What’s the Best Drawing App for iPad? We Found 15 You’ll Love

With the iPad and Apple Pencil forming one of the most intuitive creative setups available today, the challenge isn’t about the hardware; it’s about finding the right software that fits your flow. From artists and illustrators to designers, planners, and casual sketchers, choosing the right drawing app for iPad can dramatically shape your experience.

While apps like Procreate, Notability, and Sketchbook dominate the conversation, they’re only part of the picture. This guide goes beyond the usual picks to highlight a curated list of iPad drawing apps that excel in different creative scenarios, whether you’re building storyboards, crafting digital journals, or experimenting with layered artwork.

Each app here is fully compatible with Apple Pencil, leveraging features like pressure sensitivity, tilt shading, and low-latency response to ensure every stroke feels deliberate. Whether you’re searching for apps for sketching on iPad, the best apps for Apple Pencil, or simply exploring what’s the best drawing app for iPad, we’ve done the research to help you decide.

15 Best iPad Drawing Apps That Work Seamlessly with Apple Pencil

App	Download Link
Procreate	Download Now
Concepts	Download Now
Adobe Fresco	Download Now
Sketchbook	Download Now
Linea Sketch	Download Now
Tayasui Sketches	Download Now
Affinity Designer	Download Now
Paper by WeTransfer	Download Now
MediBang Paint	Download Now
Inspire Pro	Download Now
Clip Studio Paint	Download Now
Adobe Illustrator	Download Now
Noteshelf	Download Now
ArtRage Vitae	Download Now
GoodNotes 6	Download Now

1. Procreate

If there’s one app that consistently tops every list of drawing apps for iPad, it’s Procreate, and for good reason. It’s not just popular because of the name; it’s popular because it delivers a professional-grade experience without overwhelming you. Artists love its balance between creative depth and smooth performance, especially when used with the Apple Pencil.

The interface is clean and distraction-free, but under the hood, it offers a serious toolkit: customizable brushes, layer support, blending modes, time-lapse recording, and powerful masking tools. Whether you’re painting portraits, designing logos, or storyboarding your next graphic novel, Procreate adapts to your workflow. You also get a brush studio to build your own brushes, and with recent updates, even 3D painting and animation support are now part of the mix.

More importantly, Procreate is built to take full advantage of the Apple Pencil’s precision. Pressure, tilt, and even stroke speed affect how your lines look, making it feel as close to real-world tools as a screen can get. It’s a favorite not just among digital artists, but also among illustrators, tattoo designers, and visual thinkers who sketch ideas before they shape them.

Whether you’re just starting out or already deep into your creative career, Procreate offers a stable, responsive, and endlessly creative space to work in.

Also Read: The Best Note Taking Apps for iPhone and iPad

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2. Concepts

Concepts is where flexibility meets precision. Unlike traditional canvas-based apps, Concepts offers an infinite canvas that scrolls in any direction, perfect for architects, product designers, visual thinkers, and anyone who needs room to explore ideas freely. It’s one of the most innovative apps for sketching on iPad, blending the freedom of paper with the power of vector-based drawing.

What sets Concepts apart is its precision. Everything you draw is vector-based, so you can scale, reposition, and adjust every stroke without losing quality. Paired with the Apple Pencil, it feels incredibly responsive, pressure and tilt sensitivity adjust dynamically, and you can switch between tools, colors, and pens using simple gestures or the radial menu.

Concepts is especially strong when it comes to note-based sketching, wireframing, or planning layouts. You can organize your work in different layers, export files in multiple formats (PDF, PNG, SVG, and more), and even share live presentation-ready boards. For users who want the best of both worlds, creativity and technical control, Concepts delivers without cluttering the experience.

While the core version is free and surprisingly capable, unlocking the full library of brushes and features requires a subscription. Still, for professionals or serious creatives, the investment pays off quickly.

Also Read: The Best Journal Apps for iPhone and iPad

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3. Adobe Fresco

If you’re looking for an app that blends the feeling of real paint with the flexibility of digital tools, Adobe Fresco is an outstanding pick. Designed specifically for iPad and Apple Pencil, it combines raster, vector, and live brushes in one intuitive workspace, making it one of the most versatile drawing apps for iPad.

What makes Fresco stand out is its Live Brushes, real-time watercolor and oil brushes that react on the canvas like real paint. Watercolors bleed naturally, oils smudge and blend, and it all feels fluid under the Apple Pencil. Whether you’re illustrating children’s books, practicing digital oil painting, or creating expressive sketches, Fresco is engineered to handle it.

