Best Acrylic Paint Set for Kids? Hands-On Review

Last updated August 31, 2026. By Andrew M. Tan.

I gave this 24-color acrylic paint set to my children, ages 2 to 5, and watched what happened at the table. The paint flowed smoothly, the larger brushes were easy for small hands to move, and the carrying case made cleanup much easier. The weak spots were the flimsy palette, the small flip-top paint pots, and tubes that encouraged enthusiastic squeezing. Yes, there was a mess. A large one.

My quick verdict is that the best acrylic paint set for kids should use age-appropriate, safety-certified materials and include sturdy brushes, a washable smock, a reusable case, and enough canvas or heavy paper to begin immediately. This BASEIN kit got most of that right during my original test, although the exact set I reviewed now appears unavailable. I’ve kept the hands-on review because the same buying lessons still apply to current kits.

Contents show

BASEIN provided the original set for review. I received no payment for the conclusion, and the opinions below come from using the kit with my children.

Key Takeaways

The tested kit worked best as an all-in-one painting station with smooth paints, canvas panels, a small easel, a smock, and a carrying case.
The plastic palette, small paint pots, and inexpensive brushes were the weakest parts.
The exact BASEIN set I reviewed appears to be unavailable, so I would use this review as a checklist for comparing current kits.
For younger children, check the package for the ACMI AP seal, follow the age guidance, and supervise the painting session.

Child painting a gray miniature with a brush at a hobby desk — My daughter tries her hand at painting this miniature.

Of course, I also gave the painting set to my kids (2-5 year olds). They painted and played with the acrylic colors, brushes, and the other accessories. They made a giant mess, but as you’ll see below, they had a lot of fun painting!

Deluxe Acrylic Paint Set Travel Case

Contents of the acrylic paint set for kids arranged beside the carrying case — The Deluxe Paint Set for Kids

The Deluxe Acrylic Paint Set arrived to my home in a well-packaged box. My first impression of the kit was excellent. The entire set is self-contained in a soft travel case with a carrying handle. The clear plastic lets you see what’s inside the set, which could be useful. No need to dig around. Just flip the case around and find what you’re looking for.

Clear red-trim carrying case filled with the kids' painting supplies — The paint set comes with a nice travel case.

Given how much comes with this kid’s paint kit, I appreciated the simplicity of the travel case. It’s compact and versatile. You can use the case for storing and organizing other art supplies.

Child holding the fabric loop handle on the acrylic paint set case — The travel case handle is a loop of fabric you could throw over your shoulder.

A zipper keeps the case closed, and when full, the kit doesn’t take up much space. It fits inside a normal sized backpack or large tote. If you’re looking for a kit you can bring with you on a road trip, I would consider this set very portable.

Zipped clear carrying case showing the paint supplies inside — The clear plastic of the travel case is durable and lets you see what’s inside the bag without opening it.

I also noted that the travel case is waterproof and durable. You can stuff the case with more supplies than it originally came with. This could be useful, if you have other art supplies lying around and want to have it all in one place. This is a huge time saver when you’re trying to clean up or want to keep your children’s arts-and-crafts supplies centralized.

I did not find any limitations with the travel case. For what it is, the case is almost perfect for its purpose. The paint set’s case is a compact, durable, and travel-ready way to take your kid’s painting supplies wherever they (and you) go.

What Comes in This Acrylic Paint Set?

Paints, brushes, easel, smock, canvases, palette, and sponges included in the kit — The Deluxe Paint Set comes with a lot of fun art supplies! This is one of the most comprehensive painting sets for kids.

This Deluxe Paint Set for Kids is stuffed to the brim with art goodies. Inside, I found a well organized and neat package of paints, brushes, and other supplies. Here’s what is included in the paint set:

24 acrylic paint colors (tubes)
6 small acrylic pots (core colors)
1 plastic palette
6 paint brushes (various shapes)
4 sponge brushes with handles
3 round sponges
6 nice quality canvas boards
1 collapsible wooden easel
1 waterproof smock (good size for kids)

Of these components, I found the paints, canvas boards, and the wooden easel added the most value to the set. The brushes, sponges, and palette are fairly cheap quality and probably won’t last long with regular use. Of course, you could purchase better replacement brushes online. The waterproof smock is a good size and would fit most boys or girls under 6 years old.

