The Best Selling Inks of 19 Different Brands

If the massive amount of fountain pen ink options are overwhelming you, start here! Drew reviews our current most popular inks across 19 different brands!
Shop at our store! www.gouletpens.com/
Listen to The Goulet Pencast here: gouletpencast.fireside.fm/
SUBSCRIBE to our KZbin channel: bit.ly/GP-YTsubscribe
LINKS TO PRODUCTS FEATURED:
Aurora Ink: www.gouletpens.com/collection...
Colorverse Quasar: www.gouletpens.com/products/c...
De Atramentis Document Black: www.gouletpens.com/products/d...
Diamine Polar Glow: www.gouletpens.com/products/d...
Ferris Wheel Press New Ink: www.gouletpens.com/collection...
Herbin Lie de The: www.gouletpens.com/products/h...
Jacques Herbin Emerald of Chivor: www.gouletpens.com/products/j...
LAMY azurite: www.gouletpens.com/products/l...
Monteverde California Teal: www.gouletpens.com/products/m...
Noodler's Southwest Sunset: www.gouletpens.com/products/n...
Organics Studio Nitrogen: www.gouletpens.com/products/o...
Pelikan Edelstein Apatite: www.gouletpens.com/products/p...
Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-Peki: www.gouletpens.com/products/p...
Platinum Carbon Black: www.gouletpens.com/products/p...
Private Reserve Tanzanite: www.gouletpens.com/products/p...
Robert Oster Fire & Ice: www.gouletpens.com/products/r...
Rohrer & Klinger Alt-Goldgrun: www.gouletpens.com/products/r...
Sailor Manyo Haha: www.gouletpens.com/products/s...
TWSBI: www.gouletpens.com/collection...
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Intro
0:44 Aurora
1:05 Colorverse
1:23 De Atramentis
1:43 Diamine
2:05 Ferris Wheel Press
2:36 Herbin
2:54 Jacques Herbin
3:30 LAMY
3:48 Monteverde
4:04 Noodler's
4:25 Organics Studio
4:47 Pelikan
5:00 Pilot
5:24 Platinum
5:44 Private Reserve
6:03 Robert Oster
6:22 Rohrer & Klinger
6:45 Sailor
7:07 TWSBI
ABOUT GOULET PENS:
Brian & Rachel Goulet started The Goulet Pen Company in 2009 and you can see the evolution of our mom and pop into a full-blown company through this channel. We run a dedicated online store with fountain pens, ink, paper, and other fine writing accessories. Our goal with this channel is to provide fountain pen fans at all levels of experience with comprehensive product reviews, round ups, and how-to videos to answer all the fountain pen questions you may have. Shop at www.gouletpens.com.
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Blog: www.gouletpens.com/blogs/foun...

[@fbmooers]

I nominate Drew's multicolored shirt as the most vibrant and colorful shirt of the Goulet Pen Company videos with the monochromatic but understated shirts of Brian being a distant second!

[@nathanrandall]

I want to know where he got it! Its so cool 😎

[@LaddGardner4]

Drew just gets better and better. He needs a real TV gig of some kind. :)

[@sunnymoondog]

Or make more videos just for us!!

[@Ceigee]

When he mentioned pilot inks I had a fun little thought of “it would be funny if he mentioned konpeki cause I’m using it as I’m watching this video” and now here I am commenting this random coincidence.

[@Gouletpens]

Yes! It's such a nice blue! - Drew

[@BlueNinjaMonkey]

Super fun vid! I'd love to see a video about "currently trending" inks (inks that have a sudden increase in sales compared to normal)

[@Gouletpens]

I'll keep that in mind! - Drew

[@DudasPasa]

I am not surprised about so many black and blue inks. The many purples are a surprise.

[@Ali.M]

Lie de Thé doesn't surprise me at all, it's an awesome ink. Good shading with a broad and/or wet nib, also cleans out easily. One of my top inks for sure

[@alexandrapirvu7945]

Wish you'd do a similar video with Shimmer inks only! Love your shirt, so colourful 🎉

[@Gouletpens]

You might be looking for this one! kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJaUdJKlj5WKecU

[@heathergleiser]

Polar Glow is so pretty! I just put Garland in a broad nib Eco yesterday and the sheening on Tomoe River is stunning. Diamine is by far my favorite brand.

