How To Copy And Paste From Draw.io?

Should you use a PowerPoint drawing template or just draw it from scratch? It's up to you. Most of the people are drawing their shapes from scratch, but some choose to work faster using templates, so we decided to make this comprehensive article on how to copy and paste from Draw.io. And as bonus, it will be for the first time the top Draw.io users are publishing examples of how they use it in their everyday life. So, if you have been hesitating whether you should get into it or not - here is your answer: yes! Come on in ;)

Draw.io is a web-based diagramming tool that offers multiple ways to save, share and have fun with your graphics online. It also offers great visual support for your Google Drawings on the web. In this article I'm going to show you how you can easily copy and paste from Draw.io in other apps or text editors. Here I have a quick diagram of the components of my blog:

Draw.io files are diagrams or shapefiles produced by Diagrams.net. It’s an open-source program that works both online and offline. Meaning, you can access and edit Draw.io files using a web browser such as Google Chrome, Edge, Safari, or, you can download the software on your Windows, Mac, Linux, or Android OS.

Any file with a Draw.io extension is a KML file. That means any software or tool associated with such a file type can open Draw.io files.

Copy and Paste files from Draw.io

Now before you go further, please note that Draw.io uses KML files as default. So when you copy and paste something from Draw.io, it won’t appear the same on another platform. Rather, it may break into a gibberish format, without making any sense.

This applies to every shape on the Draw.io app. If you select a text, however, you can easily and paste it anywhere.

See this copy-paste result for example.

First of all, I created a simple shape in Draw.io. Then I copied the shape as it is and tried to paste it into an MS word document. Look what happened.

Totally gibberish, right? This is because the platforms don’t match. So MS Word doesn’t recognize the shape and breaks it down into characters.

You can solve this problem by adopting the following approaches.

Copy the entire selection as an image

The previous was just a simple shape. Imagine what would happen if you had to copy-paste an entire flowchart? Don’t worry though, there’s a solution for every problem.

1. Open your document with the shape/flowchart.
2. Drag to select the entire design or the segment you need. In this tutorial, I’m using a flowchart template.
   
3. After selection, right-click on the diagram. Select “Copy as image” to copy the selection as an image file.
   
4. Now go to the platform you want to paste this flowchart. I’ll be pasting it on two different platforms. MS Word and Google Docs.
   
   
5. Note that once you copy-paste any diagram as an image, you cannot continue to edit the diagram on that platform. To make any adjustments, you have to edit the root Draw.io file and copy it as an image again.

With Draw.io add-on

This method is more import-export based rather than copy-paste. Nonetheless, it does the job. All you have to do is install the Draw.io add-on for the platform you’re using. Once you integrate the add-on, you can add diagrams directly to your MS Word, PowerPoint, Google Doc, etc.

1. For MS Word, PowerPoint, or Excel, follow this link.
2. Install the add-on with your Microsoft ID.
   
3. After installation, you can access the add-on from Microsoft platforms. You can copy-paste and import Draw.io files through these platforms.
4. Follow a similar process for Google Marketplace integration. From Google Docs, navigate to “Add-ons”.
   
5. From the marketplace, find the Draw.io add-on and install it.
   

After installation, you should be able to import Draw.io files to Google Docs, edit and publish them.

Summary: Copy and paste from Draw.io

• Draw.io is a powerful tool for technical drawing, but it has some drawbacks.
• Copy and paste does not work well from Draw.io.
• There are two ways to copy and paste from Draw.io successfully.
• The first way to copy and paste is to use the built in copy and paste functions of the browser.
• The second way to copy and paste is to use a plugin that handles copying and pasting better than the browser.