- Concept Maps
Free concept maps
Create a concept map online
Find ways to get important information or knowledge digestible for you, students, or teams. Make a conceptual diagram of a relevant topic or research for any setting, whether understanding your new business product or mapping out an overwhelming lesson in class. Structure your creative concept map from free online whiteboard templates, tools, and design elements.
Infinite space made for unlimited ideas
Professionally designed templates to fast-track your workflow
Share and ideate with anyone, anytime, on any device
Run a workshop with whiteboard elements, sticker notes, and a timer
Embed your concept map in Docs, presentations, and more easily
Easy online whiteboard tools and data visualization
How to make a concept map
Launch Canva
Choose a concept map template
Add information for concept mapping
Use whiteboard tools and elements
Share and ideate
What is a concept map?
A concept map(opens in a new tab or window) or conceptual diagram is a graphic organizer that visually structures chunks of information to help students and professionals study and analyze the big picture by breaking down and connecting related concepts and ideas with linking phrases. Joseph Novak and a team from Cornell University introduced concept mapping in the 70s, and it has since been a staple in learning and research fields like education and healthcare. Although similar to a mind map in looks, one sets a focus question and then maps out concepts and information from a central idea.
Why use concept maps?
Simplifying the intricacies and relationships between concepts and linking ideas can be quite tricky. Understand and present complex information by creating brilliant concept maps with ease. Whether you’re a student absorbing new learning material for an exam or a marketing newbie getting acquainted with new business vocabulary, concept mapping helps you process new knowledge better.
Using Canva’s concept map maker, you can structure and connect ideas and bring those abstract concepts to life, so it’s easier for you and your colleagues to pick up and study the most important points and generate new insights through brainstorming(opens in a new tab or window). Have a better appreciation of a particular topic and assess your level of understanding. Not only does it help you grasp information, but it also supercharges your creativity by putting helpful visual cues you can associate with a fact or idea.
Make a creative concept map in minutes
When you create concept maps, you don’t only keep the most important facts and research in mind or evaluate the extent of your knowledge on a topic. You also boost your creativity skills as you organize and structure with images, fonts, colors, and backgrounds. Canva’s concept map maker lets students and professionals customize a template so easily that it turns conceptual mapping into a fun learning activity. Choose from several examples and create visually-appealing concept maps with our online whiteboard tools and elements. Then, share your design via social media or email to brainstorm, embed it on Docs, or include it as part of an academic presentation or a business report.
Catchy visual elements for visual concepts
The goal of a concept map is to simplify complex concepts by establishing relationships with linking phrases, lines, arrows, and all sorts of shapes like circles and boxes. Infuse visual cues in your diagram by mixing things up with icons, images, or illustrations to represent ideas. The awesome part about designing in Canva’s concept map maker is that you can access an amazing media library with millions of images, illustrations, icons, and vectors you can use. So whether you need graphics to crack a tricky science lesson or hospital icons for your nursing manual, you can easily find and add them to your layout. Why not upload your own, sketch with Draw(opens in a new tab or window), or start with a prompt using our Text to Image(opens in a new tab or window) app?
Control every element of your design
Designing in Canva means you won’t ever have to start from a blank page—not with hundreds of templates to use as your springboard. It’s a matter of customizing as much or as little of the elements as you need. Resize a text box, icon, or image by simply dragging its edges. Fonts and colors are also super easy to work with. There are more than a hundred free fonts and palettes you can choose from to convey your style, purpose, personality, or brand identity. When your run out of space, expand your template into a whiteboard canvas and let knowledge flow into your concept map. It’s magic how an infinite space allows you and your team to brainstorm or dissect your concepts more thoroughly.
Conceptualize with your team
Since concept maps are often used in learning, brainstorming, or problem-solving scenarios, you might want to get help with new ideas or knowledge from your team or fellow students. Canva allows you to share your whiteboard design so anyone you jump in and brainstorm with you, regardless of their physical location. Use virtual sticky notes to add new information or leave comments and stickers to affirm or negate an idea. Our built-in timer lets you stay on track every session. When you’re all done, switch to a Presenter View and share it like a presentation. You can even embed it on your team’s other designs and Canva Docs.
Start inspired with a concept map template
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Frequently Asked Questions
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