Free Flow Chart Creator to Draw Flowcharts Online

To create a flowchart online for free, drag a Start/End shape onto the canvas, add Process rectangles and Decision diamonds, then drag from a shape's edge port to another shape to draw an arrow. Double-click any shape to edit its text. Click Auto Layout to tidy the chart, then export it as PNG or SVG. The tool needs no account, adds no watermark and uploads nothing.

How to Draw a Flowchart Online Free in 5 Steps

1. Drag a Start / End shape from the left sidebar onto the canvas.
2. Add Process shapes for each step, from top to bottom. Double-click a shape to type its label.
3. Add a Decision diamond for each yes/no question. Arrows have no text, so start each exit's next label with Yes or No.
4. Hover near the edge of a shape until a small port circle shows, then drag from the port to the next shape to draw an arrow.
5. Click Auto Layout to tidy the chart. Export SVG for print or PNG for chat and email.

To move a shape, drag it. To resize it, drag the handle at its bottom-right corner. The sidebar sets the fill color, border color and font size of the selected shape.

What this flowchart creator includes

The toolbar at the top provides essential functions: undo and redo (also available via Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Y keyboard shortcuts), auto-layout which arranges your nodes in a clean tree structure, zoom controls for navigating large diagrams, and export buttons for saving your work as PNG or SVG image files. You can also save your diagram to local storage and load it back later, making it easy to work on diagrams across multiple sessions without losing progress.

Understanding Flowchart Symbols

Flowcharts use standardized shapes to represent different types of steps in a process. Each shape has a specific meaning that makes flowcharts universally readable once you understand the conventions. This tool supports the five most commonly used symbols.

Process (Rectangle)

The rectangle represents a process step or action. It is the most common shape in any flowchart and indicates something that needs to be done, such as "Calculate total," "Send email," or "Update database." Most flowcharts consist primarily of process rectangles connected by arrows showing the sequence of operations.

Decision (Diamond)

The diamond shape represents a decision point where the flow can branch into two or more paths based on a condition. Typical decision text includes yes/no questions like "Is the payment valid?" or "Does the user have an account?" Each exit path from a decision diamond should be labeled to indicate which condition leads to that path.

Start/End (Rounded Rectangle)

Rounded rectangles (also called terminators or ovals in some standards) mark the beginning and end of a process. Every well-formed flowchart should have exactly one start node and at least one end node. The start node typically contains text like "Start," "Begin," or a description of what triggers the process. End nodes contain "End," "Stop," or a description of the final outcome.

Input/Output (Parallelogram)

The parallelogram represents data entry or data output. Use this shape when your process involves receiving input from a user, reading data from a file, displaying results on screen, or printing a report. Examples include "Enter customer name," "Read configuration file," or "Display results."

Document (Wavy Bottom Rectangle)

The document shape, characterized by its wavy bottom edge, represents a document or report generated by the process. Use this when a step produces a physical or digital document, such as "Generate invoice," "Print receipt," or "Create PDF report."

Tips for Creating Effective Flowcharts

A well built flowchart communicates a process clearly and efficiently. Start by identifying the purpose of your flowchart and the audience who will read it. A flowchart for a technical team documenting a software algorithm will look different from one explaining an employee onboarding process to HR staff.

Keep your flow direction consistent. The most common convention is top-to-bottom or left-to-right. Avoid mixing directions unnecessarily, as it makes the chart harder to follow. The auto-layout feature in this tool arranges nodes in a top-to-bottom tree structure, which is a good starting point that you can then adjust manually.

Write clear, concise text inside each node. Use action verbs for process steps ("Calculate tax," not "Tax calculation") and phrase decision diamonds as questions with clear yes/no or true/false answers. Avoid cramming too much text into a single node. If a step requires description, use a simple label in the node and add detailed notes separately.

Use color purposefully rather than decoratively. A common approach is to use one color for the main process flow, another for exception handling or error paths, and a third for decision branches. This tool lets you customize both fill and border colors for each node, making it easy to implement a consistent color scheme.

