best oil paint for artists

In the reviews below I have chosen 5 of the best oil paint brands that are affordable and also focus on quality.

Research is required to find the best oil paints whether you are just a beginner or professional. There are many higher priced oils that can be quite expensive and require more expertise to use properly.

I spent hours researching so you don't have to.

My Pick For Best Oil Paints

Though this set of oil paints is targeting scenery and landscape painting it does have the primary colors needed to create many more shades and hues of colors.

Williamsburg Oil Native Italian Earth Set

Williamsburg Native Italian Oil Paints

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Best Oil Paint Reviews

The top four oil paints are pretty much top of the line having the most pigment in them. Number five is a more affordable choice for the beginners. I still recommend using high quality oil paints as they are easier to work with and will last longer over time. Which brings us to our first review.

1. Gamblin Artist Oil Color – Introductory Set

This set contains 9 artist grade colors and comes with a gel primed birch wood panel for mixing colors. These are 37ml tubes and the panel is 12in.X 6in. Affordability and quality make this an excellent choice for learning oil painting.

Gamblin Artist Color Oil Paints

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3.6/5 Buy on Amazon

Pros:

Affordably Priced
Pigment Rich
Fast Drying
Good Consistency

Cons:

Maybe some tube and cap issues
Some filler and binding agents

Final Thoughts

I was unable to find any real cons to this paint. Some artists might consider the faster drying time to be a problem but this really depends on the individual. Customer feedback shows that this brand of oil paint is best for beginners and artists alike and has a thick buttery quality.

2. Bob Ross Landscape Oil Paints – 14 Colors

These oil paints are designed for Bob Ross's wet on wet technique but are also a good all around oil paint for beginners up to professional. I really like these oil paints as I have used some of Bob Ross techniques in my own work.

Bob Ross Landscape Oil Paints

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4.5/5 Buy on Amazon

Pros:

Affordably Priced
Pigment Rich Colors
Loads on brush nicely
Thick and Smooth Consistency

Cons:

Possible Tube Leakage (may be fixed)

Final Thoughts

It appears that this manufacturer is switching to metal tubes to solve the tube issues. Could not find anything bad about these paints. You can find a lot of training tools online for Bob Ross "Wet-On-Wet" technique if you want to see this paint in action.

3. Williamsburg Oil Native Italian Earth Set

This oil paint may be the best for the professional artist due to the thicker consistency that creates nice texture and brush strokes. Thinning of this paint will allow you to make it last longer than some cheaper alternatives. This set comes with 10 tubes of hand made oil paints.

Williamsburg Native Italian Oil Paints

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5/5 Buy on Amazon

Pros:

High Pigment Load
Minimal Fillers and Stabilizers
Lasts Longer
Affordably Priced

Cons:

May be a little grainy
Not as beginner friendly
More Expensive

Final Thoughts

This oil paint is highly recommended by many artists and seems to be ranked high in quality. Inexperience and lack of knowledge was the driving force behind the negative feedback I found online. Good assortment of earth tones for those landscape paintings.

4. Winsor & Newton Artists' Oil Paint Set

This set comes with 10 – 21ml tubes of paint. Very popular brand of oil paints. Different series of paints makes this brand a good choice for beginners or professionals.

Winsor Newton Oil Paints

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4/5 Buy on Amazon

Pros:

Affordable
Rich in Pigment
Smooth Texture
Loads Well

Cons:

Possibly hard to get lids off and on
Can be a little pricey

Final Thoughts

This seems to be a fairly popular paint among intermediate artists and some professional. Could be a great way to transition from acrylic paints to oil paints. Price and quality are fairly balanced making this a oil paint you can't go wrong with.

5. Castle Art Supplies Oil Paint

This set of oil paints comes with 24 – 12ml tubes of paint and is my top pick for best oil paint for beginners mostly because of the price. This oil paint may not last as long over time due to more binding agent being used. With that being said, this is still a very popular brand in the art industry.

