the model diagram. You can also rearrange a model by clicking Auto layout on the layout toolbar.

View a tool dialog box

The tool dialog box can be opened in view-only models. The tool dialog box displays the configuration of the tool and can be used to understand the workflow of a model, including models that were shared with you, before saving a copy of the model or connecting to an analysis session.

To open a tool dialog box, double-click the element or select the element, and click Open on the element toolbar.

Note:

For some models created before June 25, 2025, parameters or parameter values may not appear correctly when the tool dialog box is opened in view-only mode. For information about resolving this issue, see Troubleshoot: Tool dialog box is not appearing correctly when I open a model in view-only mode in Esri Community.

Rename elements

The default names of tool and data elements are automatically generated when the element is added. If the element name already exists in the model, it is appended with a unique number.

Changing the name of an element does not affect the value of the element. For example, renaming a data variable from Roads to Streets does not change the dataset, only the name in the model.

To rename an element, complete the following steps:

1. Click an element to select it.
2. On the element toolbar, click Rename .
3. Provide a new name and press Enter, or click a blank area on the model diagram to apply the change.

The element name is updated.

Note:

The tool dialog box will display the layer name instead of the data element label if you rename a data element referencing a map layer. If the tool element is renamed, both the label and the tool name appear in the header of the tool dialog box.

Remove elements

You can remove unnecessary elements from a model diagram. To remove an element, select one or more elements, and click Delete on the element toolbar or press Delete on your keyboard.

You can do any of the following to select elements in a model:

• Click to select an individual element.
• Draw a box or press Shift while clicking to select multiple elements.
• Press Ctrl+A to select all elements.

Note:

Removing elements that are connected to other elements may break the model.

Save a model

To save the edits to a model diagram, do one of the following:

• Click Save on the model toolbar to save changes to the model.
• Click Save as on the model toolbar to save a copy of the model.

  Save as creates a copy of the model as it appears when the button is clicked. Save as does not save changes to the current model. Any pending changes to the current model will remain as pending changes after the copy is created.

Tip:

A blue dot on the Save button indicates there are unsaved changes in the model.

If you have unsaved changes when you disconnect from an analysis session or switch to a different active model, you will be prompted to save or discard your changes.

Resources

Use the following resources to learn more:

• Create and open models
• Analysis sessions