Arrowheads Reference

Diagrammix3 provides 31 different arrowhead styles for connectors and lines. This reference covers all available types and their common use cases.

Applying Arrowheads

Using the Inspector

Select a connector
Open the Inspector's Style tab and find the Connector section
Choose a style from Start Arrowhead and End Arrowhead

Right-click an arrowhead on the canvas to get a Start Arrowhead or End Arrowhead menu with the Built-in Arrowheads and a Position option (Auto or Fixed).

Start vs. End Arrows

Start Arrowhead: at the beginning of the line (where you started drawing)
End Arrowhead: at the end of the line (where you finished drawing)

You can use different arrowheads on each end. If the current notation provides its own SVG arrowheads, they appear in the picker under Notation Arrowheads.

Complete Arrowhead Reference

All Arrowhead Types

Basic Arrowheads

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`none`	None	No arrowhead	Plain lines, connections without direction
`standard`	Arrow	Classic filled triangle	General flowcharts, directional flow
`inflected`	Inflected	Curved/swept arrow	Stylized diagrams, dynamic flow
`stickStroked`	Stick	Open chevron (>)	Lightweight direction indicators
`doubleStickStroked`	Double Stick	Double chevron (>>)	Strong direction, continuation

Geometric Shapes

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`round`	Circle	Filled circle	Endpoints, nodes
`roundStroked`	Circle Stroked	Hollow circle	Alternative endpoints
`square`	Square	Filled square	Block endpoints
`boxStroked`	Box Stroked	Hollow square	Alternative block endpoints
`box`	Box	Same as square	Diagram terminators
`bar`	Bar	Vertical bar	Dimension lines, boundaries
`arcStroked`	Arc	Crescent/arc shape	Specialized notations

Diamond Shapes

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`diamond`	Diamond	Filled diamond	Decision points, joins
`diamondStroked`	Diamond Stroked	Hollow diamond outline	Alternative decision points
`diamondCurved`	Diamond Curved	Curved diamond	Stylized diagrams
`whiteDiamond`	White Diamond	Hollow diamond (filled white)	UML aggregation

Triangle Shapes

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`whiteTriangle`	White Triangle	Hollow triangle	UML inheritance (alternative)
`umlInheritance`	Inheritance	Hollow triangle (UML style)	UML class inheritance

Decorative

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`singleFeather`	1 Feather	Single feather/barb	Decorative diagrams
`doubleFeather`	2 Feather	Double feather/barb	Decorative diagrams
`tripleFeather`	3 Feather	Triple feather/barb	Decorative diagrams

Technical/Dimension

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`dimensionLine`	Dimension	Arrow for measurements	Technical drawings, dimensions
`dimensionLineAndBar`	Dimension Bar	Dimension with bar	Technical drawings
`cross`	Cross	X mark	UML destroy message, termination

Entity-Relationship (ERD)

Type	Name	Description	Common Use
`crowsFeet`	Crows Feet	Three-pronged fork	ERD: many relationship
`crowBar`	Crow Bar	Fork with bar	ERD: one-to-many
`crowBarSegment`	Crow Bar Segment	Fork with segment	ERD: variation
`crowBall`	Crow Ball	Fork with circle	ERD: zero-to-many
`crowBallCircle`	Crow Ball Circle	Fork with double circle	ERD: optional many
`barBall`	Bar Ball	Bar with circle	ERD: zero-to-one
`barBar`	Bar Bar	Double bar	ERD: exactly one

Use Case Categories

Flowcharts

For general flowcharts, use:

standard (Arrow) - Most common, clear direction
none - For bidirectional or undirected relationships
stickStroked (Stick) - Lightweight alternative

UML Diagrams

For UML class diagrams:

umlInheritance - Class inheritance (extends)
whiteTriangle - Alternative inheritance style
whiteDiamond - Aggregation (weak "has-a")
diamond - Composition (strong "has-a")
standard - Association, dependency
stickStroked - Dependency (alternative)

For UML sequence diagrams:

standard - Synchronous messages
stickStroked - Asynchronous messages
cross - Destroy/termination message

Entity-Relationship Diagrams

For ERD cardinality:

barBar - Exactly one (1)
crowBar - One to many (1..*)
crowsFeet - Many (*)
barBall - Zero to one (0..1)
crowBall - Zero to many (0..*)

Technical Drawings

For dimensions and measurements:

dimensionLine - Standard dimension arrows
dimensionLineAndBar - Dimension with terminators
bar - Boundary markers

Arrowhead Sizing

In the Connector section of the Inspector:

Start Arrow Length and End Arrow Length set each arrowhead's size in pixels
Apply Length To Both Arrows keeps both ends the same size
Apply Color To Both Arrows and Shaft colours the arrowheads with the line colour

Tips

Consistency: Use the same arrowhead style throughout your diagram
Meaning matters: Choose arrowheads that convey the correct semantic meaning
Don't overuse: Not every line needs an arrowhead
Consider print: Some detailed arrowheads may not print well at small sizes
Match the notation: Use ERD arrows for ERD, UML arrows for UML

Quick Reference Table

Category	Arrowheads
Basic	none, standard, inflected, stickStroked, doubleStickStroked
Circles	round, roundStroked
Squares	square, box, boxStroked
Diamonds	diamond, diamondStroked, diamondCurved, whiteDiamond
Triangles	whiteTriangle, umlInheritance
Bars	bar, arcStroked
Decorative	singleFeather, doubleFeather, tripleFeather
Technical	dimensionLine, dimensionLineAndBar, cross
ERD	crowsFeet, crowBar, crowBarSegment, crowBall, crowBallCircle, barBall, barBar