I LOVE using white pens. They are great for adding highlights or accents to coloring pages or drawings, and they are a lot of fun for lettering on a dark background!
For years I have used a Uni-Ball Signo Broad gel pen for all my white highlights – but it didn’t always work quite as well as I would like. Sometimes it would get clogged on my pencils or disappear into certain backgrounds – so I decided it was time to see what else was available!
But I got a little carried away… and decided to purchase EVERY white gel pen and paint marker I could find online. After all, it was the best way to do a full comparison! And I know that my findings will help you too, so it was worth it.
I’m sure there are markers I’ve missed (we are limited in what we can find in Australia) so I’d love to hear from you in the comments if you have any other favorites. I’ve included a full video and written comparison below, showing you how each marker went and which are my favorites!
Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links and I may earn a commission if you click them and make a purchase (at no cost to you).
This test includes 23 white gel pens and paint markers:
- Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip DX Gel Pen – 1.0 mm
- Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen – Fine
- Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen – Medium
- Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen – Bold
- Sakura Glaze Gel Pen
- Pilot Juice Up Gel Pen – 0.4 mm
- Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip Gel Pen – 0.8 mm
- Pilot Juice Gel Pen – 0.5 mm
- Zebra Sarasa Clip Gel Pen – 0.5 mm
- Sakura Souffle Gel Pen
- Sakura Ballsign Knock Gel Pen – 0.6 mm
- Uni-ball Signo Broad Gel Pen
- Uni-ball Signo Angelic Gel Pen – 0.7 mm
- Yasutomo Y&C Gel Xtreme Gel Pen – 0.7 mm
- Sakura Decorese Gel Pen – 0.6 mm
- Faber-Castell Correction Pen
- Teranishi Magic Glow Slim Black Note Marker
- Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pen – 2.5 mm
- Pilot Juice Paint Marker – Fine Point
- Sharpie Oil-Based Paint Marker – Extra Fine Point
- Deleter Neopiko Line White Drawing Pen – 0.5 mm
- Mistubishi Uni Paint Marker
- Uni Posca PC-1MR Paint Marker
I wanted to make sure this test was as thorough as possible. Sometimes the markers that come with the highest recommendations online don’t work well on pencils, or they disappear into markers when used as highlights. So instead of just doing it on the black or colored paper like most tests, I have decided to also do it on each of the different mediums that I find myself using regularly when coloring.
I’ve tested all of these pens and markers on:
What are white pens used for?
There are many ways you can use a white pen. My favorite way to use a white pen is to add highlights and accents on my coloring pages like this one. But you can also use them to cover up mistakes you make on a white background (like accidentally going out of the lines!), or to create beautiful lettering or drawings on darker surfaces.
In my NEXT blog post, I’ll show you some of my top tips for getting the most out of your white pens and using them in your artwork! Subscribe to my Youtube channel and email newsletter to be notified when it is released.
I tested 23 white gel pens and paint markers – see which white pen was the best!
Check out my video below to hear my review of each white pen.
The best (and worst) white gel pens
I’ve listed each pen below with my samples and notes, in no particular order. You can also watch this in the video above. Further down, I’ve chosen my favorites.
Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip DX Gel Pen – 1.0 mm
First up, we have the Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip DX Gel Pen.
Now, right off the bat, I’m really impressed with this pen. It is really smooth to write with, it’s not skipping, it’s not scratchy. The color is fantastic… so WHITE! It’s easy to draw with and it’s working great on pencils, markers, highlighters and everything I’ve tried it on.
I hope they’re all this good because so far, I am very impressed.
Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen – Fine/Medium/Bold
Next up, we have the Sakura Gelly Roll Gel Pens.
Now, there’s actually three sizes that I’m doing this test on. The 5 (fine), 8 (medium) and 10 (bold). The 5 is actually a little bit too thin for my liking, but I’m sure it’s good for some projects. The 8 and the 10 were a bit better.
I’ve heard a lot of people rave about these pens, and on the black paper, they were wonderful.They were really silky smooth to write with, but each of the Gelly Roll gel pens let us down on the pencil tests. In terms of going on top of colored pencils, none of the Gelly Roll gel pens really performed as hoped.
