The 7 Best Cold Pressed Watercolour Papers (2023 reviews)

We consider a cold pressed watercolour paper to be a worthy investment in the long run. We are here to help you choose the right one for your purposes from all the best available products in market today.

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Our Top Picks:

Best Overall: Buy: Arches Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best For Water coloring: Buy: Strathmore Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best For portrait: Buy: Zen Sangam express your mind Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best With gouache: Buy: Winsor Newton Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best For beginner: Buy: Canson Watercolor Paper READ REVIEW

Best For Artist: Buy: Hahnemuhle Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best For practice: Buy: Canson Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper READ REVIEW

Best Overall: Arches Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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These sheets are very rugged and can hold up to lots of water. It is just as thick (or just as thin) as all other 300 lb watercolor paper. It gives you a larger, study surface to work on and eliminates the extra steps of stretching and affixing your paper to a board.

It is made from 100% natural cotton fiber with no optical brightening agents, this paper has an archival, natural white color and an exquisite texture unlike other papers on the market. The block helps the paper resist warping and buckling. It takes even some scrubbing with a stiffer brush nicely. This paper in either weight is strong enough and thick enough to paint on both sides. It can handle scrubbing with your brush or eraser.

• Heavy weight and takes heavy washes without puckers or warping
• Stays flat when you are painting with it
• Consistent quality and handles pigment and water very well

Best For Water coloring: Strathmore Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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Strathmore Watercolor pads are top-of-the line for any art project. The 300 series watercolor paper pad contains 12 sheets of heavyweight, student grade, watercolor paper with a cold press surface. They are awesome for illustrations and heavy duty acrylic paintings and washes.

The quality of the paper is great for watercolor to look sharp and dries fast and great. It is good for water coloring. This is a great way to try all of the different patterns. This paper is fine for the beginner who has no experience. It's best quality art paper for anything including, pastels, watercolors, sketch drawings, and charcoal + paint drawings if you're carful enough.

• Lifting is easy, providing you do not use staining watercolors
• Holds watercolors well without running or curling
• Great paper, very thick and sturdy
• Excellent paper that responds to water well

Best For portrait: Zen Sangam express your mind Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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Compared with other paper in this category, the zen sangam express your mind cold pressed watercolour paper has a convenient design. It is suitable for using wet techniques such as watercolor, tempera, acrylic, ink and mixed media, oil pastels, charcoal, graphite, brushpens, and wet media techniques. It comes with better sizing internally and externally to give optimal absorption and reproduction of colour, available in sizes a4, a5, a6 and 245 gsm.

It’s affordable, the paper is honestly so nice to paint on, smooth and it holds water pretty well without buckling.

• Micro perforated for easy tear off after drawing
• Good brand reputation

Best With gouache: Winsor Newton Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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We know from years of feedback from readers, customers and amazon sellers, what most people want in a convenient and appropriate paper. The winsor newton cold pressed watercolour paper is exactly that - it's a simple paper that hits all the right notes. This 100% cotton paper is lovely. It is made with 100% archival grade cellulose wood pulp and natural artesian spring water with neutral ph properties. It's also easy to add watercolor paint to water on the paper to achieve playful flow. The texture is perfect, and lifting paint is easily done. It is used for making soldiers' canteens.

This is just as good or better than Arches and other cotton papers. It's workable though and its a very impressive quality paper if you are creating watercolor and pen and ink designs. It has a nice texture.

• Retains color brilliance, very smooth surface
• Nice weight, nice texture, nice scrubbability, pricy
• Cotton and a 25% cotton/cellulose combo
• Handy 5" x 7" size for field or studio sketching

Best For beginner: Canson Watercolor Paper

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We know from years of feedback from readers, customers and amazon sellers, what most people want in a convenient and appropriate paper. The canson watercolor paper is exactly that - it's a simple paper that hits all the right notes. This water color paper is simply the greatest. It works well for watercolorists of all levels. It comes with 12 sheets per pad (24 sheets total), 300 gsm. It is great for wet-on-wet technique and holds up to multiple washes & glazes. Your paints will retain their beautiful sheen on this arches watercolor pad. It is a good weight for paintings intended to be framed or sold.

It comes with long fibers, this thick, stable sheet is beautiful, durable, and resilient.

• High quality for your finished products
• One of the new comers and featured product

Best For Artist: Hahnemuhle Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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Best part: hahnemuhle cold pressed watercolour paper costs comparatively low and it is available to ship in 24 hours. This 9 x 12 inch hahnemuhle watercolor 300 pad contains 12 sheets of natural white, cold pressed, 300 gsm, watercolor paper. It can withstand the most demanding watercolor techniques, the fibers do not lift, rub off or loosen when applying multiple layers of color, or when using masking fluids and tapes. It is thirsty and has good tooth, however it does not feel as thick or stiff as other. It allows pick-up with out damaging the paper, and holds water well in wet washes.

The Collection cold pressed is a bit finer “grain” and a bit more random than Arches. It is affordable and of good quality. This paper takes watercolor really well. It is easy to control the flow of paint and even water.

• Amazing watercolor paper for lifting paint
• Nice 100% cotton watercolor paper, well-priced
• Lot of satisfied buyers

Best For practice: Canson Cold Pressed Watercolour Paper

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The features department is where canson cold pressed watercolour paper truly manages to shine. The Graduate Aquarelle pad is perfect to start and practice easily the watercolour technique. It is made of white paper with a cold pressed texture, it is ideal for watercolour and gives a bright rendering of colours.

• Ideal weight for wet on wet technique
• Thick and resistant, the paper is easy to use
• Lot of satisfied buyers