An Affordable Munsell Book

(last updated July 28, 2026)

Munsell books provide physical exemplifications of the Munsell colour system, and help artists and designers visualize and match colours. The selection of Munsell books to date has been limited, and books that were available could be prohibitively expensive. To provide a resource that is within the price range of most artists, Paul Centore has written Controlling Colour with the Munsell System. For artists, designers, and painters who want a practical, hands-on, understanding of colour, Controlling Colour with the Munsell System is a unique working tool that would be an asset in any studio. Click here to purchase this affordable, colour-accurate Munsell book for $100 on Amazon.com, or here to buy it on Ebay. (Canadian users can purchase through the Canadian Amazon, which will save Ebay shipping charges. Non-US purchasers can buy through Ebay or directly from Paul Centore; there is usually an additional $45 shipping charge.)

Comparison with Other Munsell Books

Controlling Colour with the Munsell System fills a niche by offering an extensive set of Munsell colours at an affordable price. The standard Munsell reference, X-Rite's "Big Book of Color," is extensive, but its price of nearly $1000 is beyond the means of many artists. The New Munsell Student Color Set (7th ed.) is another excellent reference; though affordable, it only presents about 250 Munsell colours. Controlling Colour with the Munsell System is in the form of a binder, from which individual hue leaves can be removed. The individual colours are printed patches rather than swatches. The patches have been spectrophotometrically measured, insuring that their accuracy is at least on par with the other books. For comparison, here is a summary description of available Munsell books:

1. X-Rite's Munsell Book of Color, popularly known as the "Big Book of Color," is available in both matte and glossy editions, and has long been an industry standard (new versions have appeared periodically for decades). It features about 1300 standard Munsell colours as removable swatches. Its main drawback is its price, which is about $900 US. Another weakness is its limited documentation: a book for laboratory and production settings should provide some assessment of the DEs it achieves, as well as some assessment of permanence.

2. Ronald Reed's New Munsell Student Color Set (7th ed). contains about 250 Munsell swatches, which a reader places in the book himself; the swatches can be attached with poster putty for easy removal and reattachment. The swatches are limited to neutral greys, and Munsell hues that are prefixed with 5. This book is a complete textbook, with sufficient discussion of colour for a university course. It sells for about $80 US, but secondhand copies and earlier editions are available for nearer $40.

3. Controlling Colour with the Munsell System, revised in 2025, features just over 1650 standard Munsell colours, in 41 hue leaves. Each hue leaf itself can be removed from the ring binding, but the individual colours are printed patches rather than removable swatches. The book's text is available here (the text for the previous version is here). It contains some guidance for artists and designers for using the Munsell system, as well as a brief technical discussion. In addition, a clear acetate sheet is included; one can lay this sheet over a hue leaf, and paint on it directly, for easy colour comparisons. Controlling Colour with the Munsell System retails for $100 US.