topic Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats? in ArcGIS Survey123 Questions

Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

Crinoid — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 20:32:11 GMT

Hi,

I'm looking to create a public survey that will collect 3 different map points from each respondent. The respondents have to place all 3 point types, and each point type is tied to some predetermined attribute. I suspected there wasn't a way to place multiple different types of points on one map question, but I thought I could ask multiple map questions and then tie the data together later, like so:

1. Place a red point.*

2. Place a green point.*

3. Place a blue point.*

That seems to not be the case, outside of using a repeat in Survey123 Connect. However, repeats are designed for multiple copies of the same question, which is different from what I'm trying to make. Is there a way to collect points in different categories from one survey?

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

VenkataKondepati — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 20:40:54 GMT

Hi Crinoid,

Survey123 doesn't support placing multiple different types of points in a single map question. And while repeats are great for collecting multiple of the same thing, they don’t really help when you need to collect specific point types like red, green, and blue — each with a fixed meaning.

The best way I’ve handled this is using Survey123 Connect, not the web designer.

What I did was create three separate geopoint questions, one for each point type:

One for the red point
One for the green point
One for the blue point

Each has its own label and is marked as required. Then I added a hidden field or calculation to tag each with its point type ("Red", "Green", "Blue") so it's clear when you look at the data later.

If you're collecting everything into the same layer, you could use a repeat, but you'd need to restrict it to only allow one entry per type, which gets a bit clunky. I found the three-question approach a lot cleaner, especially if you’re trying to make it user-friendly.

I hope this helps and let me know.

Regards,
Venkat

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

Neal_t_k — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 13:23:51 GMT

Repeats is going to be the way to go.

-Use the repeat_count field to ensure they add all 3 points. Add at least one required field that has to be answered along with the geopoint inside the repeat.

-You can than use an if statement and position(..) to categorize each repeat:

If(position(..)=1, "Red", If(position(..)=2,"Blue", "Green"))

And build relevancies for each of the of the corresponding categories inside the repeat based on that categorization.

Edit: Note that this method will have all the points in the same table in your resulting feature layer, whereas the solution @VenkataKondepati proposed will result in 3 separate tables, either will work, but which to chose will depend on how you want your data to look on the back end.

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

DougBrowning — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 21:39:44 GMT

It is because Arc cannot do it at the database level. Nothing 123 team can do about that. Sure some multipart geometry is around but it seems its on its way out as its never talked about much anymore. I see sometimes apps will show multipart made elsewhere but none let you add new.

I posted in the past on where multipart support is going but never got an answer.

A repeat will not be that bad I think.

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

Crinoid — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 21:55:24 GMT

Thanks for the reply! I'm not sure how to have multiple geopoint questions on a Survey123 Connect form. If I add three, I get an error before publishing that says "Only one geometry field is allowed per table, 3 found in form".

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

VenkataKondepati — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 22:02:32 GMT

This form includes three repeat groups (Red, Green, and Blue), each collecting one required geopoint. You can open it directly in Survey123 Connect, publish, and start testing right away.

Let me know if you want to customize it further (e.g., add descriptions, validation, or use map pin colors).

I haven't tried it, but it should work.

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

Crinoid — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 16:22:25 GMT

Thank you! I wasn't able to run your file as-is because of some minor errors but it gave me enough of a framework to get where I needed to go. I hadn't realized you could put multiple repeats in a survey and get multiple different maps in that way. Gives me the additional bonus of being able to add multiple points on each map. Thank you!

Re: Multiple map points or map questions per survey WITHOUT repeats?

Crinoid — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 16:23:15 GMT

Thank you! This is very helpful.