Citadel vs Army Painter vs Vallejo
Three ranges, roughly a factor of two in price, and one difference that actually matters to a beginner.
The short answer
Buy Citadel if you are a beginner following tutorials, because every guide names Citadel colors and that is worth real money while you learn. Buy Vallejo if cost per milliliter matters most: 18 ml dropper bottles for less than a 12 ml Citadel pot. Army Painter sits between them and is the only one whose starter set includes a primer.
The quick version
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Citadel Colour: Warhammer 40,000 Paints + Tools SetThe only starter set that hands you paints, a brush, clippers and a moldline scraper at once, so nothing else is needed to finish a first squad. | Following tutorials literally | 9.0 | Check price on Amazon |
| 2 |  The Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic Starter SetEleven 18 ml dropper bottles plus a primer, a brush and a practice miniature. More paint than the Citadel starter for less money, and dropper bottles that do not dry out. | The middle ground | 8.8 | Check price on Amazon |
| 3 |  Vallejo Game Color Introduction Set (72.299)Sixteen 18 ml bottles covering the whole color wheel plus three metallics. The cheapest honest route to a complete working palette. | Cost per milliliter | 8.4 | Check price on Amazon |
Scores are our own editorial read against the criteria stated below — not a lab measurement and not a user rating. Tap a row for the full write-up.
The comparison
| Citadel | The Army Painter | Vallejo | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Container | 12 ml flip-top pot | 18 ml dropper | 17–18 ml dropper |
| Volume per unit | Smallest | Largest | Largest |
| Relative cost per ml | Highest | Low | Lowest |
| Single-coat coverage | Best (Base range) | Good | Good, some colors need two |
| Named in tutorials | Almost always | Sometimes | Rarely |
| One-coat range | Contrast | Speedpaint 2.0 | Xpress Color |
| Starter set includes primer | No | Yes | No |
| Range breadth | Very wide, fantasy-focused | Wide | Very wide, including scale-model lines |
The one difference that matters at the start
Everything in that table is a modest, measurable difference except one row, and that row decides the question for most beginners: whether the tutorials you watch name the colors you own.
When a video says “basecoat Macragge Blue, wash with Agrax Earthshade, edge highlight with Calgar Blue”, a painter with Citadel paints follows three instructions. A painter with Vallejo paints has to identify which of their blues is closest, guess at the highlight, and then wonder whether their result looks different because of the paint or because of their technique. That ambiguity is genuinely discouraging when you are learning.
It is also temporary. After a few months you are choosing colors rather than following them, the premium buys you nothing, and the cost per milliliter becomes the only thing left in the comparison. Which is exactly the migration path most painters follow. If you want the cheaper paints and the tutorial support, a conversion chart is the bridge.
Pots versus droppers, honestly
Citadel’s flip-top pot is faster to work from and holds a third less paint. Over a year or two the lid seal degrades and the paint at the top skins. The upside is genuine: open, dip, close, no shaking.
Dropper bottles never skin, hold more, and let you measure. “Two drops paint, one drop water” is a repeatable recipe; “a brushful from the pot” is not. For anyone who intends to thin paint properly — which is the single biggest technique improvement available — that measurability matters.
Many painters decant Citadel pots into empty dropper bottles to get both. That is a real thing people do and it tells you which format wins on merit.
Coverage, and what the Base range actually buys
Citadel’s Base paints are the most opaque in this comparison and that is a real advantage. A single thin coat of a Citadel Base over black primer covers; the equivalent Vallejo Game Color often wants two. Over forty models that is a measurable amount of time.
It matters most for the awkward colors. Yellow, orange and white over a dark primer are where coverage differences become obvious, and where Citadel earns part of its premium. For a mid-tone blue or green the difference is small.
Pick this if
- You are starting out and want to follow guides: Citadel, and accept the cost. See the 40,000 set.
- You care most about cost per milliliter: Vallejo. Biggest bottles, lowest price, full color wheel including metallics.
- You want one box with paint, primer and a brush in it: Army Painter. It is the only one of the three that solves the whole first purchase.
- You are painting a model kit rather than a miniature: none of these — see the best paint for Gunpla.
The head-to-heads are also broken out individually, if you have narrowed it to two: Citadel vs Vallejo and Army Painter vs Vallejo.
The picks in full
Citadel Colour: Warhammer 40,000 Paints + Tools Set
The only starter set that hands you paints, a brush, clippers and a moldline scraper at once, so nothing else is needed to finish a first squad.
What it gets right
- Covers all five Citadel paint types, so tutorials that name a Citadel color just work
- The clippers and moldline scraper mean you can go from box to painted without a second order
- Agrax Earthshade and Armageddon Dust are in the box, so shading and basing are solved on day one
Who it is wrong for
- Wrong buy if you are not painting Space Marines or Tyranids — the 13 colors are chosen for those two schemes
- 12 ml pots are the most expensive way to buy paint per milliliter
- The starter brush is a starter brush; you will replace it
Scored against this page’s criteria
Specs from the manufacturer: Citadel product page
We do not publish prices. Amazon shows the current one, which is the only one that is ever right. #ad · how this is funded
The Army Painter Warpaints Fanatic Starter Set
Eleven 18 ml dropper bottles plus a primer, a brush and a practice miniature. More paint than the Citadel starter for less money, and dropper bottles that do not dry out.
What it gets right
- 18 ml dropper bottles — half again the volume of a Citadel pot, and no skin forming on a lid
- A primer in the box means you are not blocked waiting on a second order
- The included miniature gives you something to ruin before you touch your actual army
Who it is wrong for
- Color names do not match Citadel tutorials, so you will need a conversion chart at first
- Droppers need a shake and a squeeze; some painters find pots faster to dip into
- Eleven colors is a narrower palette than the 13-plus-tools Citadel box
Scored against this page’s criteria
Specs from the manufacturer: The Army Painter product page
We do not publish prices. Amazon shows the current one, which is the only one that is ever right. #ad · how this is funded
Vallejo Game Color Introduction Set (72.299)
Sixteen 18 ml bottles covering the whole color wheel plus three metallics. The cheapest honest route to a complete working palette.
What it gets right
- 288 ml of paint in one box — roughly double a Citadel starter set for comparable money
- Includes the three metallics most sets leave out, so you are not buying silver separately
- Spans the full color wheel rather than one faction's scheme, so it fits any army
Who it is wrong for
- No brush, no primer, no shade — it is paint and nothing else
- Some colors need two thin coats where a Citadel Base needs one
- Vallejo names match no tutorial you will watch; keep a conversion chart open
Scored against this page’s criteria
Specs from the manufacturer: Vallejo product page
We do not publish prices. Amazon shows the current one, which is the only one that is ever right. #ad · how this is funded
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
Which is better, Citadel, Vallejo or Army Painter?
Can you mix Citadel and Vallejo paints?
Is Citadel paint worth the extra cost per ml?
Do Vallejo paints need a conversion chart?
Which range has the best one-coat paints?
More in Miniature Paints and Paint Sets, or start from the beginning with what to buy first.
Sources
- Games Workshop / Citadel Colour — official product rangechecked October 2026
- The Army Painter — official product rangechecked October 2026
- Acrylicos Vallejo — official product rangechecked October 2026