Copic Markers – What’s in the big sets?

So, my wife and I are interested in some Copic Markers. These are professional artist markers and since she started playing with markers, I’ve kind of picked up a little bug and have the desire to play with them as well.

She’s tried several different brands of markers and I’ve tried them in a more limited fashion. I will say from our experience that the Copic Markers are just a level above the others. However, the most affordable way to buy the markers (which can be $6 or $7 dollars each) is to buy the sets.

Now, Copic Markers come in several different size sets (3, 6, 12, 24, 36, and 72 pens). However, considering the price per pen, the 72 marker set is the way to go (they are around $350 for each set from several locations). There are five 72-marker sets in the Sketch line, which is the one aimed at artists. That is a total of 360 markers (with 358 unique colors, black and white showing up twice).

The problem I found is that it is hard to compare the colors you get in each set. When looking for the “best set to start with” there was not a clear answer. Buying all five sets is a significant investment and it is more probable that you might buy one or two big sets and fill in with smaller sets or individual markers to get your working set of markers.

Now the good news is that these markers are refillable and the nibs are replaceable, so you should never have to buy more than one marker of the same color. The problem is, several of the smaller sets have overlaps were you get the same marker in multiple sets (even the big 72 marker sets have overlap).

Copic provides a nice Color Picker Page that shows all of the colors (using internet color codes, so not 100% the marker color, but it gives you an idea).  However, the page is not broken down based on the marker sets and it becomes a chore to compare the colors from one set to the other. So, cue the music …

The nice part of the Copic’s page is it really is just a table of entries with the marker code, a name, and a background color code. I took the raw information from the html, details from other pages that say what markers are in which sets, and using my DBA skills, populated a couple of tables in a database. From that, I ran some queries, sent the output through an awk script I wrote to create some html, and the next thing you know, I have a web page with set of tables broken down by color family and marker set. This allowed me to compare the sets side-by-side on the same page.

Originally, I was just going to let me wife look over the page to see if there was a set she felt would be a better starter set, but then I thought, hey, there are probably other people out there who may be curious about the same thing (I found more than one comment asking about which set to start with). So if this interests you, I hope this chart (limited to the five 72-marker Sketch sets) will be of help.

Color Family: B



A
B
C
D
E


A – B01

Mint Blue
B – B00

Frost Blue
C – B04

Tahitian Blue
D – B000

Pale Porcelain Blue
E – B0000

Pale Celestine


A – B05

Process Blue
B – B02

Robin’s Egg Blue
C – B16

Cyanine Blue
D – B28

Royal Blue
E – B66

Clematis


A – B06

Peacok Blue
B – B12

Ice Blue
 

 
D – B52

Soft Greenish Blue
E – B69

Stratospheric Blue


A – B14

Light Blue
B – B18

Lapis Lazuli
 

 
D – B60

Pale Blue Gray
 

 


A – B23

Phthalo Blue
B – B21

Baby Blue
 

 
D – B63

Light Hydrangea
 

 


A – B26

Cobalt Blue
B – B24

Sky
 

 
D – B79

Iris
 

 


A – B29

Ultramarine
B – B41

Powder Blue
 

 
D – B91

Pale Grayish Blue
 

 


A – B32

Pale Blue
B – B45

Smoky Blue
 

 
D – B93

Light Crockery Blue
 

 


A – B34

Manganese Blue
 

 
 

 
D – B95

Light Grayish Cobalt
 

 


A – B37

Antwerp Blue
 

 
 

 
D – B97

Night Blue
 

 


A – B39

Prussian Blue
 

 
 

 
D – B99

Agate
 

 



