What’s a Copic Ciao Marker?
Getting ready to purchase your first Copic Markers?
It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the choices— Sketch, Ciao, Classic, Wide? What’s the difference? Should you go cheap? Which nib is best?
Relax.
We’re here to help you understand which marker is best for you!
Copic Ciao Markers
Ciao style Copic Markers are an introductory budget conscious marker aimed at beginners and children. Ciao are designed for coloring and blending, sharing the same chisel and Super Brush nibs as the more expensive Copic Sketch. The Ciao does have drawbacks- a limited color range and a small ink capacity.
Let’s look closer at why the Copic Ciao may or may not suit your coloring goals.
Ciao Marker Overview
The Copic Ciao Marker is a starter level marker developed as an affordable alternative to the Copic professional styles. The target market for these markers is children and beginners which likely explains my serious love/hate relationship with them.
Before you write me off as an expensive marker snob, please read on. I honestly believe that people need to know ALL the pros/cons about the Ciao in order to decide which Copic is best for their own needs.
Ciao have a thin round barrel which is extremely lightweight feels more like a pen or pencil than any of the other Copic styles.
Portability is a key feature of the Ciao. They excel as a travel style Copic, perfect for classes, vacation, or even just moving to the bedroom for an evening of coloring. .
Copic Sketches are dual ended and come standard with excellent coloring nibs— the Super Brush Nib (the best blending nib on the market) and a Medium Broad Nib ( great for drawing). A gray band indicates the brush nib end.
Ciao are available in a limited range of 180 colors; many bright & happy hues.
Ciao are easily collectable markers. Too offers many starter sets of two, five, or six Ciao, sometimes in combination with Multiliner pens and Spica Glitter pens.
Ciao are refillable (further details below) which is important because the Ciao has a small ink receptacle that needs frequent refreshes.
FUN FACT: Ciao caps are child-proof; they’re designed to not block the airway if someone swallows one.
Who are Ciao Markers For?
It’s interesting how many people get upset when I refer to Ciao as “kid markers”. But how else would you describe a marker that features no-choke caps, sized for small hands, features Disney characters, and can be purchased in bulk for schools?
So yes, it’s a junior marker…
But folks, it’s a pretty darned good one!
Ciao are an excellent introductory Copic for anyone new to markers. They feature excellent nibs, premium ink, and a budget friendly price.
Can’t get better than that, eh?
Copic Ciaos may be marketed to beginners but the nibs make them awesome.
Super Brush Nibs excel at flooding spaces with generous swaths of color. This is especially important for smooth blending where moisture is the key to best results.
Super Brush Nibs are also good for filling large areas. I frequently color images as large as 18x24” with Copic Sketch Markers.
Lettering artists and modern style calligraphers also tend to favor the Super Brush Nib. It’s a springy, reactive nib which gives an expressive multi-weight line depending upon the amount of pressure used.
Copic Sketch Markers are ill-suited for drawing, detail work, and small coloring projects.
Sketch are often overkill for card-makers using stamp images less than 3” in size.
WE ASKED! All Vanilla Arts students who prefer Ciao markers also own a few Sketch markers. The Ciao isn’t available in many of our frequently used colors!
Copic Ciao Caps
Ciao caps are very colorful and are a large part of the appeal of Ciao markers. They simply look fun to use!
Ciao caps display of the ink color inside the marker. A few cap colors are not an exact color match… but remember, we select markers based on numbers rather than cap colors.
Ciao caps do not indicate the marker name or number (See design flaw 1 below.)
Ciao caps are interchangeable from end to end. Caps have a click lock which serves as a hepatic indication that you’ve closed the marker securely but it should be noted that because the Ciao plastic is softer and more flexible, this cap lock feels less and less secure over time with repeated use.
The caps also feature a bump at the rim which is intended to keep this round marker from rolling off a desk or table. It does not work. These lightweight markers roll and skitter with the slightest touch.
I recommend that you twist the caps to remove rather than pull straight off (which causes splatter).
Now for the sad news:
CIAO CAP DESIGN FLAW 1: The Copic numbers are NOT printed on the caps which means you can not quickly identify Ciao markers if they’re laying in a pile or nicely stored in a beautiful display rack. The only way to correctly identify a Ciao is to read the side of the barrel which wastes time and slows you down. This is a major fault because I can’t count the number of times a Ciao student has mistakenly used the wrong marker in class!
Note: You’ll find many tutorials for labeling Ciao caps but NONE of them are permanent solutions, they all peel off or wear off. I think it’s ridiculous to pay for a Copic and not receive cap numbers!
CIAO CAP DESIGN FLAW 2: The economy design for Ciao caps (which minimizes plastic used) created a design flaw that can damage your markers.
Be very mindful when re-capping a Ciao! There is a sharp ridge inside the cap which will cut into your nib if the cap is not properly centered around the nib. I’ve damaged more than one nib by not paying attention as I capped the marker.
HORIZONTAL OR VERTICAL? What’s the best way to store your Ciao Copics? Honestly? It doesn’t matter.
Copics are not gravity-fed and the ink has no sedimentary particles. This means you can store them however you’d like.
Ciao Numbering + Identification
All Copics use the same numbering system and the same refill inks.
The Copic number and color name is printed (NOT laser etched) in dark gray on the body of a Ciao Marker along with brand details. Symbols indicate the brush and chisel ends.
The printed lettering can eventually wear off. The other Copic styles have laser etched labeling and they are much more durable than the printed Ciao.
CIAO FLAW: There are NO color numbers or name markings on Ciao caps.
See the segment above for my strong feelings about this issue.
A thin, darker gray band indicates the brush nib end. The band is on the marker body, not the cap.
