# What is a relationship map?

> A relationship map is a diagram of how people or organisations are connected. What goes on one, when to use it, and examples from business, history and TV.

Source: https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/relationship-map
Updated: 2026-09-24

A relationship map is a diagram of how a set of people or organisations are connected: who is family, who does business with whom, who is in conflict. Each person is a card or a dot, each tie is a labelled line, and the map makes structure visible that a list or a spreadsheet hides.

## What goes on a relationship map

- **People or organisations**, each with a name and a short role ("CEO, 1998 to 2002").
- **Ties**, each with a label that reads as a sentence ("co-founded PayPal with") and a kind: family, business, social, conflict or other.
- **Dates**, when the story changes over time, so the map can be replayed.
- **Sources**, when the map makes claims about real people, with a confidence level: confirmed, reported or rumored.

## When a relationship map helps

Use one whenever the connections matter more than the individuals: a [stakeholder map](https://netgraf.isik.co/uses/stakeholder-map) before a negotiation, an [ownership map](https://netgraf.isik.co/uses/company-ownership-map) of the companies behind a brand, an [investigation link chart](https://netgraf.isik.co/uses/investigation-link-chart), a family business across generations, or a [character map](https://netgraf.isik.co/uses/character-map) of a long TV series.

It differs from an org chart, which shows only formal reporting lines, and from a family tree, which shows only descent. A relationship map holds both alongside the ties those diagrams leave out: the rivalry, the old friendship, the silent investor.

## How to draw a good one

1. Start with the three to five people the story turns on, then add outward.
2. Label every line with a verb phrase, not a single word. "Funded" is vague; "led the Series A for" is not.
3. Colour by the kind of tie, not by the person, so the pattern of ties is what the eye reads.
4. Cite sources for anything about real people and mark what is only reported.
5. Cut anyone who adds no tie the reader needs. A map of forty people who matter beats one of two hundred who don't.

## Questions

### What is the difference between a relationship map and a mind map?

A mind map branches out from one central idea in a tree. A relationship map is a network: any person can connect to any other, ties can form loops, and the structure itself (who is central, who bridges groups) is what you read.

### How do I make a relationship map online for free?

Open Netgraf, start a map, double-click to add each person and drag between people to connect them. Name each tie and choose its kind. Share the read-only link when you're done; no account is needed.

## Example maps

- https://netgraf.isik.co/m/paypal-mafia
- https://netgraf.isik.co/m/house-of-windsor
- https://netgraf.isik.co/m/breaking-bad