How to Change Connector Styles in Visio (Right-Angle, Straight, Curved)
Visio draws right-angle connectors by default, but you can switch to straight or curved lines in two clicks. Learn how to change every connector on the page, change just one line, and set the style new connectors will use.
Step by step
Intro
- Connector styles. Visio draws right-angle connectors by default. You can switch them to straight or curved lines, either for the whole page or for one line.
Set up
- A small flowchart. Start with a small flowchart. Drop a Start/End shape and type Request in. Drop a Process shape to the right of it and type Check request. Drop another Start/End shape back on the left and type Request done. Connect Request in to Check request.
- Right-angle (default). Now connect Check request to Request done. Because the end shape sits back on the left, Visio bends the line at right angles. That is the default style.
Change every line
- Straight lines. To change every line at once, first click an empty part of the page so nothing is selected. Then go to Design, open Connectors in the Layout group, and pick Straight Lines. Every connector is now a straight line, taking the shortest path from shape to shape.
- Curved lines. In the same Connectors menu, pick Curved Lines. Curved lines look softer and suit mind maps and context diagrams.
- Back to right-angle. Pick Right Angle to go back to the classic flowchart look.
Change one line
- Just one line. To change only one line, select it first. Here, click the line from Check request back to Request done. Now go to Design, Connectors, Curved Lines. Only the selected line becomes curved. The other line stays right-angled. Click an empty part of the page to deselect the line and see the result.
Set the default
- The default style. With nothing selected, pick Design, Connectors, Straight Lines. This changes the lines on the page and also sets the style for new connectors on this page. To test it, drop another Process shape and type Log request. Connect Check request to Log request. The new line comes out straight without you changing anything.
Recap
- Recap. Everything is under Design, Connectors. With nothing selected, it changes the whole page and the default for new lines. With a line selected, it changes only that line.
Common mistakes
- Something is still selected. If a shape or line is selected, the Connectors menu only changes that selection, not the whole page. Click an empty part of the page or press Esc first.
- Expecting the change to reach other pages. The Connectors setting works page by page. On a file with several pages, set the style on each page you want changed.
- Drawing links with the Line tool. A plain line is not a connector, so the Connectors menu won't reshape it, and unless its ends are glued to connection points it won't stay attached when you move a shape. Draw links with the Connector tool or the AutoConnect arrows instead.
When a business analyst uses this
In a discovery workshop, you might sketch a context diagram with the system in the middle and users and other systems around it. Switching that page to Curved Lines keeps the links from forming a crowded grid, so the flows are easier to follow on screen. Keep Right Angle for the process maps you send for sign-off.
Questions people ask
How do I change the default connector style in Visio?
Click an empty part of the page so nothing is selected, then go to Design, Connectors and pick a style. New connectors on that page will use that style.
How do I change just one connector in Visio?
Select that connector, then go to Design, Connectors and pick Right Angle, Straight Lines or Curved Lines. Only the selected line changes.
How do I make Visio connectors straight instead of right-angled?
With nothing selected, go to Design, Connectors and pick Straight Lines. Every connector on the page becomes a straight line.
