topic Re: Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro) in ArcGIS Pro Questions

Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro)

LuisPedroAlmeida — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 08:31:01 GMT

Hi everyone,

I’m experiencing an issue with the Surface Profile tool in ArcGIS Pro while working with DEM data.

When I draw a profile line across the raster, the output graph shows a straight line between the start and end points, instead of a detailed elevation profile. The distance axis also seems incorrect (very small values - the same value has the profile sampling distance).

I have already tried:

changing the profile sample distance
reloading the project
updating ArcGIS Pro to the latest version

The DEM appears correctly in the map, and the issue persists across different datasets.

Has anyone encountered this problem before or knows what might be causing it?

Thanks in advance!

Re: Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro)

DanPatterson — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 09:06:10 GMT

Do you have an image you can share like the one in the help topic?

Surface Profile tool returning straight line inste... - Esri Community

Is your raster in a projected coordinate system?

What are the expected elevation (Z) values when you inspect the raster manually?

Re: Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro)

LuisPedroAlmeida — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 14:41:17 GMT

Hi Dan,

Thanks for your reply.

I’ve checked the raster and it is indeed in a projected coordinate system (ETRS89 / PT-TM06), so units are in meters. Regarding the issue, what we are observing is that the Surface Profile tool is returning a straight line between the start and end points, instead of sampling intermediate elevations along the profile.

Additionally, the distances along the X axis seem incorrect.

The raster itself appears to have valid elevation values when inspected manually (using the Identify tool), with clear variation in Z values.

This issue seems to be affecting only some students, while others using the same dataset and workflow are getting correct profiles. For example I've tried to reproduce myself the error in my PC (for example using geographical coordinates) and i was not able to have the same error.

A screenshot of the error: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LqhNbCOGZGPD3Do1ztv8WRgHdjg6IOSe/view?usp=sharing

Thanks again for your help.

Best regards,

Pedro

Re: Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro)

DanPatterson — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 15:02:41 GMT

If it is working for some but not others, then it is either machine specific or user specific.

Get the user to try it on a machine that you know someone else had success on. If they can get it to work, then perhaps a soft reset of their machine might work

Perform an ArcGIS pro Soft Reset

Make sure that the users have no other data in the map when running the tool... that includes basemaps. The first layer added to the map will set the coordinate system for the map and subsequent analysis.

PS a google drive link isn't the best option... the camera icon should allow you to post an image within the question (unless new users are restricted for a period of time.)

Re: Surface Profile tool returning straight line instead of DEM profile (ArcGIS Pro)

RichardDaniels — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 18:44:43 GMT

There are several profile tools available, one uses the ESRI provided DEMs and others found inthe GeoSpatial Toolboxes provides option to use your own elevation model. I did note the output was a line with measures (using linear referencing at the sample distance distance). You may need to create a Chart for the feature class with the profile.

Secondly, have you tried changing to the 3D Map view in ArcGIS Pro before doing the profile?