Schema Builder
Schema Builder is a Setup tool in Salesforce that shows the data model of an org as an interactive diagram.
Definition
Schema Builder is a Setup tool in Salesforce that shows the data model of an org as an interactive diagram. Objects appear as cards on a canvas, and the lookup and master-detail relationships between them appear as connecting lines. From the same canvas you can create custom objects, add custom fields, and define relationships by dragging elements, without clicking through separate Setup pages.
It works as both a viewer and an editor. As a viewer it gives admins, developers, and architects a single picture of how standard and custom objects connect. As an editor it commits changes to the live org immediately, so it doubles as a fast way to build out a schema while you plan it.
How Schema Builder draws and edits your data model
Opening it and choosing what to see
You reach the tool from Setup by typing Schema Builder in the Quick Find box and selecting it. The first load can show every object in the org, which is overwhelming on a mature schema. The left panel solves this with a checklist of objects. Use Clear All to deselect everything, then tick only the objects you care about, such as Account, Contact, and a few custom objects in the same area. The canvas redraws to show just those cards and the lines between them. This scoping is the difference between a readable diagram and a wall of boxes. The panel separates standard and custom objects so you can filter by type. Once you have the right objects on screen, the Auto-Layout button rearranges them into a tidier grid so related cards sit near each other. Auto-Layout is convenient, but it is not reversible, so any manual positioning you did by hand is lost when you run it. Moving a card by hand does not change the data model. It only changes where the box sits, and Salesforce saves that position so the diagram looks the same next time you open it.
Reading the canvas: cards, lines, and colors
Each object is a card that lists its fields, with required fields and data types shown inline. That makes the card a quick reference for what an object holds, not just how it connects. The connecting lines are where Schema Builder earns its place. A line between two cards means a relationship field links them, and the color tells you which kind. Lookup relationships draw as blue lines, and master-detail relationships draw as red lines. Seeing red versus blue at a glance tells you where cascade-delete and roll-up behavior lives, which is hard to spot when you browse one object at a time. Several view toggles keep the picture clean. Display Element Labels or Names switches the card text between field labels and API names, which is handy when you are writing code against the schema. Show or Hide Relationships turns the connector lines on and off so you can study cards in isolation. Show or Hide Legend toggles the key that explains the canvas symbols. Together these controls let you tune the diagram for a code review, a stakeholder walkthrough, or your own auditing.
Creating objects and fields right on the canvas
The Elements tab on the left turns the canvas from a viewer into a builder. Drag the Object element onto an empty part of the canvas and a panel asks for the object details, including Label, Plural Label, and the Record Name with its data type, which is usually Text or Auto Number. Click Save and the new object appears as a card straight away. Creating a field works the same way. From the Elements tab you drag a field type onto an existing object, then fill in the field wizard just as you would in Object Manager. The available types include standard data types, formula fields, and relationship fields like Lookup and Master-Detail. When you drop a relationship field, the new connector line is drawn automatically between the two cards, so you watch the schema take shape as you build it. This drag-to-build flow is genuinely faster than clicking through Setup for the first rough cut of a new feature. The catch is that the changes are real and immediate. There is no draft mode, so anything you create on the canvas exists in the org the moment you save.
Permissions and what it does not cover
Creating or deleting objects and fields through Schema Builder needs the Customize Application permission, the same permission that gates schema work anywhere in Setup. Viewing the diagram is lighter, but editing is an admin-level action, so most read-only users will only ever see the canvas if granted access. Schema Builder is deliberately focused on the data model, which means several adjacent tasks live elsewhere. It does not edit page layouts, so adding a field here still leaves you to place that field on the relevant layouts. It is not where you manage field-level security in detail, so visibility per profile is still a separate step. It also does not replace Object Manager for the long tail of object settings, such as record types, validation rules, triggers, and search layouts. Treat the boundary as a feature. The tool stays fast and visual precisely because it sticks to objects, fields, and relationships rather than trying to expose every setting an object can have.
