Flow Chart Circle Symbol: What It Is Used to Represent

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

In a flowchart, the small circle symbol is used to represent a connector: a jump point that joins one part of the chart to another without drawing a long arrow across the page. You put a letter or number inside it, such as “A,” and a matching circle with the same label shows where the flow picks up again.

That sounds minor, but the circle is the symbol people misread most often. Some assume it means start or end, some think it marks a decision, and some diagram styles really do use a circle for something else entirely. Getting it right keeps a large chart readable instead of turning it into a tangle of crossing lines.

This guide covers what the circle means in standard flowcharts, the shapes it gets confused with, how to use connectors step by step, a worked example of a clinic onboarding chart that needed them, the edge cases where a circle means something different, and a short FAQ.

What the flow chart circle symbol is used to represent

In the standard flowchart vocabulary, a small circle is the on-page connector. The ISO 5807 standard for flowchart symbols simply calls it the connector and describes it as an exit to, or entry from, another part of the same chart. It replaces an arrow that would otherwise be too long, too crooked or forced to cross other lines.

Connectors always come in pairs, or in groups that share a label. One circle has an arrow flowing into it, which says “leave here.” Another circle with the same label has an arrow flowing out of it, which says “continue here.” The label is the only thing linking them, so it has to be unique within the chart.

A few rules follow from that job:

• It holds a label, not a sentence. A single letter or number is the convention. “A” is right; “Go to approval step” is not.
• It does no work. Nothing happens at a connector. It is plumbing, not a process step.
• It stays small. Draw it noticeably smaller than your process boxes so nobody mistakes it for a step.

When the jump goes to a different page, the standard shape changes to the off-page connector, a pentagon that looks like a home plate or a downward-pointing tag. The circle is for jumps within the same page.

Shapes the circle gets confused with

Most confusion comes from shapes that are round-ish but mean something else. Here are the ones worth separating.

The oval (terminator). A stretched oval or pill shape marks the start and end of a process. It is wider than it is tall and holds a word like “Start” or an event like “Order received.” Our post on the flowchart start symbol covers how to label it. If your round shape says “Start,” it should be an oval, not a circle.

The diamond (decision). Decisions are diamonds, never circles. A circle with “Yes?” inside it is a common beginner mistake.

The summing junction and the “or” symbol. Some older and engineering-style charts use a circle with a cross or an X through it to merge paths. These show up in textbooks but rarely in everyday business flowcharts.

The circle in other diagram types. In UML activity diagrams, a solid black dot means the initial node and a dot inside a ring means the final node. In data flow diagrams of the Yourdon style, a circle is a process. Those are different notations with their own rules, so the meaning depends on which kind of diagram you’re reading.

For the full set of standard shapes in one place, see our guide to flow chart symbols and their meaning.

How to use circle connectors without confusing readers

Connectors are a tool for rescuing a chart that has outgrown its layout. Used carelessly, they make readers hunt. These steps keep them useful.

1. Try to avoid needing them first

Before you add a connector, see whether rearranging the boxes removes the long arrow. Moving a branch to the other side or switching from top-to-bottom to left-to-right often fixes the crossing. A connector is the right answer when the layout genuinely can’t be fixed.

2. Pick a labeling scheme and stick to it

Use capital letters (A, B, C) or numbers (1, 2, 3), not both. If you also number your process steps, use letters for connectors so the two never collide.

3. Draw the exit and the entry as a matching pair

The exit circle gets one incoming arrow. The entry circle gets one outgoing arrow. Several exits can point to the same entry if multiple branches rejoin at one step, but each label should lead to exactly one place.

4. Place the entry next to the step it feeds

Put the entry circle directly above or beside the box where the flow continues, with a short arrow. The reader’s eye should land on the circle and the next step together.

5. Check every label has a partner

Before you call the chart finished, list every connector label and confirm each one appears as both an exit and an entry. An orphan “C” with nowhere to go is worse than a long arrow.