[@ichirofakename]

I have both Haha and Nekoyanagi inked up as we speak. I hope other purchasers of Nitrogen have better luck using it in any way other than swatching, than I have.

[@offline._archive]

last time i inked up the Nitrogen, it was truly a disaster to clean. now I'm just traumatized.

[@alexandrapirvu7945]

I get your sorrows 😅 why is why Diamine sheeners are in my rotation. Blue Inkvent had some like Polar Glow, Seasons Greetings, Holly... The exclusive German Diaminr inks are great behaving sheeners!

[@blackletter2591]

Nice video, and results as expected. Perhaps more reds should have popped up? Surprised at the Sailor Inks though. They look like mistakes ie, what happens when there's only water in the converter because you just flushed out the pen. I guess they must be for art.

[@sharelleshobbies]

Platinum Lavender Black has been on my list for a long time. 😍 I still have a little bit left in the sample size.

[@hidilley]

Would love to see a sample set with all of these colors included! :) Always enjoy Drew's enthusiasm, too!

[@tdinut]

Drew, thank you so much for doing this list. It puts a face to the ink names and helps me to understand better! 😊

[@CreatingCuteArt]

Such a great, helpful video. I’d love a round table with staff just talking about their all time favorite inks! Always fun to get that sort of survey variety from them!

[@josephs5969]

I always enjoy your content, and I gotta say your shirt is awesome! Thanks for all you do!!

[@christalitjens501]

Great vid Drew, love the way you advertise your inks! Def going to look at some of the inks you presented! Greetz from NL!

[@steamdome9162]

Entertaining and informative. I now have some inks I want to add to my growing selections. Thanks Drew!

[@chillausmc]

Drew! Lamy Bronze is a great yellow! Give it a try. I got the add-on cartridges with the Lamy Al Star and is one of my favorite doodle / note taking set ups. Side Note: I like taking a look at the least popular inks to see what people are missing out on.

[@SatieSatie]

What a great idea!

[@Zero-ti3rn]

Love your channel and I always think Drew is a fun person to watch. Goes along with todays shirt. Fun fun like your inks and pens.

[@leannezzers]

What a great video! I definitely want to give some of these colors a try I’ve never seen the Thoreau ink before 🤯

[@TimLesher]

Herbin "Lie de the" was one of the first inks I ever bought, and definitely one of my all-time favorites.

[@IAmNumber4000]

I bought Sailor Manyo Nekoyanagi because of this video and I love it so much 😊

[@nancyrhm2094]

What a great idea for a video, thank you! Saving this for future reference.

[@GuitARPlayr100]

I ended up with a new favorite black in Rohrer & Klingner Leipziger Schwarz that I got from a random sample pack from you guys. Brand I had never heard of before, and now I use it almost everyday in my E95S. It's a nice, dark black that when swabbed seems to be an incredibly dark teal. But in normal writing simply shows as a nice deep black. So sometimes something you've never heard of can be a nice hidden gem.

[@marilyngardner4269]

I really like Leipziger Schwarz as well. A deep and complex black!

[@Vermiliontea]

From a purely technical point of view, lightfastness, fade resistance (durability), flow behaviour and easy maintenance, Rohrer & Klingner stands out because because all of their inks are good. German engineering and protocol, I guess. Old Parker Quink was like that too, but those were acid, not pH neutral. It's quite rare though. Most brands today have both good and bad inks in their ranges. Modern consumers look mostly at color and for expression, I guess, and are maybe not even aware of that some inks will go just after some years or if constantly exposed to light. And I agree: For an ultra-low maintenance, water soluble, pen-benign, pH-neutral, durable black ink, R&K Leibziger Schwartz is as good as it comes. My favorite water soluble black ink too. From the list of inks mentioned in this video, Noodler's Black (overall best ink in the World IMO, but cellulose reactive and not super-black), Herbin Lie de Thé and Iroshizuku Kon-Peki also gets my approval.

