How to Make a Coloring Page in Procreate

2026-06-25

Coloring pages are simple, in demand, and a great use of clean inking skills — whether for kids, adult coloring books, or selling on KDP. This guide shows how to make a coloring page in Procreate: drawing closed-line art, keeping line weight consistent, and exporting print-ready files.

What makes a good coloring page

A coloring page is pure black lineart on white, with fully closed shapes so colors stay inside, a consistent, fairly bold line that's easy to color within, and an appropriate level of detail for the audience (chunky for kids, intricate for adults). No shading, no grey — just clean outlines.

1. Set up the canvas

For print, use a canvas at the target paper size (e.g. 8.5 × 11 in for US Letter / KDP) at 300 DPI, with a white background. Keep important art inside a safe margin so nothing is lost to trimming. Add a layer for your sketch and one for ink.

2. Sketch the design

Block your subject simply with clear, separable shapes — a scene, animal, mandala or pattern. Avoid tiny enclosed areas that are impossible to color. Lower the sketch opacity before inking. For decorative pages, mandalas and pattern fills work beautifully.

3. Ink with clean, closed lines

Ink on a new layer with a crisp liner from the inking category, keeping the line weight even and bold enough to color inside. Most importantly, close every shape — no gaps — so colors won't leak when someone fills them (digitally or on paper). Use QuickShape and QuickLine for clean geometry. See the full inking workflow and tips for clean lineart.

4. Keep line weight consistent

Coloring pages usually want a uniform line weight, not the dramatic variation of comic inking — it reads as clean and approachable, and frames every area evenly. A technical liner at a fixed size is ideal.

5. Check it's truly black and white

Delete the sketch layer, hide the background, and confirm the lineart is pure black with no stray grey or anti-aliasing problems. Flatten onto white. For KDP, files are typically black-and-white at 300 DPI.

6. Export print-ready files

Export a PNG or PDF at 300 DPI. For a KDP coloring book, follow Amazon's interior specs (page size, bleed/no-bleed, margins) and assemble pages into the required PDF. For single sellable pages, a high-resolution PNG works for Etsy and instant downloads.

7. Make a set

Coloring books sell as collections, not singles. Keep a consistent style and line weight across pages, reuse stamp brushes for repeating motifs and borders, and build a themed set (animals, florals, mandalas) for a cohesive book.

Brushes and next steps

You only need a clean free liner from the inking category or any free brushset — see the best free inking brushes. Want to test-color your own page? See how to color lineart in Procreate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Click a question to expand the answer

How do you make a coloring page in Procreate?

Set up a print-size canvas at 300 DPI on white, sketch a simple design with clear shapes, then ink clean closed lineart with a consistent bold line so colors won't leak. Delete the sketch, confirm the lines are pure black on white, and export a PNG or PDF at 300 DPI.

How do I make a coloring page for KDP?

Draw clean black-and-white lineart at your book's page size (e.g. 8.5 x 11 in) at 300 DPI, keep art inside safe margins, and follow Amazon KDP's interior specs for page size, bleed and margins. Assemble the pages into the required PDF and keep a consistent style across the set.

Why is closed lineart important for coloring pages?

Because open gaps let color leak out of an area — both for digital ColorDrop and when someone colors it. Fully closing every shape keeps each region contained and easy to fill, which is the single most important quality of a usable coloring page.

Should coloring page lines be thick or thin?

Usually a consistent, fairly bold and even line weight — not the dramatic variation of comic inking. Uniform bold lines frame each area clearly and are easy to color inside, especially for kids' pages. A technical liner at a fixed size works well.