It helps to sort out the steps before you worry about layout at all. In Mindmap AI you can put the process in the central node, branch out each step and check, then switch to the outline view to see them in order. Pro subscribers can type the process as a topic and let AI draft the branches, which makes it easier to spot where the flow loops back or rejoins before you choose where connectors belong.

A worked example: a clinic onboarding chart

Here is a realistic case. A small dental practice, Harbor Street Dental, wants a one-page chart for setting up a new staff member. The office manager lists 14 steps: from “Offer accepted” through background check, payroll setup, uniform order, software accounts, and a first-day walkthrough with the lead hygienist.

Two decisions complicate it. If the background check comes back flagged, the manager reviews it with the owner, and if the owner clears it, the flow returns to the normal path at “Set up payroll.” Separately, clinical staff need an X-ray safety certificate checked, while front-desk staff skip that step and rejoin at “Create software accounts.”

The first draft ran top to bottom in a single column. Both rejoin arrows had to climb back across five or six boxes, and on a printed A4 page they crossed each other near the middle. Staff reading it kept following the wrong line.

The fix used two circle connectors:

1. Connector A: the “Owner clears check” branch ends in a circle labeled A. A matching circle A sits right above “Set up payroll.”
2. Connector B: the front-desk branch of “Clinical role?” ends in a circle labeled B. A matching circle B sits right above “Create software accounts.”

The “Owner does not clear” branch didn’t need a connector at all. It went straight to an end oval, “Offer withdrawn — notify candidate.” The finished chart had one start oval, two end ovals, two connector pairs and no crossing lines. When the practice later added a three-step parking-permit process for its second location, that went onto a separate page, joined by an off-page pentagon instead of another circle.

When a circle means something else

A handful of situations break the “circle equals connector” rule, and it’s worth knowing them before you read someone else’s chart.

Informal charts. Plenty of hand-drawn and classroom flowcharts use circles for start and end because a circle is quicker to draw than an oval. If a circle holds the word “Start,” read it as a terminator. When you draw your own, use the oval so your chart follows the convention.

Tools with their own shape sets. Some diagramming apps put a circle in the basic shapes panel with no fixed meaning. Check the shape’s name in the panel or the chart’s legend instead of guessing from the outline.

Process maps in other notations. BPMN uses circles for events: a thin circle for a start event, a thick one for an end event, and a double ring for events in the middle. If the chart has rounded rectangles with small icons and lanes for each role, it’s probably BPMN, and the circles follow BPMN rules.

When a chart has to be read by people who weren’t there when it was drawn, add a small legend. It takes a minute and removes the guesswork. If you’re still deciding what the process is, a quick map in Mindmap AI is an easy place to get the steps straight first.

FAQ

What does a circle mean in a flowchart?

A small circle in a standard flowchart is an on-page connector. It links one point in the chart to another point on the same page, replacing a long or crossing arrow. Each circle holds a short label, such as a letter, and the flow continues at the matching circle with the same label elsewhere on the page.

Is the circle the start symbol in a flowchart?

Not in standard flowcharts. The start and end symbol is the oval, also called the terminator. Some informal or hand-drawn charts use a circle for start and end, and UML activity diagrams use a solid dot for the starting point, but in a classic flowchart a small circle means a connector.

What is the difference between on-page and off-page connectors?

An on-page connector is a small circle that joins two parts of the same page. An off-page connector is a pentagon shaped like a home plate that sends the flow to a different page. Both carry matching labels, and the off-page version usually also includes the page number where the flow continues.

What do you write inside a flowchart connector circle?

Write a short, unique label, usually a single capital letter or number, such as A or 1. Use the same label on the exit circle and on the entry circle so readers can find the match. Avoid full sentences, because the connector isn’t a step and has no action to describe.

Once the circles are labeled and paired, a busy chart reads the way it should: one clear path from start to finish, with every jump easy to follow.

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