On markers, they were great! So a good set of pens, but not for highlights on your colored pencil artwork.
Sakura Glaze Gel Pen
So next up, we have the Sakura Glaze.
Now, this one really caught me by surprise because when you first draw, it is completely clear. So I thought maybe this is a glaze – literally. It’s not a white pen, it’s just a glaze. I actually tried to draw a patch of color instead of drawing lines – but as you can see, I was surprised to find out it did turn white after about 20 to 30 seconds.
It’s an interesting pen. Personally, not one I would use, because I like to see my results straight away. And I did find that it almost let out a little bit too much ink as I was drawing, giving it a bit of a 3D texture. So not a personal favorite, but a very interesting pen… and it DID work on most surfaces.
Pilot Juice Up Gel Pen – 0.4 mm
Next up, we have the Pilot Juice Up 0.4mm Gel Pen.
Now this is a very thin pen. I’m not sure if they make a thicker range, maybe that would affect my view of this pen. But for me, I wasn’t a big fan of this. It was too thin to produce a nice line. It barely showed up on my pencils and it wasn’t smooth and nice to write with like some of the other white pens so far. It was a bit scratchy to write with, and not a favorite for me.
Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip Gel Pen – 0.8 mm
Next up, we have the Pentel Hybrid Gel, which I’m guessing is related to the Pentel Hybrid Gel DX that we started with. Now, this one is pretty good, although I have to say I think the DX did just slightly better.
This one is still smooth, still nice to write with, still works on every single one of our options, but it just wasn’t quite as smooth as the DX. I really like the little bit of extra ink that the DX gives that makes it just that bit nicer and always a bit more therapeutic to use. This is still a great pen overall.
Pilot Juice Gel Pen – 0.5 mm
Now, before we did, the Pilot Juice Up gel pen. This time we’re doing the Pilot Juice gel pen (I probably should have done this one first!)
I’ll be honest, I am completely underwhelmed. Even on the black, it kind of disappears as you write, and so it’s a very, very faint color. The line is very thin, and on top of some of these other mediums, you can’t see it at all. So not one that I would recommend if you’re doing it on top of coloring pages or artwork, unless you’re wanting a subtle look.
Zebra Sarasa Clip Gel Pen – 0.5 mm
The Zebra Sarasa pen didn’t really work much better. It didn’t work on the colored pencil at all, and it was very thin line on the other mediums. On all of the other mediums, even on the plain paper, I found it felt a bit scratchy and didn’t offer that vibrant white that I’m looking for. So, I’m not a fan.
Sakura Souffle Gel Pen
Next up, we have the Sakura Souffle.
Now, this name intrigues me, and this does remind me a little bit of the Sakura Glaze that we tried earlier. Just like the glaze, it starts at clear and it becomes whiter over time. So not a personal thing that I’m keen on because I like to see what I’m working with as I go, but the white that it produces at the end is actually a very good white.
So, if you don’t mind the wait, this is a pretty good option. It performed better than most of the other pens on colored pencils and markers, and the end results were great. Due to the waiting, it’s probably not one I would personally choose, but still a great pen and worth checking out.
Sakura Ballsign Knock Gel Pen – 0.6 mm
Next up, we have the Sakura Ball Sign… and I’m not a fan.
It didn’t really work on the washi. It didn’t really work on the colored pencils, and while it did work on the markers, it was a very fine line, very faint. And look, it was OK. It’s an OK pen. If you’re wanting subtle lines, it might be perfect for you. It’s definitely not one of my top ten.
Uni-ball Signo Broad Gel Pen
Next up, we have my classic, the Uni-ball Signo Broad Gel Pen.
When I filmed this video, the Uni-ball Signo I was using was 4 years old – so it wasn’t really a fair comparison. In my video, the Broad felt a little bit scratchy, and worked well on some mediums, but not so good on others. It has been disappointing on the pencils, but great on the markers.
So while in this instance I feel like some of these other pens have performed better, I have to consider it is 4 years old and it has been a great pen for me. Because of this, it didn’t make my top 5 in today’s video.
