Skip to main content

How to Create Points from CSV using ArcGIS

How to Create Points from CSV using ArcGIS

Creating a set of points in shapefile format using ESRI's ArcGIS software is as simple as running two tools from ArcToolbox.


1st: Check your CSV.

 • Spaces, dashes, and periods are not allowed for field names in the header row.
 • Make sure there are separate columns for latitude and longitude values.
 • Check that longitude values for the western hemisphere are negative (if in decimal degrees).


2nd: Run the Make XY Event Layer tool.

 • Input your CSV as the XY Table parameter.
 • X Field = Longitude, Y Field = Latitude.
 • The Layer Name parameter will be used as the shapefile name.
 • For Spatial Reference:
  Commonly used Geographic Coordinate Systems are NAD 1983 (North America) and WGS 1984 (World).

Make XY Event Layer Tool in ArcToolbox
   

   



3rd: Run the Feature Class to Shapefile tool.

 • Use the XY Event Layer created in the step above as the input for the tool.

 


ZZ - Jun 2016