Cartinuum blog

New in Connect for ArcGIS: Arcade Expressions for Layer Links

Written by Cartinuum | January 21, 2026

We’ve just released a powerful new enhancement to Connect for ArcGIS

You can now use Arcade Expressions to fully control the layout of data returned from Layer Links

This means no more default “label: value” tables - just clean, expressive, fully custom HTML layouts you define using Arcade. 



What’s changed? 

Until now, Layer Link results were displayed in a standard table format: one row per value, label on the left, value on the right. It was simple and effective, but not always flexible enough for your real-world use cases. 

With this update, you can now switch to a new Arcade Expression mode and write your own layout logic using HTML and the Arcade scripting language

 

What you can do with it 

  • Create styled, branded output panels 
  • Highlight or hide values based on conditions 
  • Insert icons, hyperlinks, or formatted blocks 
  • Group related fields and reorder them 
  • Support mobile-optimised layouts 

If it can be expressed in HTML and logic, you can do it. 

 

How it works 

  1. In Experience Builder, select the Connect for ArcGIS widget and open the Layer configuration. 
  2. Select the Layer Link you want to customise. 
  3. Choose the Arcade Expression option instead of the default table layout. 
  4. Use the Arcade editor to design your return layout using HTML. 

 

Each value returned by the Layer Link is available using this syntax: 

$layerlink.<Label> 

 

Your expression must return a string containing valid HTML. Here’s a simple example: 

return "<div><strong>Type:</strong> " + $layerlink.Type + "</div>" + 
       "<div><strong>Status:</strong> " + $layerlink.Status + "</div>" 

 

For detailed instructions, check out this article on our Knowledge Hub

 

Watch it in action 

This short video walks through the process of setting up Arcade Expressions in Connect for ArcGIS. 

 

Why this matters 

This feature opens the door for GIS teams to deliver better in-map experiences without needing external developers or complicated custom widgets. 

Whether you’re showing permit details, customer records, or inspection results—you can now tailor the presentation to your audience with just a few lines of Arcade. 

 

Try it today 

This feature is available now for all Connect for ArcGIS users. 

Open up Experience Builder, configure your Layer Link, and start creating smarter, more expressive apps. 

 

Want to show off what you’ve built with Arcade and Connect? Tag Cartinuum on LinkedIn or send us a screenshot—we’d love to see it.