How to Draw a Cow (Easy Step-by-Step for Kids)

To draw a cow, start with a big rounded body. Add a head with a wide muzzle, then horns, ears, eyes and nostrils. Finish with four legs, three spots, an udder and a tail with a tuft.

Finished cartoon cow, white with black spots, a black tail tuft, a pink muzzle, inner ears and udder, tan horns and dark gray hooves
The finished cow
Steps
6 easy steps
You need
  • Pencil
  • Eraser
  • Black marker
  • Black, pink, tan and gray crayons

Updated

Teaching this to a class?

Show one step at a time on the board and wait for the class before the next. The directed drawing for kids page explains how to run it.

How to draw a cow step by step

  1. A big rounded rectangle for the cow's body

    Step 1 of 6: Draw a big rounded shape for the body.

  2. A rounded head on the right end of the body with a wide oval muzzle across its bottom

    Step 2 of 6: Add a rounded head on the right end of the body with a wide oval muzzle at the bottom.

  3. Two small curved horns, two ears with inner lines, two dot eyes and two oval nostrils

    Step 3 of 6: Draw two small horns, two ears, two dot eyes and two nostrils on the muzzle.

  4. Four short legs with a hoof line on each, and the bottom of the body redrawn higher as a belly line between them

    Step 4 of 6: Add four short legs with hoof lines and a belly line between them. Erase the old body bottom.

  5. Three big spots, one touching the top edge, a small udder between the back legs and a thin tail with a tuft on the left

    Step 5 of 6: Draw three big spots, a small udder between the back legs and a thin tail with a tuft.

  6. The cow colored with black spots and tail tuft, a pink muzzle, inner ears and udder, tan horns and dark gray hooves

    Step 6 of 6: Color the spots and tuft black, hooves gray, horns tan, and the muzzle, inner ears and udder pink.

Tips for little artists

  • Tip: Press lightly with the pencil first. Trace the lines you like with the marker, then erase the rest.

  • Tip: Make the muzzle wider than the top of the head. A big muzzle makes the cow look friendly.

  • Tip: Let some spots run off the edge of the body. That makes them look like real cow patches.

Make it yours

  • Brown cow

    Color the spots brown instead of black and the muzzle light pink.

  • Cow with a bell

    Draw a collar under the head with a small yellow bell hanging from it.

  • Cow on the farm

    Add green grass under the hooves and a red barn behind the cow.

Common mistakes and easy fixes

  • The head floats away

    Draw the head so it overlaps the right end of the body, then erase the body line inside the head.

  • The spots look like dots

    Make the spots big and bumpy, not small circles. Two or three big spots are enough.

  • The legs are uneven

    Draw two legs at the front and two at the back. Make all four about the same length and width.

Fun facts about the cow

  • A Holstein cow's spots are like a fingerprint. No two cows have exactly the same pattern. (Source: BBC Radio 4)

  • A cow has one stomach with four separate chambers. It helps the cow break down tough plants. (Source: BBC Radio 4)

  • Dairy cows spend an average of eight hours a day chewing cud. (Source: BBC Earth)

Questions grown-ups ask

How do you draw a simple cow?

Draw a rounded body and a head with a wide muzzle. Add horns, ears, four legs, spots and a tail. The 6 steps above follow that order.

How to draw a cow easy?

Use big simple shapes: a rounded body, a round head and an oval muzzle. Spots and a tail with a tuft make it a cow.

How to draw a cow step by step?

Start with the body, then the head and muzzle, the face, the legs, and the spots, udder and tail. Color it last.

If your spots came out different shapes, that's fine. Your cow has its own pattern. More easy drawings for kids are on the home page.

Step 1 of 6

A big rounded rectangle for the cow's body
Draw a big rounded shape for the body.