[@GuitARPlayr100]

@Vermiliontea funny that you mention old Parker Quink, I was going through some antique shops over the weekend and found what seemed to be an old unopened bottle of Quink permanent blue. But ya, everything about Leipziger Schwarz is just very nice. I don't care for noodlers black personally because it's not dark enough. It always comes out more Grey for me. But Leipziger Schwarz and Waterman Intense Black are nice and dark, and well behaved in my experience.

[@GeraldDeBelen]

Thanks for this list Drew! Would love to try these gems as I am more of an ink enthusiast than pens.

[@Darkestdarkify]

I got someone briefly into fountain pens and they picked a thick shimmer with an extra fine nib.. they got really frustrated and just rage quit

[@sharlenezuhlke1561]

Great job Drew! Ideas to ponder.

[@tompov227]

I love trying all inks but as far as my essential inks it definitely comes back to De Atramentis Archive Ink

[@fossilimprint2954]

Great idea, thank you Drew!

[@budthecyborg4575]

Seems like shimmer/shade Teal and Red makes up half of this list (Polar Glow, Emerald of Chivor, California Teal, OS Nitrogen?, Fire and Ice), the popularity of that color seems to be a global trend and and probably deserves a deep dive into the scientific chemistry involved in producing that exact shading.

[@sunnymoondog]

I am thinking people are more likely to get samples in the sheening inks, and this video was based on sample purchases, not full bottles.

[@PinkWytchBytch]

I’ve sworn by Manyo Haha any time I’ve ever heard it mentioned, and I admit there’s plenty of Sailor inks I’ve been eyeing for awhile now. Then I saw The Fluttering Heart and my magpie brain said “ITS AS CLOSE TO LADY ROSE IN GOLD AS ILL EVER GET IM GRABBING IT NOW”

[@michaelmedlinger6399]

Thanks, Drew - I think! Your videos always get me fired up and ready to place an order for pens and inks. Bad enough that my pen collection has grown to 55 (not all the fault of Goulet Pens, but quite a few of them are), I also have over 50 inks. That doesn’t stop me from wanting more, more, more!

[@claytonsanders508]

Two of my all-time favorites: Herbin Violette Penseé & Rohrer and Klingner Cassia. If you love purple inks these two are must-try inks!

[@burgosmatthew]

I'm so glad I purchased 4 bottles of Golden Beryl.

[@kennethjones5782]

I love the new product pictures of the ink swatches

[@deandesrosiers6857]

Drew, that was the best opening sentence of any video I have witnessed in 2023. Nice work, old man. I felt like you grabbed me by my shirt collar and dragged me into your video.

[@Saichii26]

This list is really helpful. ❤ Thanks guys for posting this video.

[@Gouletpens]

Thanks for watching! - Drew

[@ameliabuns4058]

Damn... these are gorgous, i've been going trough penhedonia (lack of enjoyment in pens or inks) cause of my depression but that de atramentis purple is pretty

[@philippebarillecavalier9275]

You should add to the title something like "early 2023". I have the feeling this could (and should) be revisited many times over! Now adding a few more samples to my wishlist...

[@shirley9240]

Outstanding selections! I love fountain pens, but shopping for ink is so much fun!! Now if you would excuse me, I have to go shopping! Thank you!

[@Gouletpens]

We appreciate the support! - Drew

[@ytfeelslikenorthkorea]

6:29 I was looking for that shade for a long time at the beginning of my journey, made some questionable experiments with mixing inks along the way. But in the end, this is - by far - my fav ink ever.

[@Spooktastic1816]

My personal favorites listed in this video: Platinum Carbon black (of COURSE!), Private Reserve Avocado (seriously a favorite green of mine) and Alt-Goldgrin (another favorite green). I'm most surprised by the Sailor inks, but that's probably just because I don't use inks that light very often. They are pretty, nonetheless.

