Layer types

You can use different types of data layers to access and display different types of data in your applications. Data layers can access ArcGIS data sources and other types of data sources such as OGC data and files.

Different data layers provide different types of functionality. The functionality available is largely dependent on the capabilities of the data source. For example, a feature layer can access a feature service and perform queries, edits, and data export, whereas a vector tile layer can only access tiles from a vector tile service.

The Layer class is the base class for all types of layers. The type of layer you create depends on the type of data you want to display. To display feature data (point, line, or polygon geometry), for example, you can create a FeatureLayer that points to an online service (such as a feature service) or a supported local dataset. The tables below summarizes common types of layers.

ArcGIS data layers

The following layers work with ArcGIS data sources.

LayerData typeDisplayQueryEditOfflineData sources
AnnotationLayerFeature2DTrueTrueTrueArcGIS Enterprise service, mobile map package (.mmpk),
mobile geodatabase (.geodatabase)
ArcGISMapImageLayerImage2D/3DFalseFalseTrueMap service
ArcGISSceneLayerIndexed 3D Scene Layers (I3S)3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package (.mspk),
scene layer package (.slpk)
ArcGISTiledLayerImage Tile2D/3DFalseFalseTrueTile service, tile package (.tpk/.tpkx)
ArcGISVectorTiledLayerVector Tile2D/3DFalseFalseTrueVector tile service, vector tile package (.vtpk)
DimensionLayerFeature2DTrueFalseTrueArcGIS Enterprise service, mobile map package,
mobile geodatabase
DynamicEntityLayerDynamic entity2D/3DFalseFalseFalseArcGIS stream service
FeatureCollectionLayerFeature2D/3DTrueTrueTruePortal item, web map, feature set / query result
FeatureLayerFeature2D/3DTrueTrueTrue  • Online sources:
    — OGCFeatureCollectionTable
    — ServiceFeatureTable
    — WFSFeatureTable
  • Offline sources:
    — GeodatabaseFeatureTable
    — GeoPackageFeatureTable()
    — ShapefileFeatureTable
IntegratedMeshLayerI3S3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package,
scene layer package
PointCloudLayerI3S3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package,
scene layer package
RasterLayerRaster2D/3DFalseFalseTrue  • Remote ArcGIS Image services,
    see ImageServiceRaster.
  • Raster files - path to a file on the device,
    see Raster Class.
  • Raster files within GeoPackages,
    see GeoPackageRaster.
  • Mosaic datasets,
    see MosaicDatasetRaster.

OGC data layers

The following layers work with OGC data sources.

LayerData typeDisplayQueryEditOfflineData sources
ArcGISSceneLayerI3S3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package,
scene layer package
FeatureLayerFeature2D/3DTrueTrueTrueOGC API - Features, Web Feature Service (WFS),
GeoPackage (.gpkg)
IntegratedMeshLayerI3S3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package,
scene layer package
KMLLayerFeature/Image2D/3DTrueTrueTrueKML file (.kml, .kmz)
OGC3DTilesLayer3D Tiles3DFalseFalseTrue3D Tiles Archive Format (.3tz),
3D Tiles tileset JSON (.json),
3D Tiles service
PointCloudLayerI3S3DFalseFalseTrueScene service, mobile scene package,
scene layer package
RasterLayerRaster2D/3DTrueFalseTrueGeoPackage
WMSLayerImage2D/3DFalseFalseFalseWeb Map Service (WMS)
WMTSLayerImage Tile2D/3DFalseFalseFalseWeb Map Tile Service (WMTS)

Other data layers

The following layers work with non-ArcGIS data sources.

LayerData typeDisplayQueryEditOfflineData sources
BingMapsLayerImage Tile2D/3DFalseFalseFalseBing maps service
ENCLayerBinary (SENC)2DFalseFalseTrueENC exchange set
OpenStreetMapLayerImage Tile2D/3DFalseFalseTrueOpenStreetMap (OSM) image tile service
RasterLayerRaster2D/3DFalseFalseFalseRaster files e.g. GeoTiff (.tiff, .tif), MrSID (.sid)
WebTiledLayerImage Tile2D/3DFalseFalseFalse{level},{row},{col} Image tile service

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