Where’s the best place to open a new business? What type of population lives nearby? Are there demographic trends that could impact future growth? These are the kinds of questions decision-makers ask when comparing locations. With ArcGIS Business Analyst, you can map key variables, analyze them across geographies, share insights through maps or reports, and support more confident business decisions. As of the June 2025 ArcGIS Online Update, ArcGIS Business Analyst Web App Standard is available to all users with a Creator (or higher) user type. Let’s walk through what you can do with Business Analyst Web App Standard.

Data: The Foundation of Better Decisions

Reliable, up-to-date data is essential when answering questions like “Where should a new health centre be located?” Business Analyst provides access to curated, ready-to-use data through the Data Browser, including thousands of global variables and over 130 specifically for the UK.

You can quickly add this data to maps, analytics, or reports. Business Analyst also integrates Points of Interest (POI) data from Foursquare, covering categories such as health, retail, and transport, giving you even more context for your analysis.

Mapping Tools

Once you have the data, you can explore it through intuitive mapping options:

• Colour-coded maps – Quickly visualize variables (e.g., purchasing power by area). Supplementary charts, graphs, and infographics are automatically generated to help interpret results.

• Smart map search – Filter and highlight areas that meet multiple criteria, such as population age groups and spending power, to target the best locations for services or advertising.

• Point of interest (POI) search – Identify and map facilities, businesses, or competitors. For example, searching “Restaurants” in Central London returns over 1,300 results, which can then be filtered down (e.g., to “Pizzerias”) to identify competition and opportunities.

These tools make it easy to evaluate locations, spot opportunities, and better understand communities—all within Business Analyst.

Analytical Workflows

Beyond mapping, Business Analyst supports analytical workflows to identify markets, sites, and customers. While most advanced tools require Business Analyst Advanced, the Benchmark Analysis tool is included in Standard, enabling you to compare sites and detect performance differences.

Other included tools let you create drive-time areas and calculate travel times, helping you understand accessibility and catchment areas.

Sharing Insights: Reports and Infographics

Business Analyst makes it easy to share your findings with stakeholders:

• Reports – Choose from five UK-ready templates covering demographics, business, and market analysis, exportable to PDF or Excel.
• Infographics – Present key data in an interactive, visual format using templates such as Community Summary, Nearby Restaurants, and Key Demographics.

Both are available for users with Viewer access and above.

Getting Started and New Features

Most Business Analyst workflows consume credits, so it’s worth reviewing the credit documentation before diving in. To help you get started, the app offers tutorials, guided tours, and the new Business Analyst Assistant (Beta), which provides workflow recommendations directly in the interface.

Example Use Cases

ArcGIS Business Analyst supports a wide range of applications, including:

• Housing development – Understand demand in target areas and tailor projects to families, seniors, or other demographics.
• Regional business performance – Compare sites using Benchmark Analysis to identify which demographics drive success in certain areas.
• Healthcare planning – Use Smart Search to locate underserved populations and allocate resources, such as new midwifery services, more effectively.

With its rich data library, intuitive mapping tools, and analytical workflows, ArcGIS Business Analyst Web App Standard is a powerful platform for exploring communities, evaluating opportunities, and guiding business strategy. If you’re a Creator user type or above, you now have access to all of these capabilities. Whatever decision you’re trying to solve, Business Analyst can help you find the best answer. You can now purchase ArcGIS Business Analyst Web App from our online store.