StitchZoo Free counted patterns
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Printable pixel art grids

Twenty nine blank squared grids to design on, in five shapes: small square canvases, large ones, odd grids with a true middle square, wide landscape grids and tall portrait ones. Every sheet counts in tens and numbers its own edges.

29 free patterns · Drawn and checked by Ivy Skein

What size pixel art grid should I use?

For a first sprite, 16 by 16 is the usual starting point: big enough for a recognisable character, small enough to finish. Icons sit at 8 to 12, detailed sprites at 32, and full scenes at 48 or 64. Shape decides as much as size, so take an odd grid for anything symmetrical and a rectangle for a banner.

Small square canvases, 8 to 20 squares

Five square canvases from 8 to 20 squares, and the range where a design is decided by what you leave out. On an 8 square grid a shape gets an outline or a fill and never both; by 20 it can carry a face, a held object and two flat tones of shading. All five print with squares over 8mm wide, which is as large as an A4 sheet allows.

Printable blank 8 by 8 pixel art grid, the smallest square canvas on the page, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 8 x 8 Pixel Art Grid An 8 by 8 grid, 64 squares, and the smallest canvas that still reads as a picture: at this size a shape gets an outline or a fill, never both, which is the whole discipline of icon work. 8 x 8 grid 1.5 x 1.5 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 10 by 10 pixel art grid, a ten square icon canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 10 x 10 Pixel Art Grid A 10 by 10 grid, the size icon designers use for a first sprite: 100 squares, and the heavy counting lines fall on the border itself because the grid is exactly one counting block wide. 10 x 10 grid 1.8 x 1.8 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 12 by 12 pixel art grid, a twelve square canvas for a small symbol, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 12 x 12 Pixel Art Grid A 12 by 12 grid that gives a face or a small symbol two extra squares of breathing room compared with a 10 square canvas. 12 x 12 grid 2.2 x 2.2 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 16 by 16 pixel art grid, the classic sixteen square sprite canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 16 x 16 Pixel Art Grid The 16 by 16 grid most pixel artists learn on: 256 squares, enough for a character with a readable silhouette and a face. 16 x 16 grid 2.9 x 2.9 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 20 by 20 pixel art grid, a twenty square canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 20 x 20 Pixel Art Grid A 20 by 20 grid, sized so a design printed on it lands at roughly 3.6 cm square if you later work it in cross stitch on 14 count aida. 20 x 20 grid 3.6 x 3.6 cm Chart PDF View chart

Large square canvases, 24 to 64 squares

Eight square canvases from 24 up to 64, where a grid stops being one object and starts being a picture. The trade is the printed square: a 24 grid comes out around 7mm a square and the 64 at under 3mm, so the big ones want a sharp pencil and the heavy counting lines stop being decoration.

Printable blank 24 by 24 pixel art grid, a twenty four square sprite canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 24 x 24 Pixel Art Grid A 24 by 24 grid for sprites that need a held item or a hat, with counting lines at 10 and 20 and 576 squares to fill. 24 x 24 grid 4.4 x 4.4 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 30 by 30 pixel art grid, a thirty square canvas that matches a bead pegboard, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 30 x 30 Pixel Art Grid A 30 by 30 grid, three counting blocks square, and the largest size that still fits comfortably on a standard bead pegboard once you trim it. 30 x 30 grid 5.4 x 5.4 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 32 by 32 pixel art grid, the thirty two square canvas for shaded sprites, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 32 x 32 Pixel Art Grid The 32 by 32 grid, four times the area of a 16 square canvas and the usual step up when a sprite needs shading rather than flat colour. 32 x 32 grid 5.8 x 5.8 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 40 by 40 pixel art grid, a forty square canvas for a small scene, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 40 x 40 Pixel Art Grid A 40 by 40 grid with 1,600 squares, room for a small scene with a background rather than a single object. 40 x 40 grid 7.3 x 7.3 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 48 by 48 pixel art grid, a forty eight square canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 48 x 48 Pixel Art Grid A 48 by 48 grid, the largest square canvas that still prints with squares wide enough to write a colour code inside. 48 x 48 grid 8.7 x 8.7 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 50 by 50 pixel art grid, a fifty square planning canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 50 x 50 Pixel Art Grid A 50 by 50 grid, five counting blocks in each direction, which makes it the easiest large canvas to plan a composition on. 50 x 50 grid 9.1 x 9.1 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 60 by 60 pixel art grid, a sixty square canvas for a full scene, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 60 x 60 Pixel Art Grid A 60 by 60 grid with 3,600 squares, for a full scene or a long banner design worked in sections. 60 x 60 grid 10.9 x 10.9 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 64 by 64 pixel art grid, the largest square canvas on the page, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 64 x 64 Pixel Art Grid A 64 by 64 grid with 4,096 squares, the largest canvas here and the only one where a scene can carry a foreground, a middle distance and a sky without any of the three being one square deep. 64 x 64 grid 11.6 x 11.6 cm Chart PDF View chart