Blue-handled synthetic paintbrush set in assorted shapes and sizes — You can find great brushes like these affordable synthetic brushes to replace or augment the paint set. They come in various useful shapes and are great for acrylic painting.

How the Acrylic Paints Performed

My standards for art supplies are pretty high. As a miniature painter, I expect a lot from my model hobby acrylic paints. If your child is ready to try smaller models, my guide to miniature paint sets for beginners covers hobby-scale options. But, given that this Deluxe Paint Set for Kids is meant for casual arts and craft painting for children, I was pleasantly surprised by the acrylic colors in the kit.

Boxed set of 24 acrylic paint tubes from the reviewed kit

This kid’s paint set comes with 24 colors, which is far more than most children’s paint sets that I’ve seen. The variety of colors here reflects the palette you may see in some professional paint collections. You have your standard blues, reds, and yellows. The kit also includes the standard black and white paints.

Back of the acrylic paint box showing 24 labeled color swatches — The acrylic paints in the set come in a large variety of colors. They are also properly named with similar names as those paints in professional artist grade collections.

I enjoyed seeing the other fun shades, tints, and hues. Colors like “Rose” or “Burnt Umber” are often not included in paint sets for kids. So, this was a nice surprise. The color palette gives you or kids the potential for creating sprawling landscapes, beyond simple subject material.

Twenty-four sealed acrylic paint tubes arranged in a clear tray — Each acrylic paint tube is sealed.

The paint colors are bright and vibrant. You will probably need to assist opening the paint tubes (see why below), but once you do, the paint flows well and has a smooth texture.

Blue acrylic paint squeezed from a tube onto a white palette — Smooth, rich colors

Each of the 24 acrylic paint tubes holds 12ml (or 0.4 oz), which is a decent amount. But, this is a notable limitation for this kit. Kids often squeeze too much paint out on their palettes. I expect quite a bit of wasted acrylic paint, because acrylic paints dry relatively fast.

Drops of green and red acrylic paint on a white plastic palette — Acrylic paint on the plastic palette.

I will say that these acrylic paints in this set did take a quite a while to dry. They stayed wet for almost 30-45 minutes. Although I appreciate the variety of colors, I think fewer colors with large tube volume would have been a better choice for a paint set for children.

How to Open the Acrylic Paint Tubes

The paint tubes in the paint set have sealed nozzles. You’ll notice inside each cap a sharp tip.

Pointed tip inside an acrylic paint tube cap used to pierce the seal — There’s a sharpened tip inside the cap for breaking the paint tube seal.

To open each paint tube, unscrew the cap and turn it upside down. Press the sharpened tip to break the seal on the paint tube.

Close view of the foil seal on an acrylic paint tube — Each acrylic paint tube has a sealed nozzle.

You may need to twist the cap while breaking the seal to make a large enough opening in the tube. A bonus effect is that you’ll get a bit of fresh paint inside the top of the cap. This bit of paint is great for seeing what the color looks like inside the acrylic paint tube.

Hands using the reversed cap to open a sealed acrylic paint tube — Break the nozzle with the sharpened tip inside each cap.

You may need to help children open each paint tube, as this process is fairly involved. Though, I will admit that it was fun cracking the seals on the paint tubes and seeing the rich colors leak out.

Green and red acrylic paint dispensed into separate palette wells — Dispensing paint is easy.

Once the paint is on a palette, they are thin enough that you don’t need to dilute them. You can use the paints straight from the palette. Kids can load their brushes and paint right away!

Child brushing green acrylic paint across a small canvas panel — My kid painting with the acrylic paint on the canvas panel.

How to Dispense Paint With Less Waste

The screw caps on the paint tubes are easy to open and close for most kids over 2-3 years old with good fine motor skills. As mentioned above, you will want to help them dispense the right amount of paint on their palette.

