TL;DR
There is no universal winner. ArcGIS suits organisations with an existing Esri deployment, a need for out-of-the-box web publishing and dashboards, and budget for vendor-backed support. QGIS suits cost-sensitive teams with PostGIS-based data and in-house or consultant technical capability. Many UK organisations run both: ArcGIS for enterprise publishing, QGIS for desktop analysis.
Most organisations asking “should we use ArcGIS or QGIS?” are really asking a different question: what do we actually need GIS to do for us, and what are we willing to spend?
Both platforms are mature. Both can handle serious spatial work. The right choice depends on your organisation’s size, technical capacity, budget, and where your data lives. This guide breaks it down.
Licensing and cost
This is usually the first question, and it should be.
ArcGIS is proprietary software from Esri. ArcGIS Pro (the desktop application) starts at around £1,000/year for a single Named User licence. ArcGIS Online, Esri’s cloud platform, starts at roughly £1,400/year for a small organisation. Enterprise deployments (ArcGIS Enterprise, Portal, multiple extensions) can run well into five figures annually. Extensions for Spatial Analyst, 3D Analyst, or Network Analyst are additional costs on top.
QGIS is free and open source, licensed under the GPL. There is no per-user fee, no annual subscription, and no extension paywall. You can install it on as many machines as you like. The cost is zero at the point of use, though you will likely spend on training, plugins, or development time to match some of the out-of-the-box functionality that Esri bundles in.
For a team of five analysts, the difference over three years can easily be £25,000 or more. That matters.
Capabilities
Both platforms handle core GIS tasks well: spatial queries, geoprocessing, cartography, raster and vector analysis, coordinate reference system transformations. Both handle EPSG:27700 (British National Grid) without issue, which is essential for anyone working with Ordnance Survey data in the UK.
| Feature | ArcGIS Pro | QGIS |
|---|---|---|
| Vector analysis | Full geoprocessing suite | Full, via native tools and plugins |
| Raster analysis | Spatial Analyst extension (paid) | Built-in raster calculator, GDAL/GRASS tools |
| 3D visualisation | ArcGIS Pro Scene view, 3D Analyst | QGIS 3D Map View (improving, but less polished) |
| Network analysis | Network Analyst extension (paid) | QNEAT3 plugin, pgRouting via PostGIS |
| Geocoding | ArcGIS World Geocoder (credit-based) | Nominatim, OS Places API, or custom PostGIS geocoders |
| Python scripting | ArcPy (tied to Esri ecosystem) | PyQGIS, plus full access to GDAL/OGR, shapely, geopandas |
| BNG / EPSG:27700 | Full support | Full support |
| OS data formats | GeoPackage, Shapefile, GML | GeoPackage, Shapefile, GML, OS API integrations via plugins |
| Database connections | Enterprise geodatabase (SQL Server, Oracle, PostgreSQL) | Direct PostGIS, SpatiaLite, Oracle, SQL Server, GeoPackage |
| Print / cartography | Layout view, strong symbology | Print Composer, strong symbology, atlas generation |
Where ArcGIS pulls ahead is in its integrated ecosystem. Model Builder, out-of-the-box geostatistics, and tight coupling between Pro, Online, and Enterprise give it a polished feel. Where QGIS pulls ahead is in flexibility: direct PostGIS access, no credit system, full Python/GDAL interoperability, and a plugin ecosystem that moves fast.
Enterprise features
If you need to publish web maps, manage user permissions, run automated geoprocessing services, or share dashboards across an organisation, ArcGIS has a clear head start. ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise were built for this. Experience Builder, StoryMaps, and Dashboards are ready to go.
QGIS has no equivalent cloud platform. You can build equivalent functionality using QGIS Server, GeoServer, or MapServer for publishing, and tools like Leaflet, OpenLayers, or MapLibre for web frontends. But you are assembling components, not buying a product. That takes developer time or a consultant who knows the stack.
For large UK organisations (local authorities, utilities, national property firms) running enterprise Esri deployments, the switching cost to open source is significant. The tooling exists, but the integration work is real.
For smaller teams or startups, the open-source stack can be more practical. A PostGIS database, QGIS for analysis, and a lightweight web map frontend can do a lot for very little money.
Ease of use
ArcGIS Pro has a steeper initial learning curve than many expect, particularly if users are coming from the older ArcMap interface. But Esri invests heavily in documentation, training (via Esri Academy), and a consistent UI. Things tend to work as expected once you know where to find them.
QGIS has improved enormously since version 3.0. The interface is clean, and most common tasks are straightforward. The trade-off is inconsistency in plugins (quality varies) and occasional rough edges in documentation. For users comfortable with open-source software, this is manageable. For teams with limited GIS experience, the lack of a single support number can be a concern.
Interoperability
QGIS wins here. It reads and writes nearly every spatial format through GDAL/OGR. It connects natively to PostGIS. It handles GeoPackage, GeoJSON, Shapefile, GML, KML, FlatGeobuf, and dozens of others without plugins or conversion steps.
ArcGIS Pro also reads many formats, but Esri’s ecosystem tends to pull you toward the File Geodatabase or Enterprise Geodatabase. These are proprietary formats. If your data needs to move between platforms, or if you work with partners who do not use Esri products, this creates friction.
For UK-specific workflows, both handle Ordnance Survey OpenData products (in GeoPackage or GML) without issues. OS MasterMap GML loading is supported in both, though QGIS users often rely on the Astun Technology loader or ogr2ogr.
Support and community
ArcGIS: Esri UK provides formal support, training courses, and account management. If something breaks, you can raise a ticket. For large contracts, you get a named account manager. This matters for risk-averse organisations.
QGIS: Support comes from the community (mailing lists, StackExchange, GitHub issues) and from commercial support providers. Several UK consultancies (including ours) offer QGIS support, training, and development. The QGIS project has a formal release cycle, long-term releases, and an active development community. But there is no single vendor standing behind it.
The practical difference: with ArcGIS, you are paying for support as part of the licence fee. With QGIS, you pay for support only when you need it, from whoever you choose.
Which should you pick?
There is no universal answer. But here are some clear patterns.
ArcGIS is likely the better fit if:
- Your organisation already runs an Esri enterprise deployment
- You need web mapping, dashboards, and user management out of the box
- Your team expects vendor-backed training and phone support
- You have budget allocated for software licensing
QGIS is likely the better fit if:
- You are cost-sensitive or running a startup
- Your data lives in PostGIS or open formats
- Your team has developer skills or access to technical consultants
- You want to avoid vendor lock-in on data formats
Both together is also a valid answer. Many UK organisations use ArcGIS for enterprise publishing and QGIS for desktop analysis, data preparation, or ad hoc projects. The two platforms are not mutually exclusive. A GeoPackage created in QGIS opens in ArcGIS Pro, and vice versa.
A note on choosing
We work with both platforms at Rose Tinsley Consulting. We have built and managed enterprise Esri deployments for national firms, and we run large-scale PostGIS databases with QGIS as the primary desktop tool. We do not sell licences for either platform, so we have no commercial reason to push one over the other.
If you are weighing up your options, we are happy to talk it through. The right answer depends on your data, your team, and what you are trying to build.