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Posted on December 21 by Lancelot Richardson

A guide to the best watercolor paints for artists from students to professionals.

The best watercolor paints include a large range for artists to choose from. In this guide, we will introduce the best watercolor paints for everyone from students to professionals to work in different ways, such as studio work or city sketching.

Watercolor paints usually come in liquid form in tubes, or in solid disks that are reactivated after soaking. The tube can be more easily mixed with more intense colors, which is perfect for studio work, but is small enough to carry. The pan is less messy and more portable. Paint is usually composed of pigments, gum arabic binders, water and additives (such as honey) to give it color to maintain consistency or stability. It can be well combined with other water-soluble media, such as the details of watercolor pencils.

Watercolor paint has the qualities of an artist or a student. Students’ watercolor paints have fewer paints, while artist-quality paints have richer colors. The big difference makes artist-quality paint worth the cost, because the brighter the color, the farther the tube goes.

Within the range of artists, there is almost no difference in the overall quality of the best watercolor paints. However, each has a unique performance, suitable for a specific working method or offers a different range of colors. For example, some paints will be grainy, which means they will leave a texture when they dry-it depends on the paint and the brand, and is what some artists need. Some tubular coatings can be reactivated after drying, while others remain moist and "sticky"-again, this applies to different methods.

If you need some guidance on watercolor painting, you can start with our selection of the best watercolor painting tutorials, or use these 20 watercolor painting techniques to expand your repertoire. Make sure you also make sure you have the best watercolor paper. In the meantime, keep reading to discover the best watercolor paints.

M. Graham Artists' watercolor series uses blackberry honey as part of the binder, resulting in a very smooth, viscous paint. Therefore, the paint in the tube will not dry completely on the palette, but will remain sticky. This keeps the paint at its best vividness, but is not suitable for spraying out for later use, so these are best suited for studio work.

The tubes do not dry out easily, which is convenient because they are only 15 ml in size, although the cost per ml is often the low end of professional prices, making them good value for money. The paint has a strong color and has a long way to go when washing, so the tube will last a long time. It is also easy to lift from the paper.

Sennelier artist's watercolor painting is an excellent honey pigment with rich colors and good consistency. The performance of the pan is very good, requiring very little water to reactivate and produce a strong color. They take longer to dry out than other brands, and due to their honey content, they may remain slightly sticky in very humid climates. They also have a relatively high value for professional-quality paint.

This watercolor paint flows very smoothly on the paper and blends well. The pigmentation is also very high. Because the pan performs so well, this is a great choice for a more portable sketch suit with artist-quality colors.

Daniel Smith's ultra-fine watercolors are excellent artist-grade paints. A wide variety of 261 colors including their Primatek mineral colors and a variety of luminous colors. This huge range also includes many colors unique to the brand, making it a good choice for anyone who likes to take risks.

Depending on the pigment, these paints tend to be more granular than other paints. The colors are strong and vibrant, just like any artist-quality paint, but still easy to lift off the paper. The luminous color can also be well dispersed on the paper, creating a uniform luster.

The professional watercolors of Windsor and Newton are reliable artist-quality pigments. Their performance is consistent and the difference between each color is small, which makes them a good starting point for anyone who wants to try their first artist-quality watercolors or who wants multi-functionality.

The colors are strong and rich, the quality of the pigments in the entire series is very good, and there are some good alternatives to toxic pigments. The paint stays moist on the palette for a period of time, but it can be allowed to dry-it is easily reactivated when wet, which is a handy for people who like to squeeze colors into a plate or palette choose.

Kuretake's Gansai paint offers a variety of bright colors at an affordable price. They are easily activated and have a smooth texture. The performance of these pigments is slightly different from that of Western-style watercolor paintings. They are more opaque and will produce a slight luster when layered. However, they are still as transparent as watercolor, not gouache. Once on the paper, they won't move too much, but will place the colors evenly on dry paper, making them great for sketching and adding color to illustrations.

These paints have reached the high end of student quality. Most colors are light fast and rich in pigments, but not as strong as professional-quality watercolors. Large pans are convenient because they can accommodate larger brush sizes.

This pocket-sized Cotman watercolor set is very suitable for painting out, because it is easy to carry, and even equipped with a water brush, so that you can paint without a can of water on hand. It is well-designed, with a mixing tray on the lid, which is separate and can hold laundry.

Since these are student qualities, the colors are not very strong and look a little weak on paper. The series also contains only "hue" imitations of some of the more expensive pigments. Nonetheless, the colors behave in a predictable way and blend well. These paints are great for quickly drawing sketches or recording colors.

Aquafine is a good choice for anyone who wants to try watercolor painting for the first time and experience the use of tube paint. It comes in a variety of colors, but lacks some pigments and uses "tone" alternatives. 

As the range of students expands, the colors here are very rich, although they are comparable to any artist-quality paint. Compared to other brands, they dry faster on the palette. On paper, the colors are very strong, although their brightening effect is not very good, and for some colors, washing with more paint may look "flat" after drying.

Lancelot Richardson is an artist, painter and freelance illustrator based in Brighton, England. He teaches life painting at the independent art school Draw Brighton and teaches in their online Patreon course. He is also a freelance writer, writing articles about art and painting. He works on both traditional media and digital media.

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