[@lulusez6514]

A sailor ink you really might want to try is the 123, it is amazing.

[@DavidWoodsGuitar]

Another great video, Drew. Thank you! A few beautiful inks there. I will be trying some of these, for sure.

[@Gouletpens]

Thanks for watching! - Drew

[@avypili6975]

Thanks for this vid, Drew! The many kinds of inks is def the bigger component of why I got into fountain pens, so this is a really helpful list! Also!! I really love your energy and enthusiasm! When I watch the pen cast I keep thinking Drew is the happy gremlin in my heart that wants to come out every time I get excited haha

[@Gouletpens]

Lol! It's my pleasure to be your gremlin. - Drew

[@xh3075]

Lie de Thé is my favorite ink of all time! So glad to see it here.

[@Ike32]

Diamine Polar Glow and Monteverde California Teal are two of my favorites. So cool

[@Ike32]

Robert Oster has a totally underrated ink called Great Southern Ocean. So nice

[@SheenaInk]

Awesome video! Polar Glow is a fave. I have been wondering whether it is possible to have a saturated (i.e. looks dark on the page), high shading ink? If yes, any fun suggestions?

[@Jeannette311]

So many faves on this list, and now I have more to try. Thanks, drew!

[@Gouletpens]

Thanks for joining me! - Drew

[@Ali-in8xi]

Your shirt is groovy!! Thanks for the video.

[@microwrx]

Great video as usual Drew. Not sure if ink samples should be a measure of popularity though as surely someone buying a 4.5oz bottle of an ink speaks way more to it's popularity than a 2ml sample. So I'd think volume sold would be a better measure (messier to calculate though). Still, a fun topic to discuss anyway.

[@Gouletpens]

I thought a lot about that - overall, ink samples were subject to far fewer variables than full bottles were, from a data standpoint. - Drew

[@rosalie.e.morgan]

​@Gouletpens it could also be interesting to see which inks had the highest percentage of people following up by buying a bottle.

[@creamsiclecat]

Great video! I always wondered what colors are popular besides blues and blacks. There were surprisingly a lot of purples!

[@Gouletpens]

I was surprised as well! - Drew

[@crouserm]

I just today got to my sample of DeAtramentis Mahatma Ghandi -- a yellow that dries saffron. Love it! I wouldn't inflict it on people who get my letters, but for greeting card notes and the like, wonderful!

[@homeslice1958]

It'd be very cool to make an ink sampler package of these 19 inks! I'll admit that 19 is a ton, but that'd be really fun, and I bet some people would buy it!

[@jayarthrdent3777]

I would buy it.

[@LittleKikuyu]

That’s such a great idea 😅

[@beardpandaa]

I really love thick fountain pen nibs. They feel great and I have big handwriting. What ink would you recommend to make up for smudging? Prob a quick dry one right?

[@sunnymoondog]

Curious what the top 2 are for each brand in bottles sold vs. samples.

OMG! My favourite inks were in the list! Lie de thé, Manyo Haha and Manyo Nekoyanagi. Also, I'm growing very fond of brown and beige/sand inks and it's because of Drew. So thank you for that!

[@melodiemclellan5245]

Nekoyanagi!!

[@7775Kevin]

Well done video. Thanks

[@aryadeschain]

Kudos to Drew for not throwing away his shot at making a Hamilton reference!

[@Tomatohater64]

Thanks, Drew; I am very intrigued with Vert Atlantide - with green being my very favorite color by a mile. It's on my must-try green inks list.

[@kncars7]

I currently use Vert Atlantide with a TWSBI Eco, and it's a great color! There is an intense gold shimmer when I first start writing after a while, but it mellows out to a nice green with a silver and gold shimmer - very nice but subtle!

