Understanding location heatmaps
What the colours represent
A heatmap spreads each point’s influence across a small area and adds overlapping influence together. An isolated point can still show the full colour ramp at its centre; the useful comparison is the size and intensity of overlapping hot areas.
This tool gives every point the same weight. Areas with several nearby locations become broader or more intense than isolated locations, while widely separated points can look identical.
How to interpret this map
Zoom changes the on-screen radius and intensity, so this is an exploratory map rather than a fixed statistical density surface. Compare patterns at a consistent zoom and do not interpret colour as an exact location count.
Use Location Density Analysis when you need exportable grid counts. Use Graduated Symbol Map when a numeric property should control each point’s importance.