Ultimate Guide to the Best Colored Pencils – Must-Know Facts for Hobbyists and Artists

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Fine art colored pencils are beautifully versatile in their usage and a medium for everyone, given that you know what the best colored pencils for your needs are. Not only do kids enjoy them in their first artistic activities and for their coloring books (and their parents, since they are much cleaner in usage, more affordable than other mediums, and simpler to handle).

The coloring craze has spilled over to the grown-ups as a serious leisurely pursuit, appreciated for its calming and meditative effects so that there is a wide range of adult colored pencils on the market today. And, of course, they are beloved by artists and hobbyists for creating stunning images from intricate patterns to photorealist masterpieces.

Colored Pencils 3

But what is the best brand of colored pencils? We will both introduce the best colored pencils for coloring books and for artists who like to draw freehand.

No matter if you are completely new to the medium or are looking to advance your colored pencils skills, in this post, we will help you find out which colored pencils are best for you and your endeavors in your drawings. Colored pencils might look simple, but there are many factors that you should pay attention to. We will look at key parameters like quality (artist colored pencils vs student or scholastic colored pencils), permanence, consistency, the types of colour pencils, and colored pencils brands, which are central factors to consider when you want to make the right decision.

Colored Pencils 1

Best Colored Pencils: Our Choices

  • Popular
    Faber-Castell Poly-chromos
  • Caran d’Ache Luminance
  • Popular
    Prismacolor Premier Soft Core
  • Derwent Inktense
  • Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor
QualitiesPopular
Faber-Castell Poly-chromos		Caran d’Ache LuminancePopular
Prismacolor Premier Soft Core		Derwent InktenseLyra Rembrandt Polycolor
Qualities$$$$$$$$$$
Pigment Loadhighvery highmediumvery highhigh
Consistencyfirmsmoothvery smoothfirmvery smooth
Overall Satisfactionvery goodexcellentvery goodvery goodvery good
 Buy NowBuy NowBuy NowBuy NowBuy Now

Some Background about Colored Pencils

Although professional colored pencils have existed for more than a century, the art world has traditionally treated the medium with less admiration than other mediums for art. Colored pencils had been used for marking decades prior, yet it was not until the early 20th century that professional artist colored pencils were manufactured. But still, at this point in the history of colored pencils, most artists only used them for sketching and planning, but not for creating finished artworks. Some of the earliest companies to produce colored pencils for artist use were Faber-Castell, Caran d’Arche, followed by Berol Prismacolor and Derwent. As we will see further down below in our colored pencil comparison, these manufacturers still rank among the top colored pencil brands.

The discovery of new methods and techniques alongside the development of lightfast qualities by different brands of colored pencils enabled the medium to compete with others such as acrylics, watercolors, and gouache. From the 1960s onward, fine artists started to embrace the medium for creating expressive sketching – colored pencils were especially appreciated for their versatility. This sparked the formation of authoritative organizations such as the Colored Pencil Society of America (CPSA), which not only promotes colored pencil art as fine art but also strives to set lightfastness standards for colored pencil manufacturers. Today, the best colour pencils are considered a legitimate medium for artists, hobbyists, and colorists of all ages.

Colored Pencils 11

Why We Love Using Colored Pencils

Colored Pencils are amazingly versatile in their usage. They allow the application of light, translucent colors for transparent effects, which is great for shading and coloring, giving your artwork a translucent quality. Or you can use fine-touch colored pencils as bold, opaque colors by either pressing the pencil hard onto the paper or by layering and blending. You will usually work from light to dark and gradually build up your colors, up to a point where you can mimic other painting techniques. And indeed, some colored pencil works will approach such an intensity that they look like a painting in acrylics, oil, or gouache!

Besides their versatility, colored pencils are quick and clean. You just have to pick your colored pencils box up to use them, no need to put on special clothes, to make sure the windows are open, or to get tools out like brushes, water, and binders! Your colored pencils are light and portable so that you can take them with you to any location. No need for many extra accessories, just take a box of colored pencils, a sharpener, and a simple sketchbook. There are specific cases for colored pencils out there for you to make carrying your medium even more convenient. After you are done, there is nothing to wash or clean up. You are good to go with minimal equipment and your enthusiasm.

One further big pro is that precision work is possible with good colored pencils. You can control exactly where the tip of the pencil is going to go on the piece of paper and where to move it once it gets there. You won’t have to handle ‘surprises’ that other media such as aquarelle might challenge you with – even if such surprises can turn out to become masterpieces. Therefore, colored pencils are not only great for rendering art that is abstract and expressive, but also for photorealistic and detailed colored pencils art.

The best color pencil quality is ideal for blending to create tonal gradations. You can create specific hues and tones by layering colors and blending colored pencils. Compared to liquid colors or watercolors, with which you can directly mix one color with another one, the range of mixing colored pencils is limited. This is why most artist-grade colored pencils are offered in a wide array of colors, including skin-colored pencils, pastel colored pencils, and metallic colored pencils, that can be purchased individually for different hues and shades. Colored pencils can achieve great smooth effects with burnishing or layering of colors, or with the help of blender pencils and solvents. Use the best blending colored pencils to create effects that are so smooth that they will resemble oil paintings.

Colored Pencils 6

Colored art pencils are so versatile that you can combine them with other media. You can match a color pencil brand with markers, watercolors, crayons, pastels, acrylics, and any other medium you fancy. No matter what medium you decide to combine, colored pencils are usually great for adding some organic touch and detail. Usually, good color pencils are easier to remove compared to any kind of paint or let alone markers. You can try to erase the color, however, some of the pigment will remain. If your technique requires a lot of erasing work, you can opt for specific erasable colored pencils, which will come in handy if you need to make pre-sketches or draw construction lines.

Erasable Colored Pencils

Factors to Consider when Buying Colored Pencils

Determining the best pencil colours to buy can be challenging. At the end which colored pencils best suit your needs will come down to personal preference. To get started on the right path, we want to introduce some of our favorite colored pencils that you should definitely give a try. The following factors will help you decide, what you want to pay attention to when starting on your art journey.

QUALITY

Usually, a colored pencil will consist of a narrow, pigmented core encased in a wooden shaft. Only in some cases will colored pencils be woodless, meaning that they lack the wooden shaft on the outside, and instead, the entire pencil will be just based on the core, covered in a thin lacquer coating. The core of colored pencils is made from pigment, binding agents, and additives. Here is where the big differences come in since colored pencils can vary significantly in quality.

Different concentrations of pigment, softness, and durability of the core are all indicative of the quality of a particular brand. The two major quality categories are artist grade and student grade. Most renowned manufacturers offer both professional or artist and student-grade colored pencils in two product lines to target different consumer needs.

Colored Pencils 1

PROFESSIONAL COLORED PENCILS

Professional or artist-grade colored pencils usually contain a higher concentration of high-quality pigments and less binder. It is the pigment content that makes the colors of these special colored pencils richer and more vibrant. You can blend colored pencils of artist quality to a point where colored pencil drawings resemble oil or acrylic paintings.

The best artist colored pencils come with a lightfastness rating, referring to the pigment’s ability to resist UV rays that can lead to fading of the pigment. This is an important reference when it comes to choosing the best color pencil brand for your needs.

Compared to student-grade pencils, the core of the best professional artist colored pencils will be much more durable and softer, which makes layering and blending on paper easily. As the best colored pencils for blending, the colors will lay down smoothly on the drawing surface and provide great coverage with less effort.

