Waterborne coatings do not have a priori, the same advantageous rheological properties as solvent-based coatings. If not formulated correctly, they are much inferior with regard to flow properties, leveling, application properties, film build, etc.. In order to obtain the desired performance, thickeners and rheological modifiers are added to improve waterborne paints. Conventional thickeners like cellulosics, high molecular weight polymers or inorganic clays increase the viscosity during application, but they provide poor spatter resistance and leveling to the paint. Associative thickeners are low molecular weight, water soluble polymers like modified alkali swellable emulsions, and provide overall good performance to a waterborne coating.