Odd grids, with a true centre square

Six grids with an odd number of squares each way, which puts one square exactly in the middle. That is the difference between a badge, a snowflake or a mandala that balances and one with a seam down its centre, and it is why 21 and 25 sit here beside 20 and 24. The 29 in this group is also the exact peg count of a standard bead board.

Printable blank 11 by 11 pixel art grid, an odd sized canvas with a true centre square, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 11 x 11 Pixel Art Grid An 11 by 11 grid whose sixth column and sixth row cross on a single square, so a symmetrical badge is built out from one middle square instead of straddling a seam. 11 x 11 grid 2.0 x 2.0 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 15 by 15 pixel art grid, a fifteen square canvas with a true centre, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 15 x 15 Pixel Art Grid A 15 by 15 grid, the odd step between a 12 and a 16 square canvas, with seven squares of room on each side of the middle one. 15 x 15 grid 2.7 x 2.7 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 21 by 21 pixel art grid, a twenty one square canvas with a true centre, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 21 x 21 Pixel Art Grid A 21 by 21 grid: 441 squares, a true middle, and ten squares either side of it, which is room enough for a symmetrical flower or star to carry three rings of detail. 21 x 21 grid 3.8 x 3.8 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 25 by 25 pixel art grid, a twenty five square symmetrical canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 25 x 25 Pixel Art Grid A 25 by 25 grid with a true centre square, which is what you want for a symmetrical badge, snowflake or mandala design. 25 x 25 grid 4.5 x 4.5 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 29 by 29 pixel art grid, a canvas the size of a standard bead pegboard, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 29 x 29 Pixel Art Grid A 29 by 29 grid, the exact peg count of a standard square bead pegboard, so a design drawn here transfers bead for bead onto one board with nothing left over and nothing to trim. 29 x 29 grid 5.3 x 5.3 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 31 by 31 pixel art grid, the largest odd canvas with a true centre square, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 31 x 31 Pixel Art Grid A 31 by 31 grid, the largest odd canvas here, with fifteen squares on each side of the middle and the heavy counting lines stopping one square short of the border. 31 x 31 grid 5.6 x 5.6 cm Chart PDF View chart

Wide grids, for banners and scenes

Five landscape grids from 20 by 10 out to 60 by 20. A wide canvas is not a square one cropped: it asks for a horizon, a repeat or a word rather than for a subject sat in the middle, and the counting blocks fall in two rows instead of in a square. This is what you print for a banner, a title bar or a fence.

Printable blank 20 by 10 pixel art grid, a short wide banner canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 20 x 10 Pixel Art Grid A 20 by 10 grid, two counting blocks across and one down, sized for a small banner, a progress bar or a name strip rather than for a figure. 20 x 10 grid 3.6 x 1.8 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 32 by 16 pixel art grid, a two to one landscape canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 32 x 16 Pixel Art Grid A 32 by 16 grid at exactly two to one, which is the shape of a side on sprite with a vehicle or a mount under it, and of a title bar above a scene. 32 x 16 grid 5.8 x 2.9 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 36 by 12 pixel art grid, a long low strip canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 36 x 12 Pixel Art Grid A 36 by 12 grid, three times as wide as it is deep, drawn for a long low strip: a horizon, a fence, a row of windows or a border that repeats. 36 x 12 grid 6.5 x 2.2 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 48 by 24 pixel art grid, a wide landscape scene canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 48 x 24 Pixel Art Grid A 48 by 24 grid holding 1,152 squares in landscape, the widest two to one canvas here, and the one to reach for when a scene needs a left, a middle and a right. 48 x 24 grid 8.7 x 4.4 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 60 by 20 pixel art grid, a long banner canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 60 x 20 Pixel Art Grid A 60 by 20 grid, six counting blocks across and two down, which is a banner shape: long enough to spell a whole word in pixel letters ten squares tall. 60 x 20 grid 10.9 x 3.6 cm Chart PDF View chart

Tall grids, for figures and strips

Five portrait grids, the same shapes stood on end, from 10 by 20 down to 20 by 60. Standing figures, towers, bookmarks and waterfalls all want height and no width, and a tall grid stops you quietly widening the design until it fits. The 16 by 32 is the classic: a 16 square body with another 16 squares of legs under it.

