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The 10 Best Stylus Apps for Android Phones

Use a stylus to draw, take notes, and play games on your phone or tablet

By Molly McLaughlin Molly McLaughlin Senior Editor & Content Strategist Molly K. McLaughlin has been a technology editor and writer for over a dozen years. She runs product reviews for Lifewire, overseeing the process from hands-on testing to publishing. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on August 25, 2021 Reviewed by Jessica Kormos Reviewed by Jessica Kormos Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College Jessica Kormos is a writer and editor with 15 years' experience writing articles, copy, and UX content for Tecca.com, Rosenfeld Media, and many others. lifewire's editorial guidelines Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Apps Best Apps Payment Services While some apps are optimized for the Samsung S Pen, most work with other types of styluses. Here are our ten favorite stylus apps for Android, including games, drawing apps, and coloring apps, as well as apps for note-taking and e-signatures. 01 of 10

Best Coloring Book App Coloring

What We Like Images sorted by type, including free and animals. In-app purchases aren't prohibitively expensive. What We Don't Like Limited images. Pens can be glitchy. Adult coloring books are a popular way to relax and briefly escape the world. Coloring is an app that includes a bunch of free images you can color on the go. It conveniently has a left-handed mode and a huge palette of colors. You can use the bucket tool to color the image section by section, or color with a crayon using the pencil. The app has a library of premium images you can unlock with coins, or access everything by subscribing at $2.99 for one month or $4.99 for three months. Both subscription options have a three-day trial. Coloring gives you 50 coins to start, and you can buy more in blocks of 100 ($0.99), 250 ($1.99), and 600 ($3.99). You can also watch ads to earn coins. Download Coloring 02 of 10

Best Input App for Styluses Google Handwriting Input

What We Like Consistent handwriting recognition. Supports numerous languages. What We Don't Like Can be difficult to use on tablets. Can't switch between languages while in use. Google Handwriting Input is a keyboard option that transforms your handwriting into text in almost any Android app that supports typing. You can test the functionality in the app, but you'll get a better idea of what it can do when texting, emailing, taking notes, or posting to social media. It supports emojis in addition to printed and cursive writing using a stylus or your finger. Download Google Handwriting Input 03 of 10

Best Advanced Drawing App Adobe Photoshop Sketch

What We Like Lots of drawing tools. Easy export to desktop. What We Don't Like Steep learning curve. Only has brushes. The Adobe Photoshop Sketch app can be used on its own, with Adobe Photoshop CC, or with Illustrator CC. The Sketch app works in layers, and you can incorporate anything you create in the app into a project on either of the desktop tools. The Android app has five pen and brush options, and each has a color picker tool and size options. You can also add an array of lines and shapes, as well as images from other apps. You'll need an Adobe account to access the app, but a free version is available, which includes access to Adobe's collection of stock photos, cloud storage, and the ability to send a file to Photoshop CC and Illustrator CC with the layers intact. Download Adobe Photoshop Sketch 04 of 10

Best Multi-Platform Note-Taking App Evernote

What We Like Convenient home screen shortcut. Automatically syncs between devices that have the app. What We Don't Like Frequent upgrade prompts. Search feature is glitchy. Evernote is a stylus-compatible note-taking app. It syncs across all your devices, and in addition to text and handwriting notes, it captures audio and images from your device's camera. You can create handwritten notes from scratch using a stylus or your finger, or add images and handwriting to existing text notes. The app also has a few Android widgets, including a pen input shortcut to capture your thoughts immediately. Download Evernote 05 of 10

Best Sketching App Autodesk Sketchbook

What We Like Generous pen, painting, and texture options. Can draw from a blank canvas or import a photo. What We Don't Like Layers sometimes disappear. Not very intuitive. Autodesk Sketchbook is a free drawing tool with a large library of pens and paintbrushes, as well as splatter, smudge, and other effects. You can also create multiple layers, just as you would in Photoshop. The app requires an account for long-term use, but you can try it out for seven days without one. Download Autodesk Sketchbook 06 of 10

