Venn Diagram Template
Visually understand the relationships, similarities, and differences between groups using our fully customizable Venn Diagram Template.
About the Venn Diagram template
There’s a reason Venn diagrams have been a staple of business meetings and presentations since the 1800s. Venn diagrams provide a clear, effective way to visually showcase relationships between datasets. They serve as a helpful visual aid in brainstorming sessions, meetings, and presentations. Miro’s Venn Diagram template will assist you in doing just that.
What is a Venn diagram?
A Venn diagram is the graphical representation of similarities and differences between groups or concepts using overlapping circles. Areas where these circles overlap represents individuals or aspects that belong equally to the overlapped groups. Where the circles do not overlap, differences are highlighted.
Venn diagrams are also known as Logic or Set diagrams and are widely used for assessing probability in statistics, mathematics, and engineering. Venn diagrams are often confused with Euler diagrams as both are based on set theory. So, what is the difference between a Venn Diagram and Euler Diagram? The main difference is that the Venn diagram shows all possible relationships between sets, while the Euler diagram shows only relevant relationships.
Even though this may sound very technical, the Venn diagram is one of the simplest and easiest ways to present concepts. As a result, it has also been adopted as a powerful visual tool across education, business, and other fields. Venn Diagrams are infinitely customizable and are often used to organize information in a way that is digestible and visually appealing. Venn Diagrams can help teams break down complex ideas while brainstorming or problem-solving.
Origins of the Venn diagram
The Venn Diagram gets its name from the British logician John Venn, who formally introduced it in scientific papers in the late 1800s. It was first published in an article called "On the mechanical and diagrammatic representation of propositions and reasoning", published in the prestigious Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science.
Even before it was formally named, the concept behind the Venn diagram dated back to the 1200s when medieval philosophers and scientists used it. There are records of Spanish logician and philosopher Ramón Llull who had similar theories. The Euler diagram created by the Swiss mathematician Leonard Euler in the 1700s predated the Venn diagram and likely influenced it as John Venn referred to his diagrams as Eulerian circles. Today, Venn diagrams are differentiated however they are referred to as a more restrictive form of Euler diagrams.
There are others who have contributed to the evolution of the Venn diagram including Carla D. Savage, David W. Henderson, Jerrold Griggs, and Peter Hamburger. They all added something new which has resulted in the Venn Diagram as we know it today. During his lifetime, John Venn himself never referred to the diagrams by his own name. This long history and continued use of the Venn Diagram, in all its forms, shows how useful and necessary these diagrams are and that you too can take advantage of them.
Components of a Venn diagram
Researchers based Venn diagrams on mathematical set theory, and they put in place a language and systems to make it understandable and consistent. To properly understand Venn diagrams, it’s important to know more about sets and the components of a Venn diagram.
Sets: Also called elements, sets may include mathematical numbers, ideas, or even objects.
Union of sets: We use the symbol ∪ to represent the union of two or more datasets. If you have a Venn diagram with two overlapping circles, ∪ represents everything that falls into one category, the other category, or both categories.
The intersection of sets: The symbol ∩ represents the area where the datasets intersect or the commonalities between sets.
Symmetric difference of sets: This includes everything except what is in the intersection between sets.
Complement of sets: This represents everything not belonging to a particular set. The symbol Ac represents this. This is also referred to as the absolute complement.
Relative complement: This refers to everything in one set but not another.
What can a Venn diagram be used for?
Venn diagrams are helpful for any number of subjects and there are multiple uses for Venn diagrams that range in complexity. They are most commonly used for mathematics and logic but are also well suited for linguistics, computer science, and business. Let's take a look at this in more detail.
Presentations: Along with pie charts and bar charts, the Venn Diagram is one of the most used visual elements in presentations. These diagrams allow you to visualize large amounts of data and complex concepts at a glance and see how they interrelate or differ.
Education: Teachers use Venn diagrams as a visual tool. This helps students to better retain information better and the teacher helps explain much better. In addition, the teacher can also send it as homework so that students can understand the syllabus optimally without the need to memorize.
Business: Venn diagrams are useful when comparing services, products, or processes. In the business world, it is crucial to be able to easily explain concepts to stakeholders and decision-makers. In this way, creating graphs or using a Venn diagram can be a powerful tool to synthesize complex information and have it be understood more easily.
Statistics: Perhaps the most well-known use of Venn diagrams is for determining probability. There are many fields that make use of Venn diagrams in this way, which include mathematics, engineering, and other scientific fields.
Computer science: Venn diagrams can be used for the purpose of problem-solving in computer science. Programmers often have to code complex algorithms and computations. Understanding the problem visually can help better understand what needs to be taken into account.
Linguistics: This is another field where Venn Diagrams are widely used to study the similarities and differences between various language and language groups. If several languages, for example, come from Latin, they may have a large number of the same terms despite the fact that the language is different.
Decision-making: By comparing two or more options and seeing how different they are and what points they would have in common, the decision-making process can be facilitated by using Venn Diagrams. This does not have to be limited to professional or educational uses. Sometimes using a Venn diagram can help you solve your personal problems too!
Advantages of using Venn diagrams
There are a number of advantages to creating Venn diagrams depending on your needs at either a more technical level or for more simplistic purposes.
Uses in probability - Venn diagrams are widely used in statistics to study probabilities and predict events. Bringing this to any business or field of study can help you make better decisions.
