Coat of Arms Creator

How to Make a Coat of Arms in Six Steps

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1. 1

   Choose a shield

   Open the Shield tab and pick one of ten shapes, from the classic Heater to the Kite, Lozenge or Round. Then split the field with a division such as per pale or quarterly, or add an ordinary like a chief or a chevron.

2. 2

   Click to set the tinctures

   Click any part of the shield and choose a tincture from the color picker, which lists each one by its heraldic name. Or, Argent, Gules and Azure are good places to start.

3. 3

   Add charges

   Open the Charges tab and pick a beast, bird, monster, plant or object. You can resize, rotate, recolor, flip or duplicate any charge once it is on the shield.

4. 4

   Write a motto

   On the Motto tab, one click adds a scroll under the shield. Type your words, choose a font such as Cinzel or Blackletter, and drag the Curve slider until the text fits the scroll.

5. 5

   Save your design

   Click Save to keep the design in this browser so you can come back to it. You can also make a share link to send it to family.

6. 6

   Download it

   Pick PNG for a transparent image up to 4800 pixels wide, JPG for a small file, or SVG for printing at any size.

Ten Shield Shapes

The shape of the shield, or escutcheon, changed with time and place. The heater shield is the classic English and French form, the Spanish shield has a rounded base, and a lozenge has long been used for the arms of women. Pick whichever suits the look you want; the shape is not part of the blazon.

• Heater

  The classic English and French shield

• French

  Square with a small point at the base

• Spanish

  Rounded base, common in Spain and Portugal

• Swiss

  Curved notches along the top edge

• Kite

  The long Norman shield of the 11th century

• Polish

  Renaissance shape with scrolled corners

• Oval

  Often used by clergy and in Italy

• Lozenge

  Diamond shape, traditionally used for women’s arms

• Banner

  Square, like a banner of arms

• Round

  A round shield, or roundel

Divisions and Ordinaries

Most coats of arms start by splitting the field or laying a broad band across it. Per pale cuts the shield down the middle, quarterly makes four parts, and a chief is a band across the top. The heraldic divisions guide shows real arms that use each one.

• Per pale

• Per fess

• Per bend

• Per bend sinister

• Per chevron

• Per saltire

• Quarterly

• Per pall

• Tierced in pale

• Tierced in fess

• Chief

• Fess

• Pale

• Bend

• Bend sinister

• Chevron

• Cross

• Saltire

• Pall

• Pile

• Bordure

• Canton

• Paly

• Barry

• Bendy

• Chequy

• Gyronny

Choose Your Tinctures

Heraldry calls its colors tinctures. The two metals are Or (gold) and Argent (silver, usually shown as white). The five main colours are Gules, Azure, Vert, Sable and Purpure, and the rarer stains include Tenné, Sanguine and Murrey. Each has its own name, and the heraldry colors guide explains the meanings that tradition gives them.

Pick Charges That Mean Something

A charge is any picture on the shield, and the best ones say something about the people who bear it. A lion has long stood for courage, an oak tree for strength and endurance, and a scallop shell for travel or pilgrimage. The coat of arms symbols guide lists the meanings of the common charges so you can choose with purpose.

• 

  Lion rampant

• 

  Double-headed eagle

• 

  Griffin rampant

• 

  Dragon rampant

• 

  Unicorn rampant

• 

  Stag

• 

  Fleur-de-lis

• 

  Heraldic rose

• 

  Oak tree

• 

  Castle

• 

  Sword

• 

  Lymphad (ship)

Five Tips for a Good Coat of Arms

• Keep it simple

  The strongest arms use two or three tinctures and can be recognized from across a room.

• Follow the rule of tincture

  Put a metal on a colour or a colour on a metal, never colour on colour, so the design stays easy to read. See the rule of tincture.

• Use few charges

  One bold charge or a group of three usually looks better than a crowded shield.

• Choose charges with meaning

  Pick symbols tied to the family story, or try a canting charge that puns on the surname, like a bell for Bell.

• Don't copy someone's arms

  Real arms belong to a real person, so make yours distinct instead of reusing a coat of arms you found online. A particular drawing can also be protected, as the answer on whether family crests are copyrighted explains.

Is a Homemade Coat of Arms Official?

Heraldry Guides

• How to Make a Coat of ArmsPlan, blazon and build a coat of arms one step at a time.
• Coat of Arms Symbols and Their MeaningsWhat lions, eagles, griffins and other common charges stand for in heraldry.
• Heraldry Colors and Their MeaningsThe metals, colours, furs and stains, with what each tincture traditionally means.
• Parts of a Coat of ArmsShield, helm, crest, mantling, supporters and motto, explained part by part.
• Family Crest vs Coat of ArmsWhy a crest is only one part, and whether your surname has arms.
• Latin Mottos for a Coat of ArmsLatin motto ideas with translations, plus famous mottos and how to choose.
• The Rule of TinctureWhy heralds never put colour on colour, and the famous exceptions.
• Heraldic Divisions and OrdinariesPer pale, per fess, chief, bend, chevron and more, with simple examples.