Manufacturers usually offer a much broader range of colors in their professional-grade products. Most of the time, it is possible to purchase the pencils individually so that you can build your own customized colored pencils collection.

Artist-grade colored pencils are not just for professionals. Hobbyists and beginners alike will enjoy the smooth texture much more than the student-grade counterpart. Even if the price is higher, you will be paying for quality and consistency.

Great brands of artist-quality pencils are Derwent Coloursoft, Faber-Castell Polychromos, Caran d’Ache, and Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils.

Derwent Colorsoft

Derwent Colorsoft

Faber Castell Polychromos

Faber Castell Polychromos

Caran d’Ache

Caran d’Ache

Prismacolor Premier

Prismacolor Premier

STUDENT GRADE COLORED PENCILS

With student-grade pencils, you cannot create drawings that are as vibrant as if drawn with professional pencils. The reason is simple: Even the best colored pencils for students won’t contain strong enough pigments. They contain more binders and less pigment in their core, resulting in less intense colors. Usually, the white of the paper will shine through, since the pencil cannot completely cover the surface. To achieve more intense results, the artist will have to press very hard to have enough color to cover the paper.

Student grade pencils generally do not include lightfastness ratings, so that it is hard to know what results to expect over time. Even the best brand for colored pencils for students might be prone to fading when exposed to light. Furthermore, the range of colors will be much more limited compared to an artist-grade colored pencils set.

Nonetheless, student grade pencils can be ideal for grade school students, who just want to experiment with the colors, or for coloring book enthusiasts, who do not try to achieve highly intensive results. However, from our view, the best colored pencils for beginners will be good blending colored pencils of artist-grade, since you will be able to create vibrant results much more easily.

You will find student-grade pencils not only in artist stores, but also in grocery stores, department stores, and any craft store for reasonable prices.

Examples of the best cheap colored pencils are Prang colored pencils, Sargent colored pencils, and Crayola.

Prang Colored Pencils

Prang Colored Pencils

Sargent colored pencils

Sargent colored pencils

Crayola

Crayola

BINDER

Besides differences in quality, colored pencils are also manufactured in three different types: There are wax-based colored pencils, oil-based colored pencils, and water-soluble pencils. These different kinds of colored pencils can be used in the same artwork, they can be blended without a problem. This is a great advantage when you don’t want to commit to one specific brand of colored pencils.

WAX-BASED

The large majority of pencils are wax-based and they are good colored pencils for beginners and advanced artists alike. They are included in almost all color pencil brand lines and can be found among both artist and student grades.

Compared to oil-based pencils, the best wax colored pencils have a softer core. They have a buttery texture that is ideal for blending, layering, and burnishing. The wax helps to make your marks stick to the surface or to other layers of pencils, which means that you can apply multiple layers without having to worry about smearing. Wax-based pencils come in a broad range of consistencies, from the harder ones made for student grade lines to the softer varieties created for artist use.

Besides being some of the most vibrant colored pencils out there, you should be aware that even the best wax-based colored pencils are prone to wax-bloom – a thin waxy film that can form over the surface of the drawing and make it look hazy. This is a natural oxidation process that can cause the wax to rise to the surface of your drawing. You can usually just wipe the haze away with a dry cloth and then seal it with a fixative, which will prevent further wax bloom.

Furthermore, you need to treat the softer wax-based colored pencils with extra care, since due to their sensitive cores, wax-based pencils break more easily than their oil-based counterparts. Due to their softer cores, they quickly lose their sharp point after sharpening and wear down faster. It is best to organize colored pencils in a utility pencil case or a canvas roll-up case with elastic ribbons.

Dainayw Canvas Pencil Wrap

 OIL-BASED

Oil-based colored pencils brands are less common than wax-based ones. They are only available in some manufacturers’ premium lines and are therefore more expensive. The most common oil-colored pencils are Faber-Castell Colored Pencils Polychromos, Koh-i-Noor Polycolor, and Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor, and Caran d’Ache Pablo Colored Pencils.

Faber Castell Polychromos 2

Faber Castell Polychromos

Koh-i-Noor Polycolor

Koh-i-Noor Polycolor

Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor

Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor

Caran d’Ache Pablo Colored Pencils

This type of pencil uses mainly oil and only a small amount of wax to hold the pigment and to help distribute the color on the paper. Since oil-based pencils have a harder core than wax-based ones, they are less prone to breakage and keep a sharp point for longer. This means you will not have to sharpen colored pencils as often.

While the best oil-based colored pencils do layer and blend well, they do not feel as buttery which is the consistency of wax-based pencils. Although still smooth, you won’t be able to create color density and intensity as quickly as with wax-based pencils.

While one big advantage of oil-based colored pencils is that there won’t be any wax-bloom, there are some cons as well: Even the best colored pencils for artists with oil-based cores will be prone to smearing, and erasing is much harder.

WATER-SOLUBLE

Water-soluble colored pencils are also known as watercolor pencils or aquarelle pencils, and they come in both student and artist grades. They are named this way since they have a water-soluble binder in their core and you can use water as a solvent to blend your pencil marks on the paper surface. With these pencils, you have the option to work dry as with wax-based pencils, or to use them wet with a brush or sponge.

One difference between watercolor pencils and colored pencils that are wax or oil-based is that the core of the water-soluble pencils is much harder. When you use them dry, they won’t cover the surface as completely and they do not burnish or layer as well as the other two types of pencils. Yet when you strive to create a light application and then go over it with a brush tipped in water, the pencil marks will be blended and the pigment spreads, creating beautiful effects as if painted with watercolors. This is ideal for creating the base for further colored pencil drawings on top for more detail.

For a different technique, some artists also use the best watercolor colored pencils in combination with regular watercolors or with regular colored pencils.

Examples of the best watercolor pencils are Derwent Watercolor pencils, Derwent Inktense, Prismacolor Water-Soluble Pencils, Koh-i-Noor Aquarelle, and Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer Watercolor Pencils.

Derwent Watercolor pencils

Derwent Watercolor pencils

Derwent Inktense

Derwent Inktense

Prismacolor Water-Soluble Pencils

Prismacolor Water-Soluble Pencils

Koh-i-Noor Aquarelle

Koh-i-Noor Aquarelle

Faber-Castell Aquarelle Pencils

Faber-Castell Aquarelle Pencils

CORE

The consistency of the core is an important factor that will have an impact on how much you enjoy your colored pencils. The core consistency varies across pencil formulas and brands and depends on the combination of ingredients used by the manufacturer. Usually, the core of the pencil will be made up of pigment, gum binder, wax or oil, and filler material, encased in cedarwood. Manufacturers alter this recipe to create pencils that possess specific qualities. While student-grade colored pencils are often on the harder side, both soft and hard formulas can be of superior quality.

SOFT CORE

Soft core colored pencils lay down color more easily. They are ideal for shading and blending. The best colored pencils for drawing will have a smooth, creamy-buttery texture, while inferior products can be grainy and crumbly.

The majority of artists’ colored pencils have softer cores, simply because they contain more pigment and less filler and binder material. The best colour pencils for drawing lead to vibrant results, that can even resemble oil paintings. On the flip side, soft colored pencils won’t hold a point as well as the hard-core counterparts and you will have to sharpen them more often.

