The best free mind mapping tools online help you visualize your thoughts and communicate them to others. The diagram gives you a fresh take on an old problem and encourages a free flow of ideas, which makes it ideal for brainstorming and creative problem-solving sessions.
Mind mapping is a top-down approach to problem-solving. It helps you brainstorm, organizes your thoughts, prioritize tasks & problems, and generate ideas for projects or any other agenda. If you are struggling to get your ideas organized or are looking for a better way to organize your tasks, then the best free mind mapping software can help you achieve that.
It is true that mind maps are one of the most powerful visual thinking tools. These become even more useful when they are used for brainstorming sessions. But if you are an individual contributor, you’ll realize that there are certain times when you might not be able to afford using mind mapping software. For this reason, it is essential to know which are some free mind mapping tools that can help you instead. Mind maps are also great for getting an overview of larger concepts, which is why these maps are also great for teaching purposes.
Our online mind mapping software allows you to create and share mind maps of any size, instantly and for free. Best of all, it’s incredibly intuitive and fun to use!
Benefits of Mind mapping
Mind mapping is an enduringly popular method for recording, organizing, and presenting the information. But why are they so popular? And how can you benefit from them? Here are some science-backed reasons why mind-mapping works.
1. It helps you remember and recall information
Try this little experiment. Close your eyes and think about a tree. Picture it in detail, then think about what your tree looked like.
Did you picture the image of a tree, or the word ‘tree?’ And was that tree in the center of your mind’s eye, or off to one side? And was it in color, or black and white?
Like me, you probably pictured an image, in color, large, and in the center of your mind. This is how the mind works… so working with that rather than against it helps us with recall and memory. In fact, in one study on mind map efficiency, researchers discovered that the benefits of mind mapping when studying and revision included boosting retention by 10-15%.
2. It helps you learn new concepts
According to researchers, there are three types of ‘learning:’
- Non-learning: Information has gone in one ear and out the other. Or, in other words, you’ve been told something and instantly forgotten it.
- Route learning: You’ve learned something, but it’s not connected to anything else you know on the subject. It’s based on repetition — e.g., learning the names of every State in America without knowing anything else about them.
- Meaningful learning: You have new knowledge, and you know how it is connected to everything else you already know. E.g., you learn the names of all the states, alongside knowing how and when each was incorporated. This then ties into other, more abstract knowledge you have or will gain.
One of the benefits of mind mapping is that it helps with meaningful learning because it encourages you to make connections between new and existing knowledge. This is because you add new ideas around a central theme (which is your existing knowledge). This strengthens your depth of understanding.
3. It’s a fun way of learning
Hands up! Who can remember every single word to their favorite song? This is because you’re enjoying what you’re taking in, which is new, novel, and fun. When you’re enjoying something, you’re more deeply invested in it — and that promotes deeper learning.
Another of the benefits of mind mapping is that it helps to create that meaningful engagement. While creating your map, you don’t just read information — you generate ideas, arrange them on a page, add colors and images, review and link concepts. It’s far more engaging than just writing out words or listening to a lecture.
4. It makes complex ideas easier to understand
Mind mapping’s popularity is a testament to its effectiveness. They’re often used for strategic planning — something that’s complex and involves lots of parts — because they work. In fact, one study found that mind mapping helped students plan their essays and projects more effectively, improving the quality, structure, and coherence of their written work.
5. It improves your presenting
Mind maps improve your ability to recall information, which is a bonus when it comes to presenting work. Challenging questions are much easier to answer when the information is deeply embedded.
Mind maps also help your audience. Multiple studies have found that pairing words with images help bring concepts to life and aid understanding, which helps you get your point across more effectively and makes it easier for your audience to take in information. Another study found that presenters who used visual language were seen as being clearer, more interesting, more credible, and more professional by their audience than those who didn’t.
Use our free mind mapping tools to brainstorm and plan out your best business ideas.
Coggle
Coggle is an online tool for creating mind maps. The app lets you and your team collaborate on notes, brainstorm ideas, and create project plans. Every mind map starts with a single central topic. Click the Plus (+) button to add a branch and enter your text in the box.
You can format text, insert links, add images, and icons to elaborate the key points. From here onwards, continue adding branches as per your needs. You can even create a cross-link to other items in a mindmap. Open the context menu, press the Shift key to bring the cross-link icon. Then, drag the cross-link line.
You can create three private diagrams with a free account, collaborate in real-time, and upload unlimited images. The export options include.MM, TXT, Microsoft Visio, PDF, and JPEG. Check out the pricing page to explore premium features.
Unique Features
- Add multiple central nodes in a single workspace. Then, create loops and branches to connect other mind maps and see relationships.
- It supports keyboard shortcuts and has a vast collection of templates in Coggle Gallery to quickly start your projects.
