Best Watercolor Paints for Professionals and Beginners

When looking for the best watercolor paints, it really can be a minefield. From pans, sets, tubes, pencils, there is so much to choose from when trying to put together the best watercolor kit.

That is why I have put together this short guide for professionals and beginners to make sure you have the best watercolor supplies, some of which is based off my own experience as a working artist.

Best Watercolor Sets for Beginners

Here I have gathered some of the best beginner watercolor sets of the various varieties to help you make the best choice.

Windsor and Newton’s Sketchers Pocket 12 Pan Box

Best of the Pans

Cotman is Windsor and Newton’s student line and they do not skimp on quality despite this. 

The 12 half-pan watercolors have been selected carefully for a vibrant palette from Cadmium Yellow Hue to an Alizarin Crimson. The transparency is good, ideal for layering and mixing. 

In the full Cotman range, there is 40 colors to choose from, so you can easily add to your color palette by purchasing individual pans for your set.

The added bonus is the range is closely related to the professional range, so you can easily try a few professional pans to see the difference in pigmentation without any change in your technique.  

Pros:

Cons: 

This Windsor and Newton watercolor pan set is great for beginners looking to use watercolor pans for the first time, the colour range is wide enough for mixing, the built-in palette and brush is a nice addition, and the paint quality is top of the line.

Sennelier Watercolors – the Raphael Travel Set

Runner Up

This Sennelier watercolor set is the best travel watercolor set due its size at only 4.5” in diameter. 

I have put it in my beginner list due to the quality of the pigments used. The fact the set has a good mixing palette in the lid and nice quality pocket brush, also means you can get started right away, without needing lots of supplies.    

Pros:

Cons:

This small watercolor set is best suited for painting on the go. The paints are built up of deep pigments and provide great coverage. The down side is, it is a pricey set for beginners so consider it more an investment and closer to professional quality paints.

Castle Arts Watercolor Paints Set – 24 Watercolor Paints

Best Watercolor Tubes Set

These cheap watercolors are great for a beginner watercolor set, with such a range of colors and included guidebook they are targeted at novices. 

Do not think that you are getting cheap quality paints despite the price point and marketing however, the permanence is good and they mix really well. 

Pros:

Cons:

I have used Castle Arts watercolors and they are my go-to for tube paints as the price point is unbeatable for what you get. I tend to abuse my tube paints and get through them like water so being able to replace them affordably is really nice.

Sennelier La Petite Aquarelle Student Watercolor Paint Set

Runner Up

Sennelier is hard to beat in terms of quality but with high quality comes high prices and even though this is a student set, for some beginners the price point will be just too steep to justify. 

However, if you do want to invest a little more in your new hobby or new medium then this student set gives a good mix of colours and comes with a palette to get you started. It is also an ideal field watercolor set due to its portability.   

Pros:

Cons:

It may seem unfair to place this set as a runner up but it does come down to the price point. As a beginner (and even now) I would opt for the Castle Arts set simply because I get to practice without burning a hole in my purse. 

However, if you are looking to invest a little more into your work then this is a good choice and also if you intend to spend time painting while out and about it is a really good option.

Best Watercolor Sets for Professionals

Sennelier L’Aquarelle French Honey based Watercolor Paint, Half Pan Set of 18

Best of the Pans

Finally, Sennelier win a round. 

These honey-based paints are fantastic for serious artists. The set comes with 18 half pans but there is room to add extra colors up to 24 half pans, so you can immediately personalise the set from the get go. 

The metal box includes a good size mixing palette in the lid with a mix of small and large mixing wells. 

As with all Sennelier paints, the pans contain a high honey content which will preserve you paint for a really long time, keeping the quality consistent throughout.

Pros:

Cons:

Sennelier watercolor paint pans are my favourite paints to work with as the honey-based paint is truly brilliant. 

The great thing about Sennelier is that the price difference between student and professional grades is not huge. So, if you are using student paints then move up to the professional grade, your technique can stay the same, the paints will feel familiar and there won’t be a sudden price increase.

Schmincke Horadam Aquarelle Half Pan Metal Set

Runner Up

Schmincke has been making watercolor paints since 1881, using the very finest natural ingredients. They are the crème de la crème of watercolor paints. 

The same formulas today are one’s artists such as Emil Nolde and Oskar Kokoschka used. There is no disputing the quality of these paints.  

Pros:

Cons:

Schmincke paints are fantastic and for professional artists you would be hard pressed to find a better set of watercolor pans.

Holbein Artists Watercolor Set 12 Piece

Best Watercolor Tubes Set

Holbein watercolor tubes have high permanence ratings, the transparent paints are exceptional for layering and mixing colors. This set in particular is a great price point for a step in to the world of Holbein paints, which have been in production since 1900. 

These Japanese made watercolors are more finely ground that any other watercolor which means they have a super smooth texture. 

A little paint goes a long way and the chemical make-up of the paint means the artist has complete control over it.  