However, I decided to purchase a new one as I’m writing this (after my video), and the scratchy feeling is gone on my new pen. It works great on ALL the mediums and performs just as well as the other pens in my top 5.
So… SURPRISE! The Uni-ball Signo is a GREAT pen! It compares equally with the Pentel Hybrid Gel DX and performs better than the Uni-ball Signo Angelic.
The lesson here: LOOK AFTER YOUR PENS. I suspect I ruined my first gel pen from using it on top of my wax-based pencils too often. In my next blog post and video, I’ll talk more about that and how to prevent the issues that I’ve uncovered with my own pen.
Uni-ball Signo Angelic Color UM-120AC Gel Pen – 0.7 mm
Next, we have the Uni-Ball Signo Angelic.
Now, this one is very similar to the Broad and it probably does a little bit more smoothly (compared to my 4-year-old Signo Broad), which is maybe where the ‘Angelic’ comes from in the name. It still didn’t perform great on the pencils, but it does perform quite well on the markers.
So, look, I don’t know if it’s one of my top recommendations, maybe not quite one of my favorites, but it is still a very good pen.
Yasutomo Y&C Gel Xtreme Gel Pen – 0.7 mm
Next, we have the Yasutomo Y&C Gel Xtreme.
Now, I definitely wouldn’t call this an ‘extreme’ gel. It is very much like many of the other white pens that we’ve covered so far. It doesn’t work at all in the first washi tape, but I think that’s more about our washi tape. At this point, we haven’t had much luck because of the tape’s coating.
It doesn’t really work on the colored pencils either, so probably not one that I’d recommend if you’re wanting to do extra details on your coloring pages.
Sakura Decorese Gel Pen – 0.6 mm
The Sakura Decorese Gel Pen is next. And again, Sakura have created a great pen, I have heard great things about this one and this is probably the first pen on my list so far that has worked on every single medium, including our painful washi tape that’s not really letting us draw anything.
So, I’m very, very impressed with this one. It probably falls in my top 3 or top 5 at this point. It works on the pencils, it works in the markers and it’s a great white color, very easy to use, very smooth to write with. I am very impressed.
Faber-Castell Correction Pen
Next up, I decided to throw in a correction pen because I have heard people suggest that you can use a correction pen or a white out as a white pen.
Now, Faber-Castell usually produce great things. I gave them a shot with this. But let’s face it, this is not designed as a pen for drawing and the results show it. This was really hard to write with. I gave up halfway and it really didn’t work on a lot of the mediums. So let’s leave the correction pens for correcting…
The best (and worst) white paint markers
Let’s move on from the gel pens to the paint markers!
Paint markers work a bit differently, but are another great option for doing highlights on your coloring pages. They can be a little messier if you load up too much paint, and they all take a good shake to get started. But they are also a lot of fun and useful on other craft projects and surfaces too – and I was really impressed with some of the detail I could create with these!
Teranishi Magic Glow Slim Black Note Marker
Now The Teranishi Magic caught me by surprise. I thought it was a paint marker, so the first thing I did was bang the nib to get it loaded up like other paint pens… and I broke it. Luckily, Shane was able to pull the nib out and fix it for me. Phew!
So, warning with that one. It is not the traditional kind of paint marker. It does, however, produce a really nice writing. This is another one that starts clear and brings up the color as you go. It’s not one that I personally would use and it didn’t really work in the pencils, but if you like more of that felt pen feel, then this might be something worth looking at.
Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pen – 2.5 mm
Next, we have the Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen.
This is not a gel pen, and not a traditional paint pen either. This is more of a felt pen, and it writes beautifully. I’ve chosen the large size in this example, but they do have a small size available as well. And this worked fairly well on all mediums. It’s not as bright of a white as some of our other pens, so you would need to do a few layers for a strong white.
I don’t know if it’s necessarily one of my favorites, but if you are wanting a thicker line, it is a fairly good option.
Pilot Juice Paint Marker – Fine Point
Now we have Pilot Juice paint marker. I instantly love this because I expected paint markers to be a lot messier, and it wasn’t.
I expected it to be a lot harder to get a thin line and yet this works really well. Great thing is too that it seems to work on all of the different things. And to be honest, the lines I’ve produced have actually been just as good as a lot of the gel pen lines. I was really impressed with this as the first real paint marker that I’ve used. I expected it to be a lot harder to draw with and a lot thicker.