- View the version history of the mind map. Check who last edited the map along with the date and make a copy of it at a particular time.
- Message team members, leave notes, and even chat in real-time to brainstorm ideas. You can auto-arrange branches to associate the content of each branch with the things around it.
MindNode (iOS, macOS)
Most mind mapping apps are web apps and, if there’s a native app available, it’s really just a shell for the web app. It’s fine if you want the collaboration, sharing, and other features you get with an online service, but what if you just want a simple way to brainstorm by yourself?
MindNode, a native Mac, iPhone, and iPad app, is perfect for Apple users. Start a new map on one device and it instantly syncs to your other devices using iCloud. The app is just as easy to use (and as powerful) whether you prefer to tap the plus icon to add a new node on your iPhone or click it on your Mac. And since it’s a fully native app, no internet connection? No problem.
MindNode also has a load of other features that will keep you happy if you’re deep in Apple’s ecosystem, like a Watch app, Apple Pencil support, and integration with popular to-do apps Apple Reminders, Things, and OmniFocus. Select any node, and click Add Task to turn it into a to-do item. Or click the share menu and Export to Things (or OmniFocus), and your mind map will get converted into a project in your chosen app with all your to-dos ready to be checked off. It’s a great way to turn a brainstorming session into something actionable.
MindNode Pricing: Free limited Mac and iOS app; $2.49/month for MindNode Plus with image support, tasks, themes, and styling options.
GitMind
GitMind is an easy-to-use online mind map tool. With it, you can visualize complicated concepts, generate new ideas, make lists with task priorities, and prepare for the presentation. Type in the topic name, and click Insert Node.
Choose Insert subnode to create sub-branches. And click the Relation line to show any relationship between ideas. You can assign a task priority, progress meter, flag, and more with the built-in symbols. To add a symbol, select the target node and click Icon from the toolbar.
At each node, click the Attachment button to insert links, images, and comments. There are many export options available, including TXT, PNG, PDF, DOCX, and SVG.
Unique Features
- Variety of themes, including classic, colorful, and business templates. Click the Style button to customize node spacing, background color, line, border shape, and more.
- Arrange the mind map in seven different layouts and reset them at any time. Click the Layout button and change it to mind map, logic chart, tree chart, and fishbone.
- View, edit, and export the mind map in outline mode. And share the mind map you created with a link or collaborate in real-time.
SimpleMind (Windows, macOS, iOS, Android)
If you just make mind maps for yourself and have no need to collaborate with other people, it can be painful to have to pay up every month for a subscription service or deal with the hard limits of a free one. What we love most about SimpleMind is that it’s an affordable cross-platform app without a subscription fee that does basic mind mapping really well. It’s far from the flashiest app on offer, but for many mind mappers, it might be the best.
Open SimpleMind, and you’ve got a blank canvas with a Central Theme bubble to work with. Tap or click on it to change it to whatever idea you’re mind-mapping, then tap or click on the small plus icons to create new branches and nodes. It’s simple and intuitive, and there are keyboard shortcuts aplenty on the desktop platforms. As we said, not flashy—but done right.
And SimpleMind also has a few extra features that make mind mapping even easier. There’s an outline view that converts your mind map to a bulleted list, there’s a brainstorm mode for throwing ideas out there fast, and you can even sync your mind maps across all your devices using whatever cloud platform you like.
SimpleMind Pricing: Free limited mobile apps; from €24.99 for Windows or macOS (€44.99 for both), $9.99 for iOS, and $8.49 for Android.
Canva
Canva is a web-based graphic design app that makes it easy to create mind maps. Equipped with ready-to-use templates and toolset, you can use this app for educational presentations, business pitches, corporate proposals, and project planning.
Enter the term ‘mind map’ in the search field, and within a few seconds, you’ll see a variety of templates. The built-in tools let you insert elements like shapes, frames, arrows, gradients, and more. You can even modify the text, photos, and background. The export options include PNG, JPEG, GIF, and PDF.
The free account gives you 5GB of free storage space, access to 2,50,000 templates, image uploads, and collaboration with team members in real-time. Check out the pricing page for more details.
Unique Features
- Embed the mind map in any file. Then, share it on social media or email right from the app.
- Insert pictures, embed videos, links from the web or Twitter, and GIF to make the mind map informative and catchy. Use symbols, color codes, speech bubbles, and icons for informative presentations.
- Manage your design pages from inside the editor. You can add pages, rearrange them, and add notes for the presentation.
- Present your reports, discuss brainstorm sessions, pitch decks, and more. Click the Present button to get started.
Conclusion:
Mind mapping software can be a great way to take notes and brainstorm ideas. The best part is that it’s available for free both online and offline. Free mind mapping software can help you map even bigger projects with lots of details. It will also give you the neatest look possible while solving your difficulties in organizing your ideas into few words instead of drafting an extensive document over your computer.