Best Tempera Art Paints of 2025

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Tempera art paints are a popular choice among artists due to their versatility and ease of use. These paints are made from a mixture of pigment, water, and egg yolk or another binder, resulting in a smooth and creamy consistency. They can be applied to a variety of surfaces, including paper, canvas, and wood, and are known for their vibrant colors and long-lasting finish. Additionally, tempera paints are non-toxic, making them a safe option for artists of all ages. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced artist, tempera paints are a great choice for your next project.
At a Glance: Our Top Picks
Top 10 Tempera Art Paints
Little Masters Tempera Paints Set
Little Masters Tempera Paints Set is an ideal choice for young learners who love to paint. With a blendable formula, you can mix it with other colors to create unique art pieces. The opaque colors will not chip, flake or crack when dry, making them long lasting. What's more, the nontoxic and water-based formula makes it easy to clean with just soap and water.
Colorations Washable Tempera Paint Set
This versatile 6-count, 8oz craft paint set is perfect for kids' crafts, art projects, hobbies, and whatever their imaginations can dream up. The smooth consistency dries to a bold, matte finish, and can be applied to non-greasy, absorbent surfaces including construction paper, drawing paper, cardboard, plaster cloth, and papier-mâché. The paint is washable from most surfaces and is safe for kids, with no common allergens.
Colorations Simply Washable Tempera Paints, Set of 11 Colors
Colorations Simply Washable Tempera Paints are a versatile set of 11 colors perfect for kids' crafts and art projects. The creamy and opaque formula works great on various surfaces with brushes, sponges, stamps, rollers, and more. The paints are washable, non-toxic, and safe for kids with no common allergens. The set dries to a vivid matte finish and resists cracking, allowing kids to create endless possibilities in a classroom or at home.
S&S Worldwide Color Splash! Liquid Tempera Bulk Paint Set
The S&S Worldwide Color Splash! Liquid Tempera Bulk Paint Set includes 12 bright colors in 32-oz easy-pour bottles that offer washable, vibrant, and non-toxic options for kids and adults. The creamy formula ensures rich coverage that dries quickly without flaking, cracking, or chipping. This economical paint set nurtures artistic talents and allows for endless art and craft projects at an affordable price.
Nicpro 18 Colors Washable Paint Set
The Nicpro Washable Paint Set offers 18 vibrant colors that will inspire creativity in kids. Each large 250ml bottle is easy to squeeze, helping you avoid spills and waste during art projects. The washable formula ensures that cleanup is quick and simple, making it perfect for both home and school use. Plus, the paint is non-toxic, so you can feel confident letting your children explore their artistic side safely. With included art sponges and a color wheel, blending colors becomes a fun activity that encourages imaginative play.
School Smart Washable Tempera Paint Set
The School Smart Tempera Paint is an excellent choice for young artists. This set features a variety of vibrant colors, allowing kids to express their creativity freely. You won’t have to worry about messes, as these washable paints easily come off skin and most fabrics with just soap and water. Their smart bottle design makes it simple to control the amount of paint used, reducing waste and spills. Plus, once dried, the paint remains intact without chipping or flaking, ensuring that your child's artwork stays looking great.
Handy Art Masters Washable Tempera Paint
Introducing Handy Art Washable Tempera Paint, a set of 6-16 oz bottles perfect for young learners and art enthusiasts. This blendable formula allows you to mix colors and create unique masterpieces. With its opaque colors, your creations will have a lasting appearance as they will not chip, flake, or crack when dry. Cleaning up is a breeze with the easy-to-clean formula that washes away with soap and hot water. Plus, the nontoxic and water-based formula ensures the safety of young users. Let your imagination run wild with Handy Art Washable Tempera Paint!
