A cement mixer pouring down its chute into a wheelbarrowThe chute is a narrow trough swung out from under the back of the drum. Draw the pour as a thick gray line.
A cement mixer side on, slanted stripes on its drumA cab box, then a big egg-shaped drum tilted up toward the back. The stripes show that the drum turns.
A crane truck with its boom up and its legs plantedThe boom is a long narrow rectangle on a slant with a hook on a line. Four legs press flat pads to the ground.
A dump truck head-on, the bed rising behind the cabA square cab face with two round lights and grille lines. Behind and above it, a wider rectangle for the bed.
A dump truck in three-quarter view on a rutted siteStart with two boxes in perspective. Wheels become ovals, and the ruts curve off toward one corner.
A dump truck side on with its open bed levelTwo boxes on one long bar: a small cab and a taller open bed. Three circles for wheels. The bed tells the job.
Show all 48 trucks (42 more)
Work-site trucks, continued
A dump truck with its bed raised and gravel sliding outThe bed hinges at the back, and a ram lifts the front. Tilt the box on one slanted line over a pile.
A flatbed carrying one big crate under two strapsA flatbed has no sides or roof: a cab and one level line for the deck. Sit a square crate on it.
A flatbed hauling an excavator with its arm foldedDeck first. The excavator is a box on two tracks with a bent arm tucked down. Add a chain at each end.
A mine haul truck with a person standing by one wheelDraw the wheel taller than the person. The bed is a wide V with a lip that reaches forward over the cab.
A water truck spraying a dusty site roadA cab and a long rounded tank. A bar across the back sprays short lines of water at the ground.
An excavator filling a waiting dump truckTwo machines at different heights. The bucket hangs over the open bed with a few lumps falling from it.
Emergency and town trucks 12
A bucket truck raising a worker to a streetlightThe arm bends at one elbow and ends in a small bucket. Fold-down legs steady the truck.
A fire engine seen from its front corner, roof bar flashingTwo boxes in perspective, the cab lower than the body. Short rays around the roof bar are the lights.
A fire engine side on with a ladder along its roofA long red box with a two-window cab. The ladder is two lines and rungs, and a circle is the hose reel.
A garbage truck side on with a bin beside itA cab, then a tall rounded box. The hopper at the back is where a rear loader takes the bags.
A garbage truck tipping a bin with its side armA side loader grips the bin in a claw and swings it up and over. Draw the arm as two hinged bars.
A ladder truck with its ladder up against a buildingThe ladder rises from a turntable behind the cab and narrows toward the top. Rule the rungs evenly.
A mail truck with its sliding door openA small tall box on four wheels with a flat nose. Stack two parcels inside the open doorway.
A moving truck with its ramp down and boxes at the curbThe back is an open rectangle with shelves of boxes inside. The ramp slopes to the street. Add a hand cart.
A snowplow pushing a curl of snow off the roadThe blade is a curved rectangle wider than the truck. Snow rolls off one end in a wave shape.
A street sweeper with a round brush at each cornerA low boxy cab on small wheels. The brushes are circles of short bristle lines touching the curb.
A tow truck lifting a small car by its front wheelsThe car tilts nose-up behind the truck. A yoke under the front wheels holds it clear of the road.
A tow truck with its hook swinging freeA cab and a short deck. At the back, a slanted boom with a hook on a line. The boom tells the job.
Big rigs and trailers 12
A big rig backing up to a loading dockSeen from above: the cab turned one way, the trailer the other, and painted bay lines to aim between.
A big rig cab on its own with no trailerOver the back wheels sits the fifth wheel, the horseshoe-shaped plate a trailer couples onto. Draw it as a disc.
A big rig head-on with a tall grille and two stacksA tall rectangle for the grille, a split windshield above, mirrors out wide and an exhaust stack at each side.
A big rig in three-quarter view rounding a bendCab and trailer point in slightly different directions, hinged over the back wheels of the cab.
A big rig side on pulling one long box trailerA tall cab and a long rectangle behind it. Wheels sit in groups: one in front, pairs at the back.
A car carrier with small cars on two decksTwo slanted decks, one above the other, on a low frame. Each car is a rounded box with two wheels.
A flatbed trailer loaded with long pipesFrom the back the pipes are a pyramid of circles. From the side they are long lines held by upright stakes.
A logging truck with a load of tree trunksTrunks are long lines between upright stakes. At the back, draw their ends as circles with rings inside.
A refrigerated trailer with its cooling unit on the noseA plain box trailer with a square unit high on the front wall. Add a small vent grille to the unit.
