The best replacement for polycrylic is polyurethane.

The best alternatives to polycrylic are rated as following:
★★★★★  polyurethane
★★★  varathane
★★  spar urethane
★★  polyurethane minwax
  polyacrylic

Your alternative for polycrylic is not listed? Suggest!
Speaking about polycrylic, one probably shouldn't forget about foam brush.

Other search terms related to polycrylic and their ratings are:
★★★★★ foam brush
You have in mind a companion for polycrylic and it is not yet here? Propose!



Google Trends

Scale is based on the average worldwide traffic of polycrylic in all years. Click on graph for more.
polycrylic
polyurethane
varathane