Child unscrewing the cap from a red acrylic paint tube — The caps are easy for kids to open and close with practice.

Quick tip: A gentle squeeze at the end of each tube will prevent any unwanted spurts of paint. Dab the open nozzle on your palette and you should be able to control how much paint comes out.

Child squeezing red acrylic paint into a palette well — Dispensing a bit of paint on the palette.

Part of the fun was letting my daughter squeeze out a little paint herself—with my hand nearby to stop the tube from emptying onto the palette.

Close view of a drop of red acrylic paint on a white palette — Close up of the acrylic paint shows how it looks. It has a nice thin texture and has good color richness.

Reusable Paint Pots for Travel and Storage

The set comes with a plastic sprue of small paint pots with 6 core colors: red, yellow, blue, green, white, and black. These small pots create a ready-to-use travel palette. In contrast to the paint tubes, these small pots allow you to store-away unused acrylic paint.

Six reusable paint pots filled with core acrylic colors — Portable paint pots with snap-tight lids.

The limitation with the paint pots is that the caps are small. The flip caps will require two hands to open without tipping the paint pot over. You’ll also want to make sure the caps are snapped shut when finished. Otherwise, the paint will dry up.

Child opening the blue pot in a strip of reusable paint cups — You may need to use two hands to open and close the lids on the smaller paint cups.

Another note for using these paint pots is that you’ll want to make sure your kids rinse their brushes before switching colors. Of course, learning how to avoid color contamination is also a good lesson for kids.

Open red, yellow, blue, green, and white paint pots beside a closed pot — The paint cups are a bit fiddly, and could be troublesome to open without making a mess.

You can refill and reuse the paint pots when they are empty or dried up. Simply add more paint from the acrylic paint tubes, or buy replacement acrylic paints from any arts & craft store or online.

Liquitex BASICS acrylic paint set with 48 color tubes — This Liquitex Basic Acrylic paint set contains 48 tubes of high quality paints. These are much better acrylic paints that come in large volume tubes. The price isn’t bad either!

I expect the paint kit will probably run out of colors with regular use. Here is a good acrylic replacement set if you want more affordable paint.

Acrylic Paint Quality and Coverage

If you want the technical side, my guide to understanding acrylic paint for miniature hobbies explains pigment, binders, coverage, and working behavior in more detail.

There are many grades of acrylic paints. The quality of acrylic paints often depends on the quality and density of the colored pigments in the medium. If you consider that this is a paint set for kids, I’m happy to report that the acrylic paints in this set are of a decent quality.

Paintbrush loaded with blue acrylic paint above a palette — The paint loads well on the included paint brushes.

The texture is smooth, rich in color, and the paints do not require any thinning with water for good brush flow.

Flat brush applying blue acrylic paint to the edge of a canvas — Smooth application….

My kids had no trouble loading the paint brush with paint. When they painted on the canvas panels, the colors maintained their richness and had decent coverage.

Single blue acrylic brushstroke showing paint coverage on canvas — Single brushstrokes reveal fairly good paint coverage.

When painting with other really cheap acrylic paint sets, I’ve seen thick, uneven brush applications with areas that end up splotchy. Not so with this Deluxe Paint Set acrylics. All of the colors behave reliably.

Child painting a purple circle on a white canvas panel — Having fun with purple!

The paint stayed workable on the palette for about 30 to 45 minutes during our session. I did not verify the formula, so I cannot say which ingredient produced the longer working time. The practical result was useful: my children could pause for a snack and return before the paint had dried.

Black compact Revlon hair dryer — Use any hair blow dryer to speed up paint drying on the canvas panels. It will help during clean up.

If you need to clean up quickly and want to speed up paint drying on the canvas, you could use a hairdryer.

Brushes for Small Hands

The paint set comes with 6 paint brushes. Each brush has a different color, which is cute and could help young kids distinguish each brush from another. For example, instead of looking for the flat or pointed round brush, a child could merely refer to the “red” or “purple” brush, respectively.