[@Tomatohater64]

@@kncars7 OK, I'm convinced. Gonna have to get that one and DeAtramentis Charles Dickens next month. But what color Pilot Custom 74 to get? They all look great. 🤔🤔😮‍💨😮‍💨🥴😖😩😭

[@RIckyJamesP]

Drew’s shirt is amazing. Also I still can’t believe Sailor Manyo Haha is overseas only. Like, I’m in Japan and they do not produce it for the market. And it’s the most popular on KZbin it seems. Oh the agony! 😂

[@PinkWytchBytch]

On the reverse side of that coin, I have such a hard time finding Taccia Lipcolor Inks here in the states, it’s as if it isn’t allowed to be exported or some such

[@pdxcontent]

Great shirt!!! Love it!!!🎉🎉

[@TheSeatedView]

I got some good ideas for my next ink. Also? Fab shirt, Drew. ;)

[@randy-9842]

Interesting subject. Rachel Goulet's website helps immensely with sorting inks by popularity (etc.). Too few browns in your picks today Brian. I particularly like Sailor Piano Mahogany.

[@def1ghi]

Polar Glow is such a great ink.

[@Euphoria9630]

Yama-Budo is an outstanding ink. Love it

[@MrG0CE]

I HAVE 2 OBJECTIONS ! 1: BAYSTATE BLUE IS BY FAR THE MOST POPULAR NOODLER'S INK. U EVEN HAVE DEDICATED VIDEOS ABOUT IT, BUT NOT FOR APACHE SUNSET ;) 2: POLAR GLOW IS DIAMINE'S MOST POPULAR INK, BUT I THINK JACK FROST IS ITS V2.0, SAME COLOR AND SHEEN BUT WITH SHEEMER AND WAY BETTER AND HEY, IT'S A CHRISTMAS INK :D

[@Gouletpens]

Baystate is indeed popular, but the ink doesn't sell quite as well as Southwest Sunset or Black. - Drew

[@rogerehinger6694]

Is South West Sunset the new PC name for Apache Sunset? They appear very similar to me.

[@christinepiper316]

@@rogerehinger6694 ding ding ding!

[@rsh8057]

@@christinepiper316 really, so people are racist against Apache's? freaking bigots.

[@Gojenjen84]

I would be curious to see what is Kaweco top selling ink..

[@AnotherNerdHere]

Thanks Drew. I think some love needs to go out to Herbin Eclat De Saphir. I've gone through hundreds of ml of this wonderful blue.

[@seraphimseptimus6984]

Given this list was built off of ink sample popularity (stated at the end of the video), how does it shift for bottle popularity?

[@sunnymoondog]

That's what I want to know!

[@seraphimseptimus6984]

@@sunnymoondog Ink samples are low-commitment test purchases (you get a few mililitres and, if you hate it, oh well). I expect the most popular ink bottle results would shift a decent bit for some brands, especially Sailor.

[@ronhori]

Drew, this is awesome! Thank you for the ink suggestions. Love the shirt choices that your wife makes! You once said that she buys the shirts for you. 🙂

[@Gouletpens]

She does sometimes! I picked out this one! - Drew

[@meinkanta]

I would love one of these by colour - e.g. best selling greens, purples etc

[@run-a-milekyle3835]

Just got some Lamy Peridot, very nice green.

[@allenvestal4474]

It will be interesting to see what inks are in the sampler package I ordered with my TWSBI Eco.

[@DemonZapan]

😮 Rohrer&Klingner defenetly suprised me. I wished for scabiosa (my favourite) but defenetly expected Salix next to Alt Goldgrün….

[@user-my2lh3mt5d]

From the Jaques Herbin line, Emerald Of Chrivor is nice, but my one true love from that line is Bleu Ocean. In a vast sea of blue inks, this one really stands out at as a unique blue and looks stunning on paper by fountain pen, by steel dip nib, or by feather quill.

[@jess53nz]

I think polar glow may be my all time favourite colour, and the one that first introduced me to sheen. (honourable mention to fire embers!)

[@Gouletpens]

It's so good! - Drew

[@teresaharris-travelbybooks5564]

Aurora Turquoise was my first ink. I also prefer Diamine and Monteverde inks.