Fresco also offers cloud syncing through Adobe Creative Cloud, so your work stays accessible across devices. And if you already use tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, or Lightroom, Fresco fits seamlessly into that workflow. You can even export layered PSD files and continue refining your artwork in Photoshop on your desktop.

The interface is sleek and beginner-friendly, but also powerful enough for professionals. While there’s a free version, unlocking advanced brushes and export options requires a Creative Cloud subscription. For those already in the Adobe ecosystem, it’s a natural extension, and for new users, it offers a polished and professional starting point.

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4. Sketchbook by Autodesk

Sketchbook has long been a favorite among digital artists and designers for its clean interface, high responsiveness, and professional-grade tools, and the iPad version delivers just as well. If you’re searching for apps for sketching on iPad that are fast, reliable, and intuitive, this is a go-to option that doesn’t disappoint.

The first thing you’ll notice is how smooth and natural drawing feels, especially with the Apple Pencil. The app supports pressure sensitivity and tilt, allowing for expressive line work and dynamic shading. With features like predictive stroke, customizable brushes, and unlimited layers with advanced blending modes, Sketchbook offers both creative freedom and technical control.

Unlike many apps that hide features behind paywalls, Sketchbook is fully free to use. You get professional features: rulers, symmetry tools, guides, time-lapse export, and even flipbook animation without needing a subscription. The interface fades into the background as you draw, keeping your focus where it belongs: on the canvas.

Whether you’re creating concept art, designing characters, or jotting down rough ideas, Sketchbook keeps things lightweight but powerful. It’s especially great for illustrators who want a no-fuss environment that feels fast and ready the moment inspiration strikes.

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5. Linea Sketch

Linea Sketch sits comfortably between simplicity and sophistication. It’s ideal for users who want more than basic doodling, but don’t need the intense feature set of professional suites like Procreate. If you’re looking for a clean and focused drawing app for iPad that feels made for everyday sketching, journaling, or wireframing, Linea Sketch is it.

The interface is one of the cleanest you’ll find. It’s designed to feel intuitive from the start, without cluttering your workspace. Tools are easy to access and master, yet powerful enough to support creative workflows. You get layering support, auto-rulers for straight lines and shapes, color palettes, grids for layout work, and an automatic timeline that helps you revisit older versions of your work.

What makes Linea stand out is how it handles Apple Pencil input. It responds smoothly to pressure and tilt, and the line smoothing feature helps even the messiest sketches look polished. You also get handy tools like zip-shape (for perfect shapes), and a built-in presentation mode, which is great for educators, designers, or anyone who likes to show their work on the fly.

Linea is especially popular among visual note-takers, UI designers, and casual artists. It’s not as deep as Procreate or as technical as Concepts, but it’s perfect for fast, clear, and beautiful drawing with no learning curve.

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6. Tayasui Sketches

Tayasui Sketches is one of the most beautifully designed iPad apps for artists who prefer a realistic and tactile drawing experience. From the moment you open it, the app feels like an elegant sketchbook, offering natural tools, a distraction-free interface, and brushes that mimic real-world textures with surprising accuracy.

What makes this app shine is its simplicity. The UI is clean and gesture-based, letting your canvas take center stage. Tools like pencils, pens, markers, watercolor brushes, and even smudge tools behave exactly how you’d expect, especially when paired with the Apple Pencil. Shading, pressure sensitivity, and fluid strokes all come together in a way that makes digital drawing feel deeply personal.

Tayasui Sketches supports layers, gradients, and color mixing, which is great for more involved work. And while the free version offers a decent starting point, unlocking the Pro features gives you access to more advanced tools, unlimited layers, and export options, still keeping the experience lightweight and elegant.

It’s not built for heavy-duty digital painting or vector work, but for artists who enjoy sketching, watercolor effects, or just want a beautifully responsive app that captures the feeling of pen on paper, Tayasui Sketches is a standout.

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7. Affinity Designer

For artists and designers who want desktop-level control on the go, Affinity Designer is a powerhouse. It’s easily one of the best apps for Apple Pencil users who work with both vector and raster graphics, giving you the freedom to create everything from crisp UI mockups to textured illustrations, all on your iPad.

