The Best Highlighter

Buying Guide

Whether you’re studying for an exam and need to remember important information or just casually reading and like highlighting your favorite passages, a good highlighter pen is handy to have. Highlighters come in several different colors and intensities and have different styles of tips. Are all highlighters the same or should you be looking for something specific?

One aspect you should pay attention to is bleeding. This is when the highlighter ink goes through the page onto the other side. This can make it difficult to figure out which side you actually highlighted and which text you want to stand out. Some highlighters bleed through the paper even if it’s thick. Another element to note is whether the highlighters smear. This is when you highlight something and accidentally touch the ink. The ink can then spread across the page wherever you hand goes. A fast-drying highlighter will not smudge or smear on your work.

The style of tip on the highlighter pen also affects its quality and usability. There are a few different types of tips you’ll encounter: A chisel tip is one of the most common. This kind of tip is flat so it’s ideal for highlighting straight lines of text. Similar to the chisel tip is the window tip, which has a clear section, or window, inside the tip. This way, you can see what you’re highlighting. A bullet tip is rounded, which makes it perfect for circling information. Some highlighters come with two colors. A dual tip has a color on each side so you can pick the color you want to use without them mixing or bleeding into each other.

• Consider what kind of colors you need in your highlighter pens. Yellow is the most common color, and it’s also the easiest to read text through. Some darker colors make it difficult to read what you’ve highlighted. For example, blue and purple are fairly dark so you may not be able to see the text underneath so clearly. Some people find the yellow highlighter color too bright and difficult to look at. You can find highlighters in softer shades of yellow, pink and green as well.
• When you’re highlighting something, try to only go over it once with the highlighter. Otherwise, you may over-saturate the paper and the highlighter ink may bleed through the page. If you do multiple layers of highlighter, the ink may take longer to dry and smudge. Plus, it may be too dark for you to easily read what’s underneath.
• Highlighters come in different sized packaging. Consider how many you’re going to need, and in what color. You can buy highlighters in single-color packaging or a set with multiple colors in it. Packages typically include between five and twelve highlighters.
• Consider what kind of tip is best for you based on what you plan on doing with the highlighters. If you’re mostly looking to highlight straight lines of text, then a chisel or window tip is your best option. if you prefer using two colors at a time and don’t want to constantly change pens, then opt for a dual tip highlighter. For circling or making diagrams, a bullet tip is best.