Citadel to Vallejo conversion guide

This Citadel to Vallejo conversion guide explains how cross-brand paint matching actually works, how to read a match-quality rating, and where conversions fall short — so you can swap brands with confidence instead of guesswork.

Why convert Citadel paints to Vallejo?

Most painting tutorials are written in Citadel colours, but Citadel is one of the most expensive ranges and isn't stocked everywhere. Vallejo is cheaper, comes in dropper bottles many painters prefer, and is widely available. Converting lets you follow any tutorial with the paints you actually own or can afford.

How cross-brand matching works

A colour can be described as a point in the CIE-Lab colour space. To compare two paints, we convert each one's swatch colour to Lab and measure the distance between them using the CIEDE2000 formula — the perceptual colour-difference standard. The smaller that distance (ΔE), the closer the match. Our paint converter does this for every colour instantly.

How to read match quality

• Excellent match (ΔE < 2): visually indistinguishable to most people — swap freely.
• Very close (ΔE < 5): a great substitute for almost any project.
• Close (ΔE < 10): usable, but you may notice a slight shift side by side.
• Approximate (ΔE ≥ 10): the nearest available colour — treat it as a starting point and adjust.

Where conversions break down

Colour distance doesn't capture everything. Metallics, washes and contrast-style paints behave differently from flat base colours, and two paints with the same hue can differ in opacity, finish and how they dry. For those, use the match as a shortlist and confirm with a physical swatch.

Related

• Best Vallejo equivalents for Citadel paints — a quick-reference conversion list.
• Paint Converter — convert any colour across brands.
• Paint Stash Tracker — log what you own so you stop buying duplicates.