How to Draw a Cat
This cat sits facing forward. The drawing begins with a wide oval for the head, drawn lightly so it can be erased and fixed, and the face fills in right after: two pointy ears, round eyes with little pupils, a triangle nose and a smile.
Whiskers, body and tail
Whiskers and the inside of the ears get a step of their own, so the face is finished before there is any body at all. Then a pear-shaped body with two front paws goes below the head. The curly tail is the very last line.
Page 1 and page 2
Seven numbered steps fill a 3 by 3 grid, with the finished cat in box eight and an empty dashed frame in box nine. In each box the earlier lines are black and the new ones orange. Page 2 keeps the finished cat and the written steps at the top and leaves the rest as one large drawing box.
The age tag says 6 to 8. Every part is a circle, a triangle or a simple curve, though, so preschoolers can manage it when an adult draws each step beside them. There is also a drawing animation of about 15 seconds and a dashed gray cat outline to trace. Fit to page squeezes the nine boxes and their margin, so set the printer to 100 percent for the A4 or US Letter PDF.
Draw a cat in 7 steps
Draw a wide oval for the head.
Add two pointy ears on top.
Draw two round eyes with little pupils.
Add a small triangle nose and a smile.
Add whiskers and the inside of the ears.
Draw a pear-shaped body and two front paws.
Finish with a curly tail.
Tips to make your cat drawing easy
- Draw each step on your own paper at the same time instead of on your child's sheet.
- Before every step, point to the orange lines and ask what is new in that box.
- Encourage a light first oval for the head so it can be erased and fixed.
- Accept a lopsided ear or a wobbly tail; the cat does not have to match the example.
- Watch the animation together once before anyone picks up a pencil.
- Go over the finished pencil lines with a black marker, then color the cat.
Cat outline to print and trace
Print the finished outline on its own: trace over it with a pencil to learn the shapes, or use the dashed tracing sheet for younger kids who are still building pencil control. Both fit A4 and US Letter.
Color your cat
Finished drawing? Print one of our 2 cat coloring pages to color the same character in 2 difficulty levels, or color your own drawing with the step sheet beside you.
More cat activities
Frequently asked questions
Which comes first, the head or the body?
The head. The first step is a wide oval, drawn lightly so it can be erased and fixed, and the whole face, whiskers included, is finished before the pear-shaped body goes on. The curly tail is the seventh and last step.
What is the practice page for?
Page 2 keeps the finished cat and the seven written instructions at the top and leaves the rest of the sheet as one large drawing box, so a child can make a bigger cat without the grid in the way.
Does my child's cat have to match the example?
No. A lopsided ear or a wobbly tail is fine. The orange lines show what to add in each box, and the rest is up to your child.
Can my child trace the cat before drawing it?
Yes. The outline to trace on this page shows the whole cat in dashed gray lines. Going over it once can help a child feel the shapes before trying the steps freehand.
About this printable
- Made with AI assistance (vector drawing authored by a language model) and checked by automated tests and an AI reviewer.
- Checked by automated tests and an AI reviewer on 22 Oct 2026.
- Free for personal and single-classroom use. See the license. Read the license · How these are made · Report a problem.
- Vector PDF, 2 pages, 186×254 mm art box — prints edge-safe on A4 and US Letter.
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