Colored pencils look simple until you actually try to layer a skin tone or blend a sunset. The wrong set fights you: waxy cores that crumble, pigments that skip across the tooth of the paper, and palettes so thin every drawing starts to feel the same. This roundup sorts through seven sets built for real drawing work, from a compact student kit to a 520-shade monster. Each one earns its place on specific strengths, and each one has trade-offs worth knowing before your money leaves your wallet.
The Leading Options At A Glance
STAEDTLER Colored Pencils Set (24-Pack)
Ohuhu 72-Color Oil-Based Colored Pencils
ARTISTIC EYE Premium Colored Pencils (72)
KALOUR Pro Colored Pencils, Set of 520
TMOL 120-Pack Colored Pencils with Zipper Case
LBW 72 Metallic Colored Pencils Set
KALOUR 120 Colored Pencils Set with Carry Case
More On The Choices That Made The List
A backpack is rough territory for art supplies, and this STAEDTLER set is engineered for exactly that life. The casings come from pre-consumer upcycled wood waste, with wood content drawn from sustainably managed certified forests, so the environmental story holds up alongside the performance story.
In a school bag or journaling kit, the break-resistant cores are the feature that matters most. They handle everything from light shading to firm strokes without snapping, which means fewer sharpening sessions and less wasted pencil. Twenty-four shades is a modest palette, but for coloring books, notes, and quick illustrations, most people find it covers the bases.
Practical Advantages
- Break-resistant cores survive daily transport and heavy-handed shading without constant snapping.
- Casing wood comes from certified sustainable forests plus upcycled pre-consumer waste.
- Rich pigments pop on standard paper and accept layering for deeper tones.
- The sturdy pencil box keeps all 24 shades organized between uses.
Things To Consider
- Twenty-four colors limits blending options compared with the larger sets further down this list.
Who Will Love This
Students, journalers, and casual colorists who want dependable pencils that shrug off daily handling.
Where A Sibling Pick Shines
Portrait artists wanting smoother blending should step up to the Ohuhu 72-color oil-based set instead.
Oil-based cores behave differently from wax ones: the laydown is creamier, edges stay crisper, and burnishing feels controlled rather than greasy. Ohuhu builds these 72 pencils around a 4mm soft core, a width wide enough to cover areas quickly yet narrow enough for detail passages in portraits.
For anyone working through adult coloring books or building skin tones, the consistent flow of rich pigment is the headline. You can layer several passes without the surface turning slick, and the cores resist breaking under normal hand pressure. Compared with the STAEDTLER set above, you get nearly triple the palette here, which changes what your drawings can attempt.
What Makes Sense
- The 4mm soft core delivers creamy, even coverage that layers cleanly for depth.
- Seventy-two distinct shades give portrait work far more tonal options than starter sets.
- Oil-based formulation keeps points sharp longer than typical wax cores.
- Strong durability means fewer wasted pencils over months of regular sessions.
Small Caveats
- Soft oil cores need gentle sharpening; aggressive crank sharpeners can chew through them faster.
- No bundled accessories, unlike the KALOUR 120 set’s included blender and sketchbook.
At A Glance
Right Fit For
Adult coloring devotees and portrait hobbyists who want smooth blending without a premium price tag.
Skip It When
You want a ready-to-draw bundle with paper and tools included; the TMOL 120-pack covers that better.
Households where a beginner and an experienced artist share supplies need one set that satisfies both. ARTISTIC EYE positions its 72-pencil collection squarely there, pairing vivid pigments with a core described as sturdy yet tender, meaning firm enough to hold a point but soft enough to release color easily.
The 3.8mm leads sit just under the Ohuhu’s 4mm, trading a sliver of coverage speed for finer line work. Blending is the stated strength here: colors fuse into new shades smoothly, which matters when you’re building gradients or matching a reference photo. In our view, that blendability makes this the most forgiving option on the list for someone still learning pressure control.
Benefits That Matter
- Vivid pigments hold their saturation across repeated layering passes.
- Seamless color fusion lets two pencils create shades neither contains alone.
- 3.8mm soft cores suit both fine detail and broader tonal fills.
- Approachable enough for novices while offering range advanced users won’t outgrow quickly.
Potential Sticking Points
- Soft leads benefit from careful storage; leaving them loose in a hot car can soften cores.
- No carry case specified, so organization depends on whatever container you supply.
