Cardinal Coloring Pages
Make free printable cardinal coloring pages from 14 pictures we drew ourselves: cardinal on a snowy branch, cardinal on a pine bough, two cardinals on a branch, cardinal at a bird feeder, cardinal on a fence post, cardinal with holly-like leaves, cardinal in flight, cardinal on a birdbath, cardinal on a mailbox, cardinal with berries, cardinal singing on a twig, cardinal close-up portrait, cardinal on a winter lantern, big simple cardinal. Every picture is a northern cardinal, the songbird, drawn with the marks a field guide points to: the pointed crest on its head, the mask round its bill, the short, thick, cone-shaped bill and the long tail. The pages show the bird only, not any sports team, school or church emblem or mascot, and nothing carries words, brand or product names or logos. Print one big picture on a page, a grid of four or six small ones, a scene with two cardinals on a snowy branch above the snow under clouds and a sun, a fold-in-half card, or a cardinal mandala with small cardinals round the edge and a new pattern at the press of a button. Plain cardinals to color prints 1, 2, 4 or 6 cardinal outlines with no mask or eye; one fills a 186 mm square on US Letter. Type a child’s name for a name page, or paste a class list to get the same picture for everyone with each name at the top. Choose simple, medium or detailed lines, never thinner than 0.5 mm. Download one multi-page PDF for US Letter or A4, a 300 DPI PNG of every page, or an SVG. No sign-up, no watermark.
100% private — everything runs in your browser. Names stay in your browser; the PDF, PNG and SVG are made on your device.
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Runs in your browser with our own code; names and words never leave your device, and nothing is saved. Every picture is our own drawing, black lines on white, with no film, book or cartoon characters, mascots, brands or logos. The cardinal pictures are our own drawings of the northern cardinal, the songbird, with its pointed crest, the mask round its bill, its short thick bill and long tail: on a snowy branch, a pine bough, a fence post, a mailbox, a birdbath and a lantern, at a feeder, with berries and holly-like leaves, singing, in flight, as a pair and close up. They show the bird only, not any sports team, school or church emblem or mascot. Nothing carries words, brand or product names or logos. The plain cardinals have no mask or eye, for coloring your own way. The designs are our own drawings: you may use them and anything you make with them, including things you sell, with no credit needed. The lettering fonts keep their own open licenses.
How to make and print cardinal coloring pages
- Choose what to make: one big picture, several small pictures, the cardinals in the snow scene, plain cardinals to color, the lettering poster, a name page, a class set, a card, a mandala, or a whole pack.
- Pick the picture, or tick the ones you want for a grid or pack.
- Choose the lines: simple for little ones, medium, or detailed for older children and adults.
- Add a title, change the poster words, type a name or paste your class list, and pick the lettering.
- Choose US Letter or A4 and download the PDF, or a PNG of every page.
- Print on plain paper at 100% (Actual size).
What you can use it for
- Winter and Christmas classroom activities: a page for every child
- Bird-watching and nature lessons on backyard birds
- Holiday cards with a cardinal on the front
- Class sets with each child’s name
- Toddlers: the cardinal close-up portrait and the big simple cardinal with simple lines
- Detailed cardinal mandalas, the pair and the lantern for older children and adults
The 14 cardinal pictures
| Picture | Shapes to color: simple | Medium | Detailed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinal on a snowy branch | 15 | 22 | 31 |
| Cardinal on a pine bough | 18 | 29 | 35 |
| Two cardinals on a branch | 23 | 31 | 42 |
| Cardinal at a bird feeder | 15 | 20 | 29 |
| Cardinal on a fence post | 15 | 20 | 32 |
| Cardinal with holly-like leaves | 21 | 30 | 40 |
| Cardinal in flight | 11 | 16 | 20 |
| Cardinal on a birdbath | 15 | 20 | 30 |
| Cardinal on a mailbox | 15 | 21 | 31 |
| Cardinal with berries | 20 | 24 | 38 |
| Cardinal singing on a twig | 14 | 18 | 25 |
| Cardinal close-up portrait | 7 | 10 | 15 |
| Cardinal on a winter lantern | 20 | 28 | 38 |
| Big simple cardinal | 11 | 15 | 21 |
Shapes are the closed outlines the tool draws for each picture at each level, counted by the tool. Simple keeps the bird (crest, mask, bill, wing, body, tail, feet) and what it perches on; Medium adds the wing and tail feather lines and the line between the two halves of the bill; Detailed adds the small breast feathers and the smallest marks.
Plain cardinals to color
| Cardinals per page | Each fits (US Letter) | Each fits (A4) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 186 mm square | 181 mm square |
| 2 | 120 mm square | 129 mm square |
| 4 | 89 mm square | 86 mm square |
| 6 | 77 mm square | 83 mm square |
Sizes are for the page with No title chosen; a title at the top makes them a little smaller. Each plain cardinal is a perched cardinal with no mask or eye (8 shapes: bill, head, crest, wing, body, two feet and tail), so the markings are up to you.
Simple to detailed lines
| Lines | Outlines | Small details | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | 1.8 mm | 1.4 mm | Toddlers, chunky crayons, big markers |
| Medium | 1.1 mm | 0.8 mm | Most children, colored pencils |
| Detailed | 0.75 mm | 0.5 mm | Older children and adults, fine pens and pencils |
Line widths are measured at print size. The thinnest line on any page is 0.5 mm, so every shape stays open to color.
