Koala coloring pages

Free printable koala coloring pages climb from a cute baby koala to the Australian bush.

These free printable koala coloring pages run from a cute, round baby koala a toddler can color in minutes to a realistic Australian wildlife scene for adults. Toddlers get easy koalas hugging branches and hearts. Kids get a mother and joey, a koala in a hammock and a koala skater. Teens and adults get a eucalyptus forest zentangle, a botanical mandala and a koala with its wombat cousin, and seniors get a picnic and a floral frame. There are also real colors from the Australian Museum for coloring a koala the way it looks in the wild.

One cute, round koala is the easiest start.

Easy and cute koala coloring pages for toddlers have big round ears and faces.

Start with the Little Koala, the Koala on a Branch or the Sleepy Koala. Each has thick outlines, a big nose and fluffy round ears. The Chubby Koala holds a leafy twig.

Preschoolers can try the Baby Koala, Koala with a Leaf, Koala Face and Koala Hugging a Heart. Once one koala feels easy, kids want to see koalas out in the trees.

Koala coloring pages for kids show koalas climbing, napping and playing.

The Koala Mother and Joey carries her baby on her back. The Koala Eating Leaves munches on a branch, and the Koala Bear climbs a tall tree. The Koala in a Hammock naps between two trees, and the Koala in the Rain shelters under a leaf.

The Koala Bears sit together as a family, and the Koala Reading opens a book on a branch. The Koala with a Balloon is sweet and simple. Quick bold picks include the Koala Backpack, Koala Skater and Koala and Cupcake. The Outback Koala and Koala Portrait are the most lifelike kids' pages. Older colorers can go deeper into the bush.

Detailed koala coloring pages for teens and adults bring eucalyptus forests and Australian wildlife.

The Eucalyptus Forest Zentangle fills a koala and her joey with patterns among the gum leaves. The Koala and Joey Zentangle is another patterned pair. The Koala Botanical Mandala frames a koala in a ring of leaves and gum nuts. The Australian Wildlife gathers a koala, a kangaroo, a wombat and a kookaburra.

The Koala and Wombat and Koala and Kangaroo show two famous Australian animals side by side. The Koala Birthday and Koala School are playful but detailed, and the Koala Friends and Koala on a Swing are lighter. For a cozy mood, try the Koala Treehouse, Koala Study Time or Koala Porch. Quick bold pages include the Sleepy Koala, Koala and Umbrella and Coffee Koala. Calm koalas suit older colorers too.

Koala coloring pages for seniors keep koalas bold and scenes gentle.

The Koala Picnic sits on a blanket with fruit. The Koala Floral Frame climbs between gum blossoms. The Koala at Night rests on a branch under the moon, and the Koala in a Sun Hat relaxes in a deck chair.

These pages are gentle to color with grandchildren. They also raise a good question: what color is a real koala?

What does a real koala look like?

The Australian Museum describes the koala's thick ash-grey fur, white chest and round head with fluffy ears. So color the body a soft gray, the chest white, and the inside of the ears white and fluffy. Give the big nose a dark gray or black.

Koalas live in eucalypt forests and eat the leaves of certain eucalypts, the museum explains. Color the leaves a gray-green or blue-green, not bright green, to match gum trees. The museum also notes that a joey spends about six months in its mother's pouch. After that it rides on her back, as on the Koala Mother and Joey sheet.

Koalas are sometimes called koala bears, but the museum lists them as marsupials. It names the wombat as their closest relative, which makes the Koala and Wombat a fitting pair.

How do you color koala fur so it looks soft?

Use short strokes in two grays, one light and one darker. Keep the darker gray for the back and the edges of the ears. Leave the chest and ear tufts mostly white, with a light touch of gray at the edges. The fur then looks thick and fluffy.

For zentangle pages, try different grays in each patterned section, with the eyes and nose left dark. Colored koalas then have plenty of uses.

Koala coloring pages make cards, bookmarks and an Australia project.

A colored koala makes a sweet card for a birthday or a get-well note. A folded koala card on cardstock stays upright on a shelf. The Australian Wildlife sheet fits a school project on Australian animals. Kids can cut out several koalas and hang them on a paper branch.

For more cute animals, see our cute coloring pages, or our panda coloring pages for another round, fluffy favorite.

From a cute baby koala to the Australian bush, these free printable koala coloring pages have a koala for every age. Pick an easy koala or a detailed forest, and color the fur ash-grey with a white chest.