Buying a premade canvas or panel for oil painting can be expensive. It doesn’t matter if we use stretched canvas, canvas panels, wood panels, aluminum panels, watercolor paper, drawing paper or something else, this guide will be handy to see quickly what each one will cost to buy or make. Whether you’re a complete beginner or a veteran professional artist, this oil painting surface cost guide will help you find some excellent options for oil painting in the studio and plein air that you might not have thought about before.
Since we discussed oil painting surfaces a few weeks ago – linen or cotton canvas, wood, plastic, and aluminum panels – I thought it might help to break down the approximate costs of buying pre-made painting surfaces vs making your own. If you want to see the pros and cons of many of the best oil painting surfaces to paint on go to ‘Oil Painting Panels, Canvas, & Primers – Which are Best?’.
The most popular oil painting surface among professional landscape painters is probably linen canvas – especially lead primed. That does not mean it is the best to paint on. Much of that comes from tradition and the history of oil painting. It’s important to experiment when you can and decide what works well for you.
So, here is a general idea and guide detailing the costs for each panel or canvas you might use for oil painting.
Oil Painting Canvases and Panels Costs – Pre-Made vs Make your Own
For consistency, I will use a 12×16 inch measurement for each canvas or panel. Keep in mind that prices may change up or down from time to time.
The prices do not include possible shipping or tax costs.
Here are the prices for the oil painting panels and canvases I recommend for landscape and flower paintings:
Oil Painting Panels:
- Art Board Natural Fiber Painting Panels – $12.50 (the company recommends a primer – generally, you can oil paint directly on wood panels)
- Ampersand Hardboard Oil Painting Panels – $7.22 (these do not need to be primed, but they will accept any traditional gesso. If you want you can paint directly on these wood panels)
- Lead White Oil-Primed ACM (aluminum) Oil Painting Panel – $32.68 (these are ready to start oil painting immediately)
- Richeson Hardboard Panels – $2.30 (Blick doesn’t offer a 12×16 inch panel so the price listed is for the 11×14 inch panel. You will want to seal these panels to protect against moisture. If you are not worried about water damage you can paint directly on them. I do not know if they are formaldehyde free)
- ABS Plastic Panels from ePlastics – $2.85 (the price is for a 2×4 foot sheet that you cut into 12×16 inch panels yourself. You can cut ABS with a box cutter and some oomph. It is recommended to sand the shiny surface with 150 grit sandpaper. Then you can oil paint directly on the surface without primer)
Here are some ABS plastic oil painting panels I purchased from Amazon and from a plastics company in Indianapolis. The black colored panel came 12×12 inches, the white panel I cut from a 4 foot x 8 foot sheet.
- ABS Plastic Panels from ePlastics – $6.18 (this is the price if you have them cut it into 6 – 12×16 inch panels for you)
- MDF Panels from Home Depot – $1.26 (1/4-inch 2×4 ft sheet for $7.57 fits 6 12×16 panels. This requires cutting the 2×4 ft panel and sealing it if you want it protected from moisture – and the panel is NOT formaldehyde-free)
MDF wood oil painting panels cut from a 24×48 inch sheet from Home Depot. I no longer recommend these panels because of the toxic formaldehyde fumes that leak into our studio air. They are also easily damaged by water.
- Purebond Mahagony Plywood – Home Depot – $2.62 (This is what I recommend for DIY wood oil painting panels. $15.73 for a 1/4-inch 2×4 ft sheet. This panel IS formaldehyde-free, patch-free, no toxic fumes, water-resistant, and they will cut it for you and deliver the panels to your home for free if you order more than $45 worth. You can oil paint directly on the panel without primer)
Oil Painting Canvases (rolls, stretched, or on panels):
- Lead Oil-Primed Linen ACM (aluminum) Panel – $57.75 (the panel is of course ready for oil paint as are all the other canvases in this list)
Artefex Aluminum Oil Painting Panels. Some are lead or acrylic primed with or without linen canvas. They are expensive but exceptionally well-made
- New Traditions L280 on Gatorfoam – $32.13 (medium texture)
- New Traditions L600 on Gatorfoam – $35.41 (smooth texture)
- Italian Store Belgian Linen Lead Primed – $18.49 (Medium weight oil painting canvas w super even finish. You will need to mount the canvas to a panel or stretch it yourself)
Lead primed linen canvas roll and a stretched linen canvas my dad and I prepared in 1989. Notice how yellow lead primer becomes when kept out of the light.
