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AMACO vs Mayco glazes: Potter's Choice, Stroke & Coat and more

Two of the biggest names in studio and classroom glazes. Which lines fire at which cone, what each maker says about food use, and where to start.

Updated November 2026 · 7 min read

Glazed cups and vases in several glaze colours on a shelf
Photo: bptakoma, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr
The short version
  • AMACO vs Mayco glazes is less about which brand is better and more about which product line suits your kiln and your pots.
  • Firing cone 5–6 and want layered, reduction-style surfaces? AMACO Potter's Choice (PC) or Mayco Stoneware (SW). Both are listed for cone 5–6, and Mayco's kit adds cone 9–10.
  • Painting designs, teaching kids or firing low? Mayco Stroke & Coat goes on wet clay, greenware or bisque and fires glossy without a clear coat. AMACO Teacher's Palette is a one-step cone 05 classroom gloss.
  • Food use: Mayco lists Stroke & Coat as food-safe and dinnerware-safe when fired as directed. AMACO's Velvet underglaze listing says not for food contact unless covered with a glaze tested for lead and cadmium release.

AMACO vs Mayco glazes comes up as soon as you start buying glaze instead of using a studio's buckets. Both American companies sell full ranges, from classroom low-fire colors to cone 6 layering glazes and underglazes, and both are stocked by almost every pottery supplier.

The useful comparison is line against line, because a cone 05 classroom glaze and a cone 6 layering glaze have nothing in common except the brand. Below we map every AMACO and Mayco item in our catalogue by firing range and use, show what each listing says about food contact, and suggest a starting set for each kind of potter. All specs are quoted as listed. Where a listing leaves out the cone, we say so.

AM

AMACO

Layerable cone 5–6 Potter's Choice, classroom Teacher's Palette, and a deep underglaze range

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vs
Ma

Mayco

Stroke & Coat sets listed as dinnerware-safe, plus Stoneware, Foundations and Fundamentals

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Picks from each side

AMACO

Mayco

AMACO vs Mayco glazes: line by line

The main product lines in our catalogue

LineBrandListed coneWhat it is for
Potter's Choice (PC)AMACOCone 5–6Layerable glazes fired in oxidation for cone 10 reduction-style effects
Celadon (C-11 Mixing Clear)AMACOCone 5–6Zinc-free clear gloss; works over most underglazes
Teacher's Palette (TP)AMACOCone 05One-step classroom gloss, same color in the jar as fired
Semi-Moist Underglaze (SMUG)AMACOCone 05–6Watercolor-style pans for fine detail
Liquid Underglaze (LUG)AMACOCone 05–10Opaque decorating color for bisque or wet clay
Velvet Underglaze (V)AMACONot listedOpaque underglaze; needs a tested glaze for food use
Stroke & Coat (SC)MaycoNot listed in these listingsGlaze for wet clay, greenware or bisque; glossy without clear
Stoneware (SW)MaycoCone 5/6–10Layerable mid- to high-fire glazes that break over texture
Foundations (FN)MaycoCone 06/05–6Opaque gloss for classroom or home studio
Fundamentals (UG)MaycoCone 06–10Mixable underglaze, sold in a 12-pint class pack
Elements / Jungle GemsMaycoCone 06/05 and 06Decorative crystal glazes; Jungle Gems not for dinnerware

Source: Manufacturer listing data, Clay at Home catalogue

Which cone do they fire to?

Your kiln and clay set the cone, and the glaze has to match it. Low fire usually means cone 06–04, which Orton puts at 1828–1945 °F at 108 °F/hr. Mid-fire means cone 5–6, 2167–2232 °F at the same rate. The cone chart has the full table.

Catalogue glazes and underglazes by listed firing range

Count of AMACO and Mayco color products in our catalogue (wax resist and gum solution excluded)

AMACO · cone 5–6 onlyAMACO · cone 5–6 only: 44AMACO · spans low to mid/highAMACO · spans low to mid/high: 22AMACO · low fire onlyAMACO · low fire only: 11AMACO · cone not listedAMACO · cone not listed: 33Mayco · cone 5–6 or higherMayco · cone 5–6 or higher: 22Mayco · spans low to mid/highMayco · spans low to mid/high: 22Mayco · low fire onlyMayco · low fire only: 22Mayco · cone not listedMayco · cone not listed: 66
Source: Clay at Home catalogue (manufacturer listings)

In our catalogue, AMACO's listings lean mid-fire: three Potter's Choice pints and the Celadon clear are all cone 5–6. Mayco's listings are spread across low fire, wide-range and mid-fire. Six Mayco listings, including both Stroke & Coat sets, do not state a cone at all. That does not mean Stroke & Coat has no range. It means you should read the jar label or Mayco's product page before firing.

Mid-fire layering: Potter's Choice vs Mayco Stoneware

If you fire cone 5–6 stoneware in an electric kiln, these are the lines to compare. AMACO says Potter's Choice is fired in oxidation and gives "the effects of cone 10 reduction" without a gas kiln. In our catalogue that means PC-23 Indigo Float, PC-55 Chun Plum (pink-red translucent, breaking light tan) and PC-30 Temmoku (dark brown-tan speckled).

Mayco's Stoneware Kit #4 gives you six pints: Rose Quartz, Amaryllis, Sand Dollar, Ivy, Nimbus and Passion Flower. Mayco says to apply them on cone 06–04 bisque and fire to cone 5–6, or high-fire to cone 9–10. Many of them break over texture, and Amaryllis and Passion Flower are crystal glazes. Mayco says they add movement but "don't run off your piece".

Layering always needs test tilesBoth lines are sold as layerable, and that is where surprises happen. Two glazes that behave on their own can run when stacked. Fire test tiles on a scrap of bisque or a kiln cookie before you glaze a full load.