Ciao Nib Options
Copic makes replacement nibs for Ciao and all of their other marker styles. Nibs wear out and can get damaged but they’re easily replaceable.
WARNING: Dried, crusted, or hardened nibs can be replaced BUT the nib is not the only part damaged when a marker runs dry. The core inside the marker is made of a similar material and often hardens along with the nib. A nib can be replaced but you can not replace a core. A damaged core requires full marker replacement.
Copic makes many alternative nib options. UNFORTUNATELY, NONE OF THEM FIT CIAO MARKERS. When you buy a Ciao, you are stuck with the Super Brush and Chisel nibs. You can replace but not upgrade or customize your Ciao nibs.
Ciao Standard Nib 1: Super Brush Nib. (Do not confuse the Super Brush with the Copic Round Brush Nib which fits Classic Markers only.)
The Super Brush Nib is an extremely juicy and springy nib which responds to changes in hand pressure. S.B. nibs excel at blending and filling larger areas because they deliver more ink to the paper than any other Copic nib.
The S.B. nib rests in the dark gray end of the marker.
WARNING: When refilling a Copic Sketch, I recommend you do not refill from the brush end (more details in the refill section below).
Ciao Standard Nib 2: Medium Broad Nib (chisel)
Copic users almost always refer to this as the “chisel nib” and many colorers ignore this nib entirely.
Chisel nibs are an old-school drawing nib capable of 3 different line weights. Chisel nibs are not generous with their ink flow and thus are not suitable for blending. Chisels are very firm and need to be broken in (softened a bit) before they give an even line with no skips or flow breaks.
The Chisel nib rests in the pale gray end of the marker.
I recommend refilling from the chisel end for ease and safety (more details in the section below).
WARNING: Copic makes more than a dozen different replacement nibs. The two listed here are the ONLY nibs which fit in Copic Ciao Markers.
BEST BUY? Consider purchasing a used Copic collection. Properly maintained Ciao Copics look and work like new! Many users upgrade from Ciao to Sketch Copics, so it’s easy to find whole Ciao sets for sale in online marker groups.
Refill a Ciao Marker
All styles of Copic use the same numbering system and the same refill inks. See the full Ciao color palette at Copic’s official website here.
A factory-weight Copic Ciao Marker should measure between 10.8 and 11 grams (with both caps on).
I do not recommend filling to factory weight as completely full markers are more prone to Copic Volcanoes (see my article at VanillaArts.com about volcanoes.)
I refill Ciaos to 10.6 grams (with both caps on). This weight is full enough for optimal blending but not so full that the markers leak.
Like all Copic markers, performance decreases and blending becomes more difficult as the marker empties. Noticeable blending changes begin at about 10.1 grams and you will encounter blending impairment at weights lower than 9.8 grams. This can be as few as 2-3 uses for your most-used colors!
It is a myth that Copics can go for years without refilling. The first thing I check when a student can’t blend well is their marker weight. I’ve seen markers as low as 11 grams! Read my article about common Copic Myths here and read details about Blending Issues at our sister site, VanillaArts.com.
Overfilling leads to marker leakage.
For accuracy, I recommend refilling by weight rather than the drip method. I find most drop recommendations to be wildly wrong. “10 to 12 drops” doesn’t tell you the size of the drop or how low the marker was to begin with. In my tests, 10 drops doesn’t come close to restoring an ideal weight.
See my refilling recommendations at VanillaArts.com which includes a link to a great weight refilling tutorial by Michelle Houghton from Copic in the Craft Room.
WARNING: To refill efficiently, you should remove one nib from your Ciao marker. I do not recommend removing the Super Brush Nib as this can easily damage the brush nib. Copic Tweezers are meant to reduce brush nib damage but it’s much safer and far easier to refill from the chisel end.
Is the look of your collection important? Be aware that most Ciao users have a mixed collection of Ciao + Sketch. The limited color range for Ciao makes a total-Ciao collection very hard for artists.
(But it’s not bad for occasional hobbyists!)
Personal Thoughts:
I use Sketch exclusively but I’ve owned a few Ciaos over the years.
I originally owned the square barreled Classic style because that was what existed at the time. I traded those in for Sketch markers later. I had most of my current collection before Ciaos were even invented.
I recommend Sketch rather than Ciao to all my artistic coloring students because I teach with many colors that are unavailable in the Ciao style. But honestly, Ciaos color just as well as Sketches.
If you’re on a budget, Ciao Markers are a very good beginner option.
I simply can’t endorse them fully because of the limited 180 color palette which is missing some of my most frequently used colors. The cap has design flaws which can damage the nibs if you’re not paying attention, will stretch over time, and the lack of cap numbers is very concerning. If you skipped around in this article, please read the cap section for further details on these issues.
Ciao have a couple of other minor drawbacks— Ciao must be refilled frequently, especially in my classes where we color larger image. And while this is anecdotal, they seem to be more prone to leakage and volcanoes.
I recommend Sketch over Ciao because of the larger Sketch color range and I really dislike the Ciao caps.
I recommend Ciao over Classics because of the Super Brush Nib.
I don’t completely dislike Ciaos and if you’re on a budget, I highly encourage you to purchase Ciaos. I simply don’t think Ciao are a lifetime marker and Sketches are a better value over the long run.
Amy Shulke is a professional technical illustrator who has used Copic Markers at school, work, and home since 1990. She teaches artistic coloring classes online at VanillaArts.com and locally in south-eastern Michigan.
Marker Novice is Amy’s completely free resource devoted to beginner marker education. For intermediate/advanced artistic coloring articles, see her Studio Journal here.
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