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Mindmap

Mermaid keyword: mindmap

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Sample

mindmap
  root((Launch))
    Engineering
      Auth
      Billing
      Logging
    Marketing
      Landing page
      Press kit
    Support
      Help center
      Status page
    Compliance
      Privacy
      Terms

When to reach for a mindmap

Mindmaps are best when you want to capture a tree of ideas without committing to ordering or causality — brainstorms, project outlines, or feature breakdowns. They are not the right tool for processes, time-ordered events, or relationships between entities.

For trees with explicit “parent → child” semantics in code (DOM trees, file systems), a flowchart with LR direction is often more compact.

Cheat sheet

mindmap
  root((Center))     # double parens = circle
    Branch1
      Leaf1
      Leaf2
    Branch2[Square]  # square node shape
      ::icon(fa fa-rocket)   # FontAwesome icon (in supporting renderers)

Indentation defines hierarchy. Two spaces per level is the convention.

Common mistakes

1. Mixing notation styles inside one mindmap. Stick to node or node[Square], not both.
2. Going more than three levels deep. Mindmaps lose their punch beyond depth 3 — break large mindmaps into multiple top-level diagrams.

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