Process flows are diagrams used to indicate the path a user must follow in order to complete a task in a website or application. A flow diagram is often an essential artifact for UX specialists (especially in the beginning of a project) because it helps solidify how users interact with a system and clarify where the system's complexities lie. Once a process flow is finalized, sitemaps and wireframes often follow.

Most process flows presented here make use of a special symbology created specifically for information architecture and interaction design. Since many of the typical computer science-related flowchart symbols don't quite work for user experience specialists, a new set of symbols was created to better suit our needs. However, the basic tenets of flow chart creation still apply, and you don't need to be intimately familiar with UX-flavored flow charting to follow a process flow for user centered designs.