Castle Art Oil Paints

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3/5 Buy on Amazon

Pros:

Large Variety
Very Affordable
Good Gift for Kids
Decent Pigment
Mixes Well

Cons:

Lower Quality
More fillers
Takes a long time to dry

Final Thoughts

I do not recommend these oil paints for the intermediate or professional artist. Some feedback showed this brand took an unusual amount of time to dry but I believe is still a nice choice for kids and those looking to experiment in oils for the first time.

Best Oil Paints Buyer's Guide

When buying oil paints there are a few things you should be aware of. I have listed a few of them below.

Cost

Oil paints are priced according to pigment and fillers. The purer the paint the less fillers there are meaning it is more expensive. This is just the core of the cost is what determines the quality of oil paint. Keep in mind the other costs of equipment needed to start oil painting.

Permanency

Artist and professional grade oil paints are graded by its permanence which is also known as lightfastness. All this means is basically how well the oil paints hold up to light exposure over time. The more pure in pigment a paint is the longer it will last. These ratings can also be rated by numbers also. The following keys can be found on the tubes of paint:

AA = The best permanence
A = Permanent
B = Durable
C = Fugitive

Be sure to read all the labels when selecting the best oil paint for your project. This key does not seem to be on some brands of paint. I recommend getting as much information as possible so you know what to expect out of your paint.

Transparency

When looking at the label you may see some keys that are squares. These keys help you to determine the transparency of the paint.

T = Transparent
S/T = Semi-Transparent
S/O = Semi-Opaque
O = Opaque

Again, this key is not on all brands making it harder to discern the quality of paint you're buying. Try to find both keys if you can but the permanence is probably the most important.

Student Grade Or Artist Grade Oil Paints

There is quite a big difference between student grade oil paints versus artist grade. Most of the difference is the amount of fillers and stabilizers used in the paint.

Student grade paints are best for just practicing and are much cheaper to purchase. This type of oil paint does not hold up well to light exposure over time. This type of paint seems to dry faster and should not be used for pieces that are intended to last.

Artist and Professional Grade is the purest form of oil paints and allows the artist more flexibility. Meaning the paint is made of pigments and oil, usually linseed oil, but other oils are also used. No fillers or stabilizers gives the artist the purest form of color and longer drying time. This helps in improving your work when making adjustments before the paint has dried.

You may find that professional oil paints has a thicker consistency and are more expensive. The cost is offset by how long a tube of paint lasts.

Tip: The best thing about artist and professional grade oil paints is the thick buttery paint can be thinned down with odorless thinners which helps make the paint go further and last longer.

Mixing Colors

Learning how to mix colors is an essential part of oil painting and the more practice the better you will get at it. Learning how to mix colors will also save you money because you will be able to create the color you want from a very minimal variety of colors.

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Responsible Oil Painting

Care must be taken with white titanium and also cadmium colors due to small amounts of heavy metals in the paint. Gloves are recommended when using these paints to lessen the exposure to skin. Most risks come from breathing in the powdered pigments when mixing your own paints with these types of pigments so be sure to wear a mask.

Always be sure the paint you are buying is non – toxic when buying for kids.

There are alternatives to these types of oil paints as well causing the quality of the paint to be reduced.

Professional artists want their best oil paintings to withstand the test of time and refrain from using the lower pigmented paints on a finished piece

In Closing

Oil painting can be fun for anyone looking to paint and allows the artist to take their time making corrections because of the slower drying time.

With oil paint it is possible to start off cheap and slowly graduate yourself up to a more professional quality paint which makes it easier on your pocket while learning.

Though I have personally used the Bob Ross brand of oil paints, my research has shown from the five products reviewed the Williamsburg Native Italian Earth Set to be the best all around oil paint. It is thicker and will last longer due to the ability to thin the paint to the consistency the artist is looking to achieve.