Examples of Flow Chart Diagrams: 6 Patterns Explained

Published October 26, 2026 · Updated October 26, 2026 · 8 min read · by the Sakura5 team

The most useful examples of flow chart diagrams are a linear process (like a morning routine), a yes-or-no decision flow (like logging in), a loop (like retrying a PIN), a troubleshooting tree (like a printer that won’t print), a swimlane chart that splits work between people, and an approval workflow. Each one solves a different kind of problem, and once you can recognize the six patterns you can draw almost any process you’re asked to map.

Most lists of flowchart examples are galleries of finished pictures, but the pattern matters more than the styling.

This guide walks through six example flow chart diagrams described step by step, explains when to use each, builds one complete chart from scratch for a named scenario with real numbers, and covers the mistakes that make example charts misleading.

Why copying a flowchart example rarely works

The usual approach is to find an example that looks close to what you need and swap in your own labels. It breaks in two predictable ways.

First, the shape of the example doesn’t match the shape of your process. A hiring process copied from a straight-line template loses the point where a candidate gets rejected. A refund process copied from a decision tree gains branches that don’t exist. The chart ends up describing the template, not your work.

Second, examples hide the thinking that produced them. You see twelve neat boxes, not the twenty messy notes someone sorted to get there. If you skip that sorting, your chart will have steps at mixed levels of detail — “Handle the order” next to “Click Print label” — and readers won’t trust it.

Six examples of flow chart diagrams and when to use each

Each example below uses the standard shapes: ovals for start and end, rectangles for actions, diamonds for decisions, parallelograms for input and output, and arrows for direction. If any of those are new, our guide to flowchart symbols and meanings for beginners covers them in a few minutes.

1. Linear process: a morning routine

Start oval “Alarm goes off,” then rectangles in a straight column: “Get up,” “Shower,” “Get dressed,” “Eat breakfast,” “Leave the house,” and an end oval. No diamonds at all. Use it for recipes, assembly instructions and checklists where every step always happens in the same order.

2. Single decision: logging in to an account

“User enters email and password” (parallelogram) flows into a diamond, “Details correct?” Yes leads to “Show home screen” and an end oval. No leads to “Show error message” and an arrow back to the input. This is the pattern for any process with one fork: an online form, a vending machine checking payment, a library checking whether a book is overdue.

3. Loop: retrying a PIN

Add a counter to the login example. After a wrong PIN, a rectangle “Add 1 to attempts” feeds a second diamond, “Attempts equal 3?” No loops back to the PIN entry; Yes ends at “Card blocked.” The test of a loop is simple: you must be able to point at the diamond that ends it.

4. Troubleshooting tree: a printer that won’t print

A chain of diamonds, each with a fix on one side: “Is it switched on?” No → “Turn it on.” Yes → “Is there paper?” No → “Load paper.” Yes → “Is it connected to the network?” and so on, ending at “Contact IT.”

5. Swimlane: an online order between three teams

The chart is split into horizontal lanes labeled Customer, Warehouse and Finance. The customer places the order, finance confirms payment, the warehouse picks and packs, and the customer receives a shipping email. Arrows that cross a lane boundary are handoffs, and handoffs are where processes usually stall. Use a swimlane whenever the question is “who does what” rather than just “what happens.”

6. Approval workflow: a purchase request

“Employee submits request” flows to a diamond “Under the manager’s limit?” Yes goes to manager approval; No goes to a second approver. Each approver diamond has three exits: approve, reject, or “send back for changes,” which loops to the submission step.

A worked example: refunds at a small online shop

Here’s a complete chart built from scratch. Say you run a small online shop selling ceramic mugs, and you want a refund flowchart your two part-time helpers can follow without asking you. Your rules: refunds are allowed within 30 days of delivery; a broken item needs a photo; orders under $25 are refunded without a return; anything else must be sent back first, and you refund within 5 business days of receiving it.

Step one: dump the steps before choosing shapes. Write every action and check on its own line, in any order. This is where a mind map helps, because you can put “Refund request” in the center and branch out to checks, actions and outcomes without worrying about sequence. In Mindmap AI, a Pro subscriber can type the rules above as a topic and get a starting map in seconds, then tap a node like “Damaged item” to expand it into sub-steps.

