ArcGIS and QGIS are Geographic Information System (GIS) software programs developed to store, manage, and display geospatial data. GIS software allows you to perform analyses and generate maps. For many water resources professionals, GIS is a significant part of their professional lives. In the United States, most water resources professionals use the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) ArcGIS program for their GIS work. Although QGIS is similar to ArcGIS in some ways, it does not have the history that ArcGIS does. For this reason, many engineers, scientists, and planners defer to ArcGIS. However, I believe QGIS is worth considering for some GIS users. The blog post below is a comparison of ArcGIS and QGIS from my perspective.
ArcGIS
As previously mentioned, ESRI developed ArcGIS. Interestingly, ESRI began as a land use consulting firm in 1969. The co-founder of ESRI, Jack Dangermond, still serves as president of the company today. ArcGIS was originally created to perform land use analysis. Eventually, it evolved into a GIS software program. ArcInfo was first released in the early 1980s. This means that ArcGIS has been around for a long time and it is ubiquitous in the GIS world. As a result, there is a significant amount of training, information, and helpful articles/tutorials available online. There is also customer service available if you run into any issues. In my experience, ESRI’s customer service is hit or miss.
Like many water resources professionals, I began using ArcGIS early in my career. It does have a sharp learning curve. However, after becoming familiar with the program, it is amazing the analyses you can perform and the attractive maps you can generate with ease.
The way one uses ArcGIS depends, in part, on your specific industry. As a water resources professional, I have used ArcGIS for hydrologic analyses and for mapping floodplains/waterways. Some professionals may also use ArcGIS Online, GeoPlanner, or StoryMaps for presenting information or performing mapping in the field.
Cost
A significant downside to ArcGIS is the cost. Businesses should expect to spend $1,000 to $3,000 per year for an ArcGIS license. ESRI does offer Personal Use and Student licenses for a relatively low cost ($100). These low-cost licensing options give you access to ArcGIS Desktop Advanced (ArcGIS Pro and ArcMap), and they are excellent for those who wish to enhance their ArcGIS skills. It is worth noting that these licenses are meant to be used for educational/noncommercial purposes.
Installation
Another downside of ArcGIS is the installation process. It can be quite cumbersome, and I have never successfully installed ArcGIS without having to contact customer service. This could be, in part, because I, like most users, do not need to install ArcGIS on a regular basis. Still, installing ArcGIS is much more involved than getting, for example, Microsoft up and running on your machine.
QGIS
QGIS is a free and open-source desktop GIS program. QGIS is licensed under the GNU General Public License and is an official project of the Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo). There are other open source GIS programs available, but QGIS is the most widely known. The QGIS Project was started by Gary Sherman in 2002. Sherman has his own consulting company (GeoApt). In 2014, Sherman won the Sol Katz Award for Geospatial Free and Open Source Software (GFOSS) for his work with QGIS.
I began using QGIS when I first started working from home in 2020. During the days of lockdown, I was looking for a creative outlet. In this pursuit, I decided to start selling cartographic art on Etsy. I had used ArcGIS extensively for work, but I did not have access to a commercial license at the time. For this reason, I decided to learn how to use QGIS.
It did take me a bit to get used to QGIS, but learning QGIS was not terribly difficult because I already had some experience with ArcGIS. In many ways, ArcGIS and QGIS are very similar. However, there are some differences. For example, it took me a while to learn about various QGIS Plugins.
Admittedly, the cost (or lack thereof) is my favorite part about QGIS. My second favorite part about QGIS is that it is lightweight and easy to install. I was prepared to spend a whole afternoon installing QGIS, but I had the program up and running within an hour. QGIS is also relatively lightweight. I would be fine with installing QGIS on an older laptop.
Another benefit of QGIS is that you can access old versions of the program. This is useful in cases where a specific tool might have worked better in a previous version of the program.
Final Thoughts
As someone who uses ArcGIS and QGIS regularly, I would say that they are both great in their own ways. The basic tools (e.g., clip, merge, intersect, raster math) work well in both programs. ArcGIS has a more aesthetically pleasing interface, but QGIS works much better on my older computer.
If you want to learn GIS to make yourself more marketable, I recommend focusing on ArcGIS (check out their personal license). I say this because most consulting firms and public agencies use ArcGIS. As I mentioned earlier, ArcGIS has a steep learning curve. For this reason, it is a marketable skill. Although most people will know that QGIS is also a GIS program, they may not understand how QGIS skills transfer to ArcGIS unless they are GIS users themselves.
If you are searching for a free resource for learning GIS, Penn State has published some classes on Coursera that can help you get started with using ArcGIS.
If you are starting your own business or want to create maps on your own, I encourage you to try QGIS. Unless you need to publish maps online or create StoryMaps, QGIS could save you money and allow you to perform many of the same functions as ArcGIS.