Form app comparison

There are many apps you can use to collect data in the field. Of these, both ArcGIS Survey123 and ArcGIS Field Maps offer smart forms that provide functionality that goes beyond the feature table data entry that is standard across all ArcGIS apps.

These apps also have other differences that may influence whether you use one, the other, or both on a project. How you access a form—via layers in a map or from a gallery of forms— may also be an important choice. To learn more about how each app may suit your needs see Survey123 FAQ and Field Maps FAQ.

The following tables provide a comparison of some of the smart form functionality available in the Survey123 field app and Field Maps. For more detail for Survey123, see the XLSForm topics in Create Surveys and for Field Maps see Configure the form.

User input

Functionality	Description	ArcGIS Survey123	ArcGIS Field Maps
Single line and multiple line text	Free text response.	Yes	Yes
Integer and decimal	Whole number or decimal input.	Yes	Yes
Spinner	Display plus and minus buttons on the form to increase and decrease the number input.	Yes	No
Calculator	Display a calculator widget on the form for a numeric question.	Yes	No
Numbers	Display a number keypad widget on the form for a numeric question.	Yes	No
Colored sliding scale (distress or range)	Display integer or decimal questions as a colored sliding scale. Start, end, and step size can be defined.	Yes	No
Switch	Display binary choice as a toggle.	No	Yes
Ranking	Order a list of choices.	Yes	No
Choice list (vertical)	Display a list of choices as radio buttons in a vertical list.	Yes	Yes
Choice list (horizontal)	Display a list of choices as radio buttons in a horizontal list.	Yes	No
Multiple choice list	Display a list of choices as check boxes where more than one choice can be selected.	Yes	No
Drop-down	Display a list of choices in a drop-down box.	Yes	Yes
Drop-down with autocomplete	Display a list of choices in a drop-down box with autocomplete.	Yes	No
Rating scale (Likert)	Display choices on a symmetric agree-disagree scale.	Yes	No
Selectable SVG image	Select a choice from an image with selectable regions.	Yes	No
Barcode	Scan a barcode or QR code.	Yes	Yes
Date	Date input.	Yes	Yes
Time	Time input.	Yes	Yes
Date and time	Date and time input.	Yes	Yes
Year	Select only the year for a date question.	Yes	No
Month and year	Select only the month and year for a date question.	Yes	No
Map	Collect a point, line, or polygon on a map.	Yes	Yes
Address	Geocode a location from a text question.	Yes	No
Form completion start and end time	Date and time the user commenced and completed filling the form. Different to editor tracking, used to calculate the time spent completing the form, not when a record is synced with the database.	Yes	No
Device ID	UUID representing the specific device on which the form was completed.	Yes	No
Email	Email address associated with the ArcGIS organizational account.	Yes	No
Spike	Automatically populate answers on the form with measurements and location captured of an object from a photo.	Yes	No
GNSS	Capture all available location metadata from a GNSS receiver.	Yes	Yes

Attachments and related records

Functionality	Description	ArcGIS Survey123	ArcGIS Field Maps
Audio	Record an audio file and attach it to the record.	Yes	Yes
Video	Record a video and attach it to the record.	No	Yes
File	Upload one or more files from the device.	Yes	Yes
Signature	Draw a signature on the screen and attach it to the record.	Yes	No
Draw	Draw a sketch on the screen and attach it to the record.	Yes	No
Annotated map	Annotate a screen capture of a map with text or a sketch.	Yes	Yes
Photo	Take one or more photos with the camera or upload image files from the device and attach these to the record.	Yes	Yes
Annotated photo	Annotate a photo with text or sketches.	Yes	No
Photo watermarks	Apply text and image watermarks to new photos.	Yes	No
Display and add attachments	Display and add attachments for existing records.	Yes	Yes
Edit attachments	Modify or delete attachments for existing records.	No	Yes
Related records	Support one-to-one and one-to-many relationships.	Yes	Yes
Nested related records	Support nested one-to-many relationships.	Yes	Yes
Related record count	Restrict the number of related records that can be entered for a form.	Yes	No
Aggregate functions	Return values derived from responses across related records.	Yes	No

Question logic and behavior

Functionality	Description	ArcGIS Survey123	ArcGIS Field Maps
Read-only	Display the answer to a question as read-only (from a default or calculated value).	Yes	Yes
Default value	Provide a default value for a question.	Yes	Yes
Required	Make answering a question mandatory.	Yes	Yes
Null values	Allow null values for a question.	Yes	Yes
Hidden	Hide a question from view while still accepting default values.	Yes	Yes
Skip logic	Show or hide a question based on answers to other questions in the form. If hidden, the value of the question will be null.	Yes	Yes
Conditional visibility	Show or hide a question based on answers to other questions in the form. If hidden, the value of the question can be calculated or a default.	Yes	Yes
Filtered list	Filter the choices for a list question, based on answers to other questions in the form.	Yes	Yes
Dynamic list	Dynamically populate a list question with choices from a CSV file or a layer hosted in ArcGIS.	Yes	No
Calculation	Calculate an answer based on values from other questions.	Yes	Yes
Constraint	Restrict the accepted inputs for a response using numbers (includes range domain min and max values), dates, field lengths, or formulas.	Yes	Yes
Regex	Restrict the accepted inputs for a response using a regular expression.	Yes	No
Input mask	Restrict the accepted inputs for a response to a set format for data entry using characters and symbols.	Yes	No
Custom JavaScript functions	Apply JavaScript functions to a question to implement calculations, data validation rules, and constraints.	Yes	No
Edit multiple	Select multiple records and apply the same attribute edits to all.	No	Yes
Recent values	Choose value for text, numeric and coded value domain entries from recent value list.	No	Yes

Layout and style

Functionality	Description	ArcGIS Survey123	ArcGIS Field Maps
Form title	Title displayed on the form. Can be customized with an expression.	Yes	Yes
Question hints (placeholder)	Display additional information for the question.	Yes	Yes
Guidance hints (description)	More information shown when the question hint is selected.	Yes	Yes
Dynamic question labels	Change labels based on the responses to other questions.	Yes	No
Styled choice, group, and question labels	Apply HTML styling to the labels for choices, groups, and questions.	Yes	No
Styled header, form, footer, inputs, groups, and repeats	Apply a color or background image to form. Apply color to text and backgrounds in the header, form, footer, and input controls. Apply background and border colors to groups and repeats.	Yes	No
Image	Display an image as part of a question or choice list.	Yes	No
Audio	Display an audio playback button as part of a question.	Yes	No
Note	Display a note on the form (not related to an individual question).	Yes	No
Groups	Create a group of questions that can be collapsed or expanded. Groups have both a name and description.	Yes	Yes
Nested groups	Create nested groups of questions that can be collapsed or expanded.	Yes	No
Pages	Arrange questions into navigable pages.	Yes	No
Grid layout	Arrange questions in a grid layout.	Yes	No
Custom question ordering	Change the order of questions from the order of the fields in the feature layer.	Yes	Yes
Random choice list ordering	Randomize the order of choices in a choice list.	Yes	No
Tabular list of choices	Arrange multiple choice questions that share a common choice list in a group, and display as a table of choices.	Yes	No
Translated questions	Provide translated question labels, group labels, notes, hints, and the form title, in multiple languages, that can be switched between whilst the form is open.	Yes	No