So, this one is definitely at the top of my paint marker list so far.
Sharpie Oil-Based Paint Marker – Extra Fine Point
Sharpie, on the other hand, have let me down. I love my Sharpies, but the oil-based paint marker… I don’t know what this is supposed to work on because it doesn’t seem to work on the black paper. It doesn’t seem to work on the blue paper. Doesn’t seem to work on any medium.
From what I’ve read online since my video, these are intended for use on metal, pottery, wood, rubber, glass, plastic, etc – So not really made for coloring pages or paper. So not suitable for our top list.
Deleter Neopiko Line White Drawing Pen – 0.5 mm
Now the Deleter Neopiko Line white marker is another paint marker that you do need to shake for a while and press to get it going when you first use it. But once it gets going, it is fantastic. I really love how much detail you can do.
It’s the most expensive pen on our list, but I can see why. The quality of this pen is amazing. It’s a strong, vibrant white and the lines are clean and smooth. It’s easy to use, and seems to work on every medium. I’m definitely going to be using this pen on all of my coloring pages, pencils, markers everything. It’s working great. One of the top of my list so far.
Mistubishi Uni Paint Marker
Next up, I have a Mitsubishi Uni Paint marker.
This is simply one that I found at Officeworks locally and I thought, why not give it a go? And I was a little bit disappointed… The colors aren’t that white. Like the Sharpie, it’s probably not made for coloring pages. I’d be interested to see if it performs better on another surface. For now, not one of my favorites.
Uni Posca PC-1MR Paint Marker
And finally, the Posca Pen.
Now I’ve heard wonderful things about these Posca pens, so I was very disappointed with how mine turned out. And look, I have a feeling I might have just got a dud because I have seen lots of people’s artwork with Posca pens and it definitely looks much better than how mine has turned out.
In my case, I barely got any white out of this pen – I did shake it for a while and loaded it up, but it wasn’t very visible. I’d love to find another one and give this pen a go again in the future, but for today’s test, it fails.
What is the best white gel pen?
And we have a tie! I cannot decide between the Sakura Decorese and the Pentel Hybrid Gel DX . They were both very impressive and I’ve done a little bit more drawing with them both and I will probably keep using them both.
So, I definitely recommend both of those pens. AND…. after further tests, my Uni-Ball Signo Broad Gel Pen makes this list too. It IS a great pen.
Very, very impressed with these three, and would highly recommend all of them for adding white highlights to your coloring pages.
What is the best white paint marker?
I have decided that my favorite paint marker is the Deleter Neopiko Line white that just worked so well on everything. And I was really impressed, really easy to use, very surprised. Just make sure you give it a good shake before you use it!
If you’re looking for a more affordable option, the Pilot Juice Paint Marker was a close second for me. It was easily in my top 5 pens from this review.
Which white pens work best on coloring pages?
One of the biggest reasons I wanted to do my own white marker test was because most of the tests I found online only used black paper. But as you can see in my video, many of the best white pens on black didn’t work as well (or at all!) on the colored pencils.
The best white pens for drawing on colored pencils
The best white gel pens to use on colored pencils were the Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip & Gel Grip DX Gel Pens, Sakura Glaze Gel Pen, Sakura Souffle Gel Pen, the Uni-ball Signo Broad gel pen and Sakura Decorese Gel Pen.
The best white paint markers to use on colored pencils were the Pilot Juice Paint Marker and the Deleter Neopiko Line White Drawing Pen.
These all produced clear, smooth results on both the Prismacolor Soft-Core Pencils and the Faber-Castell Polychromos, and I’m confident they would work on other pencils too.
Just remember to wipe them down and take care of them so you don’t get them clogged with the wax or pigment from the pencils. I’ll talk more about this in my next blog post and video!
The best white pens for drawing on markers
Most of the pens worked just as well on the markers as they did on the paper. Some of them absorbed a bit, which may depend on how thick the markers are, and the paper quality underneath. I noticed that the Tombow Dual Brush Pens absorbed more of the white than the Copic and Sharpie markers. I think it’s best to experiment, try some tests of your own and try using multiple layers if you want a stronger white.