Pros:

Cons:

Holbein tube paints are tried and tested by professional artists, they set the standard very high. This set is great particularly for travel as the tubes are small, the down side of course, is to replace them with regular 15ml tubes becomes quite an expensive process.

Van Gogh Watercolor Set x 10

Runner Up

These aren’t a professional set I hear you say? Well, I and many others beg to differ. They are unrivalled at the price, deep pigmentation and great permanence. They might be targeted at students but any professional artist would be comfortable working with this set as they really are that good. 

Pros: 

Cons:

The only reason these paints are runner up in the category, is that they are not strictly professional grade paints on paper, but in practice they are a very good choice for any professional but particularly one on a budget.

Best Watercolor Pencils for Beginners and Professionals

I highly recommend for both beginners and professionals to work with professional grade watercolor pencils. Cheap watercolor pencils can be made of poor-quality materials which hinders the painting process. 

As a beginner you need tools that don’t distract you from the creative process, so good quality pencils with bright and pigmented colours, quality woods, water soluble cores and break resistant tips are the way forward.

Arteza Professional Watercolor Pencils – Set of 48

This set ticks all the boxes and at an affordable price. They are professional standard but for 48 different colours they are not ridiculously expensive.

Pros:

Cons:

Short guide of things to consider for the best watercolor set for you

Professional or Beginner Grade Watercolor Paints

As with most artist supplies, the best watercolor paints are split into two categories professional (artist) and student (beginner) grade. 

The main difference is that the best professional watercolor paints tend to have a wider range of colors and more pigment in the paints. Beginner watercolor paints use more binders and fillers in the paint to keep costs down and therefore they have less permanence.

However, if you are just starting out it is unlikely you will notice much difference to begin with and student quality paints will be more than adequate for your needs, especially some of the brands mentioned later in this article. 

Picking up some student grade watercolors will also save you some money, which if you are like me, is always a good thing.

Permanence and Transparency

Permanence is how long lasting the paint is when exposed to light and humidity.

The main thing that affects this is how much binder or filler is made in the make-up of the paint, the more raw material used the better permanence, so the longer your creations stay in top condition. 

Many reputable brands will have this information on the packaging or on their website such as Windsor and Newton.

Watercolors are perfect for layering and their transparency is what makes them so great at this. Most watercolor pans or tubes will state whether they are transparent or opaque. 

Opaque paints can be thinned down to be transparent. 

However, particularly for beginners it may be easier to choose carefully your transparency, to make your painting process more seamless depending on what you are trying to achieve with your painting.  

Pans or Tubes, or Maybe Even Pencils

Watercolor pans

Watercolor pans are solid watercolor paints in little plastic trays called pans, they tend to come in a watercolor tin which make them great as a portable watercolor set. 

Pans are only activated when a wet brush touches the paint, this means the brush can only pick up small amounts of pigment each time. 

So, for some people they may not be the most suited especially for mixing and large-scale projects. 

They are my preferred watercolor paints however, due to their longevity, those small pans last a long time.

Watercolor tubes

Watercolor tubes are filled with liquid paints. They are easier to mix with as a result and for large scale projects but can be messier and not the best for travelling with. 

Also, worth nothing it is easy to use a lot of paint quickly with watercolor paint tubes so you might find yourself needing to replace them more often. 

Watercolor pencils

Watercolor pencils are pencils but in the place of lead there is solid soluble pigment, that reacts to water on your paper. 

The best watercolor pencils are great for detail and to add a different style to your watercolor painting, they can take a while to get used too as they require a certain finesse to working with them. 

Windsor and Newton have masterclass tutorials on their YouTube channel and their website that are worth checking out. 

Mix it up

There is no rule to say that you need to stick to one or the other. Tubes and pans will come individually and not just in watercolor paint sets so you can mix and match to suit yourself. 

This is great for beginners putting together basic watercolor supplies as you can try things out to see what you prefer. 

Working artists also do this, my professional watercolor palette is mainly made up of paint pans, but I do have a watercolor tube set for my landscape paintings, where I use more paint, so I have an all-round good watercolor palette.

Final Tips

• High price doesn’t always mean high quality, cheaper watercolor sets can provide exceptional quality paints
• Watercolor pencils should be of professional grade, the price difference is not as big as other paints and the benefits of quality pencils outweighs the extra money 
• Student grade watercolor paints can create masterpieces and even professional artists will opt for them as the quality of the best brands is very good
• As a beginner don’t get caught up in the pans vs tubes debate too much, you can try both and see what works best for you

Conclusion

Hunting for your first watercolor set shouldn’t be too difficult, it should be fun, the same for professional artists looking for quality paints. 

By considering the points in this guide you should be able to put together the perfect watercolor set for you and your needs.

There are benefits to all types of watercolor paints, so you may end up like me and have a collection of all pans, tubes and pencils in your watercolor supplies, but guess what? That’s okay.