Best Handwriting App Write by Stylus Labs

What We Like Edit handwriting like written text. Helpful undo and redo tools. What We Don't Like No cloud backup. Can't add typed text. The Write app by Stylus Labs is a handwriting app. It doesn’t turn your scrawls into typed text; words appear exactly how you write them. The app includes a handful of pen options, and you can create a custom one, choosing the color, stroke width, and pressure sensitivity. Write includes some tools found in word processors, so you can create folders and insert, delete, and move text blocks. If you make a mistake, Write has an undo/redo dial that you can slide back and forth to make adjustments. Finally, you can add bookmarks to your text so that you can easily find important passages and add handwritten links for navigation. Download Write 07 of 10

Best App for Notes and Reminders Google Keep

What We Like Store notes and reminders. Accurate handwriting to text translation. What We Don't Like No text formatting. No lock option. Google Keep, Google's notetaking and task management app, is perfect for stylus users. Use it to jot down notes or set up a reminder with a few taps, and the app quickly and accurately translates your handwriting to text. You can also set default times for morning, afternoon, and evening for faster scheduling. Google Keep can also transcribe your oral notes, and you can add images and drawings. It also responds to Google Assistant voice commands. Notes sync across all your devices, including smartwatches. Download Google Keep 08 of 10

Best ' Paper' Notebook App Bamboo Paper

What We Like Multiple notebook customization options. User-friendly. What We Don't Like Limited pen colors. Importing is iffy. The Bamboo Paper app mimics a paper notebook that you can customize by changing the cover color and the paper (blank, lined, dotted, and more). It comes with two pen options, a ball pen and felt pen, and one notebook, the Thinker. You can purchase additional pens for $0.99 or get the Pro Pack for $5.65, which includes the crayon, watercolor brush, brush pen, pencil, and three additional notebooks (sold separately, they're $0.99 each). You can also insert photos from your camera or other apps and share your sketches and notes to cloud storage services, other drawing apps, and via email. Download Bamboo Paper 09 of 10

Best E-Signature App DocuSign

What We Like Simplifies paperwork. Customize documents as needed. What We Don't Like Can only save or change signature using the desktop app. Limited support. DocuSign is one of a slew of apps that lets you e-sign documents on the go. It's always free to sign documents through the app, but you'll pay $10 per month to send documents to others. You can add fields to documents you upload, including signature, initial, date, check box, and text. If those fields exist, DocuSign detects them so that you can easily see what needs filling out. DocuSign accepts documents from a range of cloud storage services, as well as those scanned with your phone's camera. Download DocuSign 10 of 10

Best Stylus-Friendly Game Fruit Ninja

What We Like Fast, entertaining gameplay. Appropriate for all ages. What We Don't Like Ad-heavy. Can be choppy. Fruit Ninja is a fun game with the objective of slicing through fruit, making it perfect for a stylus. As the game progresses, more watermelons, bananas, apples, and other sliceable targets are tossed before you at a faster pace, and you get extra points by slicing through multiple pieces at once. The game also tosses in bombs that you must avoid. The game has a few modes: You can play against the clock, against other players, or in endless classic mode. Slicing through fruit is very satisfying, as it turns out. Download Fruit Ninja Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire The 10 Best S Pen Apps For Galaxy Note The 10 Best Note Taking Apps of 2021 The 9 Best Drawing Apps for the Surface Pro Best Note-Taking Apps for iPad and iPad Pro in 2022 The 10 Best To-Do List Apps of 2022 The 5 Best Alternatives to Photoshop for Android The 13 Best iPad Drawing Apps of 2022 The 10 Best Drawing Tablets for Artists and Designers in 2022 10 Best Free Photo Editing Programs The 8 Best Android Apps for Chromebook of 2022 The 10 Best Apps for Note-Taking in 2022 The 11 Best iPad Games to Keep Kids of All Ages Happy The 10 Best Reddit Apps for Android in 2022 The 5 Best Styluses of 2022 The 8 Best iPad Pro Apps of 2022 The 7 Best Apps for Surface Pro 7 Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies