AI Concept Map Generator

Concept map generator — turn any topic into a concept map in seconds

Free AI concept map generator and maker. Turn any PDF, notes, or topic into a clear concept map in seconds — no drawing, no sign-up, no credit card.

Scholarly's free AI concept map generator turns any topic, your notes, or a PDF into a structured concept map in seconds. As a concept map maker, it pulls out the central idea, the supporting concepts, and the labeled links between them — no drawing, dragging, or templates required — so you can see how a subject fits together before you study it.

Try the Mind Map Generator

Free to start · No credit card required

Used by 170,000+ students worldwide
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Create Your Concept Map

Provide your topic or learning material to generate a comprehensive concept map showing key relationships.

Your topic is securely processed by Scholarly's AI.

How it works

Turn any PDF or notes into a concept map

Three steps, no drawing: paste your notes or the text of a PDF, let the AI map the concepts, and copy your finished map — free.

01

Step 1: Paste Notes or a Topic

Paste your lecture notes or the text of a PDF, or just type the topic you want to see as a concept map.

02

Step 2: AI Maps

Our AI identifies key concepts, relationships, and hierarchies to create a structured visual map of your topic.

03

Step 3: Visualize & Learn

Get a clear visual representation showing how concepts connect, making complex topics easier to understand and remember.

Examples

See What Your Concept Map Includes

Scholarly maps the main idea, supporting concepts, and the relationships between them so you can see how a topic fits together before turning it into notes, flashcards, or a practice test.

Example concept map

Photosynthesis

Central concept

Photosynthesis converts light energy into chemical energy.

Light reactions

produce

ATP and NADPH

Calvin cycle

uses

Carbon dioxide to build sugars

Chloroplasts

contain

Chlorophyll and thylakoids

Example concept map

World War I

Central concept

World War I reshaped political alliances and national boundaries.

Alliance systems

increased

Conflict escalation

Trench warfare

created

High casualties and stalemate

Treaty of Versailles

led to

Reparations and resentment

Example concept map

Machine learning

Central concept

Machine learning trains models to find patterns in data.

Training data

teaches

Model parameters

Validation data

checks

Generalization

Overfitting

reduces

Performance on new examples

Why it matters

Why concept maps help you learn faster

Concept maps make the hidden structure of a subject visible. Instead of a flat list of facts, you see how ideas connect, build on each other, and form a bigger picture — the kind of understanding that sticks.

Mapping a topic forces you to think in relationships, not isolated terms. That active organization is far more effective for long-term retention than re-reading notes or highlighting a textbook.

Once you can see how a topic fits together, everything downstream gets easier: notes write themselves, flashcards target the real connections, and practice tests feel less like guessing and more like recall.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What can I turn into a concept map?

Anything — a single topic name, a lecture outline, a reading assignment, or your own study notes. Paste your material or just type a subject and Scholarly maps the key concepts and how they relate.

Is the concept map generator free to use?

Yes, you can start for free with no credit card. Sign up to save your concept maps, generate more of them, and unlock advanced study tools across the workspace.

Can I choose how the map is structured?

Yes. Pick a complexity level and a layout style — hierarchical, radial/mind map, process flowchart, or network diagram — so the map matches how you think about the subject.

What can I do with my concept map after?

Copy it into your notes, or take the same source further inside Scholarly — turn it into flashcards, a study guide, or a practice test so the connections you mapped become the things you actually remember.

Can I make an AI concept map from my notes?

Yes. Paste your lecture notes, a reading, or any text and the AI concept map generator reads it, finds the key concepts, and draws the labeled relationships between them — so you get a concept map built from your own material, not a generic template.

Is this concept map creator free?

Yes — it's a free concept map creator with no credit card to start. Generate a concept map on the page, then create a free account to save your maps, make more of them, and turn the same source into notes, flashcards, or a practice test.

Can AI make a concept map from a PDF?

Yes. Paste the text from your PDF — a lecture handout, a textbook chapter, or a paper — into the content field and the AI builds the concept map from your own material. Inside the full Scholarly workspace you can also upload the PDF itself and turn the same file into concept maps, notes, flashcards, and practice tests.

What's the difference between a concept map and a mind map?

A mind map branches loosely associated ideas out from one central topic, while a concept map labels the relationship on every link — causes, produces, requires — so it shows how a subject actually works, not just which ideas belong together. If you want a free-form idea map instead, try the free AI Mind Map Generator.

Keep exploring

More Scholarly study tools

PDF to Flashcards

Drill the same source with flashcards.

Text to Flashcards

Turn the map's source text into active-recall cards.

Study Notes Generator

Generate organized notes before mapping a topic.

Flashcard Maker

Create flashcards from mapped concepts.

Mind Map Generator

Create a branching idea map for the same topic.

AI Study Guide Generator

Build a full study guide from the same material.

Pricing

Visualize Learning with Scholarly

Sign up for free to save concept maps, create interactive diagrams, and access advanced visual learning tools.

Try the Mind Map Generator

Free

See what it does with one of your own sources.

$0

/month

Free forever

No card required.