HARD CORE

Hard core colored pencils are great for outlining and drawing sharp edges. They can be sharpened to a very fine point, that will keep strong even if you push hard against the surface. Since they are not prone to crumble, you can create fine lines and detailed images, and they are the best colored pencils for portraits, hair, or animal fur. In general, hard core colored pencils are considered the best colored pencils for realistic drawing by many artists.

Scholastic colored pencils and cheap colored pencils are mostly hard since manufacturers use formulas with higher percentages of filler and binder and less costly pigment. But there are also brands of artistic colored pencils that specifically focus on manufacturing the best quality pencil colors with hard cores, such as Prismacolor Verithin Colored Pencils.

Prismacolor Verithin Colored Pencils

Prismacolor Verithin Colored Pencils

Some artists will find hard colored pencils less enjoyably since it takes more effort to apply the color and to blend it. You have to be careful not to press too hard when drawing since it can damage the paper surface. When the surface is damaged, it can be difficult to erase colored pencils, since this will cause further damage to even the best paper for colored pencils.

What are the best colored pencils, soft- or hard-core? – In the end, if you decide to use soft- or hard-core colored pencils depends on your personal preference and the style of your art. The majority of beginners and colorists will believe the best coloring pencils for adults are soft colored pencils since they will lay down vibrant colors more smoothly. Others who are more focused on detail work will fathom the hard-core version as the best colored pencils, that can be sharpened to a strong point when necessary. Either way, you will find good-quality colored pencils on both ends of the spectrum of core consistency!

PERMANENCE

If you are a fine artist and are producing artwork for sale, the longevity of your art will have a high priority. Naturally, you want the artwork that your collectors and clients purchase to last many years. The idea that your art might fade in a few years is abhorrent indeed!

To make sure your artwork looks good for years, you should use the best materials available. This includes superior paper that has proven to hold up under use and time and high-quality colored pencils with good lightfastness ratings. Yet you should know that there is no such thing as absolute ‘permanent’ quality even in so-called lightfast colored pencils.

Lightfastness is a measurement of a pigment’s ability to resist discoloration or fading under normal light and atmosphere circumstances. All art media including the best drawing colored pencils are subject to fading over time since light and air humidity breaks down molecular bonds of colors and can have an impact on surfaces such as paper and canvas. The general (yet not universal) rule of thumb is that the higher the quality of the pencil, the more lightfast.

If you are not a professional artist or you are using your pencil for coloring, and you are using high-quality artist-grade pencils, there is no need to worry about lightfastness. For most hobby artists, the lightfastness of the best artist colored pencils will provide sufficient fade-resistance.

However, if you draw professionally, you need to know that permanence does not only differ between brands, but also among pencils of the same brand. The reason is that every specific pigment has its own grade of lightfastness. Therefore, good colored pencil brands will provide lightfastness ratings for every pencil and often mark the pencils accordingly. An example of a manufacturer listing the rating on the pencils themselves is Faber-Castell Polychromos. For third-party lightfastness ratings of the best colored pencils for professional artists, you can check out the website of the Colored Pencil Society of America.

COLOR

Due to their solid consistency, colored pencils are not easy to mix. Unlike other mediums such as acrylics and gouache, colors cannot simply be blended together to create new hues and tones. Therefore, the best quality colored pencils come in a wide range of colors that you can choose from. A brand often provides around 150 colored pencils or even 200 colored pencils in one product line, which you can purchase as a large set of colored pencils or individually.

A good approach is to start with a colored pencils kit of around 48 colored pencils to experiment with, and then expand your collection by buying additional pencils individually when you need them. Manufacturers of the best color pencils for artists such as Faber-Castell will provide color charts for reference.

Furthermore, learning the right layering and blending techniques and choosing good colored pencils for blending will help you create additional shades and tints that you do not get straight out of your colored pencil box. Blend colored pencils by overlaying lightly applied layers of each color. The biggest mistake you can make is to apply too heavy of a layer first. If you want to create a gradual change, start with a slight overlap in the middle, and then continue to progressively overlap each layer further.

You can also use a colorless blending pencil alongside your high-end colored pencils which will help you blend colors without adding further pigment. For this technique, lay down a fine layer of the colorless blender first and then add your lightest color. Since dark colors can be difficult to blend once they adhere to the paper, this base will be helpful for this issue.

MEDIUMS

Mediums are optional when it comes to drawing with the best art colored pencils. Except for that you will need water when creating aquarelle-like images using water-soluble pencils, mediums are not essential.

If you are putting down heavy layers of pigment for your beautiful color pencil drawings, you might want to apply fixative to your finished work, which will prevent wax-bloom and smudging. The fixative will create a pleasing sheen and intensify or darken the colors. However, whether you like this effect or not comes down to personal preference. If you are not familiar with using a fixative, it is always a good idea to try it first on a sample piece.

There are two different kinds of fixative available for the use with colored pencils: Workable and final fixative. Workable fixative seals the first or first few layers of pigment, making sure they don’t become smudged. This way you can add more layers of colored pencils without destroying what you have put down already. Final fixative is applied to finished pieces and fulfills the main function of protecting from UV rays and oxygen, which can alter the quality of your work. It further prevents wax-bloom.

Winsor & Newton Artists' Fixative

Winsor & Newton Artists’ Fixative

While fixatives come in convenient spray cans, be aware of the fumes and only use them outside or in very well-ventilated rooms and wear a face mask.

BRANDS

A huge range of brands for colored pencils is available, all offering different qualities, lightfastness ratings, pigment density, and price. While there are some good cheap colored pencils on the market, there is a clear cut when you compare colored pencils of student quality and professional quality colored pencils. You will notice a big difference between the best affordable colored pencils and premium colored pencils or a professional colored pencil set. However, when it comes to leading brands, the choice will come down to personal preference.

We highly appreciate the colored pencils by the following brands, that manufacture some of the world best colored pencils:

Caran d’Ache

Faber Castell

Prismacolor

Derwent

Koh-I-Noor

One great characteristic of colored pencils is that you can combine the colors of different brands in the same piece without a problem. This way you do not have to restrict yourself to just one brand and can build up a custom colored pencils set. When you are just starting, you can get individual pencils from different brands and test them to find out your personal preference. Once you know what you like, you can still invest in a larger set.

Why You Can Trust Our Ratings

Pigment Pool takes testing and rating of art supplies very seriously. We take a lot of time testing and researching and will keep updating our colored pencils reviews every year. Naturally, none of the items in our list has been paid for by the manufacturing companies so that we are completely unbiased.

All the products you find in our colored pencil reviews passed our test, which means you will be on the safe side when picking one or more of the products. We ensure that you won’t waste your money when relying on our list!

The Best Colored Pencils for all Needs

Faber-Castell Polychromos

Faber Castell Polychromos are our artist-quality pencils of choice with a great quality of color pigments. These German colored pencils rank both among the best lightfast colored pencils and the best oil-colored pencils, they are wonderfully intense and lay down nicely.

Faber-Castell Polychromos Pencil Set Set of 60

Faber-Castell Polychromos Pencil Set of 60

Since they are oil-based, the pencil cores are slightly firmer than most other brands, but without sacrificing color intensity, making them rank among the best colored pencils for sketching. Thanks to their buttery smooth consistency, you can blend and layer Faber Castell Prismacolor exceptionally well and apply the color without too much pressure. You can enjoy all the advantages of professional quality without having to deal with wax-bloom.