For larger processes, consider breaking the flowchart into sub-processes. If your diagram starts to exceed 15 to 20 nodes, it may be clearer to create a high-level overview chart with sub-process references, then detail each sub-process in its own flowchart. This modular approach keeps individual charts readable while still documenting the complete process.

Flowchart, Flow Diagram, or Workflow Diagram?

These three names describe overlapping things, and people searching for a tool use them interchangeably. A flowchart shows the ordered steps of a single procedure, using the standard shapes described above. A flow diagram is the broader term: any diagram where arrows carry something from one box to the next, which includes data flow diagrams and material flow diagrams as well as ordinary flowcharts. A workflow diagram narrows the focus to work moving between people, teams, or systems, so it usually adds who owns each step and where a handoff happens.

You can draw all three with this editor. For a plain flowchart, use process rectangles and decision diamonds and let auto-layout stack them top to bottom. For a flow diagram, use the input/output parallelogram wherever something enters or leaves the system, and name what is being carried in the shape labels, since arrows in this tool have no text. For a workflow diagram, lay each owner out as a horizontal band and place the steps that owner is responsible for in that band, so a handoff is visible as an arrow crossing between bands. The colour controls in the sidebar are enough to shade one band per owner.

A related term you will meet is the process map, which is a workflow diagram drawn at a higher level for process improvement work. If your diagram is growing past 20 boxes, that is the signal to draw a process map of the stages first and then draw one flowchart per stage.

Make a Process Map with This Flowchart Creator

A process map is a flowchart of a business process. It shows each step, each decision and each hand-off from start to finish. You can build one here with the five shapes. Here is a refund process with 7 nodes.

1. Start / End: Refund requested
2. Input / Output: Customer submits order number
3. Decision: Within 30 days?
4. Process (yes path): Issue refund
5. Document: Send refund receipt
6. Process (no path): Decline and explain policy
7. Start / End: End

Connect the Decision to both Process shapes. Arrows have no text, so start those labels with Yes or No, such as "Yes: Issue refund". Both paths then lead to the End shape. The tool has no swimlanes, so put the owner in each label, for example "Support: check order". Click Auto Layout, then export the map as SVG or PNG.

Common Flowchart Use Cases

Flowcharts serve a wide range of purposes across industries and disciplines. In software development, they document algorithms, user flows, system architectures, and debugging procedures. Product managers use them to map out feature requirements and user journeys. Operations teams create process documentation for standard operating procedures, ensuring consistency across shifts and locations.

In education, flowcharts help students understand sequential logic and decision-making processes. Teachers use them to break down complex topics into digestible steps, from the scientific method to essay writing processes. Students create them to plan research projects, outline arguments, or study decision trees in mathematics and computer science.

Business analysts rely heavily on flowcharts when documenting existing processes as part of improvement initiatives. By mapping out every step in a current process, teams can identify bottlenecks, redundancies, and opportunities for automation. The visual nature of flowcharts makes it much easier to spot inefficiencies than reading a text description of the same process.

Quality assurance teams use flowcharts to document testing procedures and decision criteria. A flowchart showing the complete test workflow, including what to do when a test fails, ensures that every team member follows the same protocol and that no steps are accidentally skipped.

Exporting and Sharing Your Flowcharts

This tool provides three ways to preserve your work. The PNG export creates a raster image suitable for embedding in documents, presentations, emails, and web pages. PNG files look crisp at their original size and are universally supported across all platforms and applications.

The SVG export creates a vector image that scales to any size without losing quality. SVG files are ideal for printing, for use in professional design tools like Figma or Adobe Illustrator, and for embedding in web pages where the diagram may display at different sizes on different screens.

The Save function stores your diagram as JSON in your browser's local storage. This preserves all node positions, connections, text, and styling so you can continue working on the diagram later. The Load function retrieves your saved diagram. Note that local storage is specific to your browser and device, so if you transfer a diagram to another computer, export it as PNG or SVG instead.

For looser idea maps, try the Mind Map Maker or the Whiteboard. To plan a screen layout, use the Wireframe Tool. To edit an exported SVG, open it in the SVG Editor, or turn it into a PNG with the SVG to PNG Converter.

Frequently Asked Questions