If ranked by the whitest results on the markers, the best gel pens were the Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip & Gel Grip DX Gel Pens, the Sakura Gelly Roll Gel Pens, the Uni-ball Signo Broad, the Sakura Souffle Gel Pen, and the Sakura Decorese Gel Pen.
The best white paint markers were the Pilot Juice Paint Marker and the Deleter Neopiko Line White Drawing Pen.
Where can I buy white pens?
The best way to find a white pen to buy is to choose your favorite from this review, and then search online for a supplier near you. I’ve provided some direct shopping links in this post above. Many can be found on Amazon or online craft stores like Blick Art Supplies.
I’m in Australia, so my shopping options for white markers were a bit more limited. I ended up purchasing a few from Officeworks and the rest from Jet Pens, who shipped internationally.
Do you have any other favorite white pens I missed?
I’m sure there are many white gel pens and paint markers that didn’t make my list – if you have a favorite, please let me know in the comments!
Don’t forget to save this for later on Pinterest, and subscribe to my YouTube channel and email updates so you’ll get notified when I post new articles and videos like this one. I hope this review and white pen comparison was helpful!
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I am reading all of your posts you are asuch nice write keep it up for latest update
Thats nice and good information
This is perfect, I’m actually here to find a rubbish white paint marker, I do redaction text/blackout poetry, and sometimes the text I’m covering up is really cool and I still want it to show though. I do a lot of collage already so I’m going to try strips of tracing paper, but I’m disabled and my hands aren’t always up to scissors safely, so this looks like a brilliant and more accesable way to do that. Thanks lovely!
I too, have been very disappointed with Posca paint markers in white. Everyone on videos seem to smoothly achieve bold lines. I’ve tried every size of white and ALL of them require constant shaking and pressing then you get a blob! Sometimes I just blob out a puddle and use a paint brush to transfer marks to my piece. I paid a lot and am determined to use them up but they are a pain.
Thanks for your honest and extensive review. I will use your recommendations.
This is such an incredibly useful guide! I’m looking into buying my very first white pen for my sketches which leads me to my question: which pen would you recommend/do you think would work best on graphite pencils? I’m eager to hear your suggestion, especially cause I’m compiling my birthday wishlist, haha. Thank you!
merci pour le partage
This was very helpful!! Thank you for also including visual examples of the different pens on different mediums!
Hello.
I need a marker/pen that will leave a white line on (dark) leather.
Preferably a very thin (around 0.4mm) permanent line.
I’ve tried white pencils but they are way too soft.
What do you suggest?
Thank you for this very helpful post! I have been searching for a good white gel pen. I’m excited to try your favorites!
I am desperately searching for a white pen, fed up with the gelly roll pens. I make cards and do use them for coloring with water-color, and too often as a corrector pen . I really have found no pen that does a good cover up job. Also they seen to too often be blocked or dried up…too soon. I can’t believe you have pens you’ve used for years!? Mine never last past a month or two?! I learned a lot from this tutorial and so appreciative Sarah. I sadly can not afford the best ones , I have decided I’ll try the Uni Ball Signo . (but I may have used it in the past, lol) ….Thanks!
I see many people recommend the UNI ball signo and I must say that I do not like it it keeps blocking up. I have three of them that sit here and I cannot use. So I’m glad to see you the other ones you have on yes the uni ball is cheaper but it also works cheaper and it doesn’t always work on my pencils
What white pen works best on watercolours?
What an absolutely perfect review for exactly what I was looking for! I just got into white pens (not a fan of the gelly roll, currently started using the uni ball signo) for highlighting on prismacolors and I couldn’t have found a better white pen review. So extremely easy to read or just go through and look at your example images. I don’t normally join conversations at the end of a review page but I soo appreciate you making this. Thank you!!
