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There are a ton of supplies needed to start making professional-quality manga, some more important than others. However, there’s no denying that paper is one of the most important supplies, if not the most important, for drawing anything, including manga!
What type of paper should I use to draw manga?
If you don’t intend to ink your manga once you’ve drawn it in pencil, you don’t need to worry about paper, although thick paper can be very handy and help keep your drawings safe and durable.
However, if you intend to go all the way and use nibs to ink your drawings, you’ll need thick paper. Bristol paper is a paper you can find in most stores, and works very well for drawing and inking manga.
If you want a more professional/official manga paper, you can choose something like Deleter Comic Manga Paper, which has been designed specifically for manga creation. Deleter is the brand I swear by, and its paper is recognized by many amateur and professional manga artists. It’s of impeccable quality and at a very affordable price.
The next thing to think about is the size of your manga paper, which I’ll cover in the next section.
A4 or A3 paper for manga?
A4 paper is best for drawing manga, as it’s the ideal size for manga pages, especially for self-published and amateur artists. A3 paper is also a good option for manga, but is not as popular as A4. Professional manga artists will use B4 paper and manga manuscript paper with built-in margins.
Professional mangakas use handwritten paper, as it has margins to center the content on the page. If you’re just starting out, I’d recommend A4 or A3 paper. The Deleter paper I mentioned above is a great option, but if you want to buy something in store, Bristol paper works very well as it’s thick enough for ink.
What is Manga A4 / A3 paper?
A3, A4, A5, B4, etc. all refer to paper size. Manga paper is generally A4 (21 x 29.7 cm) or A3 (29.7 x 42 cm). In general, mangakas don’t use paper larger than A4.
A4 and A3 are just fancy ways of quickly referencing paper size, but it’s not really something you need to worry about. Personally, I buy manga paper from Deleter and I’m happy with it. Deleter even offers B4 paper, which is a little more expensive but a lot of fun to draw on (plus, you feel like a pro!).
If you’re just starting out, it doesn’t really matter whether you use A4, A3 or even B4 paper. Just choose a paper within your budget that’s thick enough to hold ink.
A3 paper will be a little harder to find, and A4 is more standard, so I’d recommend starting there and then adjusting according to your preferences. Once again, Deleter offers the best A4 manga paper, at a very affordable price for the quantity of paper.
I’m in no way sponsored by Deleter, but I love this brand which has completely broken down the barrier of entry for the creation of beautiful manga.
Best paper for manga creation
Now that I’ve talked about the different types of paper, let’s see which is the best choice for each. Bear in mind that this is just my opinion, and at the end of the day, it’s just paper. As long as you have something thick enough for ink and markers, you’ll be able to make your manga!
However, paper is one of the two main requirements, so if you want something quality, this is what you need!
Best A4 paper for Manga drawing
It’s no secret that I love Deleter paper, and it’s the cheapest, highest-quality A4 paper you can find. Deleter also offersother options, so don’t hesitate to take a look!
Believe me, there’s no better way to start drawing manga than with A4 paper. Whether you choose Deleter or not, A4 is the standard for a reason, and the preferred choice of many self-published artists!
Best A3 paper for drawing manga
Deleter didn’t have many good options for A3 format, to be honest, and I know a lot of artists are already used to it, so I had to put one on this list.
I chose this Canson paper because it’s one of the few A3 options available that can withstand markers and ink! If you’re going to draw and ink your own manga, and you want A3 paper, it needs to be one that can withstand black ink and markers, which is why I chose this 250 g/m² drawing paper.
Best B4 paper for Manga drawing
Don’t be fooled by the A on the cover of this paper, this is a top-quality B4 paper. Like A4, this paper is made by Deleter and is absolutely fantastic.
B4 is generally used by published manga artists, so if you want to get a feel for their life as a cartoonist, you can try B4. I still recommend A4, or maybe even try both and see which you prefer!
The B4 format is somewhere between A3 and A4. Personally, I like A4 a little more, but there’s nothing wrong with choosing one or the other, as long as the paper is good quality!
Bear in mind that this paper is lined and therefore has margins. This is what we call manuscript paper, and it’s a necessity for manga professionals. However, amateurs and self-published artists much prefer A4 format. Once again, it’s a question of personal taste.
I-C also makes excellent hand-written paper for manga, if you want to get away from the Deleter (but how dare you!).
The best sketchbook for drawing manga
If you want a nice little sketchbook to practice with, Bristol is the way to go! It’s not technically a traditional manga paper like the Deleter paper above, but this Bristol paper is made to withstand ink, marker, and whatever else you throw at it, making it perfect for dark manga inking lines and large areas of black hair shading!
What kind of paper do professional manga artists use?
Professional manga artists use B4 manuscript paper. B4 is the paper format used by published manga artists, and handwritten manga paper features margins and rulers along the edges of the paper. A4 paper is also used by professional artists, but mainly by self-published artists and freelancers.
If you’re a hobbyist, or if you’re trying to get into manga drawing as a hobby or career, I highly recommend buying A4 manga paper. This will be the easiest paper to work with, while still being thick enough for ink and markers.
If you’re looking for something more professional, you’ll need B4 Manga Manuscript paper, which will feature margins along the edges of the paper. This type of paper may look impressive to new artists, but it’s great fun to use and makes you feel like a professional!
Many self-published artists use A4 manga paper, while B4 is generally used by professional manga artists whose work is published in books and magazines.
Can you use printer paper for manga?
You can use printer paper to draw manga. Printer paper is perfect for drawing manga for fun, and can support mechanical pencils, fine-tipped pens and G nibs for inking. However, printer paper will have difficulty retaining ink, which is necessary for coloring black hair, clothes and shadows.
If you intend to ink the manga you draw entirely, I strongly recommend that you buy paper thicker than printer paper. There are plenty of good-quality, inexpensive manga papers available in stores and online (some of which I’ve mentioned above!).
I’ve tried creating complete mangas with printer’s paper, and the paper really can’t handle the inking process. It’s fine for practice, but if you want a quality finished product to show, offer or sell, you’ll need something thicker like cartoon or manga paper, or even Bristol paper.
