What are the best markers for adult coloring books?

Alcohol markers give the smoothest results: Ohuhu is the popular budget choice and Copic the refillable professional one. For something cheaper and bleed-resistant, water-based markers such as Crayola Super Tips or Tombow Dual Brush pens work well. Finish with a white gel pen for highlights.

Which markers don't bleed through coloring book pages?

No marker is completely bleed-proof on book paper. Water-based markers bleed the least; alcohol markers bleed the most. Colored pencils and gel pens don't bleed. Whatever you use, slip a scrap sheet behind the page.

Alcohol markers or gel pens: which is better for coloring?

They do different jobs. Alcohol markers fill large spaces fast with smooth color. Gel pens have fine tips that are slow on big areas but perfect for highlights, dots, outlines and sparkle on top of marker. Most colorists use both.

What markers are best for cozy and bold and easy coloring books?

Chisel-tip or brush-tip markers. Bold and easy and cozy books have large, open shapes, so a broad tip fills them in a few strokes, and the thick outlines hide small slips. Fine tips are only needed for faces and tiny details.

What are the best coloring books for markers?

Single-sided books, where nothing is printed behind each design, and books with large shapes. No Paper Riot coloring book prints one design on the back of another, and the printable PDF editions can be printed on cardstock, which stops bleed almost completely.

Best Markers for Coloring Books: What to Buy and Why

For most adult coloring books, the best markers are alcohol-based markers with a chisel or brush tip, such as Ohuhu (budget) or Copic (refillable), because they lay down smooth, streak-free color in large spaces. They also bleed through book paper, so use them in single-sided books with scrap paper behind the page. Water-based markers like Crayola Super Tips bleed least and are the best choice for double-sided books and kids.

The right marker makes a coloring book look finished. The wrong one leaves streaks, chews up the paper or bleeds through onto the next picture. Here is what to buy, depending on how you color and what kind of book you have.

The short answer

If you want…	Choose	Why
The smoothest, most finished look	Alcohol markers (Ohuhu, Copic)	Streak-free, blendable color in large spaces
Low cost and little bleed	Water-based markers (Crayola Super Tips)	Cheap, forgiving, good for kids and double-sided books
A brush feel without the bleed	Water-based brush pens (Tombow Dual Brush)	Flexible tip, more control
Highlights and sparkle	Gel pens (a white gel pen first)	Fine lines and dots on top of marker
No bleed at all	Colored pencils	Sit on the paper, layer and shade well

Alcohol markers: the best finish

Alcohol markers carry their ink in a fast-drying solvent, so the color flows, blends into itself and dries without the stripes you get from cheaper markers. In a large shape, that is the difference between a page that looks colored in and one that looks printed.

Ohuhu is the brand most colorists start with: big sets, dual tips (a broad chisel or brush on one end and a fine tip on the other) and a modest price.
Copic is the professional option. The markers are refillable and the nibs can be replaced, so a set lasts for years, but the starting cost is high and more than most casual colorists need.

The catch: alcohol ink goes straight through book paper. Use alcohol markers only in single-sided books, always with a scrap sheet behind the page.

Water-based markers: cheap and forgiving

Crayola Super Tips are inexpensive, come in large packs, and the cone-shaped tip handles both big areas and corners. They can leave some streaks if you go over the same spot, but they bleed far less than alcohol markers.
Tombow Dual Brush pens have a flexible brush tip that is pleasant to use and a fine tip for detail. Scrubbing back and forth in one spot can pill thin paper, so use light strokes.

Water-based markers are the best choice for double-sided books, for children, and for anyone who wants to color on the couch without worrying.

Gel pens: the finishing touch

Gel pens are slow for filling large spaces, but they are what makes a page sparkle. A white gel pen (the Sakura Gelly Roll is the classic) adds highlights to eyes, a shine on a teapot or a glint on water, right on top of marker. Metallic and glitter gel pens add texture to borders and small details.

What works best in bold and easy and cozy books

Bold and easy books, and the “cozy” books with big, simple scenes, are where markers shine. The shapes are large, so a chisel or brush tip fills them in two or three strokes, and the thick black outlines hide the small slips that would show in a detailed book. You only need the fine tip for faces and small accents.

That combination also makes markers the easiest tool for tired eyes and stiff hands. A broad tip lays down color with almost no pressure, where colored pencils need a firm grip to get a strong color. If you are buying for an older parent, a pack of chisel-tip markers and a bold and easy book is a better gift than a 120-pencil tin.

How to stop markers bleeding through

Choose single-sided books. Then bleed only ever reaches a blank page.
Put a scrap sheet behind the page. Cardstock or a folded sheet of printer paper is enough.
Keep the tip moving. Ink pools, and bleeds, where the tip rests.
Print on cardstock. With a printable PDF, print the page on 65 lb or heavier cardstock and almost nothing comes through.

Test before you start

Every book has a different paper and every marker behaves differently on it. Before you start a page you care about, run each marker over a test page. Many of our books have a test-your-colors grid at the front, and there is a free sample page from every book you can print and try your markers on tonight.

The Best Markers for Coloring Books (Including Bold & Easy and Cozy Books)