Which coloured pencils are the best? Prismacolor or Polychromo?

In late 2021, I decided to replace my basic $12 Faber-Castell 48 pack of colored pencils I’d had for a while. I wanted to enhance my watercolor art by using colored pencils to add finer details instead of using fine liners.

I’d heard many reviews about the Prismacolor Premier pencils and the Faber-Castell Polychromo pencils and I wasn’t sure which to go for. So many amazing current artists that I love rave about Prismacolors and won’t use anything else, but others are the exact same with Polychromos. So I decided to try out both!

I chose a few of each brand in colours that I knew I’d use a lot and would help me make the decision for myself. As really they’re both great pencils, it just depends what you’ll be using them for.

Some things to consider

Range: They both have a great range of colours and generally they’re around the same price, at my local art shop the individual Polychromos are around 50c cheaper. Of course, buying a set will be cheaper to begin with but only if you want all the colours within. I decided to curate my own collection and buy individually.

I suggest googling swatches before buying online, especially if, like me, you're purchasing some of both. The last thing you want is two identical colours.

Quality: They’re both great quality lead but the Prismacolors in my experience are easier to crack and break. A few of mine have cracks right down the pencil and another has damaged the lead to the point where I lose the lead often while sharpening. I promise I’m not violent to my art supplies!

Lightfastness: If you’re just colouring for fun then you don’t really need to worry about lightfastness, but if you’re wanting to sell your artwork professionally it’s something to consider. Lightfastness measures how well the pencil pigment holds its colour over time without fading. Polychromos are the better of the two for this, with over 102/120 of their colours ranking top of the lightfastness scale compared to Prismacolors 59/150.

Which did you prefer in the end I hear you ask?

I ended up loving and sticking with both. Now in 2023 I have almost forty various colours in a mixture of Prismacolors and Polychromos.

I use Polychromo pencils for outlining, detailing, and anything that requires a sharp tip. Prismacolors lose their sharpness quickly, so they're not that great for lining. If I want a pencil for detailed work, I'll choose a Polychromo without hesitation. But Prismacolors are buttery smooth and lovely to blend, they’re great for colouring larger shapes and blending gradients.

So now when I’m shopping for new colours to add to my collection my default rule is to get the lighter colours in Prismacolors and the darker colours in Polychromos.

In the end I’m not a brand loyalist, I don’t mind that my art supplies don’t match, I just want them to do the thing I want to do with them. If this means I need to buy two types of coloured pencils to get the effect I want in my art then that’s what I’ll do!

Hopefully if you’re stuck between these two brands this wee review will help you out!