PRISMA 2020 · free · runs in your browser
PRISMA FLOW DIAGRAM · PRISMA 2020 · FREE · NO SIGN-UP
Create a PRISMA flow diagram online in minutes. Choose one of the four official PRISMA 2020 flow diagram templates for a systematic review, scoping review or meta-analysis, type in your numbers, and export a publication-ready diagram as PNG, SVG or PDF.
Every heading in the diagram is editable — including the three section bars below. Leave blank to keep the default wording.
Fields update the diagram instantly. Leave any box blank if not applicable — it will show as "n = ".
Autosaves locally as you type — nothing is uploaded.
A PRISMA flow diagram shows how records moved through a review, from the first database search to the final included studies. This free PRISMA flow diagram generator lets you create a PRISMA flow diagram online in minutes. Choose one of the four official PRISMA 2020 flow diagram templates, type in your numbers, watch the diagram update live, and export a publication-ready file as PNG, SVG or PDF. There is no sign-up, nothing to install and nothing uploaded, so it is a fast and private PRISMA flow diagram generator online, free of charge.
The PRISMA flow diagram 2020 replaced the older 2009 flowchart with a layout that separates records found through databases and registers from records found through other methods, such as websites, citation searching and reference lists. This PRISMA flow diagram template follows the official wording and structure, including the Identification, Screening and Included bands. Pick the template for a new or an updated review, with databases and registers only or with other methods added.
The PRISMA flow diagram for a systematic review is the standard way to report study selection, and journals expect it as Figure 1. Scoping reviewers can use it too: the PRISMA-ScR extension asks for a flow diagram of the same kind, so the same layout works as a PRISMA flow diagram generator for scoping review projects. Every heading is editable, so you can rename a stage to match your protocol, name your real databases such as PubMed, Embase or CENTRAL, and add or remove exclusion reasons.
Imagine you searched PubMed (n = 412), Embase (n = 520) and CENTRAL (n = 168), giving 1,100 records. After removing 260 duplicates, 840 records are screened by title and abstract and 700 are excluded. Of the 140 reports sought for retrieval, 10 cannot be retrieved, so 130 are assessed for eligibility and 90 are excluded with reasons. That leaves 40 studies included. Enter these numbers and this PRISMA flow diagram example appears instantly. Each box equals the one before it minus what was removed, which makes arithmetic mistakes easy to spot.
Many reviewers screen records in Rayyan or Covidence and then need to draw the diagram. This tool does not connect to those services, but their counts drop straight into the form. If you have used the PRISMA2020 Shiny app, the boxes will feel familiar, without needing R or a server. It is not an AI tool either: the diagram is drawn from the numbers you enter, so nothing is invented or guessed. It is independent and not affiliated with Rayyan, Covidence or the PRISMA group.
Looking for a PRISMA flowchart template for Word? Export your diagram as PNG or SVG and insert it with Insert, Pictures. SVG stays sharp at any size and opens in PowerPoint, Illustrator and Inkscape, so you can restyle it or resize it for a poster, thesis or journal figure.
A PRISMA flow diagram is a standardised chart that shows how studies moved through a systematic review: how many records you identified, how many you screened, how many you excluded (and why), and how many made it into the final review. It is part of the PRISMA 2020 reporting guideline (Page et al., BMJ 2021) and is normally reported as Figure 1 of a systematic review or meta-analysis.
It makes your review transparent and reproducible. Readers, peer reviewers and journal editors can see at a glance how many records each search produced, how duplicates were removed, how many full-text reports were assessed, and the reasons studies were excluded. Most journals require it, and it is item 16a of the PRISMA 2020 checklist.
1) Choose the right template (new or updated review; databases and registers only, or with other methods). 2) Enter your counts for each stage: records identified, duplicates removed, records screened and excluded, reports sought and assessed, exclusion reasons, and studies included. 3) Check the numbers add up. 4) Export the finished diagram as SVG, PNG or PDF and insert it into your manuscript. This generator does steps 1 to 4 in one page and updates the diagram live as you type.