Beginners and classrooms: Stroke & Coat vs Teacher's Palette

Mayco Stroke & Coat is the most forgiving glaze here. The 12 x 2 oz kit goes on wet clay, greenware, earthenware bisque or stoneware bisque and fires glossy without a clear coat. Mayco says one coat gives a translucent look and three give opaque coverage. The bottles are small enough to paint designs.

AMACO's Teacher's Palette is the classroom counterpart: a one-step low-fire gloss whose color in the jar matches the fired color, applied to cone 04 bisque and fired to cone 05. It is intermixable, so a class can blend its own shades. For bigger groups, Mayco's Fundamentals underglaze class pack (12 pints, cone 06–10) and Foundations FN-001 white (cone 06/05–6) cover a wide kiln range.

For more beginner sets from other brands, see best glaze sets for beginners and the kids and classroom hub.

Food safety: what each maker actually says

Mayco's Stroke & Coat 12-bottle kit is listed as "food-safe and dinnerware-safe when fired according to manufacturer directions". The 12-pint Set B lists dinnerware-safe, lead- and cadmium-free materials and AP certification. AMACO's Velvet underglazes say "not for food contact, unless covered with a glaze tested for lead and cadmium release in accordance with ASTM C738-94." Mayco's Jungle Gems say "do not use for dinnerware". The other listings in our catalogue make no food-contact claim either way.

"Food-safe" depends on your firingA maker's food-safe statement assumes the glaze is applied and fired exactly as directed, on a compatible clay, to the right cone. Under-fired or crazed glaze can leach. If you sell mugs or plates, consider sending samples to a lab for lead and cadmium leach testing. The FDA explains how lead in pottery glazes can leach into food.Source: FDA, Q&A on lead-glazed traditional pottery

More on this in best food-safe glazes and the food-safe ware hub.

Underglaze: AMACO's deepest range

If you decorate a lot, AMACO gives you more formats. Semi-Moist (SMUG) pans work like watercolors for fine detail at cone 05–6. LUG-1 Black stays black from cone 05 to cone 10. Velvet comes in pints of opaque color. Mayco's main underglaze here is the Fundamentals class pack, listed for cone 06–10 on wet clay or bisque. Not sure how underglaze differs from glaze? Read underglaze vs glaze.

Mistakes to avoid

  • Mixing cones. A cone 05 glaze fired to cone 6 can run off the pot and onto your shelf. A cone 6 glaze fired to cone 05 stays dry and underdeveloped.
  • Trusting the jar color. Many mid-fire glazes look nothing like their fired result. Teacher's Palette and LUG are the exceptions AMACO calls out.
  • Glazing the foot. Wipe the bottom clean or wax it. Both brands sell wax resist.
  • Assuming every jar from a brand is food-safe. Check the specific glaze's statement, and see the FDA link above.
  • Skipping the dust precautions when mixing or sanding. Dry glaze materials contain silica. Our studio safety guide covers respirators and wet cleanup.

Other options worth a look

Glazes from other brands fill specific gaps. Penguin Pottery's Specialty Series set is a cone 5–6 set of seven glazes plus wax resist, listed as suitable for food-contact surfaces when fired to cone. Sax Gloss is a six-pint low-fire set listed as dinnerware-suitable at cone 06–05. Speedball underglaze is listed as lead-free and dinnerware-safe when used and fired as directed. Pasler's PCC10 is a cone 4–7 clear.

See the full glazes and decoration category and how to glaze pottery.

How we compared

We compared manufacturer listings and the wording each maker uses about cone and food contact. We did not fire or lab-test any glaze. Cone values come from Orton's chart. Check the jar label and the maker's data sheet before firing.

VerdictChoose AMACO if you fire cone 5–6 and want layered, reduction-style surfaces from Potter's Choice, a zinc-free clear (C-11), or the widest choice of underglaze formats (SMUG pans, LUG, Velvet). Its Teacher's Palette is also an easy cone 05 classroom gloss. Choose Mayco if you want the most forgiving start: Stroke & Coat works on wet clay, greenware or bisque, fires glossy without a clear coat and is listed as dinnerware-safe when fired as directed. Its Stoneware line covers cone 5/6 to 10.
Orton cone temperature chartOrton self-supporting cone temperatures for cones 022 to 10 at slow, medium and fast heating rates, in °F…

Questions

Is AMACO or Mayco better for beginners?
In the AMACO vs Mayco glazes match-up, Mayco Stroke & Coat is usually the easier start. It works on wet clay, greenware or bisque, fires glossy without a clear and comes in small bottles. AMACO Teacher's Palette is a good low-fire alternative.
Is Mayco Stroke & Coat food safe?
Mayco lists the Stroke & Coat kit as food-safe and dinnerware-safe when fired according to its directions. Safety still depends on correct application and firing. Sellers should consider lab leach testing.
Can AMACO Velvet underglaze be used on mugs?
Only under a glaze. AMACO's listing says Velvet is not for food contact unless covered with a glaze tested for lead and cadmium release under ASTM C738-94.
What cone are AMACO Potter's Choice glazes?
Cone 5–6, fired in oxidation. AMACO says they give cone 10 reduction-style effects without a gas kiln.
Can I mix AMACO and Mayco glazes on one pot?
Many potters do, but only if both are rated for the same cone. Layered glazes can run or change color, so fire test tiles first.
Do I need a clear glaze over Stroke & Coat?
Mayco says Stroke & Coat fires to a gloss without a clear glaze. Some potters still add a clear for depth, but the maker does not require it.

Sources

  1. FDA: Questions and answers on lead-glazed traditional pottery
  2. Orton: Pyrometric cones
  3. Digitalfire: Leaching tests