POSCA FAQs

A water-based pigment paint marker made by uni in Japan. The paint is opaque, matte and odourless, it doesn't bleed through paper, and it writes on almost anything — paper, wood, glass, fabric, stone, metal, plastic. The tip is valve-operated: you press it down to let paint through, so one pen gives you solid colour instead of ink wash.

Read the full guide to POSCA pens

1. Keep the cap on and shake the pen until you hear the mixing ball rattle — about 20 shakes.
2. Take the cap off and press the tip straight down onto scrap paper. Hold for a second, lift, repeat.
3. Keep going until colour appears in the tip. Some colours (white and the metallics especially) take 10–15 presses.
4. Test a line on scrap before you touch your artwork.

Don't over-pump. A flooded tip drips and takes ages to settle again.

How to activate POSCA pens

Almost never. New pens leave the factory with the valve closed, so it takes more priming than people expect — shake with the cap on, then press the tip down repeatedly on scrap paper. Broad tips (PC-8K, PC-17K) and the brush tip hold more paint and take longer to charge.

If you've primed it properly and it's still dry, email us with your order number and we'll replace it.

On paper, touch dry in a minute or two. On non-porous surfaces like glass, plastic and glazed ceramic it takes longer, and thick or layered areas longer again. Leave a finished piece 24 hours before you seal it, wash it or heat-set it.

POSCA drying times explained

Yes — that's the point of POSCA. The paint is opaque, so light goes over dark just as easily as dark over light. Let each layer dry completely first, or the tip will lift the colour underneath and muddy both.

How to layer POSCA markers

Yes, while it's still wet. Work two colours into each other on the surface, or soften an edge with a damp brush — water reactivates POSCA right up until it dries. Once dry it stops moving, so blend fast or work in small areas.

Blending POSCA on canvas

It depends entirely on the tip size and how hard you press — a PC-1MR doing outlines lasts a very long time, a PC-17K filling a mural does not. Broad tips empty fastest.

How much ink is in a POSCA marker?

• PC-1MR — 0.7mm pin. Outlines, lettering, tiny detail.
• PC-1M — 0.7–1mm. Fine lines with a bit more flow.
• PC-3M — 0.9–1.3mm. The everyday fine pen. Journalling, rocks, illustration.
• PC-5M — 1.8–2.5mm. The do-everything POSCA, and the widest colour range. If you buy one, buy this.
• PCF-350 — soft brush, 3–10mm. Thick-to-thin strokes and lettering.
• PC-7M — 4.5–5.5mm. Fills shapes fast.
• PC-8K — 8mm chisel. Wide flat strokes, crisp edges, signage.
• PC-17K — 15mm chisel. The biggest POSCA. Murals and backgrounds.
• PCM-22 MOP'R — 3–19mm round mop. Washes, drips and large-scale effects.
• PC-5BR — brush tip for expressive, painterly marks.

Full tip size guide · POSCA pen sizes explained

The 3M draws a 0.9–1.3mm line and the 5M a 1.8–2.5mm line. The 3M is better for detail and small work; the 5M covers ground faster and comes in the most colours. Most people end up owning both.

PC-5M vs PC-3M compared

PC-1MR for the finest, most controlled line, PC-1M for a fraction more flow, PC-3M when the outline needs to hold its own against filled colour.

Best POSCA for outlines

PC-7M for medium fills, PC-8K for flat wide strokes, PC-17K for murals and big backgrounds, and the PCM-22 MOP'R when you want loose coverage, drips and splashes rather than neat edges.

Best POSCA for large areas · Broad tip guide

A round mop tip that lays down anything from a 3mm mark to a 19mm sweep depending on how you hold it. It's the pen for street-art style drips, washes and bold coverage, not for fine work.

The MOP'R guide · Shop PCM-22

A set is the cheaper way into a tip size and gives you a working palette straight away. Individual pens are how you top up the colours you actually use — white and black go first for nearly everyone. We sell both, in every tip size.

Shop sets · Shop individual pens · Sets for beginners

Same idea, different delivery. POSCA is a water-based pigment paint in a controllable marker instead of a tube and brush — no palette, no mixing, no drying time between setups. For big flat areas acrylic is still cheaper; for line work, lettering and detail on awkward surfaces, POSCA wins.

