The link is the diagram: why I built FlowDiagram, a free diagram tool your AI can draw in
By Tuna, the maker of FlowDiagram Every engineering team I have worked with has the same graveyard: a Confluence page with an architecture diagram that was last true two re-orgs ago. Somebody drew it in a heavyweight tool, exported a PNG, pasted it in, and the source file now lives on a laptop that was returned to IT in 2023. I'm a data architect. I spend a lot of my week drawing three kinds of…
The creator of FlowDiagram, a free diagram tool AI can use, shares his frustration with outdated architecture diagrams. Tired of outdated diagrams on Confluence pages, Tuna aimed to build a tool that could accommodate three types of diagrams: integration landscapes, data pipelines, and ER models. Unable to find a suitable tool, Tuna created FlowDiagram, a free diagram tool without tiers or accounts.
FlowDiagram stands out with its unique share link feature. Clicking 'Share' generates a URL that contains the entire diagram, eliminating the need for users to download or sign up for anything. The diagram remains accessible as long as the link exists. FlowDiagram was designed to be written by AI without the need for an API key.
It provides a Markdown skill file, flowdiagram.net/flowdiagram.md, that teaches AI coding assistants about the document format. With this approach, users can simply ask the assistant to draw their system and receive a one-click link.
The tool ships with 1,160 vendor logos, including icons for AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, SAP, Salesforce, Snowflake, and many others. Users can add their own internal system logos to the library. FlowDiagram also offers robust ER modeling, allowing users to create tables with typed columns, primary and foreign keys, and crow's-foot cardinality. Users can import and export data in various formats, including SQL DDL, DBML, Mermaid, and more.
The tool's flow feature allows diagrams to move dynamically, with packets traveling in the direction of data flow and hollow packets indicating return traffic. This feature enhances architecture reviews by enabling users to present animations that keep running and never blur when zoomed in. Lastly, FlowDiagram supports importing existing files from draw.io, Mermaid, sequence, class, state, and ER diagrams. Users can also export diagrams into PNG, SVG, PDF, Mermaid, DBML, SQL, and .flow.json formats.
FlowDiagram can be used offline and installed as a desktop or mobile app, with analytics provided as cookie-free page counts. The tool does not support real-time co-editing or team workspaces, but collaboration can occur through sharing links and committing .flow.json files to Git. FlowDiagram is continuously evolving based on user feedback.
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