Six included paintbrushes with different colored handles — These 6 brushes come with the Deluxe Paint Set for Kids. They are good for casual painting with acrylic paints.

The novelty of using each brush will add to the fun. Using the bigger brush will be easier for really young kids to start with because they’ll be able to paint more color at a time. It can take much more effort to paint with really small brushes. Children will have to reload a small brush much more often.

Child's colorful figure painting on a small canvas — My kids played around with all the paint brushes, but they gravitated to the larger brushes.

In terms of brush quality, the included brushes are in the “good enough” range. For basic arts-and-crafts painting, they do the job. For more shapes and sizes, the Artlicious 25-piece mixed brush set is a practical current option. The listing includes assorted bristle brushes and foam brushes, which gives children room to try broad marks, small details, dabbing, and texture.

Artlicious set of 25 assorted paintbrushes and foam brushes for children’s art projects — **The Artlicious 25-piece brush set adds useful shapes and sizes for acrylic painting, crafts, and texture experiments.**

How the Sponge Brushes Performed

A useful addition to the paint set is the sponge brushes. These 4 sponge brushes are great for kids to paint different textures with wide strokes of paint color. I like that the handles are large, which is helpful for kids who haven’t yet developed a good steady grip.

Four green-handled sponge brushes with different tip shapes — The Deluxe Paint Set comes with 4 fun sponge brushes. The large handles are great for young kids. The sponge tips rinse off easily under running tap water.

Up close, the sponge brushes look durable. Though, you may discover that they are a bit too stiff for the acrylic paints in the set. Thin acrylic paint tended to load poorly on these sponges (which aren’t very absorbent). The sponges look and feel similar to kitchen scrubbing brushes. In this regard, this is good because they are likely easy to rinse off and clean. I would give these brushes to younger kids, e.g., toddlers.

Child spreading red paint with a green sponge brush — The sponge brushes are a bit too large for the typical sized painting. Use creativity to find other uses for sponge brushes.

My best tip here is to use the sponge brushes as “butter knives”. Use them to spread out paint that is already on the canvas panel. Although, we didn’t try using them with thinned acrylic paint or other types of paints, e.g., tempera paints, I’m sure they could produce interesting results there, too.

Rectangular sponge brush being dipped into red paint on a palette — How do you load paint on the sponge brushes?

Note that it may take a large palette to properly load these brushes with paint. These brushes would also consume quite a bit of paint, too. So, be prepared to buy more paint when you run out.

Four shaped sponge brush tips beside the included paintbrushes — The tips of the sponge brushes are pretty stiff, but durable. I’m sure with more use of the paint set, we’ll find fun things to use them for.

Ways to Use the Round Sponges

The best paint sets for kids usually come with common household products that double painting implements. The 3 round sponges in the Deluxe Paint Set are a fun addition. The round sponges are useful for kids to dab, scumble, and stencil with acrylic paints. They can cover large surfaces with paint, playing with texture and color mixing. The only limitation with sponges is their imagination!

Three round yellow foam sponges from the paint kit — Three soft sponges come with the Deluxe Paint Set.

Another good use for these sponges is to keep one of them damp with water in a bowl. Use the dampened sponge to help you rinse off brushes between paint colors. You could also use the sponges to help you clean up after a painting session.

Child dabbing paint onto a canvas with a round yellow sponge — Dabbing paint on the canvas panel.

Canvas Panels Were One of the Best Parts

The Deluxe Paint Set for Kids comes with 6 canvas boards. They are similar to professional artist-grade canvas boards, and I loved finding these in the set. The canvas boards are the perfect size for kids, giving them ample space to explore the space with paint. They fit nicely on the wooden easel in the set, too (see more below).

Stack of six small white canvas panels from the paint set — The 6 canvas boards are great for this set. But, they won’t last long if kids paint regularly. You can find replacement canvas boards, or use heavy-weight paper that work with acrylic painting.

If you’re looking for more canvas panels to refill the paint set, I recommend this pack of 14 canvas panels. They are similar in size, affordable, and will fit into the travel case.

