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

To draw a snowman, stack three circles: a big one at the bottom, a medium one in the middle and a small head on top. Add a top hat, a face with a carrot nose and a scarf. Finish with stick arms and three buttons.

Finished cartoon snowman with a black top hat, carrot nose, red and green scarf and stick arms
The finished snowman
Steps
6 easy steps
You need
  • Pencil
  • Eraser
  • Black marker
  • Orange, red, green, brown and light blue 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 snowman step by step

  1. Three stacked circles, big at the bottom, medium in the middle and small on top

    Step 1 of 6: Draw three stacked circles: big at the bottom, medium in the middle, small on top.

  2. A top hat with a wide brim sitting on the snowman's head

    Step 2 of 6: Add a top hat with a wide brim on the head.

  3. Two dot eyes, a carrot nose and a smile made of small dots on the head

    Step 3 of 6: Draw two dot eyes, a carrot nose and a smile made of small dots.

  4. A scarf wrapped around the neck with one fringed end hanging down

    Step 4 of 6: Add a scarf around the neck with one end hanging down.

  5. Two stick arms with twig fingers and three round buttons down the front

    Step 5 of 6: Draw two stick arms with twig fingers and three buttons down the front.

  6. The snowman colored with a black hat and red band, orange nose, red and green scarf and brown arms

    Step 6 of 6: Color the hat black with a red band, the nose orange, the scarf red and green and the arms brown.

Tips for little artists

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

  • Tip: Let each circle overlap the one below it a little. Then erase the line inside, and the snowman looks like one shape.

  • Tip: Leave the snowman white and add a light blue line along one side. It looks like snow in the shade.

Make it yours

  • Snow girl

    Swap the top hat for a knit hat with a pom-pom and add earmuffs on the sides of the head.

  • Melting snowman

    Draw only the head in a puddle, with the hat and carrot nose lying next to it.

  • Snowman family

    Draw a big, a medium and a small snowman side by side, each with a different scarf.

Common mistakes and easy fixes

  • The snowman looks wobbly

    Make each circle a little smaller than the one below it. Stacking big to small keeps the snowman steady.

  • The scarf hides the face

    Draw the scarf right where the head meets the middle circle, below the smile.

  • The arms come out of the head

    Start the stick arms on the sides of the middle circle. That is where shoulders would be.

Fun facts about the snowman

  • In 2008, people in Bethel, Maine, built a snow woman named Olympia that stood 122 feet, 1 inch tall. (Source: WGME)

  • Olympia had three 5-foot truck tires as buttons and two 30-foot spruce trees as arms. (Source: WGME)

  • Building Olympia took about a month and a reported 13 million pounds of snow. (Source: WGME)

Questions grown-ups ask

How do you draw a snowman easy?

Stack three circles from big to small. Add a hat, a face, a scarf and two stick arms. The 6 steps above follow that order.

How do you draw a cute snowman?

Give it a round head, dot eyes, a small carrot nose and a dotted smile. A striped red and green scarf adds bright color.

How do you draw a snowman step by step?

Draw three circles first, then the hat, the face, the scarf, the arms and the buttons. Color it last and leave the body white.

If the circles came out a little lumpy, that's fine. Real snowmen are lumpy too. More easy drawings for kids are on the home page.

Step 1 of 6

Three stacked circles, big at the bottom, medium in the middle and small on top
Draw three stacked circles: big at the bottom, medium in the middle, small on top.