A tanker side on with a ladder and a top hatchThe tank is a long rectangle with rounded ends, made to carry liquid. A catwalk line runs along the top.
An extra-long trailer carrying one wind turbine bladeThe blade is far longer than the cab and tapers to a point past the last wheels. A small escort car follows.
One cab pulling two short trailers in a rowDraw the first trailer, a short drawbar, then a second the same size. Count the wheel groups as you go.
Pickups and fun trucks 12
A big rig made of toy building bricksEvery surface steps in blocks. Rows of small round studs show on each top face. No curves at all.
A cartoon truck with headlight eyes and a bumper smileRound headlights with pupils, a curved bumper and a grille for teeth. Lean the whole truck forward.
A farm pickup from long ago with rounded fendersCurves, not boxes: a domed cab, bulging fenders over each wheel and wooden rails along the bed.
A monster truck in mid-air above a dirt rampTilt the body nose-up. The big tires drop low on long springs, with dust at the top of the ramp.
A monster truck standing on four huge tiresA small pickup body perched high over oversized tires as tall as the body itself. Show the springs between.
A parade truck covered in balloons and streamersDraw the truck lightly first, then cover its edges with clusters of circles and long wavy ribbons.
A pickup hauling a heap of watermelonsMelons are ovals with dark stripes, heaped higher than the sides of the bed. One sits against the tailgate.
A pickup piled for a move with a lamp and chair on topStack odd shapes above the bed and rope them down with crossed lines. The pile leans a little.
A pickup pulling a fishing boat on a two-wheel trailerA short bar joins truck and trailer. The boat sits tilted on the trailer with its bow toward the cab.
A pickup with a dog riding in the backA cab with a slanted windshield, then a low open bed with three sides. The dog's head shows above the side.
A raised pickup in three-quarter view splashing through mudBody high above the wheels, front wheels turned. Mud flies up behind each tire in fans of dots.
A wooden pull-along truck with a string on the frontPlain blocks, peg wheels with a dot in the middle, and a string running from the bumper to a small hand.
How this list was compiled: Original list written for Draw This Next on 2026-10-02: 48 trucks to draw in four kinds (work-site trucks, emergency and town trucks, big rigs and trailers, pickups and fun trucks), each marked easy, medium or hard. The views and the drawing hints are our own. No make or model is named and no military vehicle is on the list. Where a hint says how a type works, it was checked on 2026-10-02 against that type's article in the English Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org): Dump truck (a bed hinged at the rear, lifted at the front by hydraulic rams), Concrete mixer (a drum that rotates), Flatbed truck (a level bed with no sides or roof), Garbage truck (rear loaders with a hopper, automated side loaders), Tow truck (boom; wheel-lift yoke), Fire engine (an aerial ladder on a turntable), Aerial work platform (bucket truck), Tank truck (carries liquids), Fifth-wheel coupling (the horseshoe-shaped coupling on the tractor), Car carrier trailer, Logging truck, Monster truck (oversized tires) and Pickup truck (a cargo bed enclosed by three low walls). Wikipedia text is free to reuse under CC BY-SA 4.0. Licence: own work
How it works
Forty-eight trucks to draw, sorted by job: work-site trucks, emergency and town trucks, big rigs and pickups. Each hint gives the boxes and circles, then the one part that tells the job. The page opens on the 20 easy ones.
Read the full guide
Two boxes and three circles
Almost every truck here starts the same way: a small box for the cab, a bigger box behind it and circles underneath. A dump truck side on with its open bed level is exactly that. Change the second box and the job changes: a drum makes a mixer, a tank makes a tanker.
A truck doodle in a few lines
Keep the side view and leave out the details. A big rig side on pulling one long box trailer is two rectangles and a row of circles. The hard ones turn the truck to a three-quarter view or put it in a scene. Choose Any level under the button for all 48.
Draw the wheels last, all the same size, sitting on one ground line.
Questions and answers
What is the easiest truck to draw?
A dump truck or a pickup seen from the side. A pickup with a dog riding in the back is a cab, a low open bed and two wheels. Easy holds 20 trucks.
What makes a monster truck look like one?
The tires. A monster truck has oversized tires, so draw a small pickup body perched high over four wheels as tall as the body, with the springs showing between.
What is the plate on the back of a big rig cab?
The fifth wheel, a horseshoe-shaped coupling over the rear wheels. A pin under the front of the trailer locks into it. A big rig cab on its own with no trailer shows it.
Why does the drum on a cement mixer turn?
Inside the drum is a spiral blade. Turning one way pushes the concrete deeper into the drum for the trip, and turning the other way brings it out. In a drawing, stripes on the drum show the turning.