POSCA vs acrylic paint

No. uni (Mitsubishi Pencil Co.) makes POSCA — the two names are the same product. Everything we sell is genuine uni POSCA sourced through official Australian distribution.

POSCA vs uni POSCA

Fakes turn up on marketplace listings — thin paint, wrong barrel printing, colours that don't match the chart. Buy from an Australian supplier with real stock and you avoid the problem entirely.

How to spot fake POSCA pens

Paper, card, canvas, wood, stone and pebbles, terracotta, unglazed ceramic, fabric, glass, glazed ceramic, metal, most plastics, concrete and more. The surface decides whether it stays put on its own or needs sealing — see the next section.

Every surface POSCA works on

POSCA doesn't bleed through paper, so you can work both sides of a page. Fine tips (1MR, 1M, 3M) for line work, 5M upward for fills. Nothing to prepare and nothing to seal.

Sand smooth and wipe the dust off first. Raw timber drinks the paint — expect to go over lighter colours twice. Seal it if the piece will be handled or lives outside.

POSCA on wood · Making it permanent on wood

Wash and dry the rock first — dust stops paint sticking. PC-3M and PC-5M do most rock painting; PC-1MR for faces and fine detail. Seal anything that will live in the garden.

Rock painting guide · Terracotta pots

Wipe with methylated spirits first so there's no grease. POSCA sits on top of glass and wipes off with a damp cloth until you fix it — which is handy for window art and a problem for mugs. To make it stay, seal it or bake it (see below).

POSCA on glass · DIY custom mugs

Works well on cotton and canvas. Put card inside so the paint doesn't transfer through, let it dry fully, then heat-set (below). Sneakers take a lot of flex — seal them with an acrylic finisher as well.

POSCA on fabric · Customising shoes

Both are non-porous, so clean them well and expect the paint to sit on the surface rather than soak in. Rough or primed metal holds much better than polished. Seal anything that gets touched.

POSCA on metal · POSCA on plastic

On glass POSCA wipes off with a damp cloth, which makes it good for windows you change often. On a porous chalkboard it can be permanent — so for boards you rewrite weekly, use uni Chalk markers instead, which are made to wipe off.

POSCA on chalkboard: permanent vs temporary

Yes, on a suitable surface and sealed. Bare POSCA outdoors will fade and weather. A water-based clear spray varnish over the finished piece makes a real difference to how long it lasts.

It depends on the surface.

• Porous — paper, card, wood, stone, fabric, unglazed ceramic: yes, once dry the paint has soaked in and stays.
• Non-porous — glass, glazed ceramic, smooth metal, PVC-type plastic: no, it wipes off with a damp cloth until you seal or bake it.

Is POSCA permanent?

Water-resistant on porous surfaces, not fully waterproof. Heavy rain, scrubbing or a dishwasher will lift it. Seal the piece if water is going anywhere near it.

Are POSCA waterproof?

Let it dry fully — 24 hours is safest. Then spray a clear acrylic varnish in several light passes from about 30cm, not one heavy coat: a wet coat can reactivate water-based paint and smear it. Always test on a scrap piece done with the same colours first.

How to seal POSCA paint

Two options: seal it with a clear varnish, or bake it. Baking is the usual method for glass and ceramic — let the piece dry fully, put it in a cold oven, bring it up to around 160°C, hold for about 45 minutes and let it cool in the oven so it doesn't crack.

Either way, decorate the outside only and keep well below the rim. Hand wash afterwards — a dishwasher will strip it.

Sealing mugs · Sealing on glass

Let the paint dry completely. Turn the garment inside out, put a clean cloth or baking paper between the iron and the fabric, and press with a dry iron — no steam — for a couple of minutes, moving it around. Match the iron setting to the fabric.

After that it survives gentle washing. Wash inside out, cold, no soaking, no tumble dryer.

Full fabric tutorial

POSCA uses pigments rather than dyes, so it holds up well indoors. Direct sunlight will still fade any marker over time — the fluorescents fastest. Keep finished work out of direct sun, and varnish anything on display.

POSCA and lightfastness

While it's wet: don't rub. Blot the excess with a paper towel, then rinse the back of the fabric under cold running water so the paint pushes out rather than through. Work a little liquid dish soap in with your fingers and rinse again. Repeat until the water runs clear, then wash as normal.

