The following table outlines the equivalent field data types in ArcCatalog, ArcObjects, Visual Basic and a selection of DBMSs:
| ArcCatalog | esriFieldType (IField::Type) | VB Variable Type (IField::VarType) | Access | SQL Server | Oracle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short Integer | esriFieldTypeSmallInteger | vbInteger | Number (Integer) | smallint | NUMBER |
| Long Integer | esriFieldTypeInteger | vbLong | Number (Long Integer) | int | NUMBER |
| Float | esriFieldTypeSingle | vbSingle | Number (Single) | float | NUMBER |
| Double | esriFieldTypeDouble | vbDouble | Number (Double) | float | NUMBER |
| Text | esriFieldTypeString | vbString | Text | varchar | VARCHAR2 |
| Date | esriFieldTypeDate | vbDate | Date/Time | datetime | DATE |
| Object ID | esriFieldTypeOID | vbLong | AutoNumber (Long Integer) | int | NUMBER(38) |
| Geometry | esriFieldTypeGeometry | vbDataObject | OLE Object | int | NUMBER(38) or SDO_GEOMETRY |
| Blob | esriFieldTypeBlob | vbObject | OLE Object | image | NUMBER(38) or SDO_GEOMETRY |
| Raster | esriFieldTypeRaster | vbDataObject | Number (Long Integer) | int | NUMBER |
| GUID | esriFieldTypeGUID | vbString | Number (Replication ID) | uniqueidentifier | CHAR |
| GlobalID | esriFieldTypeGlobalID | vbString | Number (Replication ID) | uniqueidentifier | CHAR |
The following table outlines the Coverage, INFO Item to Geodatabase field mapping:
| Item type | Item width | Geodatabase field type (esriFieldType) |
|---|---|---|
| B | 4 | esriFieldTypeInteger |
| C | 1-320 | esriFieldTypeString |
| D | 8 | esriFieldTypeDate |
| F | 4 | esriFieldTypeSingle |
| F | 8 | esriFieldTypeDouble |
| I | 1-4 | esriFieldTypeSmallInteger |
| I | 5-9 | esriFieldTypeInteger |
| I | 10-16 | esriFieldTypeDouble |
| N | 1-9 | esriFieldTypeSingle |
| N | 10-16 | esriFieldTypeDouble |
The following table outlines the Shapefile, dBASE field to Geodatabase field mapping:
| Field type | Field width | Geodatabase field type (esriFieldType) |
|---|---|---|
| Date | - | esriFieldTypeDate |
| String | 1-255 | esriFieldTypeString |
| Boolean | - | esriFieldTypeString |
| Number | 1-16 (decimals = 0) | esriFieldTypeInteger |
| Number | 1-16 (decimals > 0) | esriFieldTypeDouble |