AFFINITY DIAGRAM MAKER
Turn a pile of notes
into themes you can act on.
Storyflow is an affinity diagram maker on a truly infinite canvas. Drop every research note, quote, and observation onto the board, cluster the ones that belong together, and let AI suggest groupings when the pile gets big. When the themes emerge, turn them into a plan on the same canvas. Free forever, no credit card.
Free plan
No credit card
Works in your browser
Used by creative professionals at:
Artlist
Pixar
Nike
Red Bull
The North Face
Porsche
Start from a ready-made template
Pick a board, then let AI fill it in. Every template is a real, editable starting point on the same infinite canvas.
What is an affinity diagram, and how do you build one?
An affinity diagram is a way to make sense of a mess of raw input. You start with a wall of individual notes: interview quotes, survey answers, usability findings, sticky-note ideas from a workshop. Then you group the notes that feel related, one cluster at a time, and let the themes surface from the bottom up instead of forcing them from the top down. The point is that you do not decide the categories in advance. You cluster first, then name the group once its shape is clear.
That is what makes it different from the other maps on this canvas. A mind map is a hierarchy: one central topic with branches radiating out, and our mind mapping page covers that mode. A concept map links ideas with labeled relationships that spell out how they connect. An affinity diagram has no fixed center and no labeled arrows. It is about clustering many small, equal notes into emergent themes, which is exactly the move UX researchers, workshop facilitators, and brainstorm teams reach for when they have more data than structure.
Storyflow builds affinity diagrams on an open infinite canvas. Every note is a real card you drag into a cluster, recolor, and regroup as your read of the data changes. Because it is a truly infinite canvas with no object cap on the free plan, you can dump a hundred notes from a research round without running into an edge. Ask the AI to suggest clusters when the wall is overwhelming, attach the source clip or screenshot beside a note, then turn the finished themes into a research plan or backlog on the same canvas.
HOW IT WORKS
Build an affinity diagram in four steps.
Start from a wall of raw notes and let the themes surface. Either way the clusters stay yours to rearrange.
01
Open a free canvas
Start in the browser with a free account. Nothing to install and no card to enter, just an infinite canvas ready for every note you want to sort.
02
Dump every note
Drop your quotes, findings, and observations onto the canvas as cards, one idea per note, or paste a batch and let each line become its own card to cluster.
03
Cluster and name the themes
Drag related notes together into groups, or ask the AI to suggest clusters when the wall is big. Name each theme once its shape is clear, and recolor to keep clusters distinct.
04
Turn themes into a plan
Convert the finished themes into a research report, backlog, or roadmap on the same canvas, share a view-only link, or export the diagram as an image or PDF.
Affinity mapping that turns scattered notes into clear themes.
Cluster notes from the bottom up, let AI suggest groupings, and keep the whole synthesis on one canvas that turns into work.
Themes emerge bottom-up
Cluster notes, do not pre-sort them
Drop every note onto the canvas and drag the related ones together into clusters. The themes surface from the data instead of being forced from a template, which is the whole discipline of affinity diagramming.
See the infinite canvas →
AI suggests the groupings
Ask AI to cluster a big wall
When a research round leaves a hundred notes on the board, describe what you want in the AI chat and it suggests clusters, using your current board as context, not a generic template. You refine the groupings from a real starting point instead of sorting every card by hand.
See the AI brainstorming tool →
Room for the whole research round
No cap on the wall of notes
Affinity walls get big, and that is the point. With a truly infinite canvas and no object cap on the free plan, a full round of interviews or a workshop's worth of stickies fits on one board without running into an edge.
See the free infinite canvas →
The diagram becomes work
Themes become real plans
Once the notes are clustered, turn the themes into a research report, product backlog, or roadmap on the same canvas. The themes carry over, so you plan from the synthesis you built instead of retyping it into another tool.
See the concept map maker →Free forever. No note cap.
Open a canvas and start clustering. The free plan has no object cap and no time limit, so a full research round's worth of notes never runs into an edge or pushes you to upgrade.
Unlimited affinity diagrams with room for every note
Basic AI usage to suggest and refine clusters
Attach images, PDFs, video, and links to any note
Share the diagram view-only, or invite collaborators free
CLUSTER THE NOTES
Built for the way researchers actually synthesize.
Group notes into themes from the bottom up, let AI help when the wall is big, and keep the whole synthesis visible at once.
Clustering is the point
Group notes into emergent themes
One note, one idea: Put each quote or finding on its own card so it can move between clusters freely. Paste a batch and let each line become a note ready to sort.