The hard core of these top colored pencils provides sharp, fine lines without smudging, which is ideal for drawing photorealist faces, animals, and still lifes, and making them the best colored pencils for fashion sketching. The colors are water-resistant, which is important for professional artists who need to create archival quality artworks. And thanks to being encased in California cedar, the pencils are extra break-resistant, definitely making them the best Faber Castell colored pencils.

Faber-Castell 60 Colored Pencils: This colored pencils tin set of 60 Faber-Castell colored pencils is a great starting point for a diverse range of styles. It includes some of the best colored pencils for skin tones and flesh-tone colored pencils. You can purchase up to 120 colored pencils individually, which comes in handy when you want to extend your collection.

Get Faber-Castell Polychromos cheapest price here!

Caran d’Ache Luminance

The best colored pencils brand for artists is arguably Caran d’Ache. These wax-based pencils of the Luminance line are the finest on the market but are also the most expensive colored pencils. The higher price pays off in excellent quality pigments with great lightfastness ratings and wonderfully vibrant colors. We dare to state, these are the best pencil colors for artists!

Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils Set of 40

Caran d’Ache Luminance Colored Pencils Set of 40

Every shade of these best brand colored pencils for an artist lays down nicely and the texture of the pencil core is pleasantly smooth and creamy. This allows for burnishing and gradations, making Luminance the best blendable colored pencils. The waxy formulation feels a bit crumbly on the drawing surface but allows it to be layered almost like an oil pastel. The cases are made of environmentally friendly California cedar.

These best professional pencils are a bit more expensive so that it makes sense to start with a smaller set and extend it as you go along. Or you might want to apply them together with other brands of colored pencils, using the less waxy one for the primary layers of the drawing and the Caran d’Ache for the final layers once the tooth is getting filled with pigment.

This set of 40 pencils is ideal to get started, no need to invest in a large set of colored pencils in the beginning. You can buy additional pencils by Caran d’Ache individually once you have fallen in love with them as we have. Check out the best colored pencils for art-ambitious projects now!

Get the best colored pencils in the world here!

Prismacolor Premier Soft Core

You will get the greatest value for money with these Prismacolor colored pencils. Compared to all other brands of artist-grade colored pencils, Prismacolor are the smoothest colored pencils with the softest core, and you will love their buttery consistency, rich laydown, and great color saturation.

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils Set of 48

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils Set of 48

A huge range of 150 Prisma colored pencils is available in sets as well as individually. They are cheaper than many other artists grade pencils, making Prismacolor the best brand of colored pencils regarding their price-performance ratio.

On the flip side, while being the best soft core colored pencils out there, due to their buttery consistency premier colored pencils won’t hold a point as well as other artist grade pencils, which can be difficult when you are focusing on detail work. You will also have to sharpen these creamy colored pencils more often and they are prone to breakage so that you will need to take good care of them.

Yet these softest colored pencils are incredibly versatile and besides professional use we also consider them to be the best colored pencils for adults and children coloring projects: They are the easiest pro colored pencils to blend, have the richest pigments, and a beautifully soft feel.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils 48 Set: You can get started with the best Prismacolor pencils in this set of 48, which will bring life to your artistic activities. Flesh tones colored pencils included!

Get your professional colour pencil set by Prismacolor now!

Derwent Inktense

The Inktense product line by Derwent is the best colored pencil brand when it comes to versatility. Derwent colored pencils are water-soluble, letting you create vibrant ink-like colors when combined with water. Different from ordinary watercolor pencils, these colored pencils for professional artists will be permanent after drying, which makes them perfect when you want to apply multiple layers of wash. You can even use them on fabric such as silk and cotton and create beautiful translucent effects!

Derwent Inktense Pencil Set of 36

Derwent Inktense Pencil Set of 36

We were equally impressed by the strength and vibrancy of Derwent artist colored pencils when used without water. Altogether, there are 72 colored pencils available that are highly pigmented and work beautifully on their own.

At the same time, the blendability of light and dark tones, which can be challenging with normal pencils, was outstanding with Inktense colored pencils. The only disadvantage we found with these nice colored pencils was that not all of them have the best lightfastness ratings.

Derwent Colored Pencils 36 set: The pure, clean colors are ideal for expressive drawings, landscapes, greeting cards, and they are also some of the best colored pencils for adult coloring books. A set of 36 Derwent studio colored pencils is all you need to start your first ink experience!

Get the best Derwent colored pencils now!

Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor

The Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor are wonderful branded colored pencils from the German manufacturer Lyra, ranking among the best colour pencils for sketching. They are oil-based and available as single colored pencils up to 105-pieces. Each pencil offers a smooth and buttery consistency that many traditional wax-based pencils cannot achieve.

Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Premium Set of 72

Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Premium Set of 72

The Rembrandt colored pencils convinced us with their vividness and intensity, almost reaching up to the Caran d’Ache and Faber Castell sets but boasting a lower price than those two premium brands. That being said, they did require a heavier application to achieve the same results and were a tiny bit ‘scratchy’ on the paper surface.

Lyra Rembrandt Colored Pencils 72 Set: The set of 72 offers a lovely array of prismatic colored pencils for your best pencil color drawings of any theme you are wanting to create. It includes some of the best skin tone pencils. As for layering and color blending, you won’t have to deal with any wax bloom since being oil-based, allowing for better color stacking. The only disadvantage of the creaminess of the oil core is that the tip is a bit softer and more prone to breakage.

Blending is very simple and effective with the Lyra Rembrandt Pencils. The artist colored pencils set comes with the Lyra Splender blending tool which does a great job of blending colors. Besides the outstanding Derwent blender, we found that Lyra offers the second best colorless blender pencil on the market!

We believe this is the best brand of colored pencils for those who are looking for colored pencils oil-based on a budget!

Get your set of colored pencils by Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor now!

Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless

You are looking for cheap but good colored pencils? The Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless Colored Pencils are not considered professional art colored pencils but still captivated us with their unique properties at a very affordable price. According to our tests, they are great colored pencils for adults and some of the best colored pencils for kids alike, serving both as good artist colored pencils and as beginner-friendly tools. These best woodless colored pencils boast a highly pigmented 8 mm thick color strip in a lacquer coating. Each high-density pencil includes five times as much lead as a regular pencil!

Koh-I-Noor Woodless Colored Pencil Set of 24

Koh-I-Noor Woodless Colored Pencil Set of 24

These fancy colored pencils have a weighty feel in your hand, which is ideal for coloring, drawing, and illustrating. You can easily produce bold colors with the highly pigmented color strip without having to push down too hard. Although wax-based, they have excellent properties for layering and blending without significant waxy buildup.

Although officially beginner colored pencil quality and only available in sets of 12 colored pencils up to 24 colored pencils, the pigments maintain excellent light permanency for producing vibrant, durable pieces of art. Due to the small range of colors, they might not be the best colored pencils for artists and professionals. As erasable colored pencils, they were delightfully clean to work with.

The only caveat is that you have to take good care of your packs of colored pencils since they lack the protective layer of wood and are therefore prone to breakage. A pencil rolling off a table could easily snap. The best sharpener for colored pencils will be a hand sharpener since an electric sharpener tends to take away more of the precious material than needed.

These are the cheapest colored pencils in the ranks of the best coloring pencils for adults with a special touch, providing for great results and drawing fun!