I appreciate ALL of your efforts and especially I appreciate your sharing this experimentation results…. I use pencil and ink and have been vying to find a WHITE 0.25 pen,, But,, but,,, apparently,, that fine of a line marker in white-color just isn’t being manufactured.. Of all the assortment of inks that I do use (( Black )) , I am fond of using the 0.15 and 0.3 tips… and ,, those produce a really fine line for Fine-Details and, my goal / Expedition is to have a White ink in similar tip-size as my black so I can keep Balance.. Ugh!! So,, regardless of my personal dilemma,, I am all the more educated and enlightened by your article. Thank You most sincere.!
This was an excellent article, but I paint little wooden figures in acrylic craft paint and would love an opinion of what might work best for a very thin line (most likely will used it for printing tiny letters/ details) on a darker colour?
I was so hoping the signo broad would be a top performer because it is my absolute favourite! I have recently bought it in 5 other colours for our wedding scrapbook
Well thought our review Sarah. Perhaps if they come in boxes of 12, like the Pentels K230 Hybrid Gel Grip DX ,a few of us who live in the same area could pool their resources. One or two would last me for a few years. (NSW Hunter Valley if anyone is interested.)
BOXUN gel pen also works well for black paper. these are much better than the ones I had previously purchased. The tip allows fine details, not too fine but nice. The ink goes on smooth, they are small for those of you who like small pens.
Thanks for this review. Uni-ball Signo is great, works just perfect for what I need it for, and the price isn’t so bad.
What a terrific review of white pens! Your picks were wide-ranging and you thought out the parameters of the test nicely. How easy you made it for me to pick out a white pen to try! I enjoy coloring, and tangling, and Zentangle, and especially like using different colored pens for doing my crossword puzzles (I know, it seems weird but it makes me so happy). I am quickly becoming a fast fan of yours and am looking forward to your next post. Cheers!
Thank you for the lovely comments! I love your idea of using colors in crossword puzzles – I might start doing that too!
Hey Henson, I also love your idea! 🙂
Thank you so much for writing this article, it has been a tremendous help.
I have purchased a few white pens for highlighting but they just didn’t get the job done, now I have a few that I can try? Well done thank you
Thank you very much Sarah for your informative video. As I’m in Australia, some of the suggested top white pens are very expensive to obtain here (unfortunately). Please note that the link for the Uniball Signo Broad is incorrect (it leads to the Sakura Decorese pen).
Hi Cindy! I’m glad you found it helpful!
They are definitely not as cheap here in Australia. I had a bit of trouble tracking them down at first! I bought my Uni-Ball Signo and Posca Pen from Officeworks.
I bought the rest from Jet Pens (in the USA) because they ship to Australia. The shipping wasn’t too bad because I bought them all at once, but probably not ideal if you’re just wanting one pen!
I think I spent about $150 AUD in total on pens for this video (eep!) but until now, I’ve only had the Uni-Ball Signo, which was under $5 at Officeworks.
The paint pens are generally more expensive (especially the Deleter!) so a Posca Pen is around $6-7 AUD at Officeworks. I think I’ll give them another try, despite the failure in my video. I see great reviews about them elsewhere and there isn’t much else available without ordering from the USA.
I hope that helps!
Great information. I especially liked the buy on Amazon below each pen test info. I ordered a couple to try, you have already done the hard work for me
Awesome! I’m glad it was helpful. Which pens did you choose?
Great breakdowns – thank you!
Do you have a suggestions of which one could be used to sign an acrylic paining? I hate my signature using a brush. Maybe I’m using the wrong brush but as I read this I thought it might be something to use for the painting as well.
I’m not familiar with acrylic paints, but I’d suggest one of the paint markers would be the best option. It would make sense, right? I’d love to hear how you go if you choose to try one.
This was very helpful for me. I use Prismacolor pencils for coloring. I love the tip about highlighting with white and knowing which pens work with that kind of pencil all at the same time! I also like to do Zentangle and I have tried white pens to “erase” mistakes sometimes. I haven’t been quite satisfied yet with what I have, so I’m glad to know of some others to try that will work on the mistakes AND on the black paper (which I haven’t done, except in classes). Thanks, Sarah!
Thanks for the comments Mary! I mostly use Prismacolor pencils too, and I was surprised at some of the highly-recommended pens that didn’t work well at all on the Prismacolor pencils. I bet a lot of people just think they are using them wrong, but in fact, they need a different pen!