Color Family: BG



A
B
C
D
E


A – BG09

Blue Green
B – BG02

New Blue
C – BG05

Holiday Blue
D – BG01

Aqua Blue
E – BG000

Pale Aqua


A – BG10

Cool Shadow
B – BG11

Moon White
C – BG34

Horizon Green
D – BG07

Petroleum Blue
E – BG0000

Snow Green


A – BG15

Aqua
B – BG13

Mint Green
C – BG99

Flagstone Blue
D – BG23

Coral Sea
E – BG53

Ice Mint


A – BG18

Teal Blue
B – BG32

Aqua Mint
 

 
D – BG93

Green Gray
E – BG57

Sketch Jasper


 

 
B – BG45

Nile Blue
 

 
D – BG96

Bush
E – BG70

Ocean Mist


 

 
B – BG49

Duck Blue
 

 
 

 
E – BG72

Ice Ocean


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – BG75

Abyss Green


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – BG78

Bronze


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – BG90

Sketch Gray Sky



Color Family: BL



A
B
C
D
E


A – 100

Black
B – 0

Colorless Blender
C – 100

Black
 

 
 

 


A – 110

Special Black
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 



Color Family: BV



A
B
C
D
E


A – BV08

Blue Violet
B – BV00

Mauve Shadow
 

 
D – BV000

Iridescent Mauve
E – BV0000

Sketch Pale Thistle


 

 
B – BV04

Blue Berry
 

 
D – BV02

Prune
E – BV01

Viola


 

 
B – BV23

Grayish Lavender
 

 
D – BV11

Soft Violet
E – BV34

Sketch Bluebell


 

 
B – BV31

Pale Lavender
 

 
D – BV13

Hydrangea Blue
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – BV17

Deep Reddish Blue
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – BV20

Dull Lavender
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – BV25

Grayish Violet
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – BV29

Slate
 

 



Color Family: CG



A
B
C
D
E


A – C1

Cool Gray No. 1
B – C0

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
E – C00

Cool Gray


A – C3

Cool Gray No. 3
B – C2

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
 

 


A – C5

Cool Gray No. 5
B – C4

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
 

 


A – C7

Cool Gray No. 7
B – C6

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
 

 


A – C9

Cool Gray
B – C8

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – C10

Cool Gray
 

 
 

 
 

 



Color Family: E



A
B
C
D
E


A – E09

Burnt Sienna
B – E00

Skin White
C – E00

Skin White
D – E000

Pale Fruit Pink
E – E0000

Floral White


A – E15

Dark Suntan
B – E02

Fruit Pink
C – E19

Redwood
D – E01

Pink Flamingo
E – E17

Reddish Brass


A – E29

Burnt Umber
B – E04

Lipstick Natural
C – E25

Caribe Cocoa
D – E08

Brown
E – E18

Copper


A – E33

Sand
B – E07

Light Mahogany
C – E27

Africano
D – E47

Dark Brown
E – E23

Hazelnut


A – E37

Sepia
B – E11

Barley Beige
C – E34

Orientale
D – E50

Egg Shell
E – E30

Bisque


A – E44

Clay
B – E13

Light Suntan
C – E53

Raw Silk
D – E71

Champagne
E – E42

Sand White


A – E49

Dark Bark
B – E21

Baby Skin Pink
C – E55

Light Camel
D – E74

Cocoa Brown
E – E70

Ash Rose


 

 
B – E31

Brick Beige
C – E59

Walnut
D – E79

Cashew
E – E81

Ivory


 

 
B – E35

Chamois
C – E77

Maroon
D – E93

Tea Rose
E – E84

– Sketch Khaki


 

 
B – E39

Leather
 

 
D – E95

Flesh Pink
E – E87

Fig


 

 
B – E40

Brick White
 

 
D – E97

Deep Orange
E – E89

– Sketch Pecan


 

 
B – E41

Pearl White
 

 
D – E99

Baked Clay
 

 


 

 
B – E43

Dull Ivory
 

 
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – E51

Milky White
 

 
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – E57

Light Walnut
 

 
 

 
 

 



Color Family: F



A
B
C
D
E


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FB2

Fluorescent Dull Blue
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FBG2

Fluorescent Dull Blue Green
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FRV1