Buy colored pencils by Koh-I-Noor now!

Frequently Asked Questions

After looking at the top-rated colored pencils in our pencils reviews, there were still some common questions that we got from our readers. Let’s explore them one by one.

How many colored pencils should I get?

Many artists like to have as many pencils as they can get their hands on. After all, there are all those lovely, vibrant colors! Although manufacturers use fairly similar pigments, most artists also like to combine different brands in their collections, since the formula, the hue, and the texture won’t be the same. It is great to combine pencils of different softness and smoothness in one piece of art for blending and shading.

But how many pencils do you need for a start?

Once you have decided which brand to choose, rather than buying the largest set you can afford, we recommend buying a middle-sized set of around 48 pencils. Learn to mix and blend colors to create additional tones and hues. As soon as you have mastered your techniques, you will be able to draw almost anything you want. Then buy some more colors from the same brand or another brand to create variety and add some depth to your artwork.

Blick Studio Artists' Colored Pencil Set of 48

Blick Studio Artists’ Colored Pencil Set of 48

How do I choose a color pencil?

When you love colored pencils picking good colored pencils for drawing does not have to be a headache. In the first place, it is a matter of personal preference and depends on what effects you want to achieve in your art. Some pencils are smooth, laying down opaque layers which will look more painterly. Others are harder and better suited when you want to draw details. Then there are pencils which are more appropriate for certain types of rough or smooth paper or other drawing surfaces.

Further consider what are the best colored pencils to use when you prefer certain techniques, such as in single or multiple layers, or with light or heavy pressure. The main decision will be if you decide to opt for wax-based colored pencils, which will usually be softer, providing intense and better coverage on the paper. Yet they break more easily and may develop wax-bloom when you apply heavy layers. Or you might choose oil-based pencils which are usually harder than wax-based ones. Here you will need to apply more pigment to get an intense color. If you want more versatility, opt for water-based pencils, with which you can create different textures in wet or dry techniques.

Colored Pencils_

How do you use colored pencils effectively?

There are many techniques you can apply when using colored pencils. There is no one best way to color with colored pencils, but rather multiple approaches which you can practice respectively. The five most basic techniques for creating texture and the best way to blend colored pencils are the following:

  • Stippling (placing lots of tiny dots on the paper with a sharp or a dull pencil)
  • Back and forth stroke (draw in a continuous back and forth motion without lifting the pencil off the drawing surface)
  • Hatching (drawing a series of parallel lines, which all go in the same direction; the pencil is lifted from the paper after each line and is then placed down repeatedly to create new lines)
  • Cross-hatching (hatching in one direction and then drawing another series of parallel lines going in another direction on top of the first set of hatching)
  • Scumbling (making continuous circular marks on the drawing surface without lifting the pencil)
  • Pressure shading (producing different shades by changing the amount of pressure you apply to the pencil, with light pressure producing light shades while heavy pressure creating darker shades)
  • Burnishing (blending your color pencils on the page until all white spaces of the surface are covered with pigment, leaving a smooth, waxy surface)

Use each of these techniques individually or combine them to create stunning effects!

To lessen finger fatigue, try to grip the pencils farther from their base to allow a more relaxed hold, wider coverage, and lighter strokes. This should be the main position of your hand when drawing and coloring. Only grip the pencil close to the base when you need more control and bolder strokes, for example when you are working with details or intricate patterns.

What is the best drawing paper for colored pencils?

Good art colored pencils also require the right kind of paper so that you can create the best drawing with colored pencils. As with so many art supplies, the question about the best type of paper for colored pencils comes down both to quality and personal preference. The methods you use with your colored pencils, the techniques of layering and blending will have a huge impact on what you want to look for in your paper.

What is the best paper for colored pencils when it comes to the paper surface? This is one of the most important things to consider when opting for a certain kind of paper. Do you need to use ultra-smooth paper or a rougher one? Always think about the results you are trying to achieve when deciding upon the best surface for your drawing.

Smooth paper (also called hot press, plate, or fine grain) is best when you are drawing photorealistic work or portraits. The texture will allow you to get smooth blending, for example when drawing skin. Since there are not any deep valleys in the tooth that need to get filled, your colors will naturally be more opaque and solid.

Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Papers - 16'' x 20'', Extra White, Hot Press, 5 Sheets

Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Papers – 16” x 20”, Extra White, Hot Press

Paper with more texture or ‘tooth’ allows for multiple layers since it provides the pigment material to grip on to. Artists prefer the rough paper for its flecked, uneven look that can be achieved when the pigment has not yet fully filled the valleys in the tooth, allowing the white paper to shine through. This gives the artwork a pleasant, expressive glow when applied properly. Furthermore, rough paper will be more appropriate when you are using a solvent to blend.

Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Papers - 16'' x 20'', Extra White, Cold Press

Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Papers – 16” x 20”, Extra White, Cold Press

No matter what texture, make sure that you buy acid-free paper. This is crucial since the acid in the paper will attack the fibers and cause them to turn yellow over time. For proper archival quality, look for paper that is made from 100 percent cotton, which will naturally be acid-free and will not deteriorate over time. Another advantage to pure cotton paper is that it is also strong and pliable, allowing it to stand up to more rough techniques.

Strathmore 300 Series Bristol Board Pads

Strathmore 300 Series Bristol Board Pads

One of our favorite papers for colored pencils is watercolor paper. You can use cold-pressed watercolor paper when you are planning to use solvent to blend your pigments. Since the solvent is a liquid, it is best to use paper that can handle wet media.

Legion Stonehenge Aqua Watercolor Blocks

Legion Stonehenge Aqua Watercolor Blocks

What is the best white pencil for highlights?

White highlight pencils are a must-have in your pencil collection. They are beautifully versatile since you can use them not only for adding highlights but also for creating creamy blends and for toning down strong colors. So, what are the best highlighter pencils?

Our top 3 favorite white pencils for highlighting, blending, and toning are:

Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencil - White

Caran d’Ache Luminance Colored Pencil – White

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil - White

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil – White

Derwent Coloursoft Pencil - White

Derwent Coloursoft Pencil – White

Since white formulas are often the base recipe for other colors of the full pencil set, the white of a brand will often tell you how good the overall set is. For example, when the white by your favorite brand has a good opaque and strong quality, their pastel yellows and pinks will usually be similarly sticky and opaque. On the contrary, if a white is weak and translucent, you can safely assume that most of their bright colors will have the same translucent quality.

What are the best pencils for coloring books?

Over the last couple of years, not only kids but adults alike have picked up coloring books as their chosen pastime. Coloring is a very relaxing, even meditative hobby, that lets you create beautiful artwork. If you pick the best art pencils for coloring, you can create wonderfully vibrant colors. Their pointy tips are ideal for details and shading, plus they are super simple to handle.

There is a wide variety out there when it comes to good colored pencils for adults. Choosing between the different manufacturers and brands, and looking at the respective formulas, qualities, and price points can be a daunting task. So, how to choose the best colored pencils for adult coloring, the best colored pencils for mandalas, and other themes?

The best colored pencils for coloring will share some basic characteristics:

  • The best leisure art colored pencils will be ‘artist’ quality and have a rich pigment content. This will ensure a smooth coloring of colors.
  • The best adult colored pencils will be available in a wide variety of colors. Even if good-quality pencils are blendable, it is best for beginners to start with a color selection that is not too narrow.
  • The best quality colored pencils for adults will have a sturdy wax-based or oil-based core, which glides smoothly on the paper.

