Knowing where to find the best vector art tutorials means you can add a personal stamp to your projects by creating your own vector graphics. There is loads of stock vector art available on the web, but sometimes you need something a little more special.

In this post, we round up the best vector art tutorials out there, so you can create digital illustrations that are infinitely flexible. Whether you're a beginner who wants to master the basics, or a seasoned pro who wants to sharpen your technique, we've got you covered.

These tutorials use software such as Illustrator CC, Affinity Designer or Sketch to demonstrate how to create your own vector design. If you would rather use a stock vector, or need some inspiration, check out our list of websites with the best free vector art).

Once you've motored through these, why not add some more tools to your toolbox and try our Photoshop tutorials and Illustrator tutorials?

What is vector art?

Unlike pixel-based images made in tools like Photoshop CC, vectors are based on mathematically defined lines and points, which combine to form shapes. So however you scale your vector art up or down, it will never become blurry or lose clarity.

For more on the difference between vector and raster images, plus more handy works and phrases you might be getting confused, take a look at our post on key terms every graphic designer should know.

In an increasingly digital world, demand for vector art is rising. So let's get going with the best vector art tutorials around.

Get Adobe Illustrator now

One of the best and easiest ways to create amazing vector art is with Adobe Illustrator. You can buy the software through Adobe’s CC All Apps option – which gives you access to the entire CC suite of desktop and mobile creative apps. The plan also includes 100GB of cloud storage, Adobe Portfolio, Adobe Fonts, and Adobe Spark with premium features. (Alternatively, if you're a student or teacher you can save up to 60% on CC.)View Deal

01. Start making artwork

If you’re a total beginner at making vector art in Adobe Illustrator, here’s a great place to start. The software's makers explain how to easy build your artwork from simple vector shapes that you can adjust, combine, and colour to make eye-catching illustrations.

02. Create and edit shapes

Continuing on from the previous introduction, this tutorial from Adobe sets out the basics of creating and editing shapes in Adobe Illustrator CC, including how to draw combine, and trace shapes.

03. Vectors Explained! Affinity Designer Tutorial

Adobe Illustrator is not the only tool available for the creation of vector art: an increasingly popular alternative is Affinity Designer. This Affinity Designer tutorial explains how vectors compare to bitmap/raster images, how vectors are made, which apps use vectors, why you need to export your work, and the best tips for keeping your final design looking sharp and crisp.

04. A beginner’s guide to vectors with Affinity Designer

Here, Mike Mangialardi provides a detailed guide to creating a basic vector graphic image using this software, which can be followed by anyone at any level. Even if you’re not using Affinity Designer, you will learn a lot about vectors here that you can apply to your work in other tools.

05. Create a vector illustration from start to finish

Pro illustrator and blogger Chris Spooner believes that Illustrator’s range of shape tools can be used to construct cool vector illustrations of absolutely anything. He demonstrates this here by walking through his process for creating a simple illustration of a water gun. This is all completed using Illustrator’s basic tools, then the Live Paint tool is used to add colour.

06. Transitioning from Adobe Illustrator to Affinity Designer

Maybe you’re already practised making vector art in Illustrator but you’re a novice when it comes to Affinity Designer? To help you out, Andrei Stefan here walks you through the process of switching from Adobe Illustrator to Affinity Designer, listing the key road bumps that you may have to conquer along the way.

07. How to vector hand lettering

Would you like to convert your hand lettering into vector graphics format? In this video from Scott Biersack, he shows you exactly how to do that in Adobe Illustrator.

08. Create colourful vector character art

This Illustrator tutorial from Digital Arts walks you through how to turn a hand-drawn sketch into a coloured digital vector file, taking in colour adjustments, depth and composition. The basic skills you'll learn here will help you to create scalable character vectors again and again.

09. How to make a check icon

In this tutorial, Andrei Stefan walks you through the process of making a simple vector icon design, a check or tick icon, using Adobe Illustrator, from start to finish.

Next page: Intermediate vector art tutorials