Step two: sort the branches into order. Switch the map to its outline view and drag the nodes into the order they happen. You end up with this list:

1. Customer sends refund request (start oval)
2. Customer gives order number and reason (parallelogram)
3. Within 30 days of delivery? (diamond) — No: “Decline politely” and end
4. Item damaged? (diamond) — Yes: “Ask for a photo” (rectangle), then “Photo received?” (diamond)
5. Order total under $25? (diamond) — Yes: “Refund now, no return”
6. No: “Send return label” (rectangle), then “Item received?” (diamond)
7. “Refund within 5 business days” (rectangle)
8. “Refund issued” (end oval)

Step three: pick the pattern. This is mostly a decision tree with one waiting loop: if no photo or no returned item arrives, the helper needs to know what to do. Add a rectangle “Send reminder after 7 days” that loops back to the waiting diamond, and a cut-off after a second reminder that ends at “Close request.”

Step four: draw and count. The finished chart has 1 start oval, 3 end ovals (refund issued, declined, closed), 1 parallelogram, 5 rectangles and 5 diamonds — 15 shapes, which fits on one page. Then trace three test cases: a $18 mug that arrived cracked on day 4, a $40 set returned on day 35, and a $40 set where the customer never ships it back. If each one reaches the right end oval without you explaining anything, your helpers can use it.

How to choose the right example for your process

Ask three questions about your process, in this order.

• Are there any choices? If no, use the linear pattern and stop.
• Does anything repeat? If a step can happen again — a retry, a send-back, a reminder — you need a loop with a clear exit.
• Do different people own different steps? If yes, use swimlanes, even if the logic is simple. The handoffs are usually what the reader needs to see.

Troubleshooting trees and approval workflows are combinations of these. If a process needs more than about 20 shapes, split it into a main chart and a sub-process chart rather than shrinking everything. For a fuller walkthrough of drawing one from a blank page, see our guide on how to make a flowchart for a process.

Sometimes the answer to all three questions is “it depends,” which means you don’t understand the process well enough yet. That’s a sign to map it loosely first. A free-form canvas like Mindmap AI is good for that stage, because you can capture parts of the process without committing to an order, then turn the outline into boxes once the sequence is clear.

Mistakes that make flowchart examples misleading

• Diamonds with unlabeled exits. Every arrow leaving a decision needs a label. Otherwise the reader guesses which way is Yes.
• Questions that can’t be answered. “Is the order big?” invites argument. “Total over $25?” doesn’t.
• Missing end states. Many example charts only show the happy path. Real processes end in rejections, timeouts and cancellations, and those are the cases people look up.
• Decorative shapes. A diamond used to make a step stand out reads as a decision. Shapes carry meaning; use color or bold text for emphasis instead.

The American Society for Quality publishes a short, practical reference on when to use a flowchart and how to build one, which is a good check against these habits.

FAQ

What is a simple example of a flow chart?

A simple flow chart example is making a cup of tea: start, boil water, put a tea bag in a cup, pour the water, wait three minutes, remove the bag, end. Add one diamond such as “Want milk?” and it becomes a decision flowchart, which is the most common pattern in school assignments.

What are the main types of flow chart diagrams?

The main types are process flowcharts, which show steps in order; decision flowcharts, which branch on yes-or-no questions; swimlane flowcharts, which divide steps between people or teams; workflow diagrams for approvals and handoffs; and data flow diagrams, which show how information moves between systems rather than the order of actions.

How many steps should a flow chart have?

There’s no fixed number, but a chart that fits on one page is easier to follow. Somewhere around 10 to 20 shapes is comfortable for most readers. If yours grows past that, move a group of steps into a separate sub-process chart and represent it with a single predefined-process box.

Can I make a flow chart from a mind map?

Yes, and it’s often the easiest route. A mind map lets you capture every step and check without worrying about order. Once everything is on the page, sort the branches into sequence, mark which ones are questions, and those become your diamonds. The ordered list then converts into boxes and arrows almost directly.

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