Pick your flow diagram type, optionally rename any heading, then fill in your numbers in the form. The diagram redraws instantly. Name your actual databases (PubMed, Embase, CENTRAL and so on) and registers, add or remove exclusion reasons, then click PNG, SVG or PDF to download. Use Save progress to keep your work as a .json file and Load progress to continue later.
You are on one. This PRISMA 2020 Flow Diagram Generator is free, needs no sign-up or account, follows the four official PRISMA 2020 templates, and runs entirely in your browser, so nothing you enter is uploaded.
Build the diagram here, export it as SVG or PNG, then in Word choose Insert, Pictures, This Device. PNG is the simplest option and works everywhere. SVG stays sharp at any size, and in recent versions of Word you can select it and use Graphics Format, Convert to Shape to edit the boxes and text. Drawing the boxes and arrows by hand with Word shapes also works, but is slower and harder to keep aligned.
Follow the official layout: three bands labelled Identification, Screening and Included, with boxes for records identified, duplicates removed, records screened, records excluded, reports sought for retrieval, reports not retrieved, reports assessed for eligibility, reports excluded with reasons, and studies included in the review. It is quicker to generate the diagram here and export an SVG, which opens directly in PowerPoint, Illustrator and Inkscape.
Work top to bottom. Identification: record the number of records found in each database and register, plus records from other methods, then the duplicates and ineligible records removed. Screening: record how many titles and abstracts you screened and excluded, how many full-text reports you sought and could not retrieve, and how many you assessed for eligibility along with the reasons for exclusion. Included: record the final number of studies and reports in the review. Each box should equal the previous box minus what was removed.
Registers are trial or study registries, such as ClinicalTrials.gov or the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, that you searched in addition to bibliographic databases like PubMed or Embase. PRISMA 2020 reports them in a separate stream so readers can see how many records came from each source. If you did not search any registers, you can remove that stream in this tool.
Use the new systematic review template if this is your first review of the topic, and the updated systematic review template if you are updating a previous review (it adds the studies from the earlier version). Then choose the version for databases and registers only, or the one that also includes other methods such as websites, organisations, citation searching or reference lists.
Yes to both. It is free with no sign-up. Everything you enter runs in your browser and autosaves locally, and your diagram data is never sent to a server. The site uses Google Analytics for basic visit statistics only; see the Privacy Policy.
Yes. The PRISMA-ScR extension asks scoping reviews to report study selection in a flow diagram of the same kind, so the PRISMA 2020 layout works for a PRISMA flow diagram for a scoping review. Every heading in this tool is editable, so you can rename stages to match your protocol, and you can add or remove sources and exclusion reasons.
The PRISMA 2020 flow diagram separates records from databases and registers from records found through other methods such as websites, organisations and citation searching. It also distinguishes records from reports, and has a version for updated reviews. This generator follows the 2020 templates.
Build the diagram in this tool, export it as PNG or SVG, and insert it into Word with Insert, Pictures. It works as a ready-made PRISMA flowchart template for Word without redrawing boxes. SVG stays sharp at any size and can also be opened in PowerPoint, Illustrator and Inkscape.
No. It does not use AI. The diagram is drawn directly from the numbers and labels you type, so nothing is guessed or invented, and your data never leaves your browser.
Yes. If you screen records in Rayyan, Covidence or a similar tool, copy your counts into the form. It does not connect to those services. It is also a simple alternative to the PRISMA2020 Shiny app, because it runs in the browser with no R and no server. This tool is independent and is not affiliated with Rayyan, Covidence or the PRISMA group.
Yes. Type the numbers from the worked example in the About section above the FAQ, for instance 412 records from PubMed, 520 from Embase and 168 from CENTRAL, and the finished PRISMA flow diagram example appears instantly. Load a template to see the exact box wording.