- New Traditions L280 84” x 6 yards – $10.91 (Lead primed medium weight linen 84-inch x 6 yards can make 91 – 12×16 inch oil painting panels. There is usually waste with rolls, so the price and number of panels is approximate)
Oil Painting on Paper
- Arches Oil Painting Paper – $2.26 (This price comes from buying a 51” x 10 yard roll at $203.55 from which 90 – 12×16 inch pieces are possible. You can oil paint directly on the paper. It is also excellent for watercolor underpainting washes to oil paint on top of)
- Classic Cream Drawing Paper Roll – $.20 (20 cents each for 120 – 12×16 inch sheets from a roll that is 48” x 10 yards. You will want to seal the paper with primer before oil painting)
Canson 140 lb watercolor paper – hot press, cold press, and rough. Can be used for watercolor underpainting then primed with clear gesso to finish the painting with oil paints
- Strathmore 400 Series Drawing Paper – $1.25 (or $1.00 each if purchased in packs of 50+ sheets – they are flat 12×19 inch sheets. You will want to seal the paper with primer before oil painting unless you are using it for temporary experiments)
- Strathmore Visual Journal – $.40 (A 12×9 inch spiral bound 140 lb. watercolor paper journal for easy transport & storage while travelling – obviously, would only work if the paint dried to the touch before closing the journal. Or you can use it for initial watercolor sketches or studies and then paint on top with oils later in the studio. The paper will need to be sealed with primer before oil painting)
- Raymar 58A Oil Painting Paper Panels – $15.89 (a paper adhered to an 1/8-inch MDF wood panel. You can paint immediately with oil paints or start with a watercolor underpainting. It is sold in a 5 pack for $79.43)
- Old Atlases or books at thrift stores, garage sales, or library sales that you can get for free or for under a dollar. This is for low-budget oil painting. Use the pages to practice experimental oil painting techniques or for plein air studies you don’t intend to sell in a gallery. Paint directly on the paper (oils will eventually rot the paper) or cover with acrylic gesso.
Conclusion
I hope this quick oil painting surface cost-comparison guide will give you some ideas when you are deciding which oil painting surface will work best for your circumstances.
Play and experimentation are keys to unlocking creative potential in our journeys as oil painters.
Have fun and Happy Painting!
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Thank you so much for this comprehensive guide! I will be experimenting with some of these.
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the info Kari!
Thank you for this information Bill.
I can’t wait for us to move out of lockdown, because then hopefully, the store will open that sells abs plastic sheets here. I’ve been browsing our area and found a local supplier very close to home.
This is really an eye opener that you have shared, much appreciated.
Regards
William
How convenient William! The closest plastics company from me is almost 1 1/2 hours drive. Fortunately, I’m usually not in a rush so we combine the trip with other activities in Indy. It’s good to hear that putting this together was useful.
Thank You, I’ll be going with the Mahagony Plywood.
Yeah, it sounds almost too good to be true Horst. Stable, light, relatively inexpensive, and we don’t need to prime it. I’m looking forward to painting on some in the next few weeks. The only downside is needing to cut it with a table saw but knowing they will cut it for me sounds very convenient, especially if I save up and get a year’s worth of panels cut all at once.
Love this post – extremely helpful!
Great to hear Charamine! I was hoping it would be a convenient post.
Thank You so much for the information aboit the types of painting materials best value and cost efficant. It can be so confusing when you go to the stores and ask these questions . Plus it gives me an alternitive product to start my granddaughter out with especially the use of water colors for her and what materials are best fr them. Thank You Again Bill….
You’re always welcome Ed! I sure love all your fun experiments and beautiful paintings.
Thank you so much for really usefully informaion…I keep you follow from Turkey…Best wishes…
You’re welcome Cemal! I love seeing how painting connects us artists in places all around the world.
Hi Bill, when you mention primer on some of the papers, are you talking about gesso? or did you mean something else?
Hi Mark, yes, gesso is what I’m referring to. There are other materials that can be used for priming paper, but generally, I use an acrylic gesso because it’s easy to use and I have it here in my studio. The main purpose is to protect the paper from the deteriorating action of the oil paints on natural fibers like cotton and linen. Oil paints don’t harm unprimed wood products, but when the oil dries it becomes acidic and over time it damages the cellulose in the paper fibers.
Hi Bill – I was wondering if you ever had a chance to try out the “Purebond Mahagony Plywood – Home Depot” panels. If so, I was wondering what you thought, and if you painted on them “as is”, or did you prime them. If you primed them, would appreciate info as to what you did to prepare the surfaces. In any event, thanks for sharing your info in this blog post. It was very helpful. Thanks.
Not yet Rich, but I will give it a try before the year ends. I have quite a few panels sitting near my easel rearing to go. I don’t plan to prime them, just paint straight on the panels. If they end up being more absorbent than I like, I may put a thin layer of Rublev Lead Oil Paste Ground on them.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge on painting surfaces. Could you tell me what plastic company in Indianapolis that you use?
Hi Bev, I use Regal Plastics Company. Their number is 317-610-8800. I usually make my orders through Teresa. I haven’t ordered any panels since Covid hit – I hope it hasn’t affected their supply.
I left more confused after reading this. Charts?