Pack of Arteza 5-by-7-inch replacement canvas panels — These Arteza 5×7 Inch White Blank Canvas Panel Boards are primed and ready to use. This is a bulk pack of 14 canvas boards, which is a great deal for replacing the canvas boards in the Deluxe Paint Set.

On the other hand, if you want something more disposable and lighter weight for less expense, you can get heavy weight paper for acrylic painting. These work well for kids because you can toss out any mess and conserve supplies by removing and using one sheet at a time.

Canson XL oil and acrylic paper pad — Paper for oil and acrylic painting. This is a great buy to augment your kid’s paint kit. You’ll always want blank media for their next creation!

Why the Plastic Palette Fell Short

The plastic palette that comes with the Deluxe Paint set seems like an afterthought. It is a flimsy piece of plastic molded to look like a “real” palette, and even has the thumb hole. I doubt most kids would use this as intended. Of course, given the price of the entire set, it is nice that it comes with something to dispense paint onto.

White plastic paint palette with round and rectangular wells — The plastic palette is nice, but easy to overlook. I don’t expect this to last very long.

I will note that the included plastic palette is fairly hard to clean. Dried acrylic paint will accumulate heavily on this palette. You’ll have to scrub hard to remove dried paint from the palette. This will eventually damage the plastic surface and make the whole thing ugly to use for a long time.

You can replace this set’s plastic palette with disposable dinner plates or a covered option such as the Transon 24-well airtight palette. The Transon listing describes 24 deep wells, six locking tabs, and a silicone seal. I would use it to separate and store small amounts of paint; it offers less open mixing space than a dinner plate.

Open Transon clear airtight paint storage palette with 24 individual wells and six black latches — **The Transon 24-well palette keeps colors separated and gives leftover paint a covered place to wait.**

How the Waterproof Smock Handled the Mess

The smock is a thoughtful addition to this kid’s painting set. The smock’s size is pretty versatile. It works like a kitchen apron that a child wears around their neck. With their arms inserted into the sleeves, the smock will keep almost all of the mess off the front of their clothes.

Yellow and blue children's painting smock laid flat — The smock is a bright yellow and blue with a waterproof fabric.

The smock material is similar to the same fabric you find on umbrellas. A small pocket on the front of the apron can catch any dripping liquid or paint that gets on the front of the smock. The material seems durable and does block water from passing through (i.e., it is waterproof).

Hand pinching the yellow waterproof fabric of the painting smock — The smock material feels good and should last a long time.

I don’t think the smock is machine washable. But, as it seems durable, you could just run warm, soapy water over any soiled bits and get it fairly clean. The material is also thin so the smock will dry quickly if you hang it up for a few hours. Overall, I think the smock is a very useful addition to the set. It’ll make clean up at the end of the painting session a lot easier!

How the Collapsible Wooden Easel Worked

This Paint Set comes with a small wooden easel, which is a miniature version of a full-sized artist’s easel. Not only does the set’s easel look cool, but it works great too! The wooden easel opens easily and works well to hold the canvas panels upright for painting. The easel is also the perfect height for young kids when placed on a tabletop or desk.

Folded miniature wooden tabletop easel from the paint kit — The wooden easel is cool! It folds down and stores away easily.

For traveling, the easel is portable and folds down flat. This allows you to fit the easel inside the set’s travel case. The easel is lightweight and may tip over if knocked too hard. It stays stable while a child paints on a canvas panel.

Small wooden tabletop easel holding a blank canvas panel — The wooden easel provides a stable platform for holding the canvas panels upright for painting.

As a self-contained paint set for kids, the easel is one of the best additions to the kit. The easel is useful, but also adds to the immersion of kids “feeling like artists”.

What My Kids Actually Enjoyed

My kids loved playing with the paints. They created all sorts of paintings with the different brushes, sponges, and paints. Of course, they made a huge mess on our dinner table, but it was well worth the good time. If you look online at other reviews, you’ll find similar observations.

“Definitely a good purchase. My almost 2 year old loves the set with a huge selection of different brushes….”
“I loved that it comes in its own bag so nothing gets lost. It has many parts so definitely worth the money!!”
“Very comprehensive.”

