Style data by type and size

Note:

You need the following account and license types to use this workflow:

• Microsoft license—You need a Microsoft 365 license, role Contributor or higher, to apply a style to data.
• ArcGIS account type—Standard users can perform the functions of this workflow; you do not need to sign in.

Use this style to represent categorical data and a fixed array of numeric data using symbols of proportionate sizes to illustrate areas of greatest variance.

See Data styles to learn about data style options and Smart map styles to learn about smart map cards.

The following traffic map of Florida, provided by Florida ODOT, uses line symbols (type) to show roads and line width (size) to show annual average daily traffic.

Refer to the ArcGIS Blog article A drawing style designed for categorical data: Types for more information about this type of map.

Prerequisite:

Add numeric data to the Size column or field well and categorical (non-numeric) data to the Color column or field well before you begin.

To style data using type and size, complete the following steps:

1. Follow the steps in the Apply a style workflow for your component:
   • Apply a style in ArcGIS for Excel
   • Apply a style in ArcGIS for Power BI
   • Apply a style in ArcGIS for SharePoint
2. At the choose a smart map style step, choose the Type and size style card.
3. Hover over the style card and click Style options to customize the look of the layer.

   The Counts and Amounts (size) and Types (unique symbols) smart map cards appear in the Type & Size category.

4. Define the style options for Counts and Amounts (size) (first attribute) by doing any of the following:
   • Expand Symbology and specify the symbol settings to change the style of the proportional symbols (shape, fill, and outline).
   • Expand Classify data.
   • If the data isn't normalized or standardized, choose an attribute field from the Divided by drop-down menu to turn the raw data into rates or percentages. Examples of normalized data include x per capita, y per square kilometer, or a ratio of x to y. Raw counts, by comparison, are better visualized with colors after they are standardized.

     Note:

     The Divided by menu is not available in ArcGIS for Power BI.

   • Adjust the bounding handles along the color ramp in Classify data to change how the color ramp is applied to the data. You can either drag the handle or click the number next to the handle and type a value. Experiment with the position of the handles and use the histogram and calculated average to understand the distribution of the data to fine-tune how the map shows these values with color.
   • Turn on the Show features with no value or out of range toggle button to draw locations with missing data on the map, and, optionally, specify a style and label to represent those values.
   • Turn on the Classify data toggle button, choose the classification method, and specify the number of classes to further generalize the map, or, if you are using standard deviation, choose the interval.

     Tip:

     To use the Manual classification option, adjust or move the handles on the histogram.

   • Expand Size range. To optimize symbols for the current zoom level and automatically adjust them at other zoom levels, choose Automatic. To set a custom zoom level, click Custom and set a Size range in px value by adjusting the slider handles or clicking the default values and providing new values.
   • Expand Transparency, turn on the Enable Transparency toggle button, and specify the transparency settings.
   • Expand Rotate symbols, turn on the Use rotation toggle button, and specify the rotation settings.

     Note:

     The Rotate symbols and Transparency options are not available in ArcGIS for Power BI.

5. Define the style options for Types (unique symbols) (second attribute) by doing any of the following:
   • Specify the Symbology setting.
   • Expand Color ramps and choose a ramp. You can choose from several collections of color ramps, including ramps that are optimized for color vision deficiency or best for dark backgrounds. You can also click Reverse color ramp to change the sequence of colors in the ramp.

     Note:

     Hover over a color ramp to see its name.

   • Expand Unique values and click the color chip next to an item in the list to customize its symbol settings. Different style options are available depending on the data (points, lines, or areas). For example, you can change the symbol shape, fill color, and outline of point data. This display type is often used with thematic data, such as risk zones.
   • For the best visualization, include fewer than 10 categories in the layer. More than 10 are difficult to distinguish by color alone. If you include more than 10, only the 10 with the highest counts are shown. The remaining categories are automatically grouped into the Others category. If the feature count cannot be determined, the first 9 categories are listed in alphabetical order, and the rest are grouped in the Others category.
     • To add an item to the Others category, click Move value in .
     • To ungroup an item from the Others category, click Move value out .
     • To ungroup all observations at the same time, click Move all values out .
     • To hide features listed in the Others category on the map, uncheck the check box; to show them, leave the check box unchecked.
   • Specify the Transparency and Rotate symbols settings.

     Note:

     The Rotate symbols and Transparency options are not available in ArcGIS for Power BI.

6. Click the Back button to close the pane and view the Layers list.