How to draw a snake
A snake is one round head and one long line that never stops curving. Draw the S once for the back, again for the belly, and the whole body is done.
- 7 steps
- 9 minutes
- 4-10 Ages
- Easy
How do you draw a snake?
Sketch a circle for the head and a gentle S line for the body. Draw the round head outline, then two long S curves, one for the back and one for the belly. Add the two big eye outlines, fill them with a pupil and a tiny shine, draw the smiling mouth and finish with a small triangle at the tail tip. Seven steps.
Watch it drawn, line by line
The whole drawing in under half a minute, in the same order as the steps below. No sound, so play it anywhere.
Draw it step by step
The new lines for each step are drawn in red. The grey dashed shapes are guides, sketch them lightly and rub them out at the end.
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1 Step 1: Guide shapes
Lightly sketch one small circle for the head and one big circle under it for the body guides.
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2 Step 2: Head outline
Draw a round circle for the head. Add a tiny short line inside the head.
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3 Step 3: Long S body
Draw a long curved S line from the head down for the back. Draw another long curved S line below it for the belly.
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4 Step 4: Eye outlines
Draw two C shapes on the face, one on each side, for the eye outlines.
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5 Step 5: Big eyes
Inside each outline, draw a big circle and a tiny circle for the shine.
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6 Step 6: Smiling mouth
Draw a wide curved smile. Add a short curved line under it.
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7 Step 7: Pointed tail tip
Draw a small triangle at the tail tip, point facing out. Add a short curved line to connect it to the tail.
What do you need to draw a snake?
A pencil, paper and an eraser. A snake is the most forgiving animal on this site: it is one head and one flowing line, and any wobble in that line just makes the snake look more alive.
Where do you start?
With the light grey guides: a circle for the head, high on the page, and one long S line flowing down from it. That single line is the spine of the whole drawing, so give it room. Everything else follows it.
What is the hardest part of drawing a snake?
Keeping the body one thickness. Your two long curves, the back line and the belly line, must travel together like the two rails of a winding road, the same distance apart the whole way, only narrowing at the very end for the tail. Where the body crosses behind itself, just lift the pencil and continue on the other side.
Second thing: the eyes. On a cute cartoon snake they are enormous and they sit close together near the top of the head. Draw each outline as a big C, then a big pupil with a tiny white shine. Small, far-apart eyes make the snake look sneaky instead of friendly.
How do you make it your own?
- Give it a pattern. Diamonds down the back, thin cross-bands, or round spots. Always follow the curve of the body.
- Flick the tongue out. A thin line from the smile ending in a small fork.
- Make it a rattlesnake. Stack three little beads on the tail tip triangle.
- Coil it tighter. Add one more loop to the S before the tail and the snake sits like a spring.
What else is worth knowing about snakes?
A snake smells with its tongue: each flick collects tiny traces from the air and delivers them to a special organ in the roof of its mouth. It also never blinks, because it has no eyelids at all, just one clear scale over each eye like a built-in window. And that wide smile you drew is not far from the truth: a snake's jaws are joined by stretchy ligaments, which is how it swallows dinner wider than its own head.
Questions people ask about drawing a snake
Is this a good first animal for a 5 year old?
It is the easiest one here. Seven steps, no legs, no symmetry, and the S line can wobble as much as it likes.
How long does it take?
About eight minutes. The two body curves in step three are the heart of it; the face is quick.
How do I make it look friendly and not scary?
Big close-together eyes, a wide smile and a plump body. Scary snakes have narrow eyes and a thin, straight body, so draw the opposite.
