topic Re: Freehand Stylus feature in ArcGIS Field Maps Questions

Freehand Stylus feature

JoeNunn — Fri, 03 Oct 2025 13:49:06 GMT

Hi, I am aware it is now possible to use freehand polyline drawing on Map Viewer : https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-online/data-management/5-tips-editing-map-viewer-2025

It would be really useful if this feature was made available in FieldMaps. Ornithology team require this feature with a stylus to quickly sketch flight lines of bird on a map. Currently the ability to add verticies is not adequate for their needs.

Thanks

Joe

Re: Freehand Stylus feature

JET_Ramboll — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 09:15:12 GMT

from another Joe working with bird surveys - THIS 1000%!
crazy that essentially you can't capture any kind of curved linear feature in Field Maps

Re: Freehand Stylus feature

ElisabethB — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 06:37:21 GMT

We're working with ornithologists who need to capture bird flight paths in the field. Freehand drawing would be essential for this – the current vertex-by-vertex approach is far too slow for dynamic movements like spiral flights. This is a real barrier for our users and a reason they're considering alternative tools.