To Map or Not to Map, That Is the Question

One of the most underrated mapping skills? Knowing when not to map.

GIS is powerful, but it’s not always the fastest, clearest, or most practical way to get the answer. Some tasks beg for a map. Others… are better off left in a spreadsheet.

Before diving into a mapping workflow, ask yourself:

1. Does location actually matter? Your gut likely says yes, but do your stakeholders care?

2. Could a table, chart, or summary stat do the job better?

3. Are you solving a problem, or just flexing your GIS muscle?

Example 1: “Which parcels are under 1 acre?”

• Tempting to Map: Load the parcel layer, calculate geometry, symbolize the tiny ones, export a map.

• Faster path: The acreage is probably already in the attribute table, a simple filter in Excel or SQL gets the job done.

• Verdict: Not to Map. Table it.

Example 2: “Where should we place new electric vehicle chargers for maximum coverage?”

• Definitely Map it Out: You’ll need to consider distances, existing stations, and demographic patterns. Overlays, buffers, maybe even network analysis.

• Verdict: To Map. Fire it up.

Example 3: “How many building permits were issued per month in 2023?”

• Your gut probably says map: Load the permits layer, symbolize by issue date, maybe animate a time series.

• Better approach: A pivot table grouped by month in Excel or Google Sheets gives you a clean, fast answer, no mapping required.

• Verdict: Not to Map. Pivot the data.

How to Build the “To Map or Not to Map” Muscle

Knowing when not to map takes more than just technical skill, it takes intentional practice. Start by pausing before every task and asking what you’re really trying to answer, and who it’s for. Work backward from the deliverable: if the end product is a number, trend, or summary, a map might be more work than it’s worth.

Get comfortable with pivot tables, charts, and filters, they’re often the fastest path to insight. And don’t be afraid to ask your stakeholders what actually helped them. Over time, patterns will emerge, and so will your instinct for when a map adds value, and when it’s just adding steps.

Being spatially savvy doesn’t mean mapping everything. It means knowing when mapping actually adds value.

How do you decide when to use a map and when not to? I’d love to hear about it.

GIS You Later!

Pro Tip: If your output ends up being a table, chart, or stat anyway… start there. You can always bring in a map later if the story needs it. But you’ll save time by starting simple.