How to Customize and Export a SankeyMATIC Diagram

SankeyMATIC lets you adjust a diagram's appearance with on-screen controls and then export it as a high-resolution PNG, an SVG vector file, or a plain-text source file you can reopen later. All of this happens in the browser: there are no extensions to install, no code to write, and no email address or trial sign-up required. The only prerequisite is that you have already entered your flows in the Source [Amount] Target format, since the customization controls act on that data rather than replacing it.

Customizing the Diagram

Once your flows are entered, SankeyMATIC provides a wide array of controls that let you make the diagram look the way you want. These are interactive, so each change is reflected in the diagram as you make it — you can iterate on the appearance rather than committing to settings up front.

Typical things to adjust include:

• Node and flow appearance — how the boxes and the bands connecting them are drawn.
• Labels and text — how sources, targets, and amounts are displayed.
• Layout and scale — how the diagram is proportioned and how amounts map to visual width.

Because the controls are interactive, the practical workflow is: change one setting, look at the result, and keep or revert it. If you are unsure where to start, make one change at a time so you can tell which control produced which effect.

Exporting the Diagram

SankeyMATIC supports two image export formats, each suited to a different destination.

Choose PNG when the diagram will be viewed at a fixed size or placed in a document. Choose SVG when you need it to scale cleanly, sit inside a web page, or be edited further in vector software. The PNG export lets you pick from multiple sizes, so you can match the resolution to where the image is going rather than exporting one fixed size.

Saving Your Work as a Text File

Beyond image export, you can save the current state of your work in a readable plain text file. This is the format to use when you want to come back to the diagram rather than just look at it. Two things it makes easy:

• Resuming later — reopen the file on any computer or in any browser and continue where you left off.
• Comparing versions — because the file is plain text, you can show the differences between two source files to see exactly what changed between versions of a diagram.

If you expect to revise a diagram over time, saving the text file alongside each exported image gives you both a shareable picture and a restorable working copy.

Common Points to Watch

• Customize before you export. Appearance changes are made interactively, so settle the look first and export once, rather than exporting repeatedly as you tweak.
• Pick the format by destination, not by habit. A PNG dropped into a web page will not scale like an SVG; an SVG placed in a slide deck may be more than you need.
• Keep the text file if the diagram is ongoing. The image exports are outputs; the plain-text file is the thing you can actually resume and diff.
• No account is needed at any step. Nothing in the customize, export, or save process requires an email address or sign-up. SankeyMATIC notes that you are welcome to contribute to its development if you like, but that is optional.