Creating Groups in ArcGIS Online: Why and How?

Groups in ArcGIS Online (AGOL) are one of the most powerful tools for organizing, sharing, and collaborating with maps, data, apps, and layers. Whether you're working on a research project, managing tribal data, building a dashboard, or sharing resources across departments, creating and using groups helps you control who sees what and what they can do with it.

This article walks you through:

Why you should create groups
How to create them step-by-step
A breakdown of group configuration options

Software requirement(s):

ArcGIS Online

Why Create a Group in ArcGIS Online?

Groups are used to:

Purpose	Example
Collaborate securely	Share editable layers with only your project team
Organize data for a project	Keep maps, apps, and datasets bundled together
Share read-only content	Provide public or internal access to dashboards or story maps
Manage training or learning portals	Share datasets and instructions with workshop attendees
Control access to sensitive or tribal data	Restrict viewing/editing permissions to trusted users only

In short: Groups let you manage access, enforce data governance, and collaborate efficiently.

Step 1: Sign In

Go to www.arcgis.com and sign in with your AGOL account credentials.

Step 2: Open the Groups Page

Once logged in, click on the Groups tab > My groups tab > Create group

If you do not see the option Create group, it could be due to a change in your membership role or privileges. Here are some steps to troubleshoot the issue:

Check your membership role: Ensure that your role has the necessary permissions to create groups. If you recently changed role, your administrator may have updated your permissions accordingly.
Verify your privileges: Make sure you have the appropriate privileges to create groups. If you are a member of an organization with a custom role, you may have different permissions than a standard user.
Contact your administrator: If you are still unable to create a group, reach out to your organization's administrator. They can check your role and permissions and provide you with the necessary permissions to create a group.

Step 3: Fill in Group Details

Name: Choose a clear, descriptive name (e.g., “Tribal GIS Water Quality Team”)
Summary: A short explanation of the group’s purpose
Description: Provide detailed context, what kind of items should be shared here, etc.
Thumbnail: Upload a group image to make it visually recognizable

Step 4: Group Membership Options (Explained)

Who can view this group?

Option	Description	What It Does
Only group members	The group is hidden from everyone except its members.	Perfect for confidential, sensitive or protected data such as internal planning or tribal data collaboration.
All organization members	Any user in your AGOL organization can see the group and its content, if shared with them.	Good for internal teams or departments.
Everyone (public)	Anyone (even outside your organization) can find and view the group and its public content.	Use for public engagement, dashboards, outreach, or education.

Who can be in this group?

Option	Description	When to Use
My organization's members only	Only users from your AGOL organization can be added as group members.	You want full control over who’s added (most secure). Use for internal teams, trainings, or projects that involve secure or organization-specific content.
Any organization's members	Users from any AGOL organization can be invited or allowed to join.	Good for cross-department collaboration, tribal-federal projects, or partnerships with external entities.

How can people join this group?

Option	Description	When to use
By invitation	Only the group owner or managers can invite members to join the group.	Use for private or sensitive groups, like internal project teams, research groups, or tribal partnerships.
By request	Users can request to join the group; the owner or managers must approve each request.	Use for semi-private groups where you want some control, such as training cohorts or stakeholder groups.
By adding themselves	Any user who meets the group's criteria (e.g., organization-only or with specific roles) can join directly.	Use for public-facing or collaborative groups.

Who can contribute content?

Option	Description	When to Use
All group members	Any group member can share content to the group.	Use for collaborative projects where multiple users add data or maps.
Group owner and managers	Only the group owner and those with the manager role can share content to the group.	Use for curated content groups, such as official organizational maps, dashboards, or approved datasets.

Recommended group options for the "Tribal GIS Water Quality Team", tailored to balance collaboration, data protection, and cross-organizational engagement:

Setting	Recommended Option	Reason/When to Use
Who can view this group?	All organization members or Only group members.	Choose All org members if you want broader visibility inside your organization. Choose Only group members if working with sensitive data.
Who can be in this group?	Any organization's members.	Allows for collaboration across tribes, consultants, or federal partners.
How can people join this group?	By invitation or By request.	Use By invitation for tighter control; By request if you want interested people to ask to join.
Who can contribute content?	Group owner and managers.	Ensures shared content meets quality and relevance standards. Use All members only if you're running a collaborative data collection group.

Click Save to save your group options. You will be redirected to your group's overview.

Step 5: Group Page tabs (Explained)

Tab	Description
Overview	This is the landing page for your group. it shows the group's name, summary, description, thumbnail image, tags, and group owner. It may also display recently added items and featured content.
Content	Displays all the items shared with the group, such as maps, feature layers, dashboards, web apps, documents, etc. You can filter and search content here.
Members	Lists all group members. their roles (Owner, Manager, member), and their profile links. Group owners and managers can promote or remove members from here.
Settings	Where you configure group properties - including visibility, membership rules, content contribution permissions, and the group's thumbnail and description. This is also where you can manage who can view or join the group.

Tips

You can create groups for different audiences (e.g., staff, tribal members, students) and share the same layer differently via view layers.
Use group tags and good naming conventions to stay organized.
Set roles and permissions for users so only editors can publish or manage shared content.
Use Group Manager tools in AGOL to track usage, remove users, or export group lists.

Groups in ArcGIS Online aren’t just a way to organize—they are the foundation of secure, intentional collaboration. Whether you need to lock down sensitive data, build out a training portal, or manage a team dashboard, learning how to configure groups properly gives you flexibility and peace of mind.

We hope that this article has been helpful! If you have any feedback or questions, please feel free to send us an email or connect with us for a chat. The NTGISC team is here to assist you further!