The Best Pens for Bible Journaling

Are you looking for the best pens for Bible journaling? Want to save yourself the trouble of buying lousy pens, and just get the great ones? You’re in the right place! I tested six different Bible pen sets, to find out which ones perform well, and which ones just aren’t worth it.

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You’ve probably heard me say this before, but it still boggles my mind. I can’t believe that I used to see someone writing IN their Bible, and think that’s so CRAZY. Even just scribbled notes in pencil (which is totally erasable) seemed absolutely insane to me.

But, what’s even crazier, is that I now paint and stamp and take notes in my Bible! Because now, I GET IT. Bible journaling and note-taking is so beneficial for understanding, remembering, and applying God’s Word in my life. Sure, you can write key Bible verses and takeaways in a notebook, but having notes, artwork, and bookmarks right there in your Bible is just better. At least, I think so!

How about you? Do you write or create art in your Bible? Or are you still not quite sure about this whole Bible journaling thing? It’s okay if you’re still weirded out by the thought of putting any kind of markings in your Bible. Just start small: try highlighting a single verse, and writing a few words or symbols in the margin next to it. After a while, you might wonder why you didn’t start doing that sooner!

Best Bible Pens: Factors to Consider

When you’re taking notes and creating art directly in your Bible, it’s important to choose the best pens for Bible paper. The first and most important consideration is, of course, finding Bible journaling pens that don’t bleed. Most Bible papers are wafer-thin, so any pen that has even the slightest tendency to bleed, will likely bleed through those thin Bible pages.

BLEED-THROUGH vs. GHOSTING: Most Bible paper is so thin, even if something doesn’t bleed through to the other side, you may still be able to see a faint outline (“ghosting”) of it on the other side of the page.

With true bleed-through, the ink goes completely through the page (like using a permanent marker on a notepad—sometimes it not only bleeds through the paper to the back side, but also gets some ink on the page underneath it as well!) With ‘ghosting’ though, the ink hasn’t bled through the page, but you can still a ‘ghosted’ image of your writing or artwork on the back of the page. In fact, even colored pencils can still ‘ghost’ on the back side of a Bible page!

No matter what Bible journaling supplies you end up using, it’s ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA to TEST them first (like, on a blank page at the back of your Bible, where it won’t matter if they do bleed).

Other than that, I would say the second question you need to ask is “What am I looking for in a Bible pen?”. If you could only have ONE type of pen to use in your journaling Bible, what would you want? Bright colors, shimmer, a fine tip for detailed artwork…every type of pen has its pros (and cons). Especially if you’re just getting started Bible journaling, and you don’t want to acquire a bunch of different pen sets right out of the gate, you need to think about what you’re really wanting in your pens.

The Best Pens for Bible Journaling: Which Ones Are Actually Worth It?

Out of these six Bible journaling pens I tested, I found two that I absolutely don’t recommend, one that I recommend only with reservations, and three that are FANTASTIC! Check out the video below to see all the pen tests, and how they performed. Or, keep scrolling for pictures and details of the winners…

FIRST, my DO NOT RECOMMEND pens: ❌ The Mr. Pen fine point and Blieve pens (both ballpoint pens) were my least recommended pens. The ballpoint tips left a 3D impression on the back side of the Bible paper, even in my Illustrating Bible! And, both sets were not very smooth to write with, and had inconsistent ink flow. So, for those reasons, I don’t recommend them.

And now, moving onto the WINNERS…

1) Mr. Pen Multiliners & Fineliners: #1 Overall WINNER

Ding ding ding! We have a WINNER! I was really surprised, that the Mr. Pen fineliners (black pens) and multiliners (colored pens) actually beat out my longtime favorite Pigma Microns for the top spot.

What I loved about these Mr. Pen liners, is their bright, pretty colors. They’re equally great pens in terms of smoothness and ink flow, and lack of bleed-through, but it was the colors that really edged out Pigma Microns for the top spot.

2) Pigma Micron: Best Pens for Muted Colors + Variety of Tip Sizes

But, the Pigma Micron pens still come in strongly in the #2 spot, because they’re still a great all-around Bible pen, and if you like muted colors then you might actually prefer these. They write equally smooth and consistently, and look very identical to the Mr. Pen liners. They are more expensive than the Mr. Pen ones, though, so that’s worth considering.

ALSO: The one other advantage the Pigma Microns have over the Mr. Pen liners, is that the Pigma Micron pens come in loads of different color tip sizes. (The Mr. Pens only offer different tip sizes in black, not in colors.)

3) Gelly Roll Gel Pens: The TOP Choice for Metallic, Glitter, and Other Special Effects

If you like bright colors, metallic, and glitter as much as I do, a big set of Gelly Roll pens is a fantastic option! Besides having so many different special color effects, gel pens are also great because they’re opaque—so you could, for example, write with a silver gel pen on top of a dark blue page, and it will show up great!

SIDE NOTE: Gel pens are definitely one of the best pens for Bible art journaling… but, keep in mind that they can take a while to dry, especially when used on a gessoed Bible page. The gel ink has a tendency to sit on top of the page, rather than absorbing into it, so it can easily smudge if you’re not careful. I usually do gel pens as a last, finishing step in my Bible journals. Then, I can leave the page to dry overnight (even aiming my heat drying tool on it, won’t dry the gel ink completely). But, the results are fantastic!

4) Tombow Twintone: My Pick for Bright Colors + Dual Tip Sizes (with reservations)

The main reason I still recommend Tombow TwinTone pens is because they offer such a beautiful array of colors, and two different tip sizes built right into each pen. On one end, is a broad tip—great for coloring in a shape, or drawing a thick line. On the other, a fine tip that works well for detailed doodles or handwriting. These pens currently come in three different sets: rainbow, brights, and pastels. (I have the rainbow and brights sets, which you can see pictured below).

BUT, I only recommend them with reservations: There is one major problem with the Twintone pens, and that is that they can bleed through some thinner Bible pages. In the Illustrating Bible (which has thicker pages), they’re less likely to bleed, as long you’re not coloring them heavily. But in my regular journaling Bible, they absolutely bleed right through the page. So, I recommend applying clear gesso first, before using these pens in your Bible. And like I said at the beginning of this post, it’s always a good idea to test the pens first on a back page of your Bible, so you’ll know how they do with your specific Bible paper.

So, to RECAP: If I had to pick just ONE of these pens to be the #1 best pens for Bible journaling, I would choose the Mr. Pen multiliners and fineliners—because they’re such great all-around basic pens. They write smoothly and consistently, and the colors are bright and pretty. And, if you want to add some more variety to your pen options, get some Gelly Roll pens! They’re great if you love juicy ink flow and pretty effects like metallic and neon.

What pens do YOU use for Bible journaling? I’d love to hear what your faves are!