How to read a cross stitch pattern
A chart from this site is a grid plus a color list. You do not need an account to view it. Patterns saved here stay in this browser until you export a JSON file.
1. One cell is one cross
A filled cell is a full cross stitch. An empty cell is unstitched fabric. This editor does not draw half stitches or backstitch.
2. The symbol names the color
On a symbol chart, the same mark always means the same floss. The printable PDF lists Symbol, Number, Name, Stitches, and Skeins. The free symbol PNG does not include that table.
3. Count in tens
Every 10th grid line is thicker. Use those blocks to keep your place. Page edges on the PDF overlap by one 10-stitch block so a block is not split across pages.
4. Start at the center
Red and blue center lines mark the middle of the design. Match them to the center of the fabric.
5. Read the finished size separately from the stitch count
140 stitches on 14-count Aida is 10 inches. The same stitch count on 28-count fabric over two threads is also 10 inches. Other counts are on the cross stitch calculator.
The PDF is laid out for a symbol chart that Pattern Keeper-style apps can often import, but this site has not been checked on a Pattern Keeper device, so it does not claim that import works.
Practice on a free pattern or follow the beginners guide.