Use shape sets to manage visibility in Lucidchart

Shape set basics

Shape sets are a way for you to tag or categorize objects on your Lucidchart document. Once the objects have been tagged (added to a shape set), you can toggle their visibility, determine whether they appear on a printed document, or lock them in place. Objects can belong to more than one shape set.

Consider using shape sets to:

• Keep sensitive data visible on the canvas, but hidden on the final printed version.
• Assign objects to both an “Engineering” shape set and an “Urgent” shape set to differentiate tasks by department and urgency.
• Lock completed sections of a flowchart while you brainstorm additional incomplete paths.

Manage shape sets

Add a new shape set

To access the shape sets panel and add a new shape set:

1. From any Lucidchart document, click the More menu from the top-left corner.
2. Hover your cursor over “View”.
3. Select Shape Sets.
4. Click + New shape set from the top-left corner of the panel that appears.
5. Type a name for the shape set.

After you’ve added a new shape set, you can add shapes to it.

Rename a shape set

To rename a shape set:

1. Click the three-dot icon to the far right of a shape set in the shape set panel.
2. Select Rename.
3. Type a new name.

Duplicate a shape set

To duplicate a shape set:

1. Click the three-dot icon to the far right of a shape set in the shape set panel.
2. Select Duplicate.

Duplicating a shape set only duplicates the original shape set’s properties. It does not duplicate which shapes are included in that shape set.

Delete a shape set

To delete a shape set:

1. Click the three-dot icon to the far right of a shape set in the shape set panel.
2. Select Delete.

This doesn't delete the shapes themselves—it only removes the shape set label used to categorize them.

Add objects to a shape set

To add any object on the canvas to a shape set:

1. Select one or more objects on the canvas.
2. Check the box to the left of a shape set in the shape set panel.
   • You can select multiple if you want to add the shape to more than one shape set.

In the example below, the rectangular “Shape set 1” object is selected. With the shape set panel open, you can see any shape sets that particular object belongs to—in this case “Shape set 1” and “All shapes”. Add or remove that object from a shape set by checking or unchecking the shape set.

Adjust shape set properties

From the shape set panel, you can adjust properties for each individual shape set. You can:

• Click the Hide icon or the Show icon to toggle whether a shape set is visible on the canvas or not.
• Click the Disable print icon to toggle whether a shape set is included on a printed document.
• Click the Lock icon to toggle whether shapes in a shape set are locked in place.

FAQ

How are shape sets different from layers?
Layers work like a stack of transparent sheets. A shape can only be on one sheet at a time, and shapes on the top layers will cover up anything directly underneath them.

Shape sets act more like digital tags, allowing you to categorize shapes into groups. A single shape can belong to multiple shape sets. Adding a shape to a shape set does not affect its canvas position, meaning you can build your process without worrying about layer placement. You can also use shape sets for selective printing where shapes remain visible on the canvas but hidden on the printed version.

For more information about layers, check out our Add layers to a Lucidchart document article.

Resources

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

Community post
Create unique views for stakeholders with shape sets

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