FlowBuilder

How to make a flowchart in PowerPoint

PowerPoint gives you three routes: SmartArt for a quick straight process, hand-drawn shapes for full control, or an imported chart for anything with decisions. In Microsoft 365, an imported SVG can even be turned back into editable PowerPoint shapes.

Fastest: build it here, insert it into a slide

  1. Type the process in the flowchart maker and switch to Left → right, which suits a 16:9 slide.
  2. Click SVG (Microsoft 365) or Download PNG. On a desktop browser, Copy image lets you paste straight into the slide.
  3. In PowerPoint: Insert → Pictures → This Device.
  4. Microsoft 365 only: select the SVG and choose Graphics Format → Convert to Shape. The boxes become ordinary shapes you can recolour or animate one by one.

Tip: Long chart? Split it across slides at a natural hand-off and use a small circle connector labelled “A” on both slides.

Open the flowchart maker

Draw it in PowerPoint

Two native options:

  1. From bullets: type each step as a bullet in a text box, then Home → Convert to SmartArt and pick a Process layout. Straight sequences only.
  2. From shapes: Insert → Shapes, use the Flowchart group, and connect with Elbow Arrow Connectors attached to the connection dots.
  3. Turn on View → Guides so boxes line up, and use Shape Format → Align for even spacing.
  4. To build the chart up during a talk, select shapes in order and add Animations → Appear to each.

Same guide for other apps

Flowchart in Word · Flowchart in Excel · Flowchart in Google Docs

Questions people ask

Does PowerPoint have flowchart templates?

PowerPoint has SmartArt process layouts and the flowchart shape set, plus online templates via File → New. None of them lay out decisions automatically, which is why many people build the chart elsewhere and insert it.

Can I edit an imported flowchart in PowerPoint?

Yes, if you insert the SVG in Microsoft 365 and use Graphics Format → Convert to Shape. A PNG is a flat picture, so edit those in FlowBuilder and re-insert.

What size should a flowchart be for a slide?

Keep it to about 12 boxes per slide and lay it out left to right. More than that and the labels become too small to read from the back of a room.

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