The Pencil Grip Kwik Stix Paint Pens
The Pencil Grip Kwik Stix Paint Pens offer a mess-free painting experience for kids of all ages. These tempera paint pens dry in under 90 seconds, eliminating the need for cups, smocks, water, or brushes. The non-toxic paint stays in a semi-solid form, making it easy to control by twisting the base of the pen. With 12 classic colors, 6 metallic colors, and 6 neon colors, the creative possibilities are endless. Plus, these washable paints easily wash off, so you don't have to worry about any mess. Suitable for children ages 3 and older, the Kwik Stix Paint Pens provide quick-drying, convenient, and non-toxic fun!
Shuttle Art Tempera Paint Sticks Set
The Shuttle Art Tempera Paint Sticks Set includes 30 vibrant colors and 1 drawing pad. These paint sticks are easy to use, quick-drying, and washable. They work great on a variety of surfaces, making them perfect for home doodling and school art projects. The set is non-toxic and conforms to ASTM D-4236, EN71, making it safe for toddlers and young children to use. If you have any questions or concerns, Shuttle Art provides excellent customer service.
TBC Tempera Paint Sticks
TBC Paint Sticks are the perfect art supplies choice for baby, students, and beginners. With vibrant and bright colors, these washable paint sticks can be overlapped and mixed, making them suitable for different surfaces like paper, wood, and poster card. The easy drawing and quick-drying feature, thanks to the solid paint sticks containing beeswax, allow for smooth and effortless application. The convenient and mess-free design, with a telescopic and break-resistant structure, ensures no waste and keeps hands clean. Additionally, these non-toxic paint sticks are easy to clean with wet paper towels or water. Let your creativity flow with TBC Paint Sticks!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is tempera paint best used for?
Tempera paint is versatile and commonly used for various projects like craft projects, school classroom projects, posters, theatre props, painting windows, color mixing exercises, and more. However, it yields the best results when used on paper, cardboard, and poster board.
2. Which is better acrylic or tempera paint?
Both tempera and acrylic paints have their advantages. Tempera paints are vibrant, opaque, quick-drying, and cost-effective. On the other hand, acrylic paints are more versatile, blendable, durable, and leave a smoother finish. The choice between the two depends on the specific requirements of the project and personal preference.
3. Do professional artists use tempera paint?
While some professional painters still make their own egg tempera paint, it is not as commonly used by artists today. This is mainly due to the availability and ease of use of other types of paints like oil, acrylic, and watercolor paints.
4. Why do artists use tempera paint?
Artists use tempera paint, specifically egg tempera, for its unique qualities. It offers a glowing quality that was highly favored by Renaissance painters for capturing ethereal biblical scenes. Tempera is more transparent than oil paint and holds less pigment, resulting in a distinct visual effect.
5. What are the disadvantages of tempera painting?
One of the main disadvantages of tempera painting is the need to apply it in thin layers, which can be time-consuming. Additionally, tempera paintings generally cannot achieve the same deep color saturation as oil paintings.
6. Do tempera paintings last?
True tempera paint, specifically egg tempera, is long-lasting, and many paintings created centuries ago still exist today. However, modern-day tempera paints or poster paints are not as durable and can easily be removed from the surface with water. Most historical egg tempera paintings were created on wood panels.
7. What is the difference between tempera paint and regular paint?
The main difference lies in their permanence when dry. Tempera paint is washable and can be reactivated with water, making it semi-permanent at most. On the other hand, acrylic paint dries permanently and is known for its lightfast qualities.
During our tempera art paint research, we found 24 tempera art paint products and shortlisted 10 quality products. We collected and analyzed 113,188 customer reviews through our big data system to write the tempera art paints list. We found that most customers choose tempera art paints with an average price of $26.82.
The tempera art paints are available for purchase. We have researched hundreds of brands and picked the top brands of tempera art paints, including Handy Art, Colorations, S&S Worldwide, Nicpro, School Smart. The seller of top 1 product has received honest feedback from 385 consumers with an average rating of 4.7.

Ann Hale is a seamstress, pattern maker, and fashion designer with extensive sewing experience. She has worked in the fashion industry for over 10 years now after receiving Associates's Degree in fashion design in 2010. Also as a writer, she has many creative and unique insights when it comes to articles.