Fluorescent Pink
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FV2

Fluorescent Dull Violet
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FY1

Fluorescent Yellow Orange
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FYG1

Fluorescent Yellow
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FYG2

Fluor Dull Yellow Green
 

 


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – FYR1

Fluorescent Orange
 

 



Color Family: G



A
B
C
D
E


A – G07

Nile Green
B – G00

Jade Green
C – G09

Veronese Green
D – G94

Grayish Olive
E – G000

Pale Green


A – G16

Malachite
B – G02

Spectrum Green
C – G19

Bright Parrot Green
 

 
E – G0000

Crystal Opal


A – G17

Forest Green
B – G05

Emerald Green
C – G20

Wax White
 

 
E – G03

Meadow Green


A – G21

Lime Green
B – G12

Sea Green
C – G24

Willow
 

 
E – G43

Various Pistachio


A – G28

Ocean Green
B – G14

Apple Green
C – G40

Dim Green
 

 
E – G46

Sketch Mistletoe


A – G99

Olive
B – G29

Pine Tree Green
C – G82

Spring Dim Green
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – G85

Verdigris
 

 
 

 
 

 



Color Family: NG



A
B
C
D
E


 

 
B – N1

Neutral Gray
C – N0

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – N3

Neutral Gray
C – N2

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – N5

Neutral Gray
C – N4

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – N7

Neutral Gray
C – N6

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – N9

Neutral Gray
C – N8

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – N10

Neutral Gray
 

 
 

 



Color Family: R



A
B
C
D
E


A – R02

Flesh
B – R20

Blush
C – R00

Pinkish White
D – R000

Cherry White
E – R0000

Pink Beryl


A – R08

Vermilion
B – R24

Prawn
C – R05

Salmon Red
D – R12

Light Tea Rose
E – R01

Pinkish Vanilla


A – R27

Cadmium Red
B – R29

Lipstick Red
C – R11

Pale Cherry Pink
D – R14

Light Rouge
E – R21

Sardonyx


A – R32

Peach
B – R39

Garnet
C – R17

Lipstick Orange
D – R22

Light Prawn
E – R56

Currant


A – R37

Carmine
B – R59

Cardinal
C – R35

Coral
D – R30

Pale Yellowish Pink
E – R81

Rose Pink


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – R43

Bougainvillaea
E – R83

Rose Mist


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – R46

Strong Red
E – R85

Rose Red


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – R89

Dark Red



Color Family: RV



A
B
C
D
E


A – RV04

Shock Pink
B – RV06

Cerise
C – RV02

Sugared Almond Pink
D – RV23

Pure Pink
E – RV00

Water Lily


A – RV09

Fuchsia
B – RV21

Light Pink
C – RV10

Pale Pink
D – RV42

Salmon Pink
E – RV000

Pale Purple


A – RV11

Pink
B – RV34

Dark Pink
C – RV13

Tender Pink
 

 
E – RV0000

Evening Primrose


A – RV19

Red Violet
 

 
C – RV14

Begonia Pink
 

 
E – RV52

Various Cotton Candy


A – RV29

Crimson
 

 
C – RV17

Deep Magenta
 

 
E – RV55

Hollyhock


 

 
 

 
C – RV25

Dog Rose Flower
 

 
E – RV63

Begonia


 

 
 

 
C – RV32

Shadow Pink
 

 
E – RV66

Raspberry


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – RV69

Peony


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – RV91

Garyish Cherry


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – RV93

Smokey Purple


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – RV95

Baby Blossoms


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – RV99

Argyle Purple



Color Family: TG



A
B
C
D
E


 

 
 

 
C – T0

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T1

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T2

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T3

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T4

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T5

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T6

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T7

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T8

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T9

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – T10

Toner Gray
 

 
 

 