Child painting at a table with acrylic colors and a white palette — My daughter really enjoyed painting with the set.

How I Choose Acrylic Paint for Kids

For children in sixth grade or younger, I look for the Art & Creative Materials Institute’s AP seal and read the age guidance on the package. The AP seal identifies art materials evaluated for their intended use and labeled under ASTM D-4236. I still supervise the session, keep paint away from mouths, and cover the table. Acrylic paint cleans with water while wet and becomes water-resistant after it dries, so the smock earns its place.

Source: ACMI classroom art-material safety.

What I Would Buy Now

My hands-on verdict remains attached to the original BASEIN set. I have not personally tested the three kits below. I selected them as current options by comparing their listed contents with the parts my children actually used: paint, sturdy brushes, canvas or paper, a small easel, and storage that makes the next session easier. Product bundles can change, so check the current listing and package age guidance before ordering.

Shuttle Art 69-Piece Kids Paint Set

The Shuttle Art 69-piece kids paint set is the closest current match to the all-in-one experience I liked in the BASEIN kit. The listing includes 30 acrylic colors, canvas panels, patterned canvases, an acrylic paper pad, brushes, a tabletop easel, a smock, a palette, a water cup, and a storage bag. That is a lot to unpack. The case and smock are the parts I would notice first because they make cleanup and the next painting session easier.

Shuttle Art 69-piece acrylic paint set for kids with paints, brushes, canvases, easel, smock, and palette — **The Shuttle Art 69-piece set is the most complete current alternative of these three.**

Nicpro 72-Piece Kids Painting Set

The Nicpro 72-piece kids painting set leans into variety. Its listing includes 24 acrylic colors, 10 brushes, eight canvas panels, wooden shapes, an acrylic paper pad, a color wheel, a palette, and a lightweight tabletop easel. Six canvases arrive with printed patterns, while two are blank. I can see the appeal for a child who wants a starting shape before making the picture their own.

ESRICH 26-Piece Acrylic Paint Set

The ESRICH 26-piece acrylic paint set is the smaller starting point. The listing includes 12 acrylic colors, 10 brushes, two canvas panels, a wood easel, and a palette. Fewer pieces may be easier to manage at a crowded kitchen table. There is enough material to begin without opening a miniature art store in your dining room.

Paint Refills After the Starter Tubes Run Out

When the original tubes run out, Liquitex BASICS is my practical replacement. The paint has a smooth, medium-viscosity consistency, and Liquitex says the line carries the AP seal for safety and educational use. The 48-color set is generous; a smaller core set is enough for most children and gives them a reason to mix colors.

Watching blue and yellow become green gives the session a small moment of attention, choice, and discovery. That is the creative why I care about most.

Source: Liquitex BASICS Acrylic.

Child painting a colorful figure portrait on a small canvas — Acrylic painting is a great activity for kids.

Final Verdict on This Acrylic Paint Set for Kids

The original BASEIN kit is no longer my current purchase recommendation because its Amazon listing appears unavailable. As a hands-on design, though, it taught me what matters in an acrylic paint set for kids: paint that moves smoothly, larger brushes that are easy to control, a surface ready to use, and storage that makes the next session simple.

The case, canvas panels, easel, smock, and paint quality carried this set. The palette, paint pots, and bargain brushes were usable and easy to replace. If I were shopping today, I would choose an AP-certified acrylic set with fewer, larger paint containers and spend the remaining budget on canvas panels or heavy acrylic paper.

The best result was the moment my children stopped thinking about the supplies and started making something. Paint moved across the canvas, colors mixed, and attention settled on the next mark. That is the part worth carrying into the next kit.

Happy painting! What painting supplies have worked best with your children?

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By Andrew M. Tan
Andrew is a commissioned miniature painter with more than 20 years of hands-on experience painting tabletop miniatures, photographing models, and testing hobby tools in real-world use. Read his full bio.

Best Acrylic Paint Set for Kids? My Hands-On Review