Today, I want to take a closer look at one of the most recognizable national flags in the world: the Swiss flag. While its design may seem simple—a white cross on a red background—this flag is often reproduced incorrectly. That’s something I discovered firsthand while working on a video project that required a high-resolution version of the flag. After browsing through countless sources online, I kept running into the same issues: wrong proportions and, most commonly, the wrong shape.
Contrary to popular belief, the Swiss flag is not a red rectangle with a white cross. It is, in fact, a perfect square. Alongside Vatican City, Switzerland is one of only two countries with a square national flag. That might sound like a small detail, but it’s a crucial one—especially when the goal is to represent the flag accurately and respectfully.
If you’ve seen a red rectangle with a white cross, that’s not the Swiss flag. It’s a common and unfortunate misrepresentation. And it’s not just amateurs making this mistake—even AI-generated answers have gotten it wrong. When I asked ChatGPT to describe the layout, it returned a neat-looking solution based on a 5 by 5 grid, with a central square cross. It looked okay at first glance, but it was factually incorrect.
The key detail lies in the proportions of the cross. The vertical and horizontal arms are not perfect squares—each arm should be one-sixth longer than it is wide. That subtle ratio makes all the difference. It’s what separates a generic white cross from an authentic Swiss emblem.
To solve this, I decided to create my own version of the Swiss flag—built entirely from scratch, at high resolution, and with precision in mind. I also documented the full process in a video tutorial, where I walk through two different methods of constructing the flag correctly.
The first method uses a 5 by 5 grid, followed by a 6 by 6 overlay to extend the arms to the proper length. Starting with a 90 by 90 cm base square, the grid method allows for precise adjustments. This approach is quick and easy to apply, but requires that extra overlay to get the arm proportions right.
The second method uses a 30 by 30 unit grid. With this more refined layout, you only need a single grid to position the cross accurately. You begin with a central square (6 by 6 units) and extend each arm to 7 units in length, while keeping the width at 6 units. This method also ensures an even 5-unit margin around the cross, making the layout clean and geometrically sound.
To make the process even easier, I’ve made the Adobe Illustrator (.ai) file available for download. It includes neatly organized layers and construction guides that follow the exact principles shown in the video. Whether you’re a designer working on a client project, a teacher creating educational materials, or simply a curious observer of flag design, this resource is free to use and adapt.
This post is for anyone who believes that accuracy in design matters, especially when it comes to national symbols. If this guide helped you or if you learned something new, I’d love it if you shared the video, left a comment, or subscribed to the Craig Media Labs YouTube channel.
You can download the Illustrator file here: Swiss National Flag.ai
Watch the Video here: Creating the Swiss Flag
Thanks for reading and for caring about the details.