• Top Choice
• Highlighter Pen Considerations
• Highlighter Pen Recommendations
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Bibles
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Books
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Textbooks
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Printouts
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Written Notes
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Color-coding
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Copying & Triplicate Paper
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Left-Handers
  • The Best Dual Tip Highlighter Pen
  • The Best Highlighter Pen for Making an Impression
• Highlighter Pen Test Results
• Compare These Highlighters
• How We Approach Research & Testing
• Other Resources
• Conclusion
• Shop This Post

Bible highlighters are hard to find and often fall short. The thin paper Bibles use is vulnerable to bleeding and virtually guarantees showthrough. We looked for highlighters that did not bleed through or wrinkle the paper, showed through as little as possible, and permitted precise highlighting of Bibles’ small font. Although all Bibles use thin paper, some are more delicate than others. It’s a good idea to test new highlighters in an inconspicuous spot to make sure that they work on your Bible’s specific paper.

Top Choice: Kutsuwa HiLiNE Highlighter Pencils

Kutsuwa HiLiNE Highlighter Pencils are good for delicate paper.

How do you keep ink from bleeding through delicate paper? By not using ink at all! Kutsuwa HiLiNE Highlighter Pencils are colored pencils with a soft neon core. They are bright but less intense than most liquid highlighters. The points can make thin or medium-width lines depending on how sharp they are, so they work well for highlighting pages with tight formatting. It may take multiple strokes to highlight a full line. HiLiNE Highlighter Pencils come with a cap that conveniently doubles as a sharpener so that they’re always ready to use. They come in four colors and will never dry out.

Also Consider: Kokuyo Beetle Tip 3way Highlighters

Kokuyo Beetle Tip 3way Highlighters have unusual tips.

If you must use a liquid highlighter in your Bible, Kokuyo Beetle Tip 3way Highlighters are a good option. They lay down a bright line without excessive moisture, so they did not wrinkle or bleed through our Bible paper. They have an unusual tip that lets you make thick, thin, or double lines just by rotating the pen. The broadest line has a medium width, so it fits well into closely-spaced lines. Kokuyo Beetle Tip 3way Highlighters come in five colors.

Whether you’re a student or a lifelong learner, highlighting key points in books you read is a great way to improve your understanding and flag concepts to remember. Books are printed on all kinds of paper, but their pages are often rough and absorbent. Here are our picks for for highlighting novels, paperbacks, and more.

Top Choice: Staedtler Triplus Textsurfers

Staedtler Triplus Textsurfers highlight with flexible bullet tips.

The flexible bullet tips of Staedtler Triplus Textsurfers create precise and complete coverage. Use the side of the tip to highlight passages or just its point for underlining. Triplus Textsurfers are available in a wide range of ink colors. We’re particularly fond of their body design–it’s long and slim enough that it can act as a temporary bookmark (though longer-term this won’t be kind to your book’s spine), and it tucks easily into narrow pencil cases. In our tests, we noticed slight bleeding on printer paper, but no bleed or showthrough in books.

Also Consider: Tombow Kei Coat Double-Sided Highlighters

Tombow Kei Coat Double-Sided Highlighters have reinforced tips.

If you prefer to highlight or underline specific words rather than full passages, try Tombow Kei Coat Double-Sided Highlighters.The chisel tip is the perfect width for covering a full word, while the fine tip lets you make super-precise marks. These thoughtfully-designed highlighters feature plastic-reinforced tips to prevent fraying or splaying from heavy pressure. The broad tip’s protective sleeve cuts off below the point of the chisel to allow you to use it for making thin lines. Tombow Kei Coat Double-Sided Highlighters come in 10 colors.

Many textbooks use robust paper with a glossy finish. You can use almost any highlighter on them without bleedthrough, but be sure to give the ink plenty of time to dry or it’ll smear when you turn the page. All of the liquid and gel highlighters we tested took more than 30 seconds to dry. The following options dried around the 45-second mark on highly glossy paper.

Top Choice: Pilot FriXion Light US Erasable Highlighters

Pilot FriXion Light US Erasable Highlighters use mild colors.

Pilot FriXion Light US Erasable Highlighters are built to be erasable. If you over-highlight or use the wrong color, simply use the built-in hard rubber eraser to remove the highlighting without a trace. They use lighter ink than most highlighters. FriXion Light US Erasable Highlighters were mostly dry after 45 seconds but still smudged a small amount. They come in five colors. Pilot FriXion Light Standard and Soft Color Erasable Highlighters offer more colors and a different body style but dry more slowly.

