If you're getting into painting, buying an art easel is a really worthwhile investment. It can make painting and drawing more comfortable, as you're not hunched over a desk and it can help you to see your work more clearly – especially if you're working on a large canvas.
Easels are also adjustable, so you can usually vary the height and angle of your easel stand to suit your needs. It's definitely handy if you want to have a long painting session and will make sure you don't strain your back. As your painting is propped upright, you're less likely to smudge the paint with your hand, which can be very frustrating!
There's a huge range available, from small tabletop ones up to large professional easels, as well as ones that are specifically designed for travelling with. We've rounded up our favourite, so take a look and find the perfect painting and drawing easel for you!
10 best artist easels to buy in 2024
1. The Art Shop Skipton table top easel
This sturdy table top easel is perfect for artists who don’t have lots of space or painters who like to travel. It’s a small easel, so it’s portable and includes storage for your painting materials.
It works brilliantly as a drawing easel as you can adjust both the height and the angle for a comfortable experience – and it can accommodate a maximum canvas height of 455mm. When you finish painting, it folds down easily into a box. It’s made from beechwood, so it’s likely to last for a long time if you take care of it.
It would be a good gift for children who enjoy painting due to its size. As some reviewers have noted, the box is slightly too small to store A4 paper or drawing pads.
Buy the Art Shop Skipton table top easel from Amazon for £24.99
2. Daler Rowney Simply table top easel
Daler Rowney has a great reputation for producing high quality art supplies and this simple art easel is ideal for artists with a small budget who are looking to buy their first drawing or painting easel. It’s a good pick for students, amateur artists and beginners.
It’s easy to adjust the angle of the easel and it can be folded down flat when you want to put it away. If you take off the piece of wood at the top of the frame then it can accommodate an A3 drawing board. There are also rubber pads on the bottom, so it won’t slide around on your table. It’s well-made and will meet most of your drawing and painting needs. This is an excellent basic easel for new artists.
Buy the Daler Rowney Simply table easel from Amazon for £31.49
3. Daler Rowney Edinburgh table top easel
If you're looking for a larger table easel, this artist easel produced by Daler Rowney is a good choice. It's a well-made table top easel that can hold a canvas up to A3 size.
Like the Art Shop Skipton easel, it has storage space inside for your all of your art materials. It has removable dividers inside, so you can arrange your art kit however you like. This table easel can be used for both drawing and painting.
Buy the Daler Rowney Edinburgh table easel from Cass Art for £29.95
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4. Frisk painting and drawing easel stand
This lightweight metal easel is easy to transport and comes with its own convenient bag. It can be tilted if you want to use it for horizontal work. This is a practical easel and would be a fantastic option for students. It's easy to set up and can support a canvas up to 74cm in height.
Buy the Frisk easel from Amazon for £62.99
Pick the right paint
Whichever you prefer, make sure you find the best suppllies with our best watercolour paints and best acrylic paints guides.
5. MEEDEN tripod field painting easel
If you'd like to paint or draw outside, invest in a tripod easel like this one created by MEEDEN. This tripod painting easel can be put up and folded down easily and comes with a strong canvas bag so you can transport it easily.
The easel is made from beechwood and has pivoting joints, so it can be adjusted to any angle you need. This easel is designed to be used outdoors, but it can also be used at home or in an art studio. As an added bonus, it comes with a one-year warranty.
Buy the MEEDEN tripod field painting easel from Amazon for £69.95
6. MEEDEN studio H-frame easel stand
Want an easel for your art to keep at home or in a studio? The MEEDEN studio H-frame easel is designed to be used indoors, so it's a good buy for an art room.
The strong beechwood frame includes a drawer to store your art materials when the easel isn't in use. It can be used for larger canvases (up to 90cm) so it's suitable for most amateur artists and art students. It's easy to adjust and assemble. This artist's easel is excellent value for money.
Buy the MEEDEN studio H-frame easel from Amazon for £84.00
7. Daler Rowney Exeter radial studio easel
This precision-made studio easel is from Daler Rowney's Graduate range, which provides quality art supplies for students and keen amateur artists. If you're looking for your first studio easel, this could be the right one for you: it's adaptable, robust and folds away easily when you've finished using it.
Buy the Daler Rowney Exeter radial studio easel from Cass Arts for £119.95
Try a tablet
Want to bring your painting or drawing bang up to date? Go digital with our pick of the best drawing tablets for beginners.
8. Jullian full sized sketch box travel easel
Do you love painting outdoors? If so, then this is the easel for you! It's designed to be used indoors or taken outside for plein air painting sessions. It's beautifully made using oiled beechwood and includes a metal-lined drawer with adjustable dividers. It also comes with a bag so you can stash it away easily.
Buy the Jullian full sized sketch box easel from Cass Art for £164.95
9. Mabef M05 studio easel
Mabef has a good reputation among artists for its high-quality frames. If you can afford to invest in a more expensive art easel for your work, then Mabef has a great selection of easels to choose from.
This easel is well-made and would suit a professional artist. It includes two side drawers and has four lockable castor wheels. If you want to work with big canvases then you're in luck: this easel can support canvases up to 210cm. It's very simple to alter the height and angle of the canvas, so you can paint or draw in comfort.
Buy the Mabef M05 studio easel from Cass Art for £595
10. Mabef M04 master artist studio easel
If you want to buy an excellent professional standard art easel, then buy the M04 master artist studio easel. It's one of the best-quality easels on the market and will last for a long time if it's looked after.
It can support large canvases and it adjusts smoothly into any position you need. This is also a great easel for artists with mobility problems, as it glides easily into position and is extremely versatile.
Buy the Mabef M04 master artist studio easel from Cass Art for £895
Choosing your perfect art easel
Think about how you might use your easel before you buy it. If you have room in your home and mainly work in one space, then you could invest in a large studio easel.
If you have less room, then a table top easel is a good alternative. It can be placed on a table or desk and you can fold it up and stash it away when you've finished painting (making it great for students). Some table top easels also include a box to store all of your paints, brushes or drawing pencils – very handy if you need to take your art materials with you to a class.
Don't forget your paint brush!
Once you've got your perfect painting and drawing easel, the last thing you want to do is cheap out on poor paint brushes. Find the right ones for your art practice with the best paint brushes guide from Gathered.