Clear presentation of information - The simple structure and design of Venn Diagrams make it easy to see similarities and differences at a glance so that users can better understand the information at a glance.
Ideal in strategy - Venn diagrams can help you better understand the differences and similarities between your company, product, or service and that of the competition. You can also use this visual aid when explaining to interested stakeholders.
Improves communication - As a highly visual aid, Venn diagrams improve communication by allowing you to easily explain difficult concepts to your team, members within an organization, or students in the classroom.
How to create a Venn diagram
Creating a Venn diagram in Miro is easy! Simply select our Venn Diagram Template so that you can quickly create a Venn diagram online. Using Miro’s virtual collaboration platform, you can edit and discuss your Venn diagram in real-time with your team.
Follow our easy steps for filling out the Venn Diagram Template. Our default template has a 3-circle Venn Diagram but you can delete or copy circles to have a 2-circle, 4-circle, or even a 5-circle Venn Diagram, whatever suits your needs!
Step 1: Determine the groups to represent
Once you have identified the number of groups you want to represent, make sure you have the right number of circles. If you want a 2-circle Venn Diagram, delete a circle. If you want a 4-circle or 5-circle Venn Diagram, simply copy the circles and overlap them as you need. Remember to label the groups.
Step 2: Note the similarities
Where the circles overlap with each other is where the circles share attributes. Make note of the similarities between each of the groups you have identified here. The last set of similarities is where all the circles overlap (labeled as ABC). The similarities that you identify between all groups should be listed here.
Step 3: Identify the differences
In the space where your circles do not overlap, you can make note of the differences between the groups that you are representing in the Venn Diagram.
Step 4: Customize the Venn Diagram template colors and fonts
Miro’s Venn Diagram template can be customized however you need. Not only can you change the number and size of circles you use, but you can also change the color and font.
Step 5: Add images or icons (optional)
If you feel that your team or audience would benefit from seeing images or icons, you can add these too. Simply copy and paste these onto the Venn Diagram template, and resize them as needed.
Step 6: Share your Venn Diagram
You can share your Venn Diagram directly with your team or students on a Miro board. There is also the option of saving your customized Venn Diagram template as either a JPEG image or a pdf. Simply click on the Export this Board icon on the top of the screen, and select Save as Image where you will then be given the option to highlight just your Venn Diagram.
Commonly used Venn diagrams
2-circle Venn diagram
Although the 2-way Venn diagram is incredibly simple, it can clearly and visually show the differences and similarities between two distinct sets. In a 2-circle Venn diagram, there are two overlapping circles (A and B) that have an intersection (AB).
3-circle Venn diagram
The 3-circle Venn diagram, also known as the 3-way Venn diagram, is perhaps the most commonly used and shows how the elements of three sets are related using three circles (A, B, and C). There are three intersections between all combinations of the circles where they overlap (AB, BC, and CA). Where these three circles all intersect (ABC), we see a curved triangle known as a Reuleaux triangle.
4-circle Venn diagram
Another commonly used Venn diagram that you may see in presentations and in illustrations is the 4-way Venn diagram. These are more complex as they combine four circles or sets of data (A, B, C, and D). All four circles will intersect (ABCD) but there will be other areas of intersection that will allow you to see the similarities and differences between the different combinations of two or three of these sets or circles.
Why use the Venn Diagram template in Miro?
Miro allows you to create Venn diagrams online with your team and discuss them in real-time or while working asynchronously. It only takes seconds to add the Venn Diagram template to a Miro board where you can easily customize it by adding text, images, and comments. As a visual tool, Miro is highly intuitive so adjusting the sizing of circles and making color changes is easy. Adding or deleting circles is just as simple.
Another advantage of creating a Venn diagram on a Miro board is that it is an infinite canvas so you can add other notes and ideas for your work. Miro has a series of integrations with other platforms such as G Suite, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Slack so you can easily share your Venn Diagram.
Venn diagram examples
We can look at a simple example of a Venn diagram using two sets (represented by circles) that might be relevant to an organization.
We have one circle representing the marketing team (Circle A) while the other represents the product team (Circle B). We want to visually show the departments that each of these teams collaborates with and these would be listed in each circle.
Circle A is the Marketing team: works with IT, web, developers, design, analytics and data, and legal teams.
Circle B is the Product team: Work with the design, sales, renovations, customer service, IT, and research and development teams.
The intersection of Circle A and Circle B: design and IT teams
We can see that these two teams actually work quite independently and only work with two teams in common: the design and IT teams. This was a very simple example but it shows how easily information can be displayed using a Venn diagram.
How do you present information on a Venn diagram?
The circles in a Venn Diagram represent different groups or concepts. Where the circles overlap, this is where there is commonality and you should note the similarities here. Where the circles do not overlap, you should make note of the differences. Circles in a Venn Diagram Template can even be moved to not overlap at all if this represents what you want to visually show. The benefit of using a Venn Diagram Template to graphically represent your information is that it is highly customizable.
Can you have a 4-circle Venn Diagram?
Venn Diagrams can theoretically have any number of circles however the most commonly used are either 2-circle or 3-circle Venn Diagrams. If you only have two groups or concepts to represent, simply show a 2-way Venn Diagram. If you want to represent multiple groups with shared attributes, ensure your Venn Diagram has the correct number of circles, whether that’s 3, 4, or more. It is even possible to have a single circle in a Venn Diagram. The inside of the circle represents everything within a set while everything outside the circle contains elements that are not part of the set.
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