List of supported map projections

Map projection	Description
Aitoff	This compromise projection was developed in 1889 and used for world maps.
Alaska grid	This projection was developed to provide a conformal map of Alaska with less scale distortion than other conformal projections. Supported in ArcInfo Workstation only.
Alaska series E	This was developed in 1972 by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to publish a map of Alaska at 1:2,500,000 scale. Supported in ArcInfo Workstation only.
Albers equal area conic	This conic projection uses two standard parallels to reduce some of the distortion of a projection with one standard parallel. Shape and linear scale distortion are minimized between the standard parallels.
Azimuthal equidistant	The most significant characteristic of this projection is that both distance and direction are accurate from the central point.
Behrmann equal area cylindrical	This is an equal-area cylindrical projection suitable for world mapping.
Berghaus Star	This divides the outer portion of the projection into five points to minimize interruptions to the land masses.
Bipolar oblique conformal conic	This projection was developed specifically for mapping North and South America and maintains conformality. Supported in ArcInfo Workstation only.
Bonne	This equal-area projection has true scale along the central meridian and all parallels.
Cassini-Soldner	This transverse cylindrical projection maintains scale along the central meridian and all lines parallel to it. This projection is neither equal area nor conformal.
Chamberlin trimetric	This projection was developed and used by the National Geographic Society for continental mapping. The distance from three input points to any other point is approximately correct. Supported in ArcInfo Workstation only.
Craster parabolic	This pseudocylindrical equal-area projection is primarily used for thematic maps of the world.
Cube	This is a faceted projection that is used for ArcGlobe.
Cylindrical equal area	Lambert first described this equal-area projection in 1772. It is used infrequently.
Double stereographic	This azimuthal projection is conformal.
Eckert I	This pseudocylindrical projection is used primarily as a novelty map.
Eckert II	This is a pseudocylindrical equal-area projection.
Eckert III	This pseudocylindrical projection is used primarily for world maps.
Eckert IV	This equal-area projection is used primarily for world maps.
Eckert V	This pseudocylindrical projection is used primarily for world maps.
Eckert VI	This equal-area projection is used primarily for world maps.
Equidistant conic	This conic projection can be based on one or two standard parallels. As the name implies, all circular parallels are spaced evenly along the meridians.
Equidistant cylindrical	This is one of the easiest projections to construct because it forms a grid of equal rectangles.
Equirectangular	This projection is simple to construct because it forms a grid of equal rectangles.
Fuller	The final version of this interrupted projection was described by Buckminster Fuller in 1954.
Gall's stereographic	The Gall's stereographic projection is a cylindrical projection designed around 1855 with two standard parallels at latitudes 45° N and 45° S.
Gauss-Krüger	This projection is similar to the Mercator except that the cylinder is tangent along a meridian instead of the equator. The result is a conformal projection that does not maintain true directions.
Geocentric coordinate system	The geocentric coordinate system is not a map projection. The earth is modeled as a sphere or spheroid in a right-handed x,y,z system.
Geographic coordinate system	The geographic coordinate system is not a map projection. The earth is modeled as a sphere or spheroid.
Gnomonic	This azimuthal projection uses the center of the earth as its perspective point.
Goodes homolosine	This interrupted equal-area pseudocylindrical projection is used for world raster data.
Great Britain National Grid	This coordinate system uses a transverse Mercator projected on the Airy spheroid. The central meridian is scaled to 0.9996. The origin is 49° N and 2° W.
Hammer-Aitoff	The Hammer–Aitoff projection is a modification of the Lambert azimuthal equal area projection.
Hotine oblique Mercator	This is an oblique rotation of the Mercator projection developed for conformal mapping of areas that do not follow a north–south or east–west orientation but are obliquely oriented.
Krovak	The Krovak projection is an oblique Lambert conformal conic projection designed for the former Czechoslovakia.
Lambert azimuthal equal area	This projection preserves the area of individual polygons while simultaneously maintaining true directions from the center.
Lambert conformal conic	This projection is one of the best for middle latitudes. It is similar to the Albers conic equal area projection except that the Lambert conformal conic projection portrays shape more accurately.
Local Cartesian projection	This is a specialized map projection that does not take into account the curvature of the earth.
Loximuthal	This projection shows loxodromes, or rhumb lines, as straight lines with the correct azimuth and scale from the intersection of the central meridian and the central parallel.
McBryde-Thomas flat-polar quartic	This equal-area projection is primarily used for world maps.
Mercator	Originally created to display accurate compass bearings for sea travel, an additional feature of this projection is that all local shapes are accurate and clearly defined.
Miller cylindrical	This is similar to the Mercator projection except that the polar regions are not as areally distorted.
Mollweide	Carl B. Mollweide created this pseudocylindrical projection in 1805. It is an equal-area projection designed for small-scale maps.
New Zealand National Grid	This is the standard projection for large-scale maps of New Zealand.
Orthographic	This perspective projection views the globe from an infinite distance. This gives the illusion of a three-dimensional globe.
Perspective	This projection is similar to the orthographic projection in that its perspective is from space. In this projection, the perspective point is not an infinite distance away; instead, you can specify the distance.
Plate Carrée	This projection is simple to construct because it forms a grid of equal rectangles.
Polar stereographic	This is equivalent to the polar aspect of the stereographic projection on a spheroid. The central point is either the North Pole or the South Pole.
Polyconic	The name of this projection translates into "many cones" and refers to the projection methodology.
Quartic authalic	This pseudocylindrical equal-area projection is primarily used for thematic maps of the world.
Rectified skewed orthomorphic	This oblique cylindrical projection is provided with two options for the national coordinate systems of Malaysia and Brunei.
Robinson	This is a compromise projection used for world maps.
Simple conic	This conic projection can be based on one or two standard parallels.
Sinusoidal	As a world map, this projection maintains equal area despite conformal distortion.
Space oblique Mercator	This projection is nearly conformal and has little scale distortion within the sensing range of an orbiting mapping satellite, such as Landsat. Supported in ArcInfo Workstation only.
State Plane Coordinate System (SPCS)	The State Plane Coordinate System is not a projection. It is a coordinate system that divides the 50 states of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands into more than 120 numbered sections, referred to as zones.
Stereographic	This azimuthal projection is conformal.
Times	The Times projection was developed by Moir in 1965 for Bartholomew Ltd., a British mapmaking company. It is a modified Gall's stereographic, but the Times has curved meridians.
Transverse Mercator	This is similar to the Mercator except that the cylinder is tangent along a meridian instead of the equator. The result is a conformal projection that does not maintain true directions.
Two-point equidistant	This modified planar projection shows the true distance from either of two chosen points to any other point on a map.
Universal Polar Stereographic	This form of the polar stereographic maps areas north of 84° N and south of 80° S that are not included in the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate system.
Universal Transverse Mercator	The Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system is a specialized application of the Transverse Mercator projection. The globe is divided into 60 zones, each spanning six degrees of longitude.
Van der Grinten I	This projection is similar to the Mercator projection except that it portrays the world as a circle with a curved graticule.
Vertical near-side perspective	Unlike the orthographic projection, this perspective projection views the globe from a finite distance. This perspective gives the overall effect of the view from a satellite.
Winkel I	This is a pseudocylindrical projection used for world maps that averages the coordinates from the equirectangular (equidistant cylindrical) and sinusoidal projections.
Winkel II	This is a pseudocylindrical projection that averages the coordinates from the equirectangular and Mollweide projections.
Winkel Tripel	This is a compromise projection used for world maps that averages the coordinates from the equirectangular (equidistant cylindrical) and Aitoff projections.

The supported map projections table includes short descriptions and links to more information.