An overview of the Distance toolset

Available with Spatial Analyst license.

The Distance tools allow you to perform analysis that accounts for either straight-line (Euclidean) distance or weighted distance. Distance can be weighted by a simple cost (friction) surface or in ways that account for vertical and horizontal restrictions to movement.

The following table lists the available tools and provides a brief description of each.

ToolDescription

Distance Accumulation

Calculates accumulated distance for each cell to sources, allowing for straight-line distance, cost distance, and true surface distance, as well as vertical and horizontal cost factors.

Distance Allocation

Calculates distance allocation for each cell to the provided sources based on straight-line distance, cost distance, and true surface distance, as well as vertical and horizontal cost factors.

Least Cost Corridor

Calculates the sum of two accumulative cost distance rasters with the option to apply a threshold based on percentage or accumulative cost.

Optimal Corridor Connections

Calculates the optimal corridor connections between two or more input regions.

Optimal Path As Line

Calculates the optimal path from a source to a destination as a line.

Optimal Path As Raster

Calculates the optimal path from a source to a destination as a raster.

Optimal Region Connections

Calculates the optimal connectivity network between two or more input regions.

Tools in the Distance toolset

In ArcGIS Pro 2.5 and later, the recommended tools for distance analysis are listed in the table above. In versions earlier than ArcGIS Pro 2.5, distance analysis was performed using other tools; these tools are still available in the Legacy Distance toolset.

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