What you can make
| Page | What prints |
|---|---|
| One big picture | One picture filling the page, with an optional title at the top and an optional frame |
| Several small pictures | Four or six pictures on one page, each in its own box |
| Cardinals in the snow | Two cardinals facing each other on a snowy branch above the snow, with pine sprigs, under clouds and a sun; Medium and Detailed add the smaller lines |
| Plain cardinals to color | 1, 2, 4 or 6 plain cardinals, to color or pattern your own way |
| Lettering poster | Two lines of big hollow letters to color (“Hello” and “Winter” or your own words) above three pictures |
| Name page | Words such as “Colored by” and a name in large hollow letters, with three pictures |
| Class set | The same picture for every child, each page with one child’s name at the top (up to 40 names) |
| Fold-in-half card | Picture and title on the front, a small picture on the back: 139.7 × 215.9 mm (5.5 × 8.5 in) from US Letter, 148.5 × 210 mm (A5) from A4 |
| Cardinal mandala | A symmetric pattern with small cardinals round the edge; every pattern number gives a new design |
| Whole pack | Your ticked pictures, one per page, plus the scene, the poster, three mandalas and a name page if you choose |
Titles you can choose: Winter Cardinal, Merry Christmas, Hello Winter, Happy Holidays, Season of Snow, or your own words. Lettering styles: Fredoka, Baloo 2, Sniglet, Cherry Bomb One.
Coloring ideas
- A male cardinal: bright red with a black mask round the bill; a female: warm brown with red on the crest, wings and tail.
- The bill orange-red, the snow pale blue in the shadows, pine needles in dark green.
- Berries in red or purple and the holly-like leaves in deep green for a winter card.
Printing tips
- Every page keeps a 12.7 mm (half inch) margin from the paper edge, on US Letter and A4.
- Plain paper is fine for crayons and pencils; use thicker paper or card for markers or paint.
- Print one page first and check it before printing a whole pack or class set.
- Choose Detailed lines only with fine pens or sharp pencils, and Simple lines with chunky crayons.
More things to make
- Turn a photo of a bird in your garden into line art to color: Photo to Coloring Page.
- Draw your own symmetric patterns: Mandala Maker.
- A paper mask to color as a bird mask: Mask Template.
- A word puzzle to go with the pages: Word Search Maker.
More free printables
More to make this winter?
Line art from your own photos, mandalas to draw, masks, bookmarks and word searches: free tools that run in your browser, with no sign-up and no watermark.
See all free tools →Frequently asked questions
Are these cardinal coloring pages free?
Yes. Every page is free to make, download and print, with no sign-up and no watermark. All the pictures are our own drawings.
Which cardinal pictures are there?
14: cardinal on a snowy branch, cardinal on a pine bough, two cardinals on a branch, cardinal at a bird feeder, cardinal on a fence post, cardinal with holly-like leaves, cardinal in flight, cardinal on a birdbath, cardinal on a mailbox, cardinal with berries, cardinal singing on a twig, cardinal close-up portrait, cardinal on a winter lantern, big simple cardinal. On top of those there is a snow scene, plain cardinals to color, a mandala, a lettering poster and name pages.
How do I color a cardinal so it looks real?
Field guides describe the male northern cardinal as bright red all over with a black mask round the bill, and the female as duller, warm brown with red tinges, a grayer mask and the same crest and large reddish bill. Color the mask black or gray and the bill orange-red; the pictures leave the colors to you.
Are these the cardinal of a sports team or school?
No. These pages show the bird only, drawn by us, not any team, school, college or church emblem or mascot, and nothing in the pictures carries a name or logo.
Can I print a cardinal with no markings to color my own way?
Yes. Choose Plain cardinals to color and pick 1, 2, 4 or 6 per page. Each is a perched cardinal outline with no mask or eye. With no title, one fills a 186 mm square on US Letter; six fill 77 mm squares.
Is there a cardinal at a bird feeder?
Yes. Cardinal at a bird feeder shows the bird perched on the tray of a plain hanging feeder with a few seeds. Field guides note that cardinals readily come to feeders.
Which cardinal pages suit toddlers and preschoolers?
Choose Simple lines: big shapes with thick outlines. The cardinal close-up portrait and the big simple cardinal have the fewest shapes, as the table shows.
Can I make a page for every child in my class?
Yes. Choose Class set, pick a picture and paste the names, one per line, up to 40. Each child gets the same picture with their own name in hollow letters at the top, all in one PDF.
Are there cardinal coloring pages for adults?
Yes. Choose Cardinal mandala with Detailed lines: each pattern number gives a different symmetric design. Choose 16 repeats for the most intricate pattern.
Can I sell what I make with these pages?
Yes. The pictures are our own drawings, and the note under the tool sets out how you may use them, including for things you sell.
How do I print the coloring pages?
Download the PDF and print it on plain paper. Choose 100% or Actual size to keep the margins and sizes as drawn; Fit to page also works if your printer cuts off the edges.
Is anything uploaded?
No. Everything runs in your browser. Names and words are not sent anywhere, and nothing is saved when you close the page.