Also Consider: Stabilo Boss Original Pastel Highlighters

Stabilo Boss Original Pastel Highlighters dry quickly.

Stabilo Boss Original Pastel Highlighters dry quickly even on glossy paper. Their tasteful color range is well-suited to color coding, and their flat bodies won’t roll away and send you crawling under a study carrel. We found these pens occasionally left spots of bleedthrough at the end of a line. While a little annoying, it did not impede readability on the other side of the page, and we think it’s a fair tradeoff for their lightning-fast dry time.

We often highlight printouts for work and school. That’s no problem if you use a laser printer, but inkjet printing can smear under highlighter ink. These highlighters are inkjet safe so that you can highlight pages from any printer.

Top Choice: Ohto Rouge Gel Highlighter Pens

Ohto Rouge Gel Highlighter Pens have broad, crayon-like tips.

The Ohto Rouge Gel Highlighter lays down a smooth, fluorescent line that does not smear inkjet printing. Its broad, crayon-like tip wears down as you use it, so it’s best for highlighting large areas. It is not suitable for precise highlighting. The Ohto Rouge does not bleed through paper.

Also Consider: Uni Propus Window Soft Color Double-Sided Highlighters

Uni Propus Window Soft Color Double-Sided Highlighters have a handy window for precise highlighting.

Try the soft colors of the Uni Propus Window Soft Color Double-Sided Highlighter if you’d rather make more exact marks. They did not smear ink-jet printing in our tests and come with a handy window in the broad tip to let you see what you’re highlighting. The opposite end has a fine tip for underlining or circling text. If you prefer brighter colors, the regular Propus Window Double-Sided Highlighters caused minimal smearing in our tests.

If you’ve ever smudged carefully-written notes with a swipe of your favorite highlighter, you’re not alone. Pens and inks come in a wide range of formulations. It’s no surprise that they each react differently to being highlighted. These highlighters work well with several kinds of writing tools, so you can use your favorite pens, inks, and pencils without fear.

Top Choice: Staedtler Textsurfer Classic Highlighters

Staedtler Textsurfer Classic Highlighters work on a variety of inks.

The compact, square Staedtler Textsurfer Classic Highlighter is our go-to for written notes. It did not affect ballpoint, gel, rollerball, pencil, or inkjet printing in our smearing tests. It did smear fountain pen ink, but not so much that it was unusable. Its lightfast, pigment ink showed through paper but did not bleed through. The chisel tip is best for highlighting wide areas, although its point can make thinner lines.

Also Consider: Staedtler Textsurfer Gel Highlighters

Staedtler Textsurfer Gel Highlighters are a good choice for fountain pen ink.

The Staedtler Textsurfer Gel Highlighter is our favorite highlighter for fountain pen ink. It did not smear pencil or gel, rollerball, or fountain pen ink in our tests, but it did cause ballpoint ink to feather. The rounded tip is good for broad highlighting. The gel is difficult to shape, so we do not recommend it for precise work. The Textsurfer Gel Highlighter comes in five colors.

If you’re the type of person who highlights events in one color, dates in another, and names in a third, you need highlighters that can keep up. These pastel and fluorescent highlighters have enough hues for every category you can think of.

Top Choice: Zebra Mildliner Double-Sided Highlighters

Zebra Mildliner Double-Sided Highlighters come in a variety of soft colors.

Zebra Mildliner Double-Sided Highlighters are our most popular highlighters, and for good reason. They replace ultra-bright colors with “mild” hues that are just the right shade to stand out. They’re a great refuge if fluorescent colors hurt your eyes. Mildliners come in 35 gorgeous colors, including unusual options like dark blue, brown, and gray. They have both chisel and fine tips to let you highlight large areas or underline specific words. They are known to smear gel pens, so check our guide to compatible pens to see if they'll work with your favorites.

Also Consider: Kokuyo Beetle Tip Dual Color Highlighters

Kokuyo Beetle Tip Dual Color Highlighters have two colors in one pen.

Try Kokuyo Beetle Tip Dual Color Highlighters if you’d rather not switch pens when changing colors. They feature two different-colored tips right next to each other so that you can switch colors or make double lines just by turning the pen. These versatile highlighters come in three different bright and soft color options for a total of 12 colors.

Office workers and teachers sometimes need to mark up shipping receipts or make clean copies of already-highlighted paper. Some highlighters fade when used on triplicate paper, but these keep their color and don’t show up when copied.

Top Choice: Monami Essenti Soft Highlighters

Monami Essenti Soft Highlighters have spring-loaded clips.