Our top 3 choices when it comes to the best colored pencils for coloring books are

  • Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils: Best type of colored pencils regarding color intensity
  • Faber-Castell Polychromos Colored Pencils: Best colored pencil sets for adults regarding layering
  • Derwent Colorsoft Colored Pencils: Best colored pencil sets for adults regarding blending and burnishing

What is the best pencil sharpener for colored pencils?

Having a good quality pencil sharpener for your colored pencils is crucially important. Colored pencil cores are much softer than graphite pencil cores since they are usually wax or oil-based. Therefore, colored pencils including hard colored pencils require a sharpener with a very sharp blade and gentle sharpening motion to reduce the risk of damage.

What is the best way to sharpen colored pencils, manual or electric? Manual and electric pencil sharpeners both have their own advantages, and neither is objectively better than the other. Again, it comes down to personal preference and to what kind of pencils you use.

Manual sharpeners offer you full control over the sharpening process. You can be extra careful and minimize the risk of breaking your colored pencils. Yet manual sharpening is more tedious and slower than sharpening your pencils with an electric sharpener.

The best electric pencil sharpener for colored pencils guarantees quicker and more efficient sharpening. They will provide multiple settings so that you can achieve the desired sharpness. On the flip side, automatic sharpeners are more likely to break the tip of your pencil, especially when the core is particularly soft. Furthermore, they require either power cables or batteries.

Stainless steel is the typical material used in pencil sharpeners due to its resistance to damage and durability. You need to consider how many blades you want your sharpener to include, single-blade or double-blade. A double blade sharpener can make sense for providing different sharpness levels.

According to our tests, the best electric sharpener for colored pencils is the following:

Bostitch QuietSharp Glow Classroom Electric Pencil Sharpener

Bostitch QuietSharp Glow Classroom Electric Pencil Sharpener

X-Acto Mighty Pro Electric Pencil Sharpener

X-Acto Mighty Pro Electric Pencil Sharpener

Ticonderoga Electric Pencil Sharpener

Ticonderoga Electric Pencil Sharpener

 

Markers vs colored pencils: What is better?

The debate if markers or colored pencils are better for sketching and coloring has raged among artists for many years. While some claim that the speed you can lay color down on paper makes markers a better choice, other artists prefer the superior precision and control of colored pencils.

Each medium has its strengths and weaknesses and the best thing to do is to experiment with both media. Try out different techniques to see if markers or colored pencils work better for you. Maybe you will even discover that markers and colored pencils work well together instead of trying to choose one over the other.

When using markers and colored pencils together, the order in which the material is applied is important. Colored pencil applications should always be layered on top of the marker applications. While you can cover large areas of a surface in a short period of time with markers, it is hard to create sharp details. Furthermore, it is difficult to produce gradations of value and color. On the other side, colored pencils are not capable of covering large areas quickly, but you can produce sharp details, gradations, and beautiful contrasts.

When you are using a mixed media technique, the quality of products is even more important than in single-use. Make sure to use the best color pencil set for shading and blending and high-quality markers such as Copic.

Copic Original Marker

Copic Original Marker

Also make sure to use paper that is suitable both for markers and pencils, such as Vellum paper or Canson Marker Paper.

Borden & Riley Denril Multi-Media Vellum

Borden & Riley Denril Multi-Media Vellum

Canson Pro-Layout Marker Paper

Canson Pro-Layout Marker Paper

What are the best colored pencils for school?

Colored pencils play a major role in art education from pre-school to college. They are used in simple arts and crafts activities, science projects, and later in college or university for high-end art projects. Depending on the students’ age and the respective school project, there is a variety of colored pencils sets to choose from.

In a classroom with kids, it is common for art supplies to be dropped, smashed, or stepped on. Having a colored pencil that can handle this wear and tear is very important. From our view, the best colored pencils for toddlers and young school kids are the Crayola Colored Pencils. They are durable, provide a good selection, and come in bright colors at a low price. Even if their blending capabilities are not the best, the Crayola pencils do a good job of introducing color and color theory. They are very durable and able to hold up whatever circumstances might occur. There is a wide variety to choose from.

Crayola Colored Pencils

Crayola Colored Pencils

For elementary school use, the best colour pencil set will be Reeves Colored Pencils. While their pigments are not quite as intense as more high-end pencils, they are easily blendable. They are quite durable and come at a low price, just right for elementary school. Colored pencils by Reeves will be able to handle the challenges of the elementary setting while allowing for a slightly more advanced color handling.

Reeves Colored Pencils

Reeves Colored Pencils

From middle school to high school the best and luminous colored pencils will be Fantasia Colored Pencils, which provide a great color intensity. Students should have some familiarity with colored pencils and should know how to control them. This lot of colored pencils is tough enough to handle an entire school year of usage.

Fantasia Colored Pencils

Fantasia Colored Pencils

Popular colored pencils for college and beyond are the ones we recommended above in the main section of this article. Consider Prismacolor Softcore Colored Pencils, which is the best colour pencil set when you are looking for good value for your money. They provide great blending properties and a great choice of colors.

Prismacolor Softcore Colored Pencils

Prismacolor Softcore Colored Pencils

What is the best eraser for colored pencils?

Erasing colored pencils isn’t as easy as erasing ordinary graphite pencils. Graphite is a dark mineral that can be easily lifted since the graphite only sits on the surface and does not bond with the paper.

Colored pencils on the other side are made with vibrant pigment particles, which are milled much finer than graphite. The core is made from pigment plus binder and wax or oil, which have been baked into a crayon consistency.

Since the pigment particles are tiny, they work their way deep into the paper fibers. While the binders bond the pigments to the paper, the wax or oil seals it all up. When you decide to burnish the color, you make it almost permanent.

Therefore, you often won’t be able to fully erase anything but the faintest marks of colored pencils. Notwithstanding, you can lighten an area enough to camouflage a mistake. You can further use an eraser to ease transitions or artfully smudge color.

You need to be aware that when you scrub a mistake, you are also rubbing away some of the paper fibers and the paper tooth. The general goal is to remove the mistake with as little damage as necessary, which means that you should start with a gentle eraser and if that does not work move to a stronger eraser.

The gentlest form of an eraser is the kneaded eraser. Yet they are made for the easy to erase marks, which means only very faint marks of a colored pencil can be removed with a kneaded eraser.

General's Kneaded Eraser

General’s Kneaded Eraser

If you need to lift multiple layers of colored pencil try a non-abrasive eraser such as a white polymer. There is a large variety of white polymer erasers available. Especially when you need to cover larger areas, we recommend using the Pentel Hi-Polymer White Eraser or the Staedler Mars Plastic Eraser. They are of great quality and economically priced.

Pentel Hi-Polymer Eraser

Pentel Hi-Polymer Eraser

Staedtler Mars Plastic Erasers

Staedtler Mars Plastic Erasers

You might further want to try the Caran d’Ache Triangular Eraser which is ergonomically shaped. The tapered blade edge provides greater accuracy. It fits nicely into the hand and can be rotated once one edge becomes dull.

