The main difference between colored pencils and watercolor pencils is that regular colored pencils stay dry, while watercolor pencils contain water-soluble pigment that can be activated with a damp brush. Both can be used like ordinary pencils, but watercolor pencils give you the additional option of turning drawn marks into washes.
I use the two differently. When I want predictable layering, crisp detail, and complete control over where every mark stays, I prefer regular colored pencils. When I want looser color, soft washes, or a compact alternative to carrying watercolor paint, watercolor pencils can be more useful.
Colored Pencils vs Watercolor Pencils at a Glance
| Colored Pencils | Watercolor Pencils | |
|---|---|---|
| Used dry | Yes | Yes |
| Activated with water | No | Yes |
| Best for | Layering, detail, texture, controlled shading | Washes, soft transitions, travel sketches, mixed dry-and-wet effects |
| Control | Very predictable | Predictable dry, more variable after adding water |
| Fine detail | Excellent | Good when used dry |
| Large areas of color | Slower to fill | Can be activated into broad washes |
| Paper | Drawing paper with suitable tooth | Paper that can tolerate water if activated |
| Travel | Very simple | Very compact with a water brush |
What Makes Watercolor Pencils Different From Regular Colored Pencils?
Watercolor pencils contain pigment in a binder designed to dissolve or disperse when it comes into contact with water.
Before water is added, I can draw with them much like a regular colored pencil. The marks can stay sharp, I can hatch and shade, and I can build up areas of color.
The difference appears when I run a damp brush across those marks. The pencil strokes begin to dissolve and spread, creating an effect closer to watercolor paint.
Regular colored pencils don’t do that. Once I put down a mark, it stays where I placed it unless I physically blend, burnish, erase, or cover it with another layer.
Regular Colored Pencils Give Me More Predictable Control
For detailed observational drawing, regular colored pencils are usually the easier tool for me to control.
I can establish a broad shape with light pressure, add another color over it, deepen selected shadows, sharpen an edge, or leave a passage loose. The earlier marks don’t suddenly move because I introduced moisture.
That makes regular colored pencils particularly useful for:
- Animal fur and feathers
- Bark and plant textures
- Small architectural details
- Layered shadows
- Sharp edges
- Gradual color mixing
If you’re learning the dry medium, my guide to how to use colored pencils covers pressure, layering, and the basic approach in more detail.
Watercolor Pencils Give You a Dry and Wet Option
The advantage of watercolor pencils is flexibility.
I can leave some marks completely dry and activate others with water. That makes it possible to combine sharper pencil detail with broader, softer areas in the same drawing.
For example, I might draw the darker structure of a tree with dry pencil while using water to soften distant hills or sky colors.
If you already own a set and want to learn the actual process, see my separate tutorial on how to use watercolor pencils.
Which Is Better for Blending?
It depends on the kind of blending you want.
With regular colored pencils, I blend primarily by layering one color over another. I can also increase pressure later or use burnishing to create a smoother surface.
This process is gradual and predictable. I can see the color change after every layer.
Watercolor pencils can blend much faster once water is introduced. A damp brush can dissolve separate pencil strokes and join colors into a wash.
That speed is useful, but it also means I give up some control. Adding too much water can move pigment farther than I intended or soften an edge I wanted to keep.
Which Is Better for Fine Details?
I generally prefer regular colored pencils for fine detail.
A sharp point gives me direct control over small marks, edges, textures, and changes in value. Nothing changes until I deliberately put another mark over it.
Watercolor pencils can also produce fine detail while dry. The important difference is that those details may soften or disappear if I later activate them with water.
One useful approach is to create the broader watercolor-pencil washes first, allow the paper to dry completely, and then return with dry watercolor pencil for sharper final details.
Which Is Better for Large Areas of Color?
Watercolor pencils have a practical advantage when I need to cover a broad area quickly.
Filling an entire sky or background with regular colored pencil can require many layers. With watercolor pencils, I can place pigment across the area and then dissolve it with water into a broader wash.
That doesn’t automatically make watercolor pencils better. The resulting surface has a different character from dry colored pencil.
If I specifically want visible pencil strokes, gradual layering, or a dry-media appearance, I would still choose ordinary colored pencils.
Colored Pencils Are Easier to Use on Ordinary Drawing Paper
Regular colored pencils don’t require water, so I have much more freedom in paper choice.
