A map showing the distribution of soils or other soil map units in relation to the prominent physical and cultural features of the earth's surface. The following kinds of soil maps are recognised in the USA:

• detailed soil map-A soil map on which the boundaries are shown between all soils that are significant to potential use as field management systems. The scale of the map will depend upon the purpose to be served, the intensity of land use, the pattern of soils, and the scale of teh other cartographic materials available. Traverses are usually made at 400-m, or more frequent, intervals. Commonly a scale of 10 cm = 1609 m is now used fro field mapping in the USA
• detailed reconnaissance soil map-A reconnaissance map on which some areas or features are shown in greater detail than usual, or than others.
• generalised soil map-A small-scale soil map which shows the general distribution of soils within a large area and thus in less detail than on a detailed soil map. generalised soil maps may vary from soil association maps of a county, on a scale of 1 cm = 633 m, to maps of larger regions showing associations dominated by one or more great soil groups.
• reconnaissance soil map-A map showing the distribution of soils over a large area as determined by traversing the area at intervals varying from about 800 m to several kilometers. The units shown are soil associations. Such a map is usually made only for exploratory purposes to outline areas of soil suitable for more intensive development. The scale is usually much smaller than for detailed soil maps.
• schematic soil map-A soil map compiled from scant knowledge of the soils of new and undeveloped regions by the application of available information about the soil-formation factors of the area. Usually on a small scale ( 1:1 000 000 or smaller).