Layers are a professional and intuitive way to build out and organize the contents of your documents. You can use Layers to build levels of a system, show different phases of a process, and illustrate alternative states of a design.

Read on to learn more about using Layers to optimize your Lucidchart creations.

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Watch: Create layers in Lucidchart

Work with layers

To enter the Layer context menu, select layers the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas. From this menu, you can add, delete, reorder, lock, and hide layers. You can also navigate between existing layers and Sync Visibility.

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Here are the basics:

The layers of your document appear as stacked tiles, the order of which corresponds with how content is layered on the canvas.
The footer of the Layer context menu indicates the Page (or base) layer.
Layers do not carry over from one page view to another. When you switch between the pages of your document, the contents of your layers menu will change.
Press Fn + F1 on your keyboard to see a list of useful hotkeys when working with Layers.

Add a layer

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Click the Add Layer icon.
Rename the layer.

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You will automatically be in editing mode for that layer and you can begin adding objects.

Delete a layer

To delete a layer and all of the objects within it, follow these steps:

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Hover your cursor over the layer you want to delete.
Select the three-dot menu.
Click Delete.

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Reorder layers

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Click and drag the layer to a new position in the order.

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Lock a layer

Use the lock feature on a layer to disable the ability to edit the objects within that layer. Here’s how:

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Click the lock icon on the layer you want to lock.

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When a layer is locked, the lock icon will appear closed and the objects within the layer will be outlined red. You can unlock a layer by clicking the lock icon again.

Things to know:

By default, every new layer you create will be unlocked.
If you are in editing mode of a layer when you lock it, you will automatically be pushed into the Page (base) layer.
The Page (base) layer of a document is not lockable.

Hide a layer

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Click the eye icon on the layer you want to hide.
- When a layer is hidden, the eye icon becomes crossed out. To have a layer and its contents appear again, select the eye icon to Show.

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Sync Visibility

If you have hidden layers in the document, click Sync visibility to set the starting view of the document. This ensures that anytime a collaborator joins the document, they start by seeing only layers that are made visible. If Sync visibility appears grayed out, your document is already synced to the current view.

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Note: If you are using universal canvas to switch to Lucidspark, you need to select Sync visibility in order for your layers to appear the same as they do in Lucidchart.

Work with objects in a layer

There are two ways to enter the edit mode of a layer:

Select a tile in the Layer context menu.
Double-click an object in a layer.

When you are in a layer's edit mode, its tile in the Layer context menu is highlighted blue. The objects contained within that layer will be outlined on the canvas and appear darker than the objects in other layers. From here, you can add, edit, and remove objects as needed.

There are two ways to exit the edit mode of a layer:

Click the Page (base) layer tile at the bottom of the Layer context menu.
Double-click anywhere on the canvas that is not an object contained in a layer.

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To move and make changes to all of the objects within a layer at once:

Navigate to the Page (base) layer of your document.
Single-click an object in the layer you want to edit.

All contents of the layer will be outlined. You can then move and make changes to the layer's contents as grouped shapes.

Note: It is only possible to edit the contents of one layer at a time.

To move or copy an object from one layer to another:

Select the Layers icon at the bottom-right of the canvas.
Choose a layer from the menu.
Right-click the object you want to move or copy.
Hover your cursor over "Send to".
Select the name of the layer you want to add the object to.

Add Actions to a layer

Add interactivity to your document by adding Actions. By assigning an Action to an object, you can Hide, Show, or Toggle other layers in the document with the click of a mouse. Here’s how:

Select the object you want to add an Action to.
Click the Actions icon from the formatting toolbar.
Select the Layers tab.
From the Toggle, Show, or Hide dropdown menus, select a Layer.
- Toggle: hide/show layer content like a light switch
- Show: make layer content visible
- Hide: make layer content invisible
Select Done.

After adding an Action to an object in a layer, you can perform the object’s Action by pressing Command + Shift (on Mac) or Ctrl + Shift (on PC) on your keyboard and clicking the object.

There are many ways to utilize this functionality—here’s one example of what this could look like:

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FAQ

Can I download a layered document that excludes hidden layers?

Yes. To exclude any layers from the download, be sure to Sync Visibility of the document before export.

Can I download each layer in individual pages?

Yes. In the PDF download dialog, toggle on “Show Individual Layers.” When toggled on, this option will separate each layer of your document into different pages. The first page of the PDF will contain any content that is on the Page (base) layer of the document. This Page (base) layer content will also be visible on every subsequent layer page.

Your synced visibility settings will not affect a layered PDF if “Show Individual Layers” is toggled on—all layers will be shown in the export.

Can I attach lines to shapes in a different layer?

Yes. To add a line between shapes on different layers, press the alt/option key on your keyboard when attaching the line.

Resources

To learn more about this feature, explore the additional resources below. These resources are available in English only.

Community post

Using layers and actions to create a button in your diagram

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