Swimlane diagram software

Create a swimlane diagram in Lucidchart and help your organization get stuff done. Our intuitive software will help you map out tasks and responsibilities quickly, then update them effortlessly as your needs change. Diagram and plan for the future with Lucidchart.

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Start your swimlane diagram

Learn how our swimlane diagram software makes building a swimlane diagram effortless.

Update with ease

With the magnetize function, any shapes that you add to your swimlanes will move with the container whenever you change its position. Disable the magnetize function as needed, and enjoy seamlessly updating your swimlane diagram.

Drag and drop shapes

From the Containers shape library, drag and drop shapes to build your swimlane diagram online in minutes. Customize the swimlanes using the Properties bar—you can add more lanes, change the colors, or even change the orientation of the swimlanes.

Collaborate with anyone, anywhere

Work with team members on the same swimlane diagram in real time. Leave @mention notifications on your swimlane diagram, or use our in-editor chat to share your ideas with your team as you work.

Collaborating with team members to edit or update the org chart

Keep track of ownership

Clearly delineating who is responsible for individual tasks and how they affect others in the process. Work with others on the same online swimlane diagram, automatically displaying updates for every user to see.

Customize our ready-made templates

Lucidchart offers more than 1,000 diagramming templates to choose from! Get a head start on your swimlane diagram by using a ready-made template and customizing it to your use case.

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Connect Lucidchart to apps from leading providers like Google, Microsoft, and Slack. Explore the Lucid integrations marketplace for apps to streamline communication, strategic planning, task management, and more.

Lucidchart feature highlights

Streamline work by enabling multiple collaborators to create and edit the same diagram at once.

Swimlane diagram templates and examples

Don’t reinvent the wheel—use one of our swimlane diagram templates instead of starting from scratch.

Template of an activity diagram with swimlanes

Activity diagram with swimlanes example

Go to Activity diagram with swimlanes example template

Business process flow example

Go to Business process flow example template

Flowchart with swimlanes example

Go to Flowchart with swimlanes example template

Getting started in Lucidchart

Follow along with this video tutorial and learn how to make any type of diagram in Lucidchart.

Make a diagram

Why teams choose Lucidchart

As an intelligent diagramming application, Lucidchart provides simple yet powerful capabilities for visualizing information.

Collaboration. Bring teams together side by side on a shared canvas from anywhere in the world.

Alignment. Build transparency and shared understanding of how a team or company works.

Large-scale change. Increase visibility, standardization, and knowledge sharing across your entire org.

End-to-end workflows. Upgrade to the Lucid Suite for a complete, connected visual collaboration solution.

What is a swimlane diagram?

A swimlane diagram shows ownership of tasks within a process or system. Each entity, whether that’s a person, team, or department, will have their own lane on the diagram, and every task they are responsible for will be in their lane. Arrows show the flow of tasks and information between entities. Swimlane diagrams help organizations see what tasks need to be completed by who and at what stage of the process. You can also use these diagrams to identify where delays might happen and improve your processes.

How to make a swimlane diagram in Lucidchart

Research and document your process

Break down the process workflow by steps, including which teams or roles perform those steps and how they affect other departments. Use this information to identify your swimlanes.

Start with a blank document or swimlane template

Start your swimlane diagram by choosing one of our swimlane templates. You can also open a blank document and drag and drop shapes from the Containers shape library.

Customize your swimlanes

Once you’ve added your swimlanes, adjust the orientation of your containers to reflect the needs of your process. Your swimlanes can be horizontal or vertical.

Add process shapes

Drag and drop process shapes onto your swimlane diagram, then connect each to show process flow. Add text, color, and style to your diagram using our formatting tools.

Get feedback from our team

Share your swimlane diagram with key collaborators to make sure it accurately reflects your process. Get feedback using our collaboration features, share your diagram as a link or image file, or share directly within any integrated app

Additional Lucidchart resources

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Frequently asked questions about swimlane diagrams

How can I add swimlanes to my flowcharts?

To add swimlanes to your flowchart, open the shape manager in our flowchart tool and select the Containers shape library. Then, drag and drop container shapes onto the canvas horizontally or vertically.

How can I color-code tasks and roles in my swimlane diagram?

Use conditional formatting. With this tool, Lucidchart makes it easy to color-code and organize tasks, roles, and other items in your swimlane diagram.

How do I get the content in the swimlane to automatically move when I move the swimlanes?

Swimlanes are automatically magnetized so that all of the shapes within them move together. To turn magnetization on or off for each swimlane, select the swimlane and click the magnet symbol at the top-right of the editor.

Can I change the orientation of my swimlanes?

Yes! Just click on the border of your swimlane and use the pop-up panel to change the orientation of the shape and the orientation of the text.

How do I change the order of the swimlanes?

Select the swimlane you'd like to move. Next, right-click and you'll see the option to move your swimlane to the left or right.

What’s the best way to show current and future states of my swimlane diagram without having to create separate diagrams?

Create a current-state swimlane diagram and use layers to build out your future state, all within the same diagram. You can use hotspots to toggle between the two states.

Everything you need to make a diagram

In addition to our swimlane diagram software, Lucidchart offers support and training resources to help you branch out to any type of diagram.

Lucid Training