Where it fits: planning tool first, editor second
The honest trade-off is that Schema Builder is excellent for seeing and explaining a schema and merely adequate for editing one past the simplest cases. For a single new object with a couple of fields, building on the canvas is quick. For detailed work across many fields and settings, Object Manager is the calmer surface. So the strongest use is communication and analysis. Pull the objects involved in a change onto the canvas, run Auto-Layout, and you have a diagram for a design review or an onboarding session in minutes. Before a major refactor, capture the current layout as a screenshot or printout. That before-state becomes documentation you can compare against once the change lands. Architects use it to validate that relationships match the intended design, since a stray lookup where a master-detail was expected jumps out visually. New team members use it to learn an unfamiliar org far faster than reading object definitions one by one. Used this way, Schema Builder is a whiteboard wired directly into your org.
A worked example: mapping a property-sales schema
Say you inherit an org for a real-estate business and need to understand how Property, Offer, and Favorite custom objects relate to the standard Contact. You open Schema Builder, click Clear All, then tick just those four objects. The canvas redraws to four cards. You run Auto-Layout and the cards settle into a readable arrangement. Now the lines tell the story. A red line from Offer to Property means Offer is a detail of Property in a master-detail relationship, so deleting a property removes its offers and offers cannot exist on their own. A blue line from Favorite to Contact means a lookup, so a favorite points at a contact but survives if that contact is deleted. You toggle Display Element Names to read the API names while you sketch a SOQL query, then toggle back to labels for a screenshot you will paste into a design doc. If the model needs a new Inspection object, you drag Object from the Elements tab, enter the label and record name, save, then drag a Master-Detail field onto it pointing at Property. The connector appears, and the schema is updated in the live org. In a few minutes you have both understood the existing model and extended it.
Create a custom object with Schema Builder
Use Schema Builder to create a custom object directly on the canvas. You need the Customize Application permission, and the object exists in your org as soon as you save, so do this in a sandbox if you are still designing.
- Open Schema Builder
From Setup, type Schema Builder in the Quick Find box and select it. Use Clear All in the left panel, then tick a few existing objects so you have context for where the new object fits.
- Drag the Object element onto the canvas
Switch to the Elements tab in the left panel. Drag the Object element onto an empty area of the canvas to open the new-object panel.
- Fill in the object details
Enter the Label and Plural Label, then set the Record Name and its data type, choosing Text for a typed name or Auto Number for a generated sequence. Add a description if your team expects one.
- Save and add fields
Click Save and the object appears as a card. Drag field types from the Elements tab onto the card to add custom fields and relationships, completing the field wizard for each.
The singular display name for the object, for example Property. Drives the tab and UI labels.
The plural display name, for example Properties. Used wherever Salesforce shows lists of records.
The label for the field that identifies each record, often named Property Name or similar.
The type of the Record Name field, either Text for a manually entered name or Auto Number for a system-generated value.
- There is no draft mode. The object and any fields you add are created in the live org the instant you save, so build in a sandbox while designing.
- Schema Builder does not place the new field on any page layout, so users will not see it until you add it to the relevant layouts in Object Manager.
- Auto-Layout cannot be undone. If you have hand-positioned cards for a screenshot, capture the image before clicking Auto-Layout.
- You need the Customize Application permission to create objects and fields here, the same as anywhere else in Setup.
Prefer this walkthrough as its own page? How to Schema Builder in Salesforce, step by step
Trust & references
Cross-checked against the following references.
- Design Your Own Data Model With Schema BuilderSalesforce
- Create Objects with Schema BuilderSalesforce
Straight from the source - Salesforce's reference material on Schema Builder.
- Design Your Own Data Model With Schema BuilderSalesforce
- Create Fields with Schema BuilderSalesforce
Hands-on resources to go deeper on Schema Builder.
About the Author
Dipojjal Chakrabarti is a B2C Solution Architect with 29 Salesforce certifications and over 13 years in the Salesforce ecosystem. He runs salesforcedictionary.com to help admins, developers, architects, and cert/interview candidates sharpen their fundamentals. More about Dipojjal.
Test your knowledge
Q1. What does Schema Builder provide for working with a Salesforce data model?
Q2. When is Schema Builder the better choice than Object Manager for data-model work?
Q3. Which action can an admin perform directly inside Schema Builder?
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