6 Best Primers for Miniatures in 2023

Games Workshop is one of the biggest names in the miniatures world. In addition to making the super-popular Warhammer miniatures, these guys make one of the all-time best primers for miniatures.

The colors of the Citadel spray primer —especially the black— are a great foundation for any miniature paint job. The spray dries fast and leaves the surface smooth, clean, and ready for the actual paint.

The only downside of this primer is the fact that it’s a bit pricey compared to most of the non-specialized primer alternative. If you’re looking for maximum quality for your miniature painting though, this primer is highly recommended. Since this is an aerosol primer, you need to use it in a well-ventilated room. Also, if you are spraying miniatures, try to spray more than one at the same time to make the most out of each can.

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In addition to making primers and miniature paints of the highest-quality, specialization is another thing we like about The Army Painter. Whether they’re medieval warriors or an undead skeleton army, these guys have the right primer to make the paint on those tiny figures come to life.

The best thing is that they recommend actual uses for every paint and primer shade. Want to color some WWII cards? Get this color. An undead army of skeletons and zombies? Get that color. The result is much less guessing involved in picking the colors, and more confidence when applying the colors you choose to your models.

Since its a spray primer/paint, you’ll be able to give an entire miniature army some base foundation fast.

Even though this primer isn’t designed specifically for miniatures, it has a great advantage —aside from quality, which is flexibility. Since you can apply this primer with a normal brush or airbrush, it’s a great choice for miniature hobbyists who like to tinker with the painting process.

Even though it’s not necessary, you can use a thinner with this water-based primer, which allows you to get the exact results you’re after. Keep in mind though that using a thinner, retardant, etc. with this primer will affect things like how long it takes to dry and the overall texture of the finished surface.

If you’re a miniature painting beginner and want a miniature primer that’s ready to give excellent results right out of the box, the Games Workshop and The Army Painter primers are a much better choice.

Even though this primer is designed with more traditional artists, it produces great results when used to prepare the surface of miniatures for painting. It works on everything from plastic to wood and metal. So, no matter what material your miniature figures are made of, you can apply your paint foundation without any problems.

While being a gesso makes applying this product to a single miniature nice and easy, it’s not that practical if you want to apply it to your entire miniature army. You’ll need to do this one-by-one, which will take much more time compared to any of the other spray alternatives.

Another thing we like about this primer is its absorbency. It absorbs the right amount of paint to prevent any color bleeding. The only thing we don’t like about this primer is the fact that it’s too thick, which might cause some bubbles to form on the surface of the figure you’re painting.

And that’s why we don’t recommend this primer for highly-detailed miniatures, as its thickness can hide some of the details.

Krylon primer for miniatures is hands down the best budget primer that you can get. If you’re looking for a flat primer/paint that you can use for miniature painting without breaking the bank, you don’t need to look any further.

In addition to drying completely within 10 minutes (can vary depending on the temperature and humidity), this primer has a great conical tip that’s designed specifically to prevent runs and drips and give you consistent results every time. It’s also easy to press so your fingers won’t hurt after spray priming miniatures for a long time.

This spray primer also comes in a variety of colors and glossiness so, you’ll find the right choice for your needs, no matter how complex is the figure you’re painting.

Few are the companies that have been in the modeling business since 1948. With more than 48 years in the industry, these guys know what they’re doing. This enamel-based primer provides an extremely thin foundation layer that helps you preserve the smallest details in the model you’re painting, making it one of the best primers for miniatures.

Whether it’s plastic, resin, or metal miniatures, this primer will keep even the smallest lines and rivets visible for the painting process. This is hands down one of the best primers for miniatures that are currently available.

The only reason to skip this primer is when you’re painting a large 3D printed prop or armor part that doesn’t have many small details. It will certainly do a great job in that scenario as well, but it won’t have the edge it has with small miniatures.