So, you want to learn how to draw Starbucks? It’s harder than it looks. Most people start by sketching a simple cylinder, throwing a circle in the middle, and calling it a day. Then they look at it and realize it looks like a generic cartoon prop rather than that iconic white cup we all see every morning. The proportions are usually off. The siren's face looks like a smudge.
Drawing this brand is basically a lesson in perspective and logo design. You aren't just drawing a cup; you're trying to replicate a very specific corporate identity that our brains are trained to recognize instantly. If you get the tilt of the lid wrong by even a few degrees, the whole thing feels "off."
Let's get into the weeds of how to actually pull this off.
Why how to draw Starbucks usually goes wrong
The biggest mistake is the logo. Honestly, that green mermaid—the Siren—is a nightmare for beginners. She isn't perfectly symmetrical. Did you know that? Back in 2011, the design firm Lippincott actually tweaked her face because making her perfectly symmetrical made her look "cold" and "robotic." They added a tiny bit more shadow on the right side of her nose.
If you try to draw her perfectly mirrored, she’ll look like a creepy mask.
Then there’s the cup itself. It’s a truncated cone. If you’re looking at it from a slightly high angle, the top is an ellipse, and the bottom is a smaller, shallower ellipse. People often draw the bottom as a straight line. Don't do that. Straight lines on the bottom of a cup make it look flat, like a piece of paper, rather than a 3D object sitting on a table.
Nailing the iconic Starbucks cup shape
Start with the "V" shape, but keep it subtle. A Starbucks Grande cup isn't a sharp wedge; it’s a gentle taper.
The Lid is the Secret
The lid is the most complex part of the geometry. It’s not just a flat cap. It has layers. There’s the outer rim that snaps over the paper edge, a raised middle section, and then the little sipping hole.
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- Sketch the top ellipse. Make it wider than you think.
- Draw a second, slightly smaller ellipse just inside it to create the "lip" of the lid.
- Add the "dome" or the flat-top profile depending on if you're drawing a Frappuccino or a standard Latte.
If you're doing a cold drink, the straw needs to enter the lid at an angle. It shouldn't just stick straight up unless you're looking at it perfectly level. Perspective matters. A straw is a cylinder too. It needs its own tiny ellipse at the top where the hole is.
Mastering the Siren logo
This is where everyone gets stuck. The Starbucks logo is a "twin-tailed siren."
You have to break it down into shapes. Forget that it’s a person for a second. It’s a circle with a person inside it. Start with the outer green ring. Inside that, there’s the black space (or white, depending on which era of the logo you’re drawing).
The hair is the most important part. It flows down and merges into the tails. The tails have these little "waves" or "scales" that are really just short, curved strokes.
Think about the negative space. The white parts are the siren; the green parts are the background. If you focus on drawing the green shapes instead of the white ones, you might find it’s actually easier to get the proportions right. It’s a weird brain trick artists use all the time.
Textures and details that add realism
A paper cup isn't just white. If you want this to look "human-quality" and not like a clip-art icon, you need the sleeve. The corrugated cardboard sleeve has a very specific texture.
It’s bumpy. Those little vertical lines on the sleeve aren't perfectly straight because they follow the curve of the cup. Also, the sleeve has a slight overlap where it’s glued together. Adding that tiny line of overlap makes it look 100% more realistic.
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Shadows are your friend here.
The sleeve casts a tiny shadow on the cup below it. The lid casts a shadow on the top of the cup. Without these shadows, the drawing looks "floating."
If you're drawing a cold drink, you’ve got condensation. Little droplets of water. These are just tiny circles with a bit of a highlight on top and a tiny dark shadow underneath. Don't overdo it, or it looks like the cup has a skin disease. Just a few near the bottom or where the ice cubes touch the plastic.
The color palette
Green. Obviously.
But it’s not just any green. It’s "Starbucks Green," which is technically Pantone 3425C. If you’re using colored pencils or markers, you want a deep, forest green that leans slightly toward the cool/blue side, not a lime or grass green.
For the coffee itself, if it’s visible, it’s not just "brown." A latte is more of a tan or "camel" color. A black coffee has reddish-brown hues around the edges where the light hits the liquid.
Common misconceptions about the logo
People think the Siren is wearing a crown. Well, she is, but it’s part of her head. And those things she's holding? Those are her tails. Some people think they’re fish fins or even branches. Nope. She’s a mermaid from medieval Norse mythology.
When you're drawing the hair, it should frame the face like a heart shape. The "stars" on the side of the old logo aren't in the current one. Starbucks simplified the logo in 2011, removing the wordmark and the stars entirely. If you’re drawing a modern cup, leave the text out. Just the siren.
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Step-by-step logic for your sketch
First, drop a vertical centerline. This keeps your cup from leaning like it's about to fall over. Sketch the top ellipse and the bottom ellipse. Connect them with two straight lines.
Now, the sleeve. It sits about a third of the way down. Make sure the curves of the sleeve match the curves of the ellipses you drew for the top and bottom.
Then the logo. Center it on the sleeve or the cup.
Add the lid details.
Finally, the "check boxes" on the back. This is a pro tip. If you want it to look like a real Starbucks order, draw those little vertical boxes on the side: Decaf, Shots, Syrup, Milk, Custom, Drink. Scribble a "P" for Peppermint or a "V" for Vanilla in one of them. It adds that "lived-in" feel.
Actionable next steps for your art
- Practice the "Siren Silhouette" separately: Don't try to put it on the cup yet. Just draw the logo on a flat piece of paper five times until the face doesn't look wonky.
- Observe a real cup: Next time you buy a drink, don't throw the cup away immediately. Set it on your desk, shine a lamp on it from one side, and look at where the shadows actually fall. Notice how the logo wraps around the curve. It gets "squashed" at the edges.
- Use a compass for the circles: There is no shame in using tools. The Starbucks logo is based on perfect circles. Use a compass or a bottle cap to get the base shape right before you start freehanding the details.
- Focus on the "taper": If your cup looks like a soda can, it’s because you didn't taper the bottom enough. If it looks like a flower vase, you tapered it too much. Use a ruler to check the angle.
Once you master the basic white cup, try the plastic cold cups with the ice cubes visible inside. That's where you really get to play with transparency and light. The way the straw distorts when it goes into the liquid is a great way to show off your understanding of physics and light refraction. Just keep it simple at first. One line at a time.