Monami Essenti Soft Highlighters leave no trace on copies of highlighted text and do not disappear over time on triplicate paper. Their caps have spring-loaded clips that help hold them in place on a clipboard or stack of papers. They come in 12 pastel colors that do not bleed and barely show through paper.

Also Consider: Zebra Optex 1 EZ Highlighters

Zebra Optex 1 EZ Highlighters are refillable.

If you use highlighters a lot, the Zebra Optex 1 EZ is for you. It uses refillable cartridges, which saves you money and reduces waste. It’s also incredibly easy to uncap. Just squeeze the two tabs to pop the “EZ” cap right off. It comes in 10 colors but only orange, pink, red, and yellow don’t show up when copied. The Zebra Optex 1 EZ does not react with triplicate paper.

Left-handed writers are particularly susceptible to smears as their hands often pass over ink while it is still wet. These quick-drying highlighters will help keep your hands and paper pristine. If you’d like more options, check out our picks for textbooks above and our Guide to Left-Handed Pens.

Top Choice: Uni Propus Window Q-Dry Highlighters

Uni Propus Window Q-Dry Highlighters dry in a flash.

Uni Propus Window Q-Dry Highlighters dry phenomenally quickly, keeping hands safe from smears. They also feature broad chisel tips with built-in windows that help keep lines precise. A double-sided design means a simple flip of the pen will provide a fine tip for underlining and circling. These highlighters come in eight fluorescent colors.

Also Consider: Platinum Preppy Fluorescent Highlighters

Platinum Preppy Fluorescent Highlighters are very wet but dry quickly.

This highlighter version of the popular Platinum Preppy Fountain Pen dried within a second in our testing. Although the Platinum Preppy Fluorescent Highlighter puts down a lot of ink, it absorbs quickly into the paper. This makes it more prone to showthrough and bleeding than our other recommendations. It can be refilled with cartridges or a converter. This lets you also use other highlighter fountain pen inks.

Dual-tip highlighters take highlighters and fineliners and combine them into one, creating pens that you don’t even have to put down as you switch between annotation and color-coding.

Top Choice: Kokuyo Mark+ 2 Way Marker Pens

Kokuyo Mark+ 2 Way Marker Pens combine highlighters and fineliners.

Kokuyo Mark+ 2 Way Marker Pens highlight with tasteful colors, each paired with a fineliner on the other end of the pen. Gray Type markers all include grayish fineliners, which we found dark enough to be legible without being obtrusive; Color Type markers all have matching fineliners, suited to color-coding. Mark+ 2 Way pens allow you to highlight and write notes without switching to another pen.

We will note that on absorbent papers, such as cheap paperback pages, the fineliner bleeds through slightly and writing with the fineliner over the highlighter will feather very badly. When in doubt, write with fineliner first!

If you’re on the hunt for more coordinating highlighter colors, try Kokuyo Mark+ Dual Tone Highlighters. Any of their dual hues will go delightfully with the subtle Gray Type markers.

Also Consider: Sun-Star Ninipie Dual Tip Highlighters

Sun-Star Ninipie Dual Tip Highlighters are some of the most unique pens in the JetPens catalog.

The innovative design of the Sun-Star Ninipie Dual Tip Highlighters might cause bystanders to do a double-take. It packs a chisel tip and fineliner marker into one end of the pen, so you can switch between highlighting and writing with only the slightest rotation. Lovely pale highlighter inks are paired with coordinating or stylishly contrasting fineliner colors.

Like the Mark+ 2 Way, we found the fineliner bled through slightly on rough paper at the end of the line. There’s also a slight learning curve to the Ninipie–be sure to hold it steady to prevent accidentally switching between tips.

Sometimes an ordinary highlighter just isn’t good enough. Here are two pens that stand out from the pack.

Top Choice: Zebra Kirarich Highlighters

Zebra Kirarich Highlighters add dreamy shimmer to notes and art.

These dazzling highlighters put down so much glitter that it’s in their name—“kira” means “sparkle” in Japanese. Kirarich Highlighters deliver this radiance with bright ink that is infused with silver and pulverized glass. Their twinkling lines are a fun surprise for study partners and a great reminder to smile. We love using them for highlighter art as well!

Also Consider: Epoch Kobaru Sweet Tapir Scented Highlighters

Epoch Kobaru Sweet Tapir Scented Highlighters have double-sided bodies with two pastel colors.

The Epoch Kobaru Highlighter adds whimsy to notes with its unusual shape and scented ink. It has a thin, double-sided body design and soft pastel colors. The sweet scent of the ink is easy to smell when the highlighter is uncapped and lingers for several minutes on the page.