Identify points within ring buffers

[TinaGrant]

I have a polygon feature class and a point feature class. I'd like to assign each point to a buffer category, i.e. points within a 300 ft buffer of a polygon would be assigned to "Category 1", points within a 300-1000 ft buffer would be assigned to "Category 2," etc. Seems like a simple task but beyond creating buffers with the "Multiple ring buffer" tool I'm stumped. Suggestions? I'm running ArcGIS Desktop 10.4.1.

[DanPatterson_Retired]

spatial join is one method Spatial Join—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop 

join the polygon layer to the points.

[TinaGrant]

Join and then buffer? I need to categorize the points based on their distance from the polygons.

[DanPatterson_Retired · Accepted solution]

No... you need to buffer first since you want to ensure that the buffers are in place before you join them to the points.  Because you want to know which buffer is associated with the points.  

You can also do an 'Intersect' in the overlay tools Intersect—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop 

That might be easier for you since the points will intersect the buffer rings without question

[TinaGrant]

This is the process that worked: First I created the buffers with the Multiple Ring Buffer tool; I had many overlapping buffers so I chose to dissolve "ALL." Then I used Identity (not Intersect) since I needed to include all points, not just those within the buffers.