Caran d'Ache Triangular Eraser

Caran d’Ache Triangular Eraser

If the non-abrasive eraser does not do the job, move on to try an abrasive one. A good choice is the General’s Factis Magic Black Eraser. This cheap but good quality black eraser does not leave any color behind, no matter what paper you use it on.

General's Factis Magic Black Eraser

General’s Factis Magic Black Eraser

The best electric erasers for colored pencils combine the gentleness of a non-abrasive white eraser whit the fast-moving motion for more complete erasure. They damage the tooth of the paper only minimally. They are a favorite tool of many illustrators and artists for carving white highlights by removing heavy layers of colored pencils.

It is worth investing in a good electric eraser. We tested some no-name electric erasers which were rather wobbly and unusable. A great eraser is the Derwent Battery Operated eraser and the Sakura Cordless Electric Eraser.

Derwent Battery-Operated Eraser

Derwent Battery-Operated Eraser

Sakura Cordless Electric Eraser

Sakura Cordless Electric Eraser

What are the best erasable colored pencils?

It is great to have pencils that do not only put down bright and vivid strokes on the paper but which will also be able to lift from the paper just as well. We tested a number of sets and found some of the world’s best colour pencils which fulfilled these two goals of great color vibrancy and erasability.

The best colour pencil company for erasable colors is Tombow. The Tombow Irojiten Colored Pencils line provides some of the brightest and most vivid colored pencils for the artist or professional usage. They erase thoroughly without tearing the paper. The set of 12 vivid colors includes a single chamber pencil sharpener along with a unique sand eraser.

Irojiten Color Pencil Set

Irojiten Color Pencil Set

The second-best brand for erasable colored pencils is Prismacolor Col-Erase. These colored pencils compete head to head with Tombow’s and are ideal for illustrations, art journaling, and a range of other art projects. The firm core is absent of wax and feels much like a graphite pencil as opposed to a regular colored pencil. Every pencil has an eraser at the top, which erases neatly any pigment off the surface.

Prismacolor Col-Erase Pencil Set

Prismacolor Col-Erase Pencil Set

The Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils perform well and are made to be completely safe for kids. – They are washable, non-toxic, and erasable. The eraser on top helps to prevent any frustration if a mistake should occur.

Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils

Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils

What is the best sketchbook for colored pencils?

Even if colored pencils work on ordinary printer papers, these limit the techniques that you can apply. Methods like burnishing, erasing, and the use of solvent are not suitable for the cheapest kind of paper. When you have invested in the best type of colored pencils for your needs, it is natural that you also pick some sketchbooks that can handle all the great techniques that you have mastered to let your creations shine. That said, some sketchbooks definitely stand out from the pack when it comes to working with colored pencils.

Sketchbooks are an ideal medium due to their convenience and portability. They furthermore allow you to keep all of your artwork in one place.

The best sketchbooks for colored pencils will have thick paper to keep lines from pressing through the sheets underneath. The paper further needs to be sturdy enough to hold up to constant erasing, shading and burnishing. Pay attention to factors such as the smoothness or tooth of the paper surface, paperweight, the paper’s finish, and the fiber content.

Our top 3 sketchbooks for colored pencils are the following:

  • Strathmore Colored Pencil Pad: Best sketch pad for colored pencils regarding the use of various media. You can mix colored pencils with graphites, charcoals, crayons, and pens. It provides great lightfastness due to its acid-free composition. The paper can accept heavy layering and dry blending.

Strathmore 400 Series Colored Pencil PadStrathmore 400 Series Colored Pencil Pad

  • Cansons Universal Sketch Pad: Great sketchpad for decent colouring pencils, supporting several techniques to help you flesh out tonal values. It comes with a smooth, fine-tooth and the paper catches the pencil pigments effectively.
Canson Universal Sketch Pad

Canson Universal Sketch Pad

  • Moleskine Art Sketchbook: While the sketchbook isn’t necessarily designed for colored pencils, but the acid-free paper is top-notch and highly suitable for numerous media. The compact functional design is ideal for those who sketch and draw on the move. Every book has a durable oil-cloth bound cover and sturdy thread-bound binding.
Moleskine Art Collection Sketchbook

Moleskine Art Collection Sketchbook

What are the best budget colored pencils?

High-end luxury colored pencils can get quite expensive with some costing even 5 dollars per pencil or more. However, when you are just looking to use colored pencils casually and you don’t really need to care about pigment concentration and lightfastness ratings, then the best cheap colored pencils for artists will be good enough for you.

What are the best-rated colored pencils when you are on a budget? Let us introduce the three best cheap good quality colored pencils that still deliver vibrant results and lead to good colored pencil drawings.

The 48-piece set of the Prismacolor Scholar Colored Pencils line is the best pencil colour set regarding the price-performance ratio. It provides you with a wide spectrum of vivid colors, letting your freeform drawings or coloring pages spring to life. While they are not as buttery as the professional line, these inexpensive colored pencils still have a waxy smooth core which is ideal for blending. If you want to go with a good colour pencil brand, then the Prismacolor Scholar’s are an ideal choice.

Prismacolor Scholar Art Pencil Sets

Prismacolor Scholar Art Pencil Sets

Reeves Colored Pencils is another piece of good evidence that a smooth consistency is not restricted to expensive art pencils. Reeves are silky like some of the higher-end brands, and they are great for shading, blending, and they are the best colors for sketching. The only disadvantage is that the set comes only with six pencils, which can pose a challenge in regard to color variation.

Reeves Colored Pencils

Reeves Colored Pencils

Opt for Blick Studio Artists’ Colored Pencils when you are looking for a great variety of cheap colored pencils for artists. With a set size of 72 pencils, you will have all the colors you need to create a variety of themes. Unlike other pencils in this price range, Blick studio colored pencils can be purchased separately, making them perfect if you are working on a larger scale drawing and need to restock. Overall, these are great colored pencils when you are on an intermediate or professional level and the best colored pencils on a budget.

Blick Studio Artists’ Colored Pencils

Blick Studio Artists’ Colored Pencils

What is the best color pencil for beginners?

Even as a beginner, you should avoid using an unknown brand of colored pencils. Among the different types of colour pencils, these will usually be poorly made, will fall apart, and will have pale cores that are impossible to work with. Recommended colored pencils have a few characteristics to look out for when you are just starting as a hobbyist or artist. The most valuable trait to look for is workability.

While more adept artists with a lot of practice will look for factors like lightfastness, premium pigment quality, and a soft, buttery core, a beginner will rather want a tool to practice with. As long as the colored pencil is well-made and susceptible to common coloring techniques, this will be the best color pencils for beginners.

Always buy the best colored pencils you can afford. But if your budget is tight, we recommend buying the best inexpensive colored pencils on the market. The best color pencil brand when you are a beginner on a budget is Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless colored pencils. Made with a medium-soft core, this brand provides rich, bright colors. The pencils are easy to sharpen and are very long-lasting.

Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless Colored Pencils

Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless Colored Pencils

Alternatively, opt for Faber Castell Albrecht Dürer Colored Pencils. The brand produces some of the finest colored pencils on the market, which can also be quite expensive. Fortunately, the manufacturer also makes a low-priced novice-grade line that is an ideal choice for beginners. This set of 60 top-quality colored pencils is all you need to get started.

