Speedpaint vs Contrast Paint
Both basecoat and shade in one pass. They behave differently enough that the choice is not about price.
The short answer
Citadel Contrast covers more reliably in one pass because it carries more pigment, and it is named in official tutorials, but it needs Citadel's own light primers to behave. Army Painter Speedpaint 2.0 costs less per milliliter, has a wider range and comes in dropper bottles, and is more prone to blotching if you flood it.
The quick version
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Citadel Contrast paintsCitadel's one-coat range. Thicker and more pigmented than Speedpaint, which means better coverage and less of a tendency to blotch. | More reliable one-coat coverage | 8.7 | Check price on Amazon |
| 2 |  The Army Painter Speedpaint Starter Set 2.0One coat basecoats and shades at the same time. If the goal is a finished-looking army rather than a display piece, nothing else gets you there in fewer hours. | Lower cost, wider range | 8.6 | Check price on Amazon |
| 3 |  The Army Painter Speedpaint Mega Set 2.0Forty-six Speedpaint colors, three Speedpaint metallics and a medium. Absurd overkill for one squad, and the cheapest per-bottle way to paint a full army. | A whole army at once | 8.2 | Check price on Amazon |
| 4 |  Citadel Spray: Grey SeerThe light gray primer Contrast paints are formulated for. Also the most forgiving primer color full stop, because it flatters both light and dark schemes. | The primer both of them need | 8.7 | 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.
How one-coat paints work, which explains every difference
Both are transparent, heavily pigmented paint in a medium engineered to have low surface tension and a long open time. Applied over a light primer, the medium carries pigment off the raised areas and lets it pool in the recesses. One pass gives you a basecoat on the high surfaces and a shade in the low ones.
Everything that follows — the primer requirement, the blotching, the inability to blend — comes from that. They are transparent, so a dark primer swallows them. They rely on flow, so flooding them defeats the mechanism. And they dry as a single pigment-graded film, so there is nothing to blend.
The comparison
| Citadel Contrast | Army Painter Speedpaint 2.0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Container | 18 ml pot | 18 ml dropper |
| Relative cost per ml | Higher | Lower |
| Pigment load | Higher — covers more reliably | Lower — more transparent |
| Primer required | Citadel Wraithbone or Grey Seer specifically | Any white or bone primer |
| Blotch tendency | Lower | Higher if flooded |
| Reactivation under varnish | Minimal | Fixed in 2.0; was a real problem in 1.0 |
| Thinning medium | Contrast Medium | Speedpaint Medium |
| Named in tutorials | Yes | Sometimes |
The primer question is the real constraint
Contrast was formulated against two specific Citadel primers and it shows. Over Wraithbone or Grey Seer it does what the pot suggests. Over a generic white primer it goes noticeably patchier, because those primers have a particular absorbency the paint was tuned for.
Speedpaint is less fussy and will work over any light primer, which in practice means you can use a cheaper, larger can. If you are priming a whole army that is a real saving — see the spray primer picks.
Both are useless over black. If you prime black out of habit, neither range is for you until you change that, and the primer color comparison explains the trade.
Blotching, and how to stop it
The complaint that defines this category. A blotch is pigment pooling somewhere flat instead of flowing to a recess, and it happens for one reason: too much paint on the brush.
- Load the brush, then blot it. You want a damp brush carrying paint, not a loaded one dripping with it.
- One pass, then leave it alone. Going back over a drying one-coat paint is what creates hard edges. The urge to fix it is what ruins it.
- Work small areas and let the edges meet while wet. A whole cloak in one go will dry unevenly across it.
- Keep a clean damp brush to wick excess. Same trick as with washes, same reason.
What neither of them does
Smooth blends and crisp edge highlights. Both are transparent, so putting a lighter tone over one does not lighten it the way a layer paint would — you see through to what is underneath. Highlighting a one-coat basecoat means using an opaque layer paint on top, at which point you are back to conventional painting.
That is not a flaw; it is the trade. These ranges exist to get an army finished, and they do that better than anything else. For the models you care about, basecoat conventionally and layer. Most painters end up doing exactly that split, and the paint types guide explains which range does which job.
Pick this if
- You already use Citadel primers and follow official guides: Contrast. It will cover more reliably and the tutorials will match. See Contrast explained.
- You are painting a large army and cost matters: Speedpaint. Cheaper per milliliter, wider range, works over any light primer. See Speedpaint explained.
- You want to try one-coat painting without committing: Speedpaint Starter Set, which is the cheapest honest way in.
- You want display-quality blends: neither. Use conventional acrylics.
The picks in full
Citadel Contrast paints
Citadel's one-coat range. Thicker and more pigmented than Speedpaint, which means better coverage and less of a tendency to blotch.
What it gets right
- More pigment than Speedpaint, so it covers in one pass more reliably
- Named in the official painting guides, so tutorials are followable literally
- Thins with Contrast Medium to glaze, which Speedpaint does less gracefully
Who it is wrong for
- Only really works over Citadel's own light primers — over plain white it goes patchy
- The 18 ml pot is expensive against a Speedpaint dropper of the same size
- Still a one-coat product; it will not give you smooth blends
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 Speedpaint Starter Set 2.0
One coat basecoats and shades at the same time. If the goal is a finished-looking army rather than a display piece, nothing else gets you there in fewer hours.
What it gets right
- Basecoat and shade in a single pass — the biggest single time saving available to a new painter
- 2.0 reformulated to fix the original range's reactivation problem when varnishing
- Mixes with Speedpaint Medium to dial the intensity down without buying more colors
Who it is wrong for
- Needs a light primer; over black primer Speedpaint does almost nothing
- Pools and blotches if you flood it — it rewards a damp brush, not a loaded one
- Not the tool for smooth blends or crisp highlights; that is still a job for layer paints
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
The Army Painter Speedpaint Mega Set 2.0
Forty-six Speedpaint colors, three Speedpaint metallics and a medium. Absurd overkill for one squad, and the cheapest per-bottle way to paint a full army.
What it gets right
- The per-bottle cost is the lowest in the Speedpaint range by a wide margin
- Includes the Speedpaint metallics, which are hard to substitute from other ranges
- Enough colors that you will never be blocked mid-army waiting on one shade
Who it is wrong for
- A large outlay for a hobby you have not committed to yet — buy the starter set first
- Most painters will never open a good third of the bottles
- Still needs a light primer and still will not blend
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
Citadel Spray: Grey Seer
The light gray primer Contrast paints are formulated for. Also the most forgiving primer color full stop, because it flatters both light and dark schemes.
What it gets right
- The primer Contrast paints were designed against — colors come out as the pot suggests
- Light enough for bright colors, dark enough that shadows are not fighting you
- Shows up mold lines and gaps while you can still fix them
Who it is wrong for
- Aerosol, with the same weather constraints as any spray can
- Neither the deep shadows of black nor the brightness of white; it is a compromise by design
- Priced at Citadel levels for what is, chemically, gray primer
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
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
What is the difference between Speedpaint and Contrast paint?
Do Speedpaint and Contrast work over black primer?
Why is my Speedpaint blotchy?
Can you highlight over Contrast or Speedpaint?
Was the Speedpaint 2.0 reformulation worth it?
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