Holbein Artists' Watercolor colors by pigment, lightfastness and price

ホルベイン透明水彩絵具 — 108 colors in 5 ml and 15 ml tubes, 45 also in 60 ml. Holbein's transparent watercolor, made at its own factories in Osaka and Nara, Japan. Filter, sort, and compare up to four colors side by side.

Filters
Color
Lightfastness (minimum)
Transparency
Staining
Price series (5 ml list price in Japan)
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Included in set
108 colors

The range at a glance

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Lists

List price in Japan by series

5 ml15 ml60 mlColors
Series A¥220 ≈ $1.40¥420 ≈ $2.67¥1,150 ≈ $7.3255
Series B¥240 ≈ $1.53¥470 ≈ $2.99¥1,300 ≈ $8.2820
Series C¥320 ≈ $2.04¥640 ≈ $4.08¥1,750 ≈ $11.1415
Series D¥400 ≈ $2.55¥800 ≈ $5.09¥2,300 ≈ $14.658
Series E¥500 ≈ $3.18¥1,050 ≈ $6.69—5
Series F¥580 ≈ $3.69¥1,300 ≈ $8.28¥3,500 ≈ $22.295

Excluding 10% consumption tax. Price list effective 2026-11-02. USD at 157.05 JPY (2026-10-22), rough guide only.

How to read the ratings

Lightfastness★★★★ absolutely permanent · ★★★ permanent · ★★ moderately durable · ★ fugitive (Holbein's own scale)
TransparencyTransparent · Semi-transparent · Semi-opaque · Opaque
StainingHow strongly the color stains paper and resists lifting: staining · semi-staining · non-staining
GranulationPigment particles settle into the paper texture and give a grainy look
Caution markCd / Co / Cu: the catalog marks colors that contain cadmium, cobalt, copper

See what is in each set · Official Holbein page Not an affiliate link

About these numbers

Ratings, pigments and set contents come from Holbein's catalog. Prices are the manufacturer's suggested retail price in Japan excluding 10% consumption tax. On-screen colors are approximate, taken from the printed color chart (brush-out from full strength to pale). See where the data and prices come from.