Quick Facts
Made For
Shared studios and mixed-skill homes where one versatile set needs to serve beginners and veterans alike.
Another Choice May Suit
Artists chasing maximum shade count will prefer the KALOUR Pro 520-color set’s enormous palette.
Five hundred twenty colors sounds like a gimmick until you’ve spent an hour hunting for the exact muted sage in a 72-set and failed. KALOUR’s Pro collection offers 520 distinct, non-repetitive shades running from bold primaries down to subtle pastels, letting you match a hue directly instead of mixing toward it.
The soft cores aim at drawing, sketching, and shading alike, with vibrant laydown across the board. Honestly, this set suits a dedicated workspace more than a portable kit; the sheer volume demands shelf space and a system for keeping pencils sorted. For illustrators doing botanical work, landscapes, or any subject where precise hue matters, though, few alternatives come close at this tier.
A Favorable Mix
- Every pencil is a unique color, eliminating duplicate shades that waste drawer space.
- Pastel-to-primary spread supports accurate color matching straight from the box.
- Soft cores handle delicate shading as comfortably as confident strokes.
- Serves adults, beginners, and professionals under one roof.
Worth Bearing In Mind
- Storage and sorting 520 pencils takes real commitment; expect to build an organizational habit.
- Overkill for casual colorists who’d never touch more than a fraction of the range.
Who Should Grab It
Committed illustrators and professionals whose work depends on precise, hard-to-mix hues.
Consider Something Else When
Portability matters most; the KALOUR 120 set with its zippered carry case travels far easier.
Some people don’t want to shop twice. The TMOL bundle arrives with 120 oil-based soft-core pencils, a sketchbook, a coloring book, and a zipper case, so a relaxing evening session can start the day the box opens. That completeness is why it lands well with gift shoppers and newcomers who haven’t yet learned which extras they need.
Each barrel matches its core color, which sounds minor until you’re scanning for a specific green mid-project. Pigmentation runs rich across the spectrum, and the soft cores suit the layering style adult coloring books demand. Unlike the bare-bones Ohuhu set earlier, everything here ships together, though the trade-off is a bulkier package to store.
Notable Gains
- Complete kit includes sketchbook, coloring book, and zippered case alongside the pencils.
- Color-matched barrels make finding the right shade quick during long sessions.
- 120 richly pigmented shades support detailed, multi-layer coloring work.
- Oil-based soft cores apply smoothly for the relaxed pacing coloring books reward.
Less Ideal Details
- The bundled books may not match every artist’s preferred subject matter or paper weight.
- Zipper-case storage requires flat space; it won’t tuck into a slim pencil pouch.
Product Snapshot
Whose Shelf It Belongs On
Adult coloring enthusiasts and gift shoppers who value a complete, ready-to-start package.
Look Elsewhere When
Dark-paper shimmer effects are the goal; the LBW metallic set delivers what standard pigments can’t.
Standard colored pencils vanish against black paper. That single limitation explains why this LBW set exists: 72 pencils loaded with metallic pigment that catches light and shimmers, especially on dark surfaces where conventional colors go dull. Greeting cards, mandala accents, fantasy art, and holiday crafts are natural territory here.
The cores are pre-sharpened oil-based leads set in quality wood, rated compliant with CE, EN71, and AP safety standards, and they resist both breaking and barrel peeling according to the manufacturer. Layering and mixing work like any oil pencil, so you can build custom metallic blends. One honest note: metallic pigment reads differently depending on your paper’s texture, so results vary by surface.
The Value In It
- Genuine metallic sheen produces striking effects on black and dark-toned paper.
- Pre-sharpened tips mean the first session starts immediately after unboxing.
- CE, EN71, and AP compliance adds confidence for households with younger artists.
- Highly pigmented cores accept layering and mixing for custom shimmer shades.
Points To Note
- Metallic output depends heavily on paper choice; smooth dark stock shows the effect best.
- As a specialty palette, it complements rather than replaces a conventional set.
Feature Breakdown
Built With In Mind
Craft artists, card makers, and beginners experimenting with dramatic dark-background artwork.
Swap It Out When
Everyday drawing breadth matters more than sparkle; the ARTISTIC EYE 72-set is the stronger generalist.
This is the set for someone who already knows they love colored pencil work and wants gear that respects that commitment. KALOUR packs 120 highly pigmented oil-based pencils into a three-zipper carry case with a shoulder strap, then rounds out the bundle with a sketchbook, blender, sharpeners, and a printed color chart.