Color Family: V



A
B
C
D
E


A – V04

Lilac
B – V12

Pale Lilac
 

 
D – V01

Heath
E – V000

Pale Heath


A – V06

Lavender
B – V15

Mallow
 

 
D – V05

Marigold
E – V0000

Rose Quartz


A – V09

Violet
B – V17

Amethyst
 

 
D – V91

Pale Grape
E – V20

Wisteria


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – V95

Light Grape
E – V22

Sketch Ash Lavender


 

 
 

 
 

 
D – V99

Aubergine
E – V25

Pale Blackberry


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – V28

Sketch Eggplant


 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – V93

Early Grape



Color Family: WG



A
B
C
D
E


A – W1

Warm Gray No. 1
 

 
C – W0

Warm Gray
 

 
E – W00

Warm Gray


A – W3

Warm Gray No. 3
 

 
C – W2

Warm Gray
 

 
 

 


A – W5

Warm Gray No. 5
 

 
C – W4

Warm Gray
 

 
 

 


A – W7

Warm Gray No. 7
 

 
C – W6

Warm Gray
 

 
 

 


A – W9

Warm Gray
 

 
C – W8

Warm Gray
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – W10

Warm Gray
 

 
 

 



Color Family: Y



A
B
C
D
E


A – Y02

Canary Yellow
B – Y00

Barium Yellow
C – Y19

Napoli Yellow
D – Y04

Acacia
E – Y000

Pale Lemon


A – Y06

Yellow
B – Y08

Acid Yellow
C – Y23

Yellowish Beige
D – Y28

Lionet Gold
E – Y0000

Yellow Fluorite


A – Y11

Pale Yellow
B – Y17

Golden Yellow
C – Y38

Honey
D – Y32

Cashmere
E – Y18

Lightning Yellow


A – Y13

Lemon Yellow
 

 
 

 
D – Y35

Maize
 

 


A – Y15

Cadmium Yellow
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 


A – Y21

Buttercup Yellow
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 


A – Y26

Mustard
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 



Color Family: YG



A
B
C
D
E


A – YG03

Yellow Green
B – YG07

Acid Green
C – YG01

Green Bice
D – YG00

Mimosa Yellow
E – YG0000

Lily White


A – YG13

Chartreuse
B – YG11

Mignonette
C – YG05

Salad
D – YG06

Yellowish Green
E – YG61

Pale Moss


A – YG91

Putty
B – YG17

Grass Green
C – YG09

Lettuce Green
D – YG93

Grayish Yellow
 

 


A – YG95

Pale Olive
B – YG41

Pale Cobalt Green
C – YG21

Anise
 

 
 

 


 

 
B – YG67

Moss
C – YG23

New Leaf
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – YG25

Celadon Green
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – YG45

Cobalt Green
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – YG63

Pea Green
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – YG97

Spanish Olive
 

 
 

 


 

 
 

 
C – YG99

Marine Green
 

 
 

 



Color Family: YR



A
B
C
D
E


A – YR00

Powder Pink
B – YR02

Light Orange
C – YR16

Apricot
D – YR000

Silk
E – YR0000

Pale Chiffon


A – YR04

Chrome Orange
 

 
C – YR18

Sanguine
D – YR20

Yellowish Shade
E – YR01

Peach Puff


A – YR07

Cadmium Orange
 

 
C – YR21

Cream
D – YR31

Light Reddish Yellow
E – YR12

Loquat


A – YR09

Chinese Orange
 

 
 

 
D – YR61

Yellowish Skin Pink
E – YR15

Pumpkin Yellow


A – YR14

Caramel
 

 
 

 
D – YR65

Atoll
E – YR27

Tuscan Orange


A – YR23

Yellow Ochre
 

 
 

 
D – YR68

Orange
E – YR30

Macadamia Nut


A – YR24

Pale Sepia
 

 
 

 
 

 
E – YR82

Mellow Peach

The post Copic Markers – What’s in the big sets? appeared first on Thaddeus Nowak.