Use a screen reader to create a visio diagram

Screen reader content

This article is for people with visual impairments who use a screen reader program with the Office products and is part of the Office Accessibility content set. For more general help, see Microsoft Support home.

Use Visio with your keyboard and a screen reader to create a detailed and polished diagram using either a Data Visualizer template or an Excel workbook. We have tested it with Narrator and JAWS, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

In this topic

• Create a diagram from a Data Visualizer template

  • Choose a Data Visualizer template

  • Create the associated Excel workbook

  • Complete the diagram with the Visio wizard

• Create a diagram from Excel data

  • Create an Excel workbook with data

  • Complete the diagram in Visio

Create a diagram from a Data Visualizer template

To create a Data Visualizer diagram, you work in both Visio and Excel. First you choose a Data Visualizer template in Visio, then create an associated workbook with the diagram data in Excel, and then return to Visio to complete the diagram creation.

Data Visualizer templates are supported in Visio Plan 2.

Choose a Data Visualizer template

You can choose from two Data Visualizer templates:

• basic flowchart

• cross functional flowchart

1. Open Visio.

   Tip: If you're already editing a diagram, press Alt+F, N. You hear: "Selected, New tab item."

2. To choose the template, do one of the following:

   • To choose the Basic Flowchart - Data Visualizer template, press Alt+Z, 2.

   • To choose the Cross Functional Flowchart - Data Visualizer template, press Alt+Z, 7.

3. Press Enter. You hear "Template preview," followed by the template name.

Create the associated Excel workbook

Use the pre-defined Excel table to quickly add and modify the input data for your diagram.

1. In the Visio Template preview of the selected template, press the Tab key until you hear "Excel data template, hyperlink," and then press Enter. The focus moves to Excel, where the template opens as a new workbook.

   Note: To seamlessly convert the data in Excel to the Visio diagram, familiarize yourself with the data mapping guidelines. In the Excel template, press F6 until you hear "Selected, sheet tab, Visio Data Visualizer," and then press the Right arrow key. You hear: "Selected, sheet tab, Understand the process map." Press Enter. The mapping info tab opens. Navigate through and read the contents.

2. To be able to edit the new Excel workbook, save the template to your computer, network server, or SharePoint document library. For detailed instructions, go to Save your work.

3. To move to the pre-defined Process Map table, press F6 until you hear "Selected, sheet tab," followed by the currently selected tab. Press the Left or Right arrow key until you hear "Process map," and then press Enter.

4. In the Process Map tab, navigate through the table and type your input data in the cells. If the automatic saving is not enabled, press Ctrl+S to save your work.

Complete the diagram with the Visio wizard

Complete the diagram creation process in Visio using the Create Diagram from Data wizard.

1. In the Visio Template preview, press the Tab key until you hear "Create," followed by the selected template," and then press Enter. The Create Diagram from Data wizard opens.

2. Press the Tab key until you hear "What diagram do you want to create from data," followed by the first diagram type in the list. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the diagram option you want, and then press Enter.

3. To select the Excel workbook you just created, press the Tab key until you hear "Browse, button," and then press Enter. The Create Diagram from Data dialog opens. Navigate to the correct Excel file, and then press Alt+O.

4. You hear "Select a table or a custom range in the workbook," followed by the first table in the list. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the table you want to use, for example, "Process Map Data," and then press Enter.

5. To finalize the diagram, press Alt+F. Visio uses default values to fill in the other pages of the wizard and creates the diagram.

6. To save your diagram, press Alt+F, A. You hear: "File, Save As." Press the Tab key. You hear: "Saving features," followed by the first saving location in the list. Press the arrow keys and the Tab key until you hear the location you want, name the file, and then press Alt+S.

   Tip: It's a good idea to keep the Visio and Excel files in the same location because they work hand-in-hand.

Create a diagram from Excel data

You can create a workbook in Excel and then use Visio to convert the data in the workbook into a diagram.

For the conversion to work seamlessly, the Excel table column headers and values must meet specific requirements. To familiarize yourself with the data mapping guidelines, go to How Excel columns interact with Visio flowchart components.

If you prefer, you can also use pre-defined Excel sample templates to insert your data. To download a sample template, select the one you want below and save it to your device:

• Basic Flowchart Process Map

• Cross-Functional Flowchart Process Map

Create an Excel workbook with data

If you're using the sample templates above, follow the instructions in Create the associated Excel workbook, and then proceed to Complete the diagram in Visio.

1. In an Excel worksheet, insert a table. To learn how to insert a table, go to Use a screen reader to insert a table in an Excel worksheet.

2. In the new table, add the column headers and values as specified in the instructions above. To learn how to create column headers, go to Use a screen reader to create column headers in a table in Excel.

3. Once you're done inserting your data, save the worksheet. To learn how to save your worksheet, go to Save your work.

Complete the diagram in Visio

Complete the diagram creation process in Visio using the Create Diagram from Data wizard.

1. Open Visio.

2. To select and open a basic diagram, press Alt+L. A blank basic diagram opens in the main content area.

3. Press Alt+A, C, 1. The Create Diagram from Data wizard opens.

4. Press the Tab key until you hear "What diagram do you want to create from data," followed by the first diagram type in the list. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the diagram option you want, and then press Enter.

5. To select the Excel workbook you just created, press the Tab key until you hear "Browse, button," and then press Enter. The Create Diagram from Data dialog opens. Navigate to the correct Excel file, and then press Alt+O.

6. You hear "Select a table or a custom range in the workbook," followed by the first table in the list. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the table you want to use, for example, "Process Map Data," and then press Enter.

7. To finalize the diagram, press Alt+F. Visio uses default values to fill in the other pages of the wizard and creates the diagram.

8. To save your diagram, press Alt+F, A. You hear: "File, Save As." Press the Tab key. You hear: "Saving features," followed by the first saving location in the list. Press the arrow keys and the Tab key until you hear the location you want, name the file, and then press Alt+S.

   Tip: It's a good idea to keep the Visio and Excel files in the same location because they work hand-in-hand.

See also

Use a screen reader to read Visio diagrams

Keyboard shortcuts for Visio

Learn how to navigate Visio using accessible features

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.