A 24-Day Advent Coloring Calendar You Can Print

An advent coloring calendar is 24 coloring pages, one for each day from December 1 to Christmas Eve, printed in advance and opened one at a time. Below is a complete calendar built from our free Christmas coloring pages: each day links to a page you can print in four detail levels. Printing all 24 takes about 30 minutes and roughly 25 sheets of paper per child, and each day's page takes 10 to 30 minutes to color. Here is the list, how to package it, and how to make day 24 a page of your own family.

Quick answer: how to make it

1. Print the 24 pages below, at the right level for each child (see the age table).
2. Number each page on the back, 1 to 24.
3. Package them: numbered envelopes, a folder, or pegs on a string (ideas below).
4. Open one a day from December 1, with a box of crayons or pencils kept next to the calendar.
5. Keep the finished pages together. On December 24 you have a Christmas coloring book made by the child.

The 24 pages

Day	Page	Why on this day
1	Wreath on the door	The door opens on December
2	Christmas tree	The tree goes up
3	Snowman	The first snow, or the hope of it
4	Polar bear	A winter animal
5	Christmas penguins	More winter friends
6	Santa on the roof	St Nicholas Day
7	Playing in the snow	A weekend outside
8	Elves' workshop	The toys are being made
9	Reindeer	Getting ready to fly
10	Star frame	Write or draw a letter to Santa inside the frame
11	Baking cookies	A baking day
12	Gingerbread house	More baking
13	Fox	A winter walk in the woods
14	Christmas train	Traveling to see family
15	Snowy village	Lights in every window
16	Christmas ornaments	Cut them out and hang them
17	Gift box	Wrapping presents
18	Stockings by the fireplace	The stockings go up
19	Santa at the beach	Christmas in summer, for the Southern Hemisphere
20	Santa's sleigh	The sleigh is packed
21	Christmas dinner table	Planning the big meal
22	Nativity	The Christmas story
23	Opening presents	Nearly there
24	Your own family photo	The last door: the family itself (see below)

If your family does not mark St Nicholas Day or the Nativity, swap those days for any other page from the free Christmas pages.

Which level for which age?

Every page except the star frame (day 10, one version) comes in easy, medium, detailed and expert. Print a different level for each child, from the same picture, so siblings open the same door together.

Age	Level	Time per page
2 to 4	Easy	5 to 10 minutes
5 to 7	Easy or medium	10 to 20 minutes
8 to 11	Medium or detailed	20 to 30 minutes
12 and up, adults	Detailed or expert	30 minutes to several evenings

On busy school days, an easy page is fine for anyone. The calendar should be a pleasure, not homework. Our guide to choosing the right detail level by age explains the levels in more detail.

How to package an advent coloring calendar

• Numbered envelopes: fold each page in half into a C5 or 6 by 9 inch envelope, write the day number on the front, and pin the envelopes to a ribbon or a corkboard. The most "calendar-like" option.
• A folder with tabs: 24 pages in a ring binder with numbered tabs. Easy to store, and the finished book is already bound.
• Pegs on a string: hang the rolled pages from mini clothespins along a string. Each day, the child unrolls one, colors it and pegs it back up colored. By Christmas Eve the string is a row of finished pages.
• A box of scrolls: roll each page, tie it with a ribbon and a number tag, and stack them in a box by the tree.

Add a small treat to a few of the envelopes, like a new pencil, a sticker sheet or a candy cane, rather than every day.

Printing tips

• Print in one session in late November. 24 pages per child at 100 percent scale on A4 or Letter.
• Paper: normal 80 to 100 gsm paper is fine for crayons and pencils. Use 160 gsm or more for felt-tip pens, and 200 gsm card for day 16 if the ornaments will hang on the tree.
• Ink: coloring pages are mostly white, so 24 pages use little ink. Print in black only ("grayscale") to save the color cartridge.

Our guide to printing coloring pages at home covers printer settings.

Day 24: a page of your own family

The last door in the calendar can be the best one: a coloring page made from a photo of your own family, your pet or last year's Christmas. Children love finding themselves on the page, and it makes the finished set a keepsake rather than a stack of printouts. Choose a photo with clear faces in daylight, print it at the same level as the rest of the calendar, and put it in envelope 24.

For more ways to make the tradition last, see our guide to starting a Christmas coloring tradition and the holiday coloring calendar for the rest of the year.

Frequently asked

When should I print an advent coloring calendar?

In the last week of November, so everything is ready to open on December 1. Printing all 24 pages takes about 30 minutes per child, plus another 30 minutes to number and package them.

Is an advent coloring calendar suitable for toddlers?

Yes, at the easy level. Expect five to ten minutes of coloring a day from a two- or three-year-old, often less. Keep the crayons chunky and let an adult open the envelope with them.

Can several children share one advent coloring calendar?

Yes. Print the same 24 pictures at each child's level and put one page per child in each envelope. Opening the same picture together, at different levels, avoids arguments about whose turn it is.

What do I do with the 24 finished pages?

Punch holes and tie them with ribbon into a book, with a cover made from the day 24 photo page. Write the child's name and the year on the cover. It becomes a Christmas book they made themselves.

Try it with your own photo

Make day 24 a page of your own family. Coolorio turns a photo into a printable coloring page in four detail levels, delivered as a PDF you print at home. Photos are deleted after 7 days. See how it works to make your first page.