Faber Castell Albrecht Dürer Colored Pencils

Faber Castell Albrecht Dürer Colored Pencils

Number three on our list is Prismacolor Premiere Soft Core Colored Pencils, which are also some of the best colored pencils for beginner artists. While these are officially artist-grade colored pencils, the brand is kind enough to manufacture great quality colored pencils at an affordable price. With an extra soft core and a velvet application, these are the highest quality pencils in this price range and some of the best colored pencils for shading.

Prismacolor Premiere Soft Core Colored Pencils

Prismacolor Premiere Soft Core Colored Pencils

What are the best water-soluble colored pencils?

The best watercolor pencils offer something special that you cannot achieve with either normal pencils or aquarelle paints. In a normal colored pencil, the pigment is contained in a waxy or oil-based binder. A watercolor pencil on the other side has a water-soluble binder. This means that you can draw as you are used to with the pencils, but once you add water to your marks, you will get a watercolor paint wash which you can spread further with a brush, sponge, or other tools.

Watercolor pencils can be sharpened like normal pencils so that you can add fine details that would otherwise be hard to achieve with a bare brush. Another advantage is that the pencils are much easier to transport than watercolor paints.

Which ones are the best watercolor pencils to buy? Let us introduce the top three watercolor pencils that we would recommend using. They are great for beginners and advanced artists alike.

Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer Watercolor Pencils are the best artist quality colored pencils for the watercolor technique according to our testing. They provide sharp, fine lines and excellent point retention, and they lay down buttery smooth when used dry. The rich and vivid colors blend beautifully once water is added. Leads are housed in premium cedarwood to help prevent breakage. This set of 60 pencils gives you all the colors you need for the perfect start.

Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer Watercolor Pencils

Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer Watercolor Pencils

If you are looking for great colors for a more budget price, try Derwent Watercolor Pencils. These smooth-colored pencils are wax-based and dissolve easily in water, making them a great choice for mixing color. Use them to shade on dry paper, then quickly paint over it with a wet brush to get a blending effect. They are open-stock colored pencils, which means that you can buy colors individually when you want to restock or enlarge your colored pencil collection. The tin box of assorted 72 colors is a great starting point.

Derwent Watercolor Pencil Set

Derwent Watercolor Pencil Set

The best artist-grade colored pencils in watercolor quality are Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle Pencils. The manufacturer has developed an innovative approach to watercolor painting by combining extra-fine pigments with excellent water-solubility. The vibrant colors boast great lightfastness ratings, and they are the best pencil colour for drawing and watercolor painting. This set of 40 pencils is the best colour pencil set for artists who want to explore their watercolor technique further.

Caran D’Ache Museum Aquarelle Pencil

What are the best colour pencils for professional artists?

The best colored pencils for professional artists can be enjoyed by everyone if you have the right budget prepared. Both beginners and advanced artists can indulge in the best pigmented colored pencils. However, while it is optional for casual hobbyists to choose the world’s best colored pencils, it is a must for artists and professionals to opt for archival quality, really good colored pencils since the precious artwork that you sell should not fade away within a few years.

So, what are the best colored pencils for artists? According to our test, the best colour pencil in the world is made by Caran d’Ache. While the manufacturer offers a wide variety of products, our favorite artist quality line is the Caran d’Ache Luminance Colored Pencils series. This line offers simply the best pigmented colored pencils, combining the smoothness of a permanent lead with excellent lightfastness.

Luminance Colored Pencil Set

Luminance Colored Pencil Set

The high pigment colored pencils boast intense color that seems to illuminate the drawing surface, making them the best color pencils for blending. The wax-based core of this best colored pencil brand for artists has below average wax bloom and the application is buttery smooth resembling the best oil-based pencils.

This best brand of colored pencils for artists comes in a set of 76, containing all the artist’s heart desires from Beryl Green, Apricot, to Genuine Cobalt Blue.

What is the best way to store colored pencils?

A good colored pencils collection can be quite an investment, especially when some sets can reach well into the hundreds of dollars. Naturally, you will want to try and get as much out of it as you can. Fortunately, colored pencils are much more durable than other artistic mediums. For example, there is no ‘drying out’ as with paints or ‘melting’ as associated with crayons and oil pastels.

Since the core of pencils is made of a much harder material, it handles heat and lack of moisture much better. Furthermore, a vast part of the core is protected by a wooden shell. Still, you should be careful not to expose pencils to direct sunlight since it can cause some slight fading and the tips can become dry. This is especially the case in softer products that are known for their buttery texture.

The best way to organize colored pencils is to store them in a cool place without extreme humidity changes. Many of the higher-end brands come with sealed containers that block out humidity fluctuations and outside light. The best case for colored pencils will either be the original case you bought your pencils in or a fabric colored pencil wrap. For the latter, simply thread your new colored pencils collection through the rubber band loops, roll it up, snap or tie it shut, and you are ready to safely stow your pencil collection and take it along with you. This is ideal for transport and making your pencils less prone to dropping and other small disasters.

The major features to look out for when shopping for a roll-up pencil bag are secure loops and a flap for protecting the pointed ends. A pocket or larger loop for a sharpener and eraser comes in handy.

The Dainayw Canvas Pencil Wrap holds 48 pencils and is available in different colors. It is made of light-weight canvas and protects your pencils with a leather flap.

Dainayw Canvas Pencil Wrap

Dainayw Canvas Pencil Wrap

The CreooGo Canvas Pencil Wrap comes in a variety of patterns or as plain canvas material. You can fit up to 72 pencils in the wrap and there is also a loop for an eraser.

CreooGo Canvas Pencil Wrap

CreooGo Canvas Pencil Wrap

This Canvas Pencil Wrap also fits 72 pencils, but you fold it in half before folding it up. The tips of the pencils are protected by leather flaps and a leather strap closure snaps shut.

Canvas Pencil Wrap

What are the best color pencil tutorials?

We are sure you will love these colored pencils tutorials at Skillshare by outstanding art teachers!

Masterclass 1: Drawing, Design and Creativity with Color Pencils – Basics & Techniques

Color Pencil Tutorial 1

Realistic Pencil Drawing: Go From Beginner to Expert

Coloring For Adults Using Color Pencils – The Beginner’s Guide

What are the best books on colored pencil drawing?

Do you want to learn how to draw with colored pencils step-by-step from professional artists? Then you just need the right literature. These books on colored pencil drawing will guide you to every aspect of drawing, from choosing a subject to mounting your finished masterpiece. Simply follow the workshops which will teach you numerous artist’s techniques, including stippling, blending, cross-hatching, and masking. Develop your artistic style by following the drawing tutorials through beginner to advanced projects.

Artist’s Drawing Techniques

Colour-Pencil Drawing: Techniques and Tutorials for the Complete Beginner

The Colored Pencil Manual: Step-by-Step Instructions and Techniques

Drawing: Colored Pencil Basics: Learn to draw step by step

Colored Pencil Step by Step: Explore a range of styles and techniques for creating your own works of art in colored pencils

Jumpstart: Easy Colored Pencil Lessons for Beginners

You might also enjoy reading the following posts by Pigment Pool:

25 Facts to Know About Egon Schiele: Klimt, Women, and Austrian Expressionism

A Brief History of Colour Pigments

The Psychology of Colour in Art: Masterpieces and Mind Games

The Art of Hanging Art: How to Follow and Break Rules

The Best Acrylic Paint Set for Artists and Hobbyists In 2022

The Best Sketching Pencils for Artists and Beginners in 2022

This article may contain compensated links. Please read Disclaimer for more info. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

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