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Add data to the map

In this topic

  1. Add location data to a map
  2. Add other data to the map

Add location-based data from your Power BI datasets to an ArcGIS for Power BI visualization to tell a story about your data. Add size and color values to view your data in a different light, or add other values to help your map tell your story.

Before you add location data to a map, be sure that your data is appropriately configured for use with ArcGIS for Power BI.

Add location data to a map

To view location data on an ArcGIS for Power BI visualization, do the following:

  1. In the Fields pane, expand the dataset with which you want to work.
  2. In the Visualizations pane, if the Fields tab is not already selected, click the tab to show the map's field wells.
    Visualizations pane field wells
  3. Drag field values in the Location or Latitude and Longitude field wells in the Visualizations pane. For detailed information about location types, see Location types and data formats.

    • Location—Drag a location-based value from your data fields into this field well to display the locations on the map.
      Note:

      If your location data is contained within a single row in your data, you can drag this field directly over the map to display locations on the map.

    • Latitude—Drag a latitude (y) value from your data fields into this field well to define part of a map coordinate. If you use this field, you must also specify the corresponding longitude (x) field.
    • Longitude—Drag a longitude (x) value from your data fields into this field well to define part of a map coordinate. If you use this field, you must also specify the corresponding latitude (y) field.

    If your data contains latitude and longitude values, use these to accurately plot your data on the map. If you fill the Location, Latitude, and Longitude field wells, ArcGIS for Power BI uses the Latitude and Longitude fields to map your data and ignores the Location field. For more information about location fields, see Location types and data formats.

    ArcGIS for Power BI displays the locations on the map using default styling.

Improve location accuracy

In some cases, ArcGIS for Power BI cannot accurately recognize the country for the data's location and may plot locations inaccurately. A message appears on the map stating that the accuracy of your locations can be improved.

To correct the location type, follow these steps:

  1. From the Layers list, click Layer options Layer options to expand the options for the selected data layer and choose Location type.

    The Location type pane appears.

  2. From the Locations are in drop-down menu, do one of the following:
    • If your data is in a single country, choose One country and choose the country from the drop-down menu.
    • If your data is in multiple countries, choose Many countries.

    Alternatively, change the location type settings using the Location type fields in the Visualizations pane on the Format tab Format visualization. For details, see Specify location type.

  3. Click OK.

    The map updates to show the correct locations.

Add other data to the map

ArcGIS for Power BI provides other, nonlocation fields that allow you to control the way locations appear on the map. The following fields are available:

  • Size
  • Color
  • Time
  • Tooltips
  • Find Similar

Unlike location-based field wells, you can add data to some, none, or all of the fields described here to change the story your map tells.

Note:

It is a best practice to add location-based data—either location or latitude and longitude fields—to the map before adding other fields. In some cases, if you add size, color, or both size and color fields to the map before adding latitude and longitude fields, ArcGIS for Power BI tries to summarize the latitude and longitude values, resulting in points not rendering on the map.

Size

Add numerical values to the Size field well to draw locations on the map according to size. For example, if your map shows store locations, drag a profit field into the Size field well; the map automatically renders location symbols in proportional sizes according to profit value.

Depending on the fields you choose, the map automatically updates its theme and styling to display a more accurate picture of your data.

Color

Add numerical data to the Color field well to distinguish locations on the map based on a color ramp. For example, a light-to-dark color ramp is useful for showing low-to-high data values such as revenue or income.

You can also add categorical data to show locations using different colors; for example, use different colors to represent customer language preference.

Size and Color

Choose two attributes in your data to define both the color and the size of point symbols on your map. You can also use the same attribute twice: to set the size of the symbols, and to set the colors, based on the part of the data you want to emphasize. This is useful if you want to show count information, such as the number of female single-parent households, shaded by a rate, such as the rate of female single-parent households.

You can further customize the map by editing its basemap and styling options; for more information, see Edit the map contents. You can also modify the visualization itself in the same way you would with any other Power BI visualization; see Format the map visualization for more information.

Time

Drag a field containing temporal data (date, time, or date and time) into the Time field well to animate the locations on the map according to time.

For more information, see Map time-aware data.

Tooltips

Drag categorical or numeric fields into the Tooltips field well to define the information that appears in tooltips. You can drag multiple fields into the field well.

You can drag the same field into the field well multiple times and apply a different aggregation option to each one. For example, you could drag a numerical field into the Tooltips field well three times, and calculate the SUM for one, AVG for another, and MIN for the third. Each of the fields will appear in the tooltip, with the appropriate label and value.

When you hover over a location on the map, a tooltip appears, displaying information specific to that location.

Note:

In tooltips, fields appear in the order you added them to the field well.

Find Similar

The Find Similar feature allows you to analyze the data on your map and identify the locations that are most similar to the ones you currently have selected. For more information, see Find similar locations.

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In this topic
  1. Add location data to a map
  2. Add other data to the map