The best Apple Pencil alternatives in 2024

Best Apple Pencil alternatives
(Image credit: Logitech)

If you're looking for the best Apple Pencil alternatives, you're in luck as many choices are just as great and reliable as the genuine article. Apple's Pencils are fantastic accessories but tend to be pricey, which is why we've handpicked the best alternatives to give you more selections when picking a stylus.

When selecting these devices, we look for comfortability and responsiveness. We also look for peripherals that offer a range of uses. Our selections work great on tablets but are also useful for iPhones. These products deliver a comfortable drawing experience, organic pressure sensitivity (when applicable), and a tip that won’t scratch your tablet screen.

Check out our list of the most stylish styli you can buy, which have useful features as tilt recognition, dual tips, dynamic line weight and more.

Disclaimer

Editor's note: We're in the process of reviewing new Apple pencil alternatives for this guide so be sure to come back soon for more!

The quick list

The best Apple Pencil alternatives you can buy today

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The best Apple Pencil alternative

Best Apple Pencil alternatives: Logitech

(Image credit: Logitech)

1. Logitech Crayon Digital Pen

The best Apple Pencil alternative around, hands-down

Specifications

Compatibility: iPad Pro 11-inch (1st - 3rd gen), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd gen - 5th gen), iPad (8th - 6th gen), iPad Air (4th, 3rd gen), iPad mini (5th gen)
Battery Life (active writing time): 7.5 hours
Length: 6.4 inches
Weight: 0.7 ounces

Reasons to buy

+
Substantially cheaper than iPad Pencil
+
Easy and comfortable to use
+
No pairing required
+
Accurate pen tip

Reasons to avoid

-
Lacks pressure sensitivity

Originally aimed at the education sector, the Logitech Crayon is the best Apple Pencil alternative we’ve found to date, and it’s a great tool for iPad users across the board...err, tablet screen. In fact, some reviewers prefer the Logitech Crayon to the Apple Pencil, period. The former is just as functional as the latter, and that functionality isn’t limited to students. The sleek 6.4-inch, 0.7-ounce aluminum body is reminiscent of a carpenter’s pencil, and it’s pleasantly cool to the touch.

The Logitech Crayon is also more kid-friendly than the easy-to-roll-off-the-table Apple Pencil, and the 2-millimeter tip has proven to be extremely accurate for both professional techies and casual consumers alike. (As of this writing, there were more than 3,000 reviews on Amazon, averaging a 4.5-star rating overall. Not too shabby.) This stylus supports dynamic line weight, which means line thickness varies based on the angle at which the Logitech Crayon is held, emulating that real-deal pencil feel.

Running out of juice shouldn’t be an issue, either; according to Logitech, the lithium battery lasts 7.5 hours on a charge, and the quick-charge feature gives dead batteries a 30-minute boost after just 2 minutes of charging. You can never have enough juice, especially when you’re on the move, and your hands will start cramping long before this Crayon cries “uncle.”

Add it all up, and this is the best Apple Pencil alternative you can buy. When it comes to premium styli, the Logitech Crayon is the coolest one in the whole school.

The best cheap Apple Pencil alternative

Best Apple Pencil alternatives: Adonit

(Image credit: Adonit)

2. Adonit Mark

The best Apple Pencil alternative for those on a tight budget

Specifications

Compatibility: iPad (8th - 6th gen), iPad Pro (3rd, 4th gen), iPad Air (3rd, 4th gen), iPad mini (5th gen)
Battery Life (active writing time): 7.5 hours
Length: 5.5 inches
Weight: 0.8 ounces

Reasons to buy

+
Extremely inexpensive
+
Available in black, silver, or teal
+
Supports many iPads

Reasons to avoid

-
Cheaper build materials than competition

The Adonit Mark is a dirt-cheap Apple Pencil alternative for sure, but anyone with a tablet, smartphone, or touchscreen device can enjoy this super-simple stylus. In fact, you might even want several of these low-stakes styli laying around your house for the whole family.

Compatible with a variety of Apple products — from the 3rd-Gen iPad Air to the 4th-Gen iPad Pro to the 8th-Gen iPad — the Adonit Mark is an affordable all-purpose stylus whose handsome anodized aluminum body feels good in the hand; the triangular shape is comfortable to hold, and it resists rolling, not unlike the Logitech Crayon.

Since the Adonit Mark is less precise than other premium pen competitors, this stylus is best for casual note-taking, as opposed to more detailed sketching. One thing’s for certain: at this price, you’ll be sure to get your money’s worth in no time, and your home office chores might even be more fun.

The best premium Apple Pencil alternative

Best Apple Pencil alternatives: Zagg Pro Stylus

(Image credit: Zagg)

3. Zagg Pro Stylus

A super-sleek dual-tip stylus with tilt recognition to boot

Specifications

Compatibility: iPad (8th - 6th gen), iPad Pro (3rd, 4th gen), iPad Air (4th gen), iPad mini (5th gen)
Battery Life (active writing time): 8 hours
Length: 9.1 inches
Weight: 0.6 ounces

Reasons to buy

+
Premium build and feel
+
Tilt sensitivity and palm rejection
+
Uber-precise capacitive tip

Reasons to avoid

-
Lacks pressure sensitivity
-
Requires USB-C connection to charge

If you’re looking for a premium-feeling Apple Pencil alternative, the Zagg Pro Stylus is a close second behind the Logitech Crayon.

This dual-tip stylus (which includes tilt recognition) has a universal capacitive touch backend tip, while the active tip on the other side allows for smooth, precise lines for notes, drawings, and sketches.

The Zagg Pro stylus essentially pairs with any iPad 2017 or newer, and it attaches magnetically to any iPad Pro 11 or Pro 12.9. The Type-C fast-charging connection is made for newer tech, and you can fully charge the pen in less than 1.5 hours. There’s plenty to like about the Zagg Pro stylus, but if the absence of pressure sensitivity is a deal-breaker for you, we’re not done yet.

TJ Fink
Contributing Editor

As a freelance journalist, TJ has over a decade of multi-medium storytelling under his belt. Leveraging a quarter century of collective coddiwompling amid the ever-evolving landscape of wireless gadgetry, his unique editorial background allows him to explore a variety of tech-centric subsectors on this fascinating planet. When he's not field testing new gear in the Catskills, Adirondacks, or an actual field, he can be found sipping Negronis in his living room and crafting Dr. Seussian poetry inside a tattered moleskin.