The Best Dark Green and Teal Fountain Pen Inks

Dark Green and Dark Teal Fountain Pen Ink Comparison

Green is a powerful, vital color that has inspired people across times and cultures. Since the earliest days of history, it has been recognized as the color of strength and vitality, growth and rebirth. Using a dark green fountain pen ink imbues your writing with these positive qualities. Dark teals also possess these characteristics and add to them the depth and sophistication of blue black inks.

Let’s take a look at some of our favorite dark green and teal inks, then delve into a comparison of all our dark green and teal inks.

Recommendations

Darkest Dark Greens: Noodler's Zhivago & Sailor Jentle Miruai

If you want the absolute darkest green ink around, we recommend Noodler's Zhivago and Sailor Jentle Miruai. Both inks can easily be mistaken for black at first glance, especially when used in wetter pens, but a closer inspection will reveal their subtle green hues. Zhivago is a neutral green with good water resistance, while Miruai is a bluish green with low water resistance.

Well-Behaved Dark Green: Pelikan 4001 Dark Green

Pelikan Dark Green is a beautiful forest green that dries quickly and performs well with a wide range of papers and in virtually any pen. This makes it a particularly good choice for students and workers who don’t always get to choose which paper they write on.

Permanent Dark Green: Noodler's El Lawrence

If you want a dark green ink that will last throughout the ages, go with Noodler's El Lawrence. Named for T. E. Lawrence (famously known as “Lawrence of Arabia”) this ink is a dark olive khaki made to withstand anything you could possibly throw at it. It is completely waterproof and resistant to a wide array of solvents like bleach and alcohol. It also resists UV radiation and all other tools known to be used by forgers. In addition to all of that, El Lawrence is archival and will not fade over time—even if left in direct sunlight for months on end!

If you want a green ink that’s less murky and faster-drying than El Lawrence, Noodler's Hunter Green is a good alternative that’s equally archival and nearly as waterproof.

Exciting Dark Green: J. Herbin 1670 Emerald of Chivor

Exciting: J. Herbin 1670 Emerald of Chivor

How do you make the most spectacular ink we’ve ever seen? Start with a beautiful blue-green hue. Make sure it shades dramatically as you write so it feels like you’re looking through the facets of a perfectly cut emerald. Next, add an infusion of sparkly gold particles to make your words shimmer and glow. Finally, give it a stunning red sheen that flares out whenever you look at the ink at an angle. With Emerald of Chivor, every stroke of your pen is like setting off a fireworks display on the page.

Color Groups

Dark green and dark teal inks can be divided up into four color groups, each with its own special feel.

Green Blacks

These very dark greens could almost be mistaken for black at first glance, giving them a special subtlety and making them easier choices for more conservative environments like work or school.

Forest Greens

Diamine 150th Anniversary Tropical Green

These greens strike a great balance between being dark enough to read comfortably for page after page yet light enough to be obviously green and exhibit some beautiful shading. This lets them show off a dazzling variety of colors that bring to mind a relaxing stroll through a shady forest on a warm summer day.

Dark Olives

These olive greens lean heavily toward the yellow and brown ends of the green spectrum. Reminiscent of exotic jungles and untamed savannas, these inks have a daring, adventurous feel.

Dark Teals

Resting between dark green and blue black, dark teals possess a complex charm and sophistication that makes them equally at home on a wedding invitation or a final exam.

Performance Comparisons

Drying Time

Fastest-Drying Dark Green and Dark Teal Inks

Fountain pen inks take longer to dry than other pens, so if you’re a lefty or take a lot of quick notes it’s especially important to choose an ink that dries quickly.

Noodler's Polar Green is by far the fastest-drying dark green ink, drying almost instantly with any pen or paper. It feathers quite badly, however, so we don’t recommend it unless you really need an ink that dries that quickly. Other, better-behaved fast-drying dark green inks include: Noodler's Bad Green Gator, Noodler's Hunter Green, and Pelikan 4001 Dark Green.

Click here to see the full results of our drying time tests, which we performed by drawing X's with a dipped fountain pen and smearing them after 3, 10, 20, 30, and 60 seconds.

Water and Highlighter Resistance

Most Water- and Highlighter-Resistant Dark Green and Dark Teal Inks

Most fountain pen inks will smear if they get wet or are highlighted. If you want to be able to highlight your notes or ensure that they can’t be eradicated by an errant spill, it’s important to choose an ink with good water resistance.

We’ve found all of the following inks to be nearly or completely waterproof:

All of these inks also stand up perfectly to highlighters

Other inks that stand up well, though not perfectly, to water and highlighting include: Noodler's Air Corp Blue Black, Noodler's Green Marine, Noodler's V-Mail Burma Road Brown, and Noodler's Zhivago.

Click here to see the full results of our water- and highlighter-resistance testing, which we performed by soaking the inks in water for 30 seconds, smearing them with a waterbrush, and highlighting them with ink and gel highlighters.

Final Thoughts

If you’d like to infuse your writing with a sense of strength and tranquility, or if you just want your words to stand confidently apart from the crowd, a dark green or dark teal ink may be the perfect choice. Do you have a favorite dark green or dark teal fountain pen ink? Let us know in the comments below!

Interested in more ink comparisons? Click here for a list of all our fountain pen ink reviews.

Color Group	Drying Time	Water Resistance	Ink Highlighters	Gel Highlighters
Dark Olive	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Olive	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Slow	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Green Black	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Dark Olive	Slow	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Dark Teal	Average	Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Teal	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Green Black	Slow	Good	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Fast	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Dark Olive	Slow	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Forest Green	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Slow	Average	Poor	Poor
Forest Green	Fast	Good	Good	Excellent
Forest Green	Very Fast	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Green Black	Slow	Very Poor	Good	Average
Dark Teal	Slow	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Teal	Slow	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Olive	Average	Poor	Good	Good
Green Black	Slow	Good	Average	Good
Forest Green	Average	Average	Poor	Average
Dark Teal	Slow	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Teal	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Green Black	Slow	Average	Poor	Poor
Dark Olive	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Average
Dark Teal	Average	Very Poor	Poor	Poor