  • 3 lifetime AI Chat messages

  • 1 free AI creation total

  • 2-minute podcasts and video lectures

  • 1 free file upload total (8MB)

  • 5 lifetime quiz questions

  • 1 completed practice exam total

  • 15 lifetime voice minutes

  • 32-page PDF to flashcards

  • 500 lifetime autocomplete words

Use it to generate flashcards, improve a deck, or create a podcast, video lecture, slides, infographic, mind map, study guide, worksheet, spreadsheet, story book, timeline, SOP, flowchart, lesson plan, or outline — or run Deep Research or turn a recording into AI Meeting Notes.

Premium

Most Popular

Steady weekly output from the material you already have.

$12

/month

Billed yearly at $144 · save $216

  • Everything in Free, plus:

  • 10 AI creations per week

  • Unlimited AI chat & autocomplete

  • Podcasts up to 60 minutes, videos up to 45 minutes

  • Unlimited file uploads (up to 300MB)

  • Unlimited study sessions

  • Unlimited exams & quizzes

  • 1000-page PDF to flashcards

  • Export to Anki

  • Priority support

Laureate

For work where being right matters more than the price.

$99

/month

billed monthly · cancel anytime

For frontier models & 8x more AI Creations

Our most advanced and most expensive tier.

  • Everything in Premium, plus:

  • 80 weighted AI creation credits every week

  • 80 AI creations per week

  • Podcasts up to 60 minutes, videos up to 45 minutes

  • Unlimited uploads up to 1 GB, plus 3,000-page PDFs

  • 12 hours of voice mode per day

  • Priority support and early access to new Frontier models

Pricing shown in USD. Local currency may be available for Premium in app.

Compare plans

AI chat

Premium and Laureate include unlimited AI chat. GPT 5.6 Sol and Claude Opus 5 are reserved for credit-metered AI creations.

Free
3 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited

AI creations

AI creations share one credit balance across every creation tool. Standard models use 1 credit; Frontier models Sol and Opus use 3.

Free
1 total
Premium
10/week
Laureate
80/week

Podcast length

Free episodes are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target length up to 60 minutes.

Free
2 minutes
Premium
Up to 60 minutes
Laureate
Up to 60 minutes

Video lecture length

Free lectures with a length control are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target up to 45 minutes. Short uses its own short video format.

Free
2 minutes
Premium
Up to 45 minutes
Laureate
Up to 45 minutes

File uploads

Free
1 total (8MB)
Premium
Unlimited (300MB)
Laureate
Unlimited (1 GB each)

PDF to flashcards

Free
32 pages
Premium
1000 pages
Laureate
3000 pages

Practice questions

Free
5 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited

Practice exams

Free
1 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited

Voice mode

Free
15 min total
Premium
2 hr/day
Laureate
12 hr/day

Autocomplete

Free
500 words total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited

Export to Anki

Free
—
Premium
Included
Laureate
Included

Support

Free
Standard
Premium
Priority
Laureate
Priority

What customers say

Scholarly has enhanced the quality of notes and questions I administer to my tutees. Insightful, to the point.

TD Georgas

TD Georgas

Tutor

I have very good experience with Scholarly it summarize me scientific text in hovel academic level with citation. I use this for any therapeutic area . It is great and useful tool.

Diana

Diana

Scholarly user

Scholarly has been a valuable tool for my studies. The AI-generated flashcards and intuitive features make organizing and retaining information much easier.

Briana

Briana

Scholarly user

This app is great for studying for big test. Drop your PDF's in the system and it'll do the trick. You can organize it specifically for your needs.

Kelvin

Kelvin

Scholarly user

Your questions, answered

Is Scholarly free to use?

Yes! The free plan includes core study tools with lifetime allowances: 3 AI Chat messages, 500 autocomplete words, 5 quiz questions, 15 voice minutes, 1 practice exam, one free AI creation total, and 1 file upload. These allowances do not reset. Upgrade to Premium for 10 AI creations per week and unlimited uploads.

What uses my free AI creations?

Generating flashcards, improving a flashcard deck, making a podcast, creating a video lecture or infographic, building slides, a spreadsheet, or a story book, making a mind map, study guide, or worksheet, having an AI Agent create a timeline, SOP, flowchart, lesson plan, or outline, running Deep Research, or processing a recording uses your free AI creation. It is a lifetime free credit and does not reset. AI Chat, autocomplete, quiz practice, voice, exams, and file uploads have separate lifetime allowances.

Can I cancel anytime?

Absolutely. There are no contracts or commitments. You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account settings, and you'll keep access until the end of your billing period.

What payment methods do you accept?

We accept all major credit and debit cards through Stripe. Pricing is displayed in USD by default, but local currency is available in the app.

Can I use Scholarly with a class or school?

Yes. For a school or organization-wide rollout, contact us at hello@scholarly.so and we'll help you find the right setup.

What happens when I hit a free plan limit?

You'll see a prompt to upgrade. Your existing work is never lost — limits only apply to new actions. Free-plan allowances are lifetime credits and do not reset. Premium includes 10 AI creations per week, podcasts up to 60 minutes, video lectures up to 45 minutes, unlimited uploads, chat, autocomplete, quizzes, and exams, plus more daily voice time.