I still want a surface with enough tooth to hold the pigment, but the paper doesn’t have to tolerate a wet wash.
Watercolor pencils are different. If I plan to activate them, I want paper strong enough to handle water without excessive buckling or surface damage.
If paper is causing problems with ordinary colored pencil, I have a separate guide to the best paper for colored pencils.
Watercolor Pencils Can Be Better for Travel Sketching
Watercolor pencils become especially useful when I want some of the effects of watercolor without carrying a full paint setup.
A small set of pencils and a water brush can give me dry lines, washes, soft transitions, and stronger accents without requiring a palette and separate container of water.
I can also use them entirely dry when water isn’t convenient.
Regular colored pencils are even simpler because they need nothing beyond the pencils and paper, but they don’t give me the same wash option.
Can You Use Watercolor Pencils Like Regular Colored Pencils?
Yes. You don’t have to activate watercolor pencils with water.
You can draw, hatch, shade, and layer with them while they remain completely dry.
However, they don’t necessarily feel identical to a traditional colored pencil. Core hardness, pigment concentration, binder, and brand all influence the way a pencil feels on paper.
I wouldn’t buy watercolor pencils solely because I expect them to replace a favorite dry colored-pencil set. Their real advantage is having both dry and water-activated possibilities in one tool.
Can Regular Colored Pencils Be Used With Water?
Regular colored pencils are not designed to dissolve into watercolor washes.
They can still appear in mixed-media drawings that also contain watercolor, but adding water does not turn an ordinary colored pencil into a watercolor pencil.
If I want that dissolving effect, I use a pencil specifically labeled as water-soluble or watercolor pencil.
Which Type Is Easier for Beginners?
If someone primarily wants to learn colored-pencil drawing, I think regular colored pencils are easier to understand at first.
The marks are predictable, there is no water management, and the relationship between pressure and color is easier to see directly.
Watercolor pencils aren’t necessarily difficult, but adding water introduces another variable. You have to think about how wet the brush is, how absorbent the paper is, how much pigment is present, and how far you want that pigment to move.
If the watercolor effect is what attracted you to the medium in the first place, though, there’s no reason you can’t begin with watercolor pencils.
Which One Is Better for Layering?
I prefer regular colored pencils when layering itself is the main part of the drawing.
I can make repeated light passes, change colors gradually, build darker values, alter the direction of my strokes, and stop before the surface becomes overly polished.
That process is central to many of the colored pencil techniques I use.
Watercolor pencils can also be layered, but once I activate a layer with water, I’m working with a different surface and a different kind of mark.
Can You Combine Regular Colored Pencils and Watercolor Pencils?
Yes. I don’t see a reason to treat the two as mutually exclusive.
One useful combination is to use watercolor pencils for broad early color, activate selected areas, let the paper dry completely, and then use regular colored pencils for more controlled detail and texture.
The important part is letting wet areas dry before working into them with dry pencil. A damp surface is much easier to damage.
Choose Regular Colored Pencils If…
- You want maximum control over every mark.
- You enjoy building color gradually through layers.
- You draw detailed textures, animals, plants, or architecture.
- You don’t want to work with water.
- You mainly use ordinary drawing paper.
- You like burnishing and dry blending.
If that sounds closer to the way you want to work, you can compare some of the colored pencils I recommend for artists.
Choose Watercolor Pencils If…
- You want to switch between dry marks and watercolor-like washes.
- You enjoy softer backgrounds and atmospheric effects.
- You want a compact tool for travel or field studies.
- You need to cover larger areas more quickly.
- You enjoy experimenting with water and pigment movement.
- You want one tool that can create both lines and washes.
Which Do I Prefer?
For most of my observational drawing, I prefer regular colored pencils because I like the control of gradually building shapes, values, edges, and textures without earlier marks moving.
Watercolor pencils become more interesting to me when I want a softer wash, a quicker block of color, or a compact wet-and-dry option for sketching away from the studio.
I don’t think one replaces the other. Their overlap is useful, but the experience changes considerably as soon as water is introduced.
If you decide watercolor pencils suit what you want to do, continue to my watercolor pencil tutorial. If you’d rather stay with dry media, my main colored pencils resource collects the techniques, papers, supplies, and other guides I’ve written about the medium.