Printable blank 10 by 20 pixel art grid, a narrow standing figure canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 10 x 20 Pixel Art Grid A 10 by 20 grid, one counting block wide and two deep, which is the shape of a standing figure seen head on with nothing to spare at either shoulder. 10 x 20 grid 1.8 x 3.6 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 12 by 36 pixel art grid, a tall bookmark strip canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 12 x 36 Pixel Art Grid A 12 by 36 grid, three times as tall as it is wide, drawn for a bookmark strip, a tower, or a totem stacked out of small blocks one above another. 12 x 36 grid 2.2 x 6.5 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 16 by 32 pixel art grid, a two to one tall sprite canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 16 x 32 Pixel Art Grid A 16 by 32 grid, two to one the other way up, and the classic tall sprite canvas: a 16 square head and body with another 16 squares of legs underneath. 16 x 32 grid 2.9 x 5.8 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 24 by 48 pixel art grid, a portrait scene canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 24 x 48 Pixel Art Grid A 24 by 48 grid holding 1,152 squares in portrait, wide enough for a figure with both arms out and tall enough to stand it on a floor with sky above its head. 24 x 48 grid 4.4 x 8.7 cm Chart PDF View chart
Printable blank 20 by 60 pixel art grid, a tall vertical banner canvas, with heavy counting lines every ten squares and numbered edges 20 x 60 Pixel Art Grid A 20 by 60 grid, three counting blocks deep, for a vertical banner, a waterfall or a long climb designed as one continuous strip rather than as stacked panels. 20 x 60 grid 3.6 x 10.9 cm Chart PDF View chart

Grids that are actually countable

A printable grid is only useful if you can find your place on it. Every grid on this page is drawn with a heavy line every ten squares and numbers along the top and left edges, so you count in tens instead of squinting at a wall of identical boxes. Centre marks on the outside edges show the middle of the sheet, which is where a symmetrical design starts.

There are 29 grids here in five groups, and the groups are shapes rather than sizes. Small squares from 8 to 20 and large squares from 24 to 64 cover the canvases most pixel work is done on. Then there are six odd grids, six wide ones and five tall ones, which exist because a great many designs are not square and cropping a square grid to fit them wastes the counting lines you were relying on.

Why an odd numbered grid is worth having

A 20 square grid has no middle square. Its centre falls on the line between the tenth and the eleventh, so a symmetrical design either straddles that line with an even number of squares or sits one square off centre. A 21 square grid puts a real square in the middle, and everything you draw can then be built outwards from it in matching pairs. Anything with radiating arms, a snowflake, a compass, a badge, a mandala, is far easier on 11, 15, 21, 25, 29 or 31 than on the even size next to it.

Wide, tall, and printing at the right size

The rectangles are not decoration either. A 60 by 20 banner and a 20 by 60 strip contain the same 1,200 squares as each other and neither is a 34 square square, which is the size you would have to print to hold either one. Each sheet is laid out as A4 portrait at the largest square that fits its own shape, so the small grids come out generous and a 64 square canvas still prints countable. Print at 100 per cent rather than fit to page, or the finished size printed at the foot of the sheet stops being true.

Paper first, screen later

Sketching a sprite on paper before opening an editor is faster for the same reason a thumbnail sketch is faster than a painting: you can see the whole shape at once and rub it out cheaply. A finished paper grid transfers straight into a pixel editor, or straight into thread and beads, because all three are the same square grid.

Grids with something already on them

If you would rather colour in a design than start from nothing, the pixel art templates page has ready drawn sprites on the same grid, including six drawn to a 16 by 16 canvas you can print blank from here. When a sketch is finished and you want to stitch it, the cross stitch patterns page shows what the same grid looks like as a counted chart, and the Pattern Maker will convert a picture into one for you. Everything is free to print under this site's license, classroom use included.

How to use these pixel grids

  1. Print the grid or the template at 100 per cent. The guide lines every ten squares keep long rows countable.
  2. Fill the squares with pencil, pen or paint, or copy the grid straight into a pixel editor at the same size.
  3. A finished grid works as a cross stitch chart or a bead pattern without changing a square, so a sketch here becomes a project.

Make a chart from your own picture

More patterns

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