This printable features a continuous pattern of regular hexagons with an exact side length of 1cm. The hexagonal grid is a highly versatile geometric pattern utilized across multiple academic and gaming disciplines.

Key Features:

Exact Proportions: Mathematically perfect hexagons with 10mm sides.
Edge-to-Edge Pattern: Seamless repeating pattern across the entire page.
Perfect Fit: Sized natively for LETTER paper.

Common Applications

Quilting: Highly adaptable pattern favored for English paper piecing.
Game Design: Excellent for board game map tile prototyping.
Art & Design: Useful for creating geometric tessellations and patterns.

Printing Guidelines

To ensure the hexagons print at the exact specified size:

In your print settings, ensure the scale is set to “Actual Size” (100%).
Do not select “Fit to Printable Area”, as this will shrink the hexagons.
Tip: For tabletop gaming battle maps, print on heavy cardstock and place inside clear plastic protectors for use with dry-erase markers.

Generate Custom Hex Paper

Need larger hexagons or a lighter colored grid? Use the Interactive Hex Grid Generator at the top of this page to customize the side length, line weight, and color directly in your browser.

By the Numbers

Side length: 10mm (0.39in)
Width across flats: 17.3mm (0.68in) – side length × √3
Height point-to-point: 20mm (0.79in) – side length × 2

Who This Is For

A middle-ground hex size – smaller than the 1-inch battle-map standard, larger than the 1/4-inch organic chemistry grid – useful for general hex-based mapmaking or puzzle design.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I print this template on a different paper size?

Yes, but the measurements are calibrated specifically for US Letter (8.5 × 11 in). If you print on a different sheet size without matching scale, the printer will stretch or shrink every hexagon to fit, which throws off the exact side length. Use the generator to rebuild the template natively for your target size instead of rescaling this one.

What does the Interactive Generator let me change that this static PDF doesn’t?

This page is a fixed, pre-configured version. The generator behind it exposes hex size, line weight, and color as live sliders, with a preview that updates as you drag them – useful for a hex size that doesn’t match one of the three presets on this site.

Also Available

This 1cm hex sits between the two size-specific options on this site. For the tabletop-gaming standard, see D&D Battle Map (1 inch / 25.4mm). For the compact size built for ring structures, see Organic Chemistry (1/4 inch / 6.35mm).

One More Thing

A 1cm hex is large enough to letter a short label inside each cell by hand, which makes it a reasonable middle ground for general-purpose hex mapmaking that isn’t tied to a specific miniature or molecule scale.

Storage and Care

For hex-based maps you’ll reuse across multiple sessions, consider printing on cardstock and covering it with a clear sheet protector – a dry-erase or wet-erase marker on the plastic lets you mark and clear terrain or tokens repeatedly without reprinting the underlying grid.

Using This Digitally

If you map or sketch on a tablet instead of printing, this PDF opens directly in most PDF markup or VTT-adjacent apps (GoodNotes, Notability, or as a background layer in digital tabletop tools) – import it once and duplicate the page for repeated use, rather than re-downloading a fresh PDF each time. The hex geometry stays exact whether you’re working digitally or on paper, since it’s the same vector file either way.

A Note on Color

All line and guide colors on this site are chosen to photograph and photocopy predictably – if you plan to scan or copy a finished page rather than keep the original, a quick test copy is worth running before you commit a whole project to one setting, since screen colors and printed colors don’t always match exactly.

1cm Hex Grid Paper - LETTER