Derwent Coloursoft vs Prismacolor Premier

If you want soft, blendable coloured pencils - colored pencils in the US - two names come up again and again: Derwent Coloursoft and Prismacolor Premier. Both are soft and both are good at smooth colour, so the difference between them is more about feel, availability and habit than about one being clearly better.

This article compares them the honest way: what each is known for, where they differ, and which subjects suit them. Everything here is general and well established, and we point you to the makers for current details. For the wider context, start with our complete coloured pencil guide.

The quick verdict

Four sharpened black pencils with grey leads on textured paper.

At a glance

Feature	Derwent Coloursoft	Prismacolor Premier
Character	Velvety, rich	Creamy, smooth
Blending	Soft blending, painterly effects	Very easy blending
Laydown	Rich, soft	Rich colour quickly
Layering	Good, best with lighter pressure early	Fast to build; can fill the tooth sooner
Handling	Soft core, treat gently	Soft core, known to break more easily
Wax bloom	Check maker guidance	Can appear with heavy layering
Detail	Fine for medium detail, dulls with use	Fine for medium detail, dulls with use
Range and sets	Check the current range	Check the current range
Price level	Check current listings	Check current listings

What they have in common

Both are soft pencils that lay pigment down quickly and blend with light effort. They are excellent for soft gradients, smoothly shaded skin, painterly backgrounds and bold, saturated colour. Both reward light pressure early and a gradual build. And both share the trade-off of every soft pencil: points dull faster and the core is more delicate than a firm, oil-based pencil.

That common ground matters. If you are choosing between these two, you already know you want softness. The difference from something like Polychromos is much bigger than the difference between these two; our Prismacolor versus Polychromos article explains that gap.

A hand-drawn colour wheel made with three Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils on blue-grey paper. Drawing by Michael Brace.

Feel on the paper

Derwent describes Coloursoft in terms that Michael’s assessment echoes: velvety and rich, great for soft blending and painterly effects. On the page that translates to a smooth, slightly buttery drag with plenty of pigment.

Prismacolor Premier is famous for a creamy, smooth feel and easy laydown. Many artists find it the most instantly gratifying pencil to pick up because colour builds quickly with almost no effort.

Feel is subjective. If you can, try a single pencil of each in a shop, or buy a small set of one before committing to a large set.

Blending and layering

Both blend easily with the pencil alone, with a paper stump, or with a blending tool. Prismacolor’s creaminess often gets it described as the easiest to melt into a smooth gradient, and it can fill the paper’s tooth quickly. That is a strength for smooth finishes and a limitation when you want to keep layering, because a well-filled surface accepts less pigment.

Coloursoft blends softly too and is loved for a painterly look. As with any soft pencil, a good habit is to start with light pressure, build slowly, and save heavy pressure for the end. Our guides to how to blend coloured pencils, how to layer coloured pencils and the best blending tools for coloured pencil cover the methods that work for both.

Handling, breakage and wax bloom

Prismacolor Premier is known for a soft core that breaks more easily, and for wax bloom when layers are heavy. Wax bloom is a hazy film of wax rising to the surface, usually wiped away gently with a soft cloth. If you draw with many layers, be mindful of it.

Coloursoft is also a soft pencil, so gentle handling, careful storage and a sharp sharpener apply just as much. We do not make claims about relative breakage between the two beyond that, because it depends on how you sharpen, store and use them. A sharp blade makes the biggest difference; see best pencil sharpeners for coloured pencils.

Colour range and availability

Ranges, set sizes and open-stock availability differ by country and change over time, so we do not quote counts. What matters in practice is:

• Can you buy single pencils to replace favourites?
• Does the set include the earthy, skin and neutral tones you use most?
• Is it easy to buy locally, so you can restock quickly?

Check the current range on each maker’s site and at your usual retailer, and decide on availability as much as on feel.

Best subjects for soft pencils

Subject	Suitability	Notes
Portraits and skin	Excellent	Smooth blends; add a firm pencil for lashes and hair
Food, glazes and icing	Excellent	Soft blends and rich colour suit glossy sweets
Skies, backgrounds, flowers	Excellent	Broad, blended colour
Bold, saturated colour	Excellent	Rich laydown
Fine fur and feathers	Limited	Points dull quickly; use firm pencils for detail
Crisp architectural edges	Limited	Better with firm, sharp pencils

For a portrait-focused shortlist, see best coloured pencils for portraits.

What about paper?

Soft pencils fill the tooth quickly, so paper choice matters. A paper with some tooth and enough weight allows more layers before the surface is saturated. Our guide to the best paper for coloured pencils helps you match paper to pencil.

Recommendation by budget and experience

• Lower budget: buy a smaller set of whichever feels better to you rather than a large set you may not use fully.
• Medium budget: choose on availability and colour selection, since both are widely liked.
• Higher budget: if detail and archival work matter, consider professional pencils and check lightfastness charts; see professional versus student coloured pencils.

For an overview of Derwent’s other ranges, read Derwent coloured pencils reviewed.

How to choose if you still cannot decide

Three practical tests break a tie. First, availability: if one brand is easy to restock where you live, that convenience will outweigh a slight preference in feel. Second, colour selection: lay the published colour charts side by side and see which offers better versions of the colours you reach for most, such as skin tones, earthy browns and greys. Third, a trial: buy a small set or a few single pencils of each and draw the same simple shape, a sphere with a shadow, on the paper you normally use.

Pay attention to how each pencil behaves as you add layers, not just on the first pass. Notice how quickly the surface stops taking colour, how the point wears, and whether you enjoy the sound and drag of the pencil. Those small details decide whether a set becomes a favourite or sits in a drawer.

Pairing soft pencils with a white pencil

On toned paper, soft pencils are also handy for highlights, because a creamy white or pale cream covers the surface well and blends into the colour beneath. If you plan to work on grey, read why use grey paper for coloured pencil before you buy, since it changes which pale pencils matter most.

The short version

Derwent Coloursoft and Prismacolor Premier are close cousins: soft, rich and blendable. Coloursoft brings a velvety, painterly feel; Prismacolor is the creamy, easy-blending favourite with a softer core that breaks more readily and can show wax bloom under heavy layering. Choose by feel, colour selection and what you can easily buy, and add a firmer pencil when detail matters.