Fetching ArcGIS Online layer into Power BI

This text is somewhat the expansion of this tutorial, which explains how we can load the ArcGIS Online layer attribute table into Excel via PowerQuery. As PowerBI is considered here, these steps are the same, although there are things to look at before.
1. In the first step, we must equip our attribute table data with geometry. If you don’t use the ArcGIS Pro, one of the best methods will be to export the layer to the .csv format and load it further, i.e., in QGIS, where you assign the coordinates. If you have an address in your data, you can geocode them quickly. On the other hand, the geometry can be added to other GIS programs before loading it to ArcGIS Online.
Since you have the ArcGIS Pro installed on your machine, then the steps are as follows:
A. Creating the coordinate fields in the attribute table, where all have the Data Type set as Double (2B). This is because we need to get the decimal coordinates for our place (Pic. 1).

ArcGIS Pro adding new columns
Pic. 1 Adding new columns to ArcGIS Pro attribute table, where: 1 – The Add field option; 2 – The space where the new fields are created; 2A – New fields produced and marked in green box; 2B – Data type set to double.

Another thing is worth pointing out: the Number Format, which depends on the category, determines things like Rounding, Alignment, etc. (Pic. 2).

ArcGIS Pro attribute field number format
Pic. 2 Defining number format in ArcGIS Pro fields. As shown in the image, the number of decimal places can be kept as the default for specifying the coordinates.

After that, remember to save the attribute table. You can do it by using the Save icon in the main top bar or hitting Save when you close down the attribute table, and the alert appears.
2. Next, go to Main tab -> Analysis -> Tools -> Calculate Geometry Attributes. Initially, you will have only one input in the Geometry Attributes section, which might look misleading. However, when you fill it in, the second one appears immediately below. So does the third one eventually, which isn’t needed in the case below (Pic. 3).

ArcGIS Pro - calculate geometry attributes
Pic. 3 Calculate the Geometry Attributes tool, where: 1 – Geometry Attribute Field empty input box appears straight after the one above is filled in, 2 – Defining the Coordinate System.

The last step specifies the coordinate system, which can be applied to the existing ArcGIS Pro layer/map and picked up from the list. You can choose the layer if your project includes several layers with the same coordinate system. If you wish to transform your data, use the other CRS format; you must pick up the appropriate one from the list. Assume that you need the standard one as the WGS 1984 is; then, in the list provided, you need to expand the Geographic Coordinate System -> World sections and find the WGS 1984 or type in the filter box above the CRS you need and hit Enter.

Calculating coordinates for the ArcGIS Pro layer
Pic. 4 Calculating coordinates for the ArcGIS Pro layer, where: 1 – click the Run button when everything is filled up correctly, 2 – The alert about successful or unsuccessful completion; 3 – The dedicated fields successfully filled with the geometry.

3. Once completed, Share your layer As a Web Layer. If you don’t know how to do it, read this article.

4. Next, you can follow these steps to get the URL of your ArcGIS Online layer (Pic. 5).

Loading ArcGIS Online layer to PowerBI
Pic. 5 Loading ArcGIS Online layer to PowerBI.

5. You can start visualizing your data When your layer is loaded, and you set up everything correctly as per the video below or this article. In this case, double-click the ArcGIS icon (1A), which appears among many options within the Build suggestion. After that, the ArcGIS Online box will appear. When logged in, the standard ESRI map should appear (1). Because your ArcGIS Online layer is already connected, you must expand it and drag the coordinates columns to the correct places (2B). As a result, your map should be zoomed into the content instantly (2).

 

Loading ArcGIS Online data to PowerBI
Pic. 6 Loading ArcGIS Online data to PowerBI, where: 1 – Blank ESRI map; 1A – The ArcGIS for PowerBI plugin; 2 – The ESRI map including the layer loaded from ArcGIS Online; 2B – The way of how we can build the visualization on the map by placing the appropriate columns in the correct place.

Concluding, the process is quite simple. I wouldn’t write this article if not because it’s too general. The process itself is well explained but applies to the situation when everything is correct, especially regarding the layer items’ geometry. The footage below shows the layer with the geometry attribute columns provided. If you don’t have them in your layer and want to load them to PowerBI this way, this article should be handy.

 

Mariusz Krukar

 

Links:

  1. Pro.arcgis.com: Add-x-y-coordinate-data-as-a-layer.htm
  2. Support.e: How-to-calculate-the-xy-coordinates-of-point-features-i-000026530
  3. https://doc.arcgis.com/en/microsoft-365/latest/power-bi/get-started-with-arcgis-for-power-bi.htm

Youtube:

Leave a Comment