How to draw the flag of Brazil

The flag of Brazil is a green field with a large yellow diamond, inside which sits a blue globe crossed by a white band. Below is how to construct it step by step, with the measurements written as fractions so they work at any size — on paper, on a whiteboard or in an art program. If you would rather test yourself first, you can draw it from memory and get scored.

Step by step

Start with a rectangle in the proportions 10:7. If you are working on paper, 14 cm wide by 10 cm tall is a convenient size — every measurement below is given as a fraction, so any size works as long as the shape is right.
Fill the whole rectangle with green (#009c3b).
Draw a navy blue circle with a radius of 25% of the height (a diameter of 50%), centred in the middle of the flag.
Finally, the emblem. This flag carries a device too detailed to reproduce faithfully by hand — even official renderings simplify it at small sizes. Place it correctly and at the right size, and do not worry about its interior.

The colours

These are the shades used in the reference drawing. Official specifications are usually given in Pantone; the hex values below are the closest common screen equivalents.

green — #009c3b
yellow — #ffdf00
navy blue — #002776
white — #ffffff

The mistakes people make

Over-investing in the emblem. It is scored as a shape in the right place, not as artwork — time spent on its interior is time not spent filling the field.
Leaving a white margin around the edge of the canvas. Unpainted area is scored as wrong colour, so fill right to the borders.

Test yourself

Reading how a flag is built and being able to reproduce it from memory are different skills, and the gap between them is bigger than most people expect. Draw the flag of Brazil from memory and the game will score how close you got, or try today's flag if you want to be surprised.

How to draw the flag of Brazil

Step by step

The colours

The mistakes people make

Test yourself

Other flags to draw