Once it's dry: soak the area in cold water with dish soap for 20–30 minutes to soften it, then work at it gently with a soft brush. If a shadow remains, dab with isopropyl alcohol on a cloth from the outside of the mark inwards, then rinse thoroughly and wash.

Never put it in the dryer until the mark is gone — heat sets the paint permanently. Same reason it survives on a T-shirt you wanted to decorate.

Full clothes rescue guide · A second walkthrough

Blot — never scrub, which drives the paint into the backing. Lift as much as you can with a dry paper towel, then dab with a cloth dampened in cold water and a drop of dish soap, working from the outside of the mark in. Change to a clean part of the cloth each time so you're lifting paint out, not spreading it.

For dried paint, keep the spot damp for 15 minutes to soften it first. Finish by blotting with clean water to rinse the soap out, then press dry with a towel. Test on an offcut or a hidden corner before you start.

Carpet removal guide

Warm water and soap, straight away. If it's dried on, a bit of moisturiser or baby oil rubbed in loosens it before washing. It fades quickly on its own with normal washing.

POSCA is not approved for use on skin, so this is about cleaning it off rather than a technique — see the safety section below.

On a sealed or gloss-painted wall, a damp microfibre cloth often takes fresh POSCA straight off. For dried marks, warm soapy water and gentle pressure, then a magic-eraser style sponge used lightly.

Be careful: matte and flat wall paints are porous, so the POSCA soaks in and aggressive scrubbing will take the wall paint with it. On those, a touch-up with the wall colour is usually faster and tidier than fighting the stain. Test somewhere out of sight first.

These are non-porous, so you're in luck — a damp cloth usually does it. If the paint has fully dried, a little isopropyl alcohol or methylated spirits on a cloth will lift it. Rinse afterwards so no residue is left on a surface kids use.

POSCA paint is water-based, non-toxic and odourless — there are no solvent fumes, which is why schools use them indoors. Safety Data Sheets for the whole range are on our SDS page if your school or workplace needs one on file.

A parent's guide to POSCA safety

Yes, with normal supervision — they're a staple in primary art rooms. Caps are small, so keep them away from very young children, and cover the table: POSCA is designed to stay put.

POSCA projects for kids

No. POSCA is not approved for cosmetic or skin use. Use proper face and body paints for that. POSCA is for art, craft and decorative surfaces.

Decorate the outside only and stay well below the rim, so nothing touches the mouth or the drink. Hand wash — dishwashers will strip it. Treat a painted mug as decorative rather than food-safe.

All current sheets are on the Safety Data Sheets page as PDFs you can download and forward to your WHS officer. Need one that isn't listed? Email us the product code and we'll send it the same business day.

Usually. Pull the tip out with tweezers, soak it in warm water until the dried paint releases, squeeze it out and let it dry. Push it back in, shake the pen well with the cap on and re-prime on scrap paper. If the tip is beyond saving, a replacement nib costs a fraction of a new pen.

Reviving a dried-out POSCA

Normal — it happens when you work over paint that wasn't quite dry. Press the pen on scrap paper until its own colour comes back through. If it's badly contaminated, pull the tip, rinse it under warm water, dry it and refit.

Cleaning POSCA nibs

Yes, on most sizes — pull the old one out with tweezers and push the new one in. The PC-3M and PC-5M nibs are also reversible: a fresh bullet at one end, a chisel edge at the other.

Shop replacement nibs · Replacement tips guide

Cap on firmly, away from heat and direct sun. Brush tips (PCF-350, PC-5BR) are best stored flat so the paint stays evenly through the fibres. Everything else is happy standing up.

Cases and storage · Storage ideas

They aren't designed to be, and there's no official refill. Some artists top theirs up with water-based paint — it works, but results vary and you're on your own if it goes wrong.

How people refill POSCA

Over-priming. Stand the pen tip-up with the cap off for a few minutes, then dab the excess onto scrap paper until the flow evens out. Next time, prime with fewer presses and let the paint come to you.

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Unopened, unused items in original packaging can come back within 30 days. Anything faulty or wrong is on us. See shipping & returns.

Yes to both. We supply primary and secondary schools, TAFEs, universities, councils and government departments, and we accept purchase orders with 30-day terms on approved accounts. Send your list for a free quote — answered within 3 business hours.

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Bulk quotes start at 24 pens or $250 — below that our website price is already the best we can do. Retailers and resellers, see wholesale.

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Back to School voucher kits · Creative Kids vouchers

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