Drag related notes together: Pull notes that feel connected into a cluster, split a cluster that grew too broad, and let the themes surface as you go instead of deciding them upfront.
Name and color the clusters: Add a header card once a group's shape is clear and recolor each cluster so the themes inside a big wall read at a glance rather than blurring together.
AI that reads the board
AI clusters from what is already there
Suggest a first grouping: Describe what you are looking for and the AI suggests clusters across the notes on the canvas, giving you a first pass to accept, merge, or override.
Bring in your sources: Add up to one Blueprint and three documents as context with an @-mention, so a research plan, discussion guide, or brief shapes the themes the AI proposes.
Re-cluster a messy corner: Point at a group that feels too broad and ask the AI to split it, or ask for a tighter set of themes. It works from the notes you placed instead of drifting off-topic.
More than text on a note
Evidence beside every note
Drop in anything: Images, video, GIFs, PDFs, and links sit on the canvas next to the note they support. The raw evidence lives with the theme instead of behind a spreadsheet row.
Frame grabs from video: Pull stills from YouTube and Vimeo straight onto the board when a moment from a session recording backs a finding better than a paraphrase can.
Notes where you need them: Longer write-ups live as documents on the same canvas, so the wall stays scannable and the full context behind a theme is one click away.
The diagram is step one
From affinity diagram to finished plan
Turn themes into real boards: Convert the clustered themes into a research report, persona, or product backlog on the same canvas, with the AI carrying your themes across.
Synthesize as a team: Invite collaborators free to cluster the wall together, or send a view-only link so a stakeholder can explore the whole diagram in the browser without an account.
Export anywhere: Need the diagram in a readout, deck, or report? Export it as a clean image or a PDF in one step.
WHO IT IS FOR
Who builds affinity diagrams in Storyflow?
Anyone who has more raw notes than structure and needs the themes to surface.
UX researchers synthesizing
Dump interview quotes and usability findings onto the wall, cluster them into themes, and pin the session clip beside the note it backs. Free, with no time limit.
Workshop facilitators
Run a live affinity session on one shared canvas, let the group drag stickies into clusters, and leave with named themes instead of a photo of a whiteboard.
Product teams making sense of feedback
Cluster support tickets, reviews, and survey answers into themes, then turn the top clusters into a backlog or roadmap on the same canvas.
Designers running discovery
Group observations from field research into patterns, attach the photos and screenshots that prove each one, and build a persona from the themes that emerge.
Brainstorm teams converging
Take a wall of raw ideas from a divergent session and cluster them into themes so the group can prioritize what to build instead of drowning in stickies.
COMPARED
How Storyflow compares to other affinity mapping tools.
Plenty of tools let you drag sticky notes around. The question is whether the wall gets clustered with AI and turns into work.
Storyflow
Recommended
AI suggests clusters from your wall of notes
Freeform infinite canvas for the whole research round
Themes become reports and backlogs on the same canvas
A free plan with no note or object cap
Miro
AI suggests clusters from your wall of notes
Freeform infinite canvas for the whole research round
Themes become reports and backlogs on the same canvas
A free plan with no note or object cap
FigJam
AI suggests clusters from your wall of notes
Freeform infinite canvas for the whole research round
Themes become reports and backlogs on the same canvas
A free plan with no note or object cap
Mural
AI suggests clusters from your wall of notes
Freeform infinite canvas for the whole research round
Themes become reports and backlogs on the same canvas
A free plan with no note or object cap
What creators are saying
Join early creators getting structured workspaces and AI that remembers their projects
“Storyflow has sped up my workflow by at least 3x, which means more flow state and more projects I can actually ship. It truly changed the way me and my team create.”
Reilin Joey
Director & YouTuber
“One prompt gets me a structured board. But the tactics are my favorite. I run my YouTube scripts through them and my intros and retention got better. It's amazing.”
Justkay
YouTuber & Freelance Filmmaker
“I used to juggle five apps to plan a project. Now I describe what I am making and get boards, lists, and a schedule. All in one place.”
George
@fernwehchronicles
Affinity diagram questions, answered.
Everything people ask about building affinity diagrams in Storyflow.
An affinity diagram maker lets you put many individual notes on a board and cluster the related ones into themes, so structure emerges from raw research instead of being decided upfront. Storyflow does this on an infinite canvas where every note is a real card you can drag between clusters, recolor, and regroup, rather than a fixed grid.
The insights are already in your notes. Cluster them into themes.
Dump every note, group what belongs together, and turn the themes into a plan. Free plan, no credit card.