As mentioned before, red and green and red and blue were respectively popular at different times during the Middle Ages depending on availability and price. Therefore, manuscripts of higher-quality often included more coloring than the common cheap pigments.

Some more expensive pigments include: ultramarine, which came from a single mine in the Middle East and required several coats of paint; azurite, a cheaper but still expensive substitute for ultramarine; and kermes, a red pigment made from the ground up remains of larvae harvested from kermes roots exclusively on St. John's Day.

Some popular cheaper pigments: yellow, which was later replaced by gold leaf; purple, which was not used in higher-quality productions because it was inexpensive; lead white; indigo, and woad.