Flowchart Symbols

Flowcharts use special shapes to represent different types of actions or steps in a process. Lines and arrows show the sequence of the steps, and the relationships among them. These are known as flowchart symbols.

Common Flowchart Symbols

• Rectangle Shape - Represents a process
• Oval or Pill Shape - Represents the start or end
• Diamond Shape - Represents a decision
• Parallelogram - Represents input/output

The terminator symbol marks the starting or ending point of the system. It usually contains the word "Start" or "End."

A box can represent a single step ("add two cups of flour"), or and entire sub-process ("make bread") within a larger process.

A printed document or report.

Represents multiple documents in the process.

A decision or branching point. Lines representing different decisions emerge from different points of the diamond.

Represents material or information entering or leaving the system, such as customer order (input) or a product (output).

Represents a step where a user is prompted to enter information manually.

Represents a set-up to another step in the process.

Indicates that the flow continues where a matching symbol (containing the same letter) has been placed.

Indicates that the process flow continues in more than two branches.

Indicates a point in the flowchart where multiple branches converge back into a single process.

Indicates a step where two or more sub-lists or sub-processes become one.

Indicates a step that orders information into a standard format.

Indicates a step that organizes a list of items into a sequence or sets based on some pre-determined criteria.

Indicates a sequence of actions that perform a specific task embedded within a larger process. This sequence of actions could be described in more detail on a separate flowchart.

Indicates a sequence of commands that will continue to repeat until stopped manually.

Indicates the point at which a loop should stop.

Indicates a delay in the process.

Indicates a step where data gets stored.

Indicates a list of information with a standard structure that allows for searching and sorting.

Indicates that information was stored in memory during a program, used in software design flowcharts.

Indicates a step that displays information.

Indicates that the process continues off page.

What does a parallelogram flowchart symbol mean?

A parellelogram represents data in a flowchart. Data is either input a process requires or an output that the process hands off to the next step.

What are the types of flowchart?

The most common flowchart types are:

• Process flowchart
• Swimlane Flowchart
• Workflow Diagram
• Data Flow Diagram

• EPC Diagram
• SDL Diagram
• Process Map
• Process Flow Diagram

Read about the types of flowcharts in detail here.

What is input and output in a flowchart?

Input and output are the fundemental building blocks of a process used to describe a software program. For example, the input could be provided by a user like at an ATM machine or in a form online or it could data provided by an instrument like a temperature read. The program will have code to interpret the input and generate an output. The output could be a series of things: a message printed on a the user interface or data handed off to another process.

What are the symbols used in Data Flow Diagrams (DFD)?

There are two different types of approaches to symbols in data flow diagrams: Yourdon and Coad and Gane and Sarson.

In the Yourdon and Coad way, processes are depicted as circles, while in the Gane and Sarson diagram the processes are squares with rounded corners.

Learn more about data flow diagrams.