How to Choose the Best Watercolor Paints for Beginners

The best watercolor paints for beginners do not necessarily come in the largest set. The right choice includes the colors you need, lets you learn how to mix them, and suits your practical goals. When starting out, a manageable palette and regular practice are often more important than having many ready-made shades.

When choosing, consider the number of colors, paint format, set size, where you will use it, and how much of your budget remains for additional materials. Even good watercolor paint can be awkward to use with unsuitable paper or brushes, so consider your entire working setup.

How to Choose the Best Watercolor Paints for Beginners

First, decide what you will paint most often. Simple color exercises, botanical sketches, landscapes, and illustrations may require different numbers of shades. If you have not chosen a direction yet, select a versatile set and decide which additional colors you need after completing a few paintings.

A palette that clearly shows the relationship between the main warm and cool colors is especially useful for beginners. The goal is not to have every possible shade ready-made. A limited palette teaches you to create secondary colors, natural tones, and different intensities by mixing paint and adjusting the amount of water.

• Number of colors: There should be enough for practice, but not so many that the choice becomes confusing.
• Format: Consider where and how often you plan to paint.
• Palette structure: Check whether you can create the mixtures you need from the primary colors.
• Total budget: Along with paint, account for paper, a brush, and a water container.
• Learning objective: Decide whether you want to learn color mixing or have more ready-made shades for quick use.

Main Selection Criteria

Number of Colors and Their Purpose

A large number of colors is convenient when you often want to go straight to a particular shade. A more compact set, meanwhile, helps develop mixing skills and makes the palette easier to organize. Both approaches are valid. Your choice depends on whether you are studying color theory or want to create varied illustrations quickly.

When evaluating a set, do not rely only on the number printed on the packaging. List the groups you consider essential: yellows, reds, blues, greens, and earth tones. Then determine which additional colors would provide a real benefit and which ones you could create through simple mixing.

Transparency, Mixing, and Water Control

Water plays a major role in defining the character of watercolor paint. The same color can be intense with a small amount of water and light when diluted more heavily. Once you have chosen a set, paint a color strip from dark to light. This will show how easily you can control the intensity and how the paint behaves on your paper.

Also test a mixture of two colors. If producing every desired result requires a great deal of random mixing, the issue may lie not with the set but with your color selection method. Label each mixture with the colors used so that you can easily reproduce successful combinations later.

Size, Format, and Intended Use

When choosing the size of a set, think about your workspace. A relatively wide palette may be comfortable if you always paint in one place at home, while compactness becomes more important when sketching outdoors. Check where you will place the set, brush, water, and paper so that they do not get in your way while you work.

Watercolor paint may come in dry or tube form. Dry paint is activated with a wet brush and is often convenient for small exercises. With a tube, you can dispense the amount of paint you need, although you will have to manage the palette and control how much you use. Choose the format according to your working habits rather than visual appeal alone.

Include paper in your decision when evaluating materials. Watercolor paper is designed for working with watery layers, while results may be distorted on a randomly selected thin sheet. Always make your first comparison on the same paper and with a similar brush so that any difference is genuinely related to the paint.

16 or 24 Colors: Which Approach Is Better?

A 16-color option is a sensible starting point if you want to memorize your palette quickly and spend more time practicing mixing. A 24-color option may be better suited to someone who wants more ready-made shades or already knows they will work on a wide variety of subjects. The eight additional colors are valuable only if you will actually use them.

For comparison, you can view the Sonnet Watercolor Paints, 16 Colors, 2.5 ml (Nevskaya Palitra) and the Sonnet Watercolor Paints, 24 Colors, 2.5 ml (Nevskaya Palitra). The main difference to consider between these two options is the number of colors stated in their names. Decide whether you need a shorter, easily managed palette or additional ready-made colors.

If you still cannot decide, list five works you would like to paint. Mark the color families they require and compare the sets. To view other watercolor options in one place, use the watercolor paint collection, but connect your final choice to your practice plan.

How to Compare Options Step by Step

Step one: Set a budget for the entire kit, not only the paint. Step two: Decide whether you will work at home or carry the set frequently. Step three: Choose the number of colors according to how much you want to learn about mixing.

Step four: Compare only the options that meet the first three requirements. Step five: After purchasing, create a color test card and label every color with its position or name. Step six: Complete one small work using a limited palette of three or four colors.

After several practice sessions, assess which colors you used frequently, which remained untouched, and which shades were difficult to create. These observations are more useful than judging the entire set after your first attempt. Any additions you need will become much clearer through actual use.

Common Mistakes When Choosing

• Automatically choosing the largest set: More colors do not always make the learning process easier.
• Comparing only the price: Consider the format, color selection, and your objective as well.
• Ignoring the paper: Paint will not behave the same way on different surfaces.
• Mixing colors randomly: Excessive mixing can prevent you from achieving the desired clarity.
• Drawing conclusions from a single test: Controlling water and brush load requires practice.
• Depending on ready-made colors: Keeping notes about mixtures will make it easier to manage your palette in the future.

Practical Recommendations for the First Week

On the first day, make a sample of every color. During the second exercise, lighten each primary color with different amounts of water. Then mix the colors in pairs and note the approximate differences in their proportions. These small test sheets will quickly show which colors work intuitively for you.

For your first finished work, choose a simple object and a limited palette. Allow time between layers and test each new color on practice paper first. The goal is not a perfect picture, but an understanding of how water, color, and the surface interact.

After finishing the work, ask yourself three questions: Which color did I use most often? Which mixture could I not reproduce? Did I truly lack a ready-made shade? The answers will help you decide whether your current set is sufficient or whether you may need to expand the palette later.

Conclusion: Choose a Set You Will Actually Use for Practice

The right watercolor set for a beginner combines an understandable color selection, a convenient format, and a size that fits your plans. Sixteen colors may be better for learning focused on mixing, while 24 colors may suit someone who wants more ready-made shades. Base your decision on your subjects, workspace, and total budget.

Practice is the most reliable test. Create a color card, work with a limited palette, and determine what you are missing only after completing several paintings. This allows you to judge a set by how you actually use it rather than by its number of colors.