The oil-based cores glide with a creamy laydown that layers and burnsishes cleanly, which is precisely the behavior professional-style rendering demands. The color chart deserves special mention: swatching every pencil once saves endless test strokes later. Compared with the TMOL bundle at number five, this one skews more serious, trading novelty extras for tools a working artist actually reaches for.
Positive Takeaways
- Richly pigmented oil cores deliver smooth, creamy application built for blending and shading.
- Three-zipper case with shoulder strap makes transporting the full set genuinely practical.
- Included blender, sharpeners, and color chart remove common accessory guesswork.
- Sketchbook rounds out a complete portable studio in one purchase.
Trade Offs To Consider
- The full case carries noticeable weight; lighter travel kits suit occasional outings better.
Essential Details
Who It Suits Best
Dedicated adult artists and art students who want one comprehensive, portable setup they’ll use weekly.
A Better Fit Elsewhere
Shoppers testing the hobby casually should start with the budget-friendly STAEDTLER 24-pack first.
What Matters Most Before Choosing Colored Pencils For Artists
Core Type Shapes Everything
Wax cores lay color fast and cheap but can develop a whitish bloom over finished pieces, while oil-based cores like those in the Ohuhu and KALOUR sets glide creamier, hold sharper points, and layer without going slick. Soft cores reward loose expressive work; harder leads favor crisp technical lines. Match the core behavior to how your hand actually draws, not to marketing language.
Palette Size Versus Storage Reality
A 24-count set fits a desk drawer; a 520-count KALOUR collection needs a dedicated shelf and a sorting habit. Larger palettes reduce mixing time and improve hue accuracy, but only pay off when your subjects genuinely demand them. Casual colorists rarely exhaust 72 shades, while botanical illustrators often wish for more.
Paper Changes Results More Than Pencils Do
Toothy paper grabs pigment and supports many layers; smooth stock lets pencils slide and limits buildup. Metallic sets like the LBW depend almost entirely on dark, relatively smooth surfaces to show their shimmer. Before blaming a pencil for weak color, check whether the paper is the real constraint.
Bundles Save Money Only When You’d Buy Everything Anyway
The TMOL and KALOUR 120 kits include books, blenders, and cases, which is genuine value for someone starting fresh. Experienced artists owning those extras already should compare standalone sets instead and put savings toward better paper.
Key Considerations Across These Picks
Traps First Timers Fall Into
Chasing the biggest number is the classic error; a 520-pencil set overwhelms a beginner faster than a thin palette ever could. The other frequent slip is ignoring core type entirely, then wondering why waxy pencils refuse to layer the way tutorial videos promise. Read what the lead is made of before anything else.
What The Higher Tier Buys
Spending up generally buys three things: denser pigment, better lightfastness expectations, and accessories that complete a workflow. The KALOUR 120’s blender and color chart aren’t padding, they’re tools that shorten the path from blank page to finished piece. Pay the difference once your skill justifies it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are oil-based or wax-based colored pencils better for artists?
Oil-based cores layer more cleanly and hold sharper points, making them popular for detailed work. Wax cores cost less and deposit color faster, suiting quick sketches and casual coloring.
How many colors does a beginner actually need?
Thirty-six to seventy-two shades covers most learning exercises without overwhelming anyone. Beginners benefit more from practicing blending with fewer colors than owning hundreds they never reach for.
Can colored pencils be used on dark paper?
Yes, though standard pigments often appear muted on black stock. Metallic formulations like the LBW set are specifically designed to shine on dark surfaces.
Do colored pencils expire or dry out?
Wood-cased pencils essentially last indefinitely since the pigment is bound in oil or wax, not water. Extreme heat can soften cores, so avoid leaving sets in hot cars.
What’s the best way to keep a large set organized?
Store pencils in their original trays or a zippered case arranged by color family. Swatching a color chart, as included with the KALOUR 120 set, eliminates guesswork forever.
Closing Remarks
The right set depends less on price and more on honesty about your habits. Students do well with the STAEDTLER 24-pack, portrait and coloring fans get strong value from the Ohuhu, and committed artists will appreciate the KALOUR 120’s complete kit approach. Whichever direction you lean, pick the set that matches the drawings you actually make, not the ones you imagine someday finishing.