[@MauriceHotblack]

Hmm! I have a bottle of Lie de Thé and like a good shading ink but I have yet to dip my toe in to the sheening and shimmer pool. I'm certainly tempted by some of those on show here. - Dave.

[@serenalewis1381]

What does it mean to say that an ink is "high maintenance ", as you said about Nitrogen? I have that ink and love it

[@dianewalker9154]

Alexander Hamilton, Polar Glow, Oxblood, “Emerald Chicken” , SW Sunset, Kon-Peki are totally awesome! HaHa is my newest ink purchase.

[@Gouletpens]

I hope you love it! - Drew

[@gingerlefty]

Would you mind sharing where you got that shirt? My teenage son wants it!

[@wwolf5670]

Wow. Aurora Black is the only one I have on this list. Great black!

[@Gouletpens]

It really is! - Drew

[@meshzzizk]

the fact that two basically unreadable inks outsell sailor’s nanopigment line just boggles my mind. i’ve gone through three bottles of seiboku, it’s probably the best ink in my collection

[@belaralia]

I just wanted to say your shirt is awesome

[@Volkmannx]

Thank you!

[@kimu.6227]

Love your shirt!

[@Gouletpens]

Thank you! - Drew

[@NotesFromPastAmy]

A surprising amount of purples! Is this going to be followed up by inks you're missing out on/don't let these inks slide under your radar/top 10 most overlooked inks, or something of that nature?

[@Gouletpens]

Check this out! kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJi5m3ZsZb6npJI

[@sajjadhusain4146]

Aurora Black is a champion. One of my two favorite black inks, ever. Aurora Blue is nearly as good a blue. I’m not fond of Aurora’s blue-black. Of the other brands, I have my favorites. But when it comes to Sailor, I couldn’t even start because they have shiploads of amazing inks. Interesting video about some very pretty, popular inks. Thanks!

[@sunnymoondog]

Shiploads!❤

[@sajjadhusain4146]

@@sunnymoondog ..Ha, I meant it, too. Sailor pens and inks simply rule! ❤️

[@sunnymoondog]

@@sajjadhusain4146 yes, I love Sailor too 💖

[@blazel462]

Before seeing this video, I recently modified my stack. Usually keep 3 pens in rotation. In this case: Lamy 2000 Medium: Rohrer&Klingner Alt-Goldgrun Lamy 2000 Fine: Diamine Polar Glow Lamy Studio Medium: Rohrer&Kilingner Cassia Polar Glow and Alt-Goldgrun are top of my list. Always keeping at least one of them in a pen. Cassia is great, but not one I will likely always keep in a pen. Diamine Ancient Copper may be my third top ink.

[@hktz1]

What was the second-place runner for Pelikan? 😊.

[@zogzog1063]

I am looking for inks that do not clog my pens. I am an occasional fountain pen user and I keep finding that I have to go to a lot of trouble to get ink flow after a period of abstinence. Or is a pen issue?

[@rsh8057]

wow, these are some of my favorites. Sailor Ha Ha, Lie de the, Platinum Carbon Black, and Kon Peki/Yamabudo. Noodler's black is good, but I prefer Black swan in rose and I have a dedicated pen for Baystate blue. For Diamine, I like Writer's Blood > Oxblood. Polar Glow looks great though. I won't touch Organic studios ink again (great but a pain to clean, and they smear like crazy in journals). I like the look of Fire & Ice. The ink line they don't carry but that I like is Kyoto TAG. Every one of those are the great inks for shading though they can be dry.

[@penthevision4706]

Thank you 😊

[@thugitz1990]

Tysm for this

[@Gouletpens]

Thanks for watching! - Drew

[@MrGyges]

You have now been dubbed “ Inkmeister Brown “ , prince of inky fingers. All hail !

[@mixeddrinks8100]

will you do a total per color comparison?

[@charis_explores]

Is there a possibility of you carrying Troublemaker Inks? I’m just so in love with their ink named Kelp Tea.

[@salkinfamilychiropractic3142]

Is there an ink that is good for checks (meaning that they can't be erased or doctored)?

[@basicdose.9872]

I am loving it.