What sets Affinity Designer apart is its dual environment: you can switch between vector and pixel drawing modes with a single tap. This means you can sketch out a wireframe with precise lines and then add painterly texture in the same app, without toggling between programs. It’s incredibly fluid when used with the Apple Pencil, offering pressure sensitivity, curve smoothing, and advanced pen tools that respond exactly how you’d expect from professional software.

The interface might feel dense at first, especially if you’re new to design software, but everything is thoughtfully organized. You get access to grids, guides, snapping tools, and unlimited layers with blend modes. Export options are also robust, covering everything from web formats to print-ready files.

If you’re a graphic designer, branding specialist, or Illustrator who wants the freedom to work professionally on your iPad, Affinity Designer delivers a complete solution, without a subscription.

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8. Paper by WeTransfer

Paper by WeTransfer is one of the most beloved drawing apps for iPad, especially among casual artists, students, and creative thinkers who like to brainstorm visually. It’s not built for hyper-detailed illustrations or pro-level editing, but for fast sketches, idea boards, diagrams, and visual notes, it’s easily one of the most intuitive apps you’ll find.

What makes Paper shine is its simplicity. The UI is warm, minimal, and inviting, almost like flipping open a physical notebook. Tools like pens, highlighters, watercolor brushes, and cut-paste scissors are just a tap away, and they work seamlessly with the Apple Pencil, offering natural-feeling pressure and tilt control. It’s the kind of app where there’s no friction between the idea in your head and what you put down on screen.

One of the app’s standout features is its notebook-style layout. You can organize your sketches and ideas into swipeable journals, which is great for creative sessions, mood boards, or class notes. There’s also support for templates like grids, storyboards, and calendars, making it a favorite among educators and planners as well.

While the base version is free, advanced features like custom templates, multiple export options, and cloud backup come with a subscription. Still, for quick sketching and visual thinking, Paper is refreshingly joyful to use.

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9. MediBang Paint

If you’re looking for a free, feature-packed app for digital comics, manga, and illustrations, MediBang Paint is a hidden gem. It’s often overlooked in favor of flashier apps, but for anyone working on line art, character design, or comic panels, MediBang offers an incredible toolset without the price tag.

What makes MediBang stand out is how much it gives you right out of the gate: over 100 free brushes, a wide selection of comic panel tools, cloud syncing, layer support, and access to tones, textures, and fonts tailored for comic creators. And yes, it’s fully optimized for Apple Pencil, so you’ll get that responsive, pressure-sensitive experience that makes inking and detailing feel natural.

The interface feels like a compact desktop app, which might take a moment to get used to, but once you’re in, it offers surprisingly deep control. You can work across multiple pages, use custom brushes, and even collaborate with other artists through their cloud-based tools.

For beginners, MediBang is approachable and lightweight. For more seasoned illustrators and comic artists, it’s a reliable, no-cost solution with enough power to produce full-fledged content.

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10. Inspire Pro

Inspire Pro is a lesser-known but incredibly powerful drawing app for iPad that focuses on speed, realism, and offline performance. If you’re someone who values a responsive, brush-focused experience, especially when working without Wi-Fi, Inspire Pro deserves your attention.

At its core, this app is all about realism. The brush engine is fast and buttery smooth, and it uses a proprietary rendering system that makes every stroke feel instant, even with large canvases and high-resolution files. There are over 150 brushes included (with more in sets), ranging from oil paints and pastels to airbrushes and markers. You can also create your own custom brushes and tweak their dynamics with fine control.

Inspire Pro doesn’t rely on the cloud. Everything happens directly on your iPad, making it incredibly fast and stable. It’s also fully optimized for Apple Pencil, with pressure, tilt, and even rotation support, allowing you to achieve textures and strokes that look and feel very close to traditional mediums.

While it’s not the best fit for vector design or text-heavy projects, Inspire Pro shines when you want to sit down and paint, no subscriptions, no internet, no clutter. Just you, your iPad, and a wide-open canvas.

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11. Clip Studio Paint

Clip Studio Paint is a favorite among illustrators, comic artists, and animators who want a full-featured, desktop-class drawing app on their iPad. It’s particularly strong for anyone creating manga, webtoons, or detailed character art, offering more tools than many apps in its category.

What makes Clip Studio Paint shine is its sheer depth. You get access to vector tools, perspective rulers, 3D pose models, speech bubbles, and hundreds of customizable brushes. It supports unlimited layers, masks, and even animation timelines. For artists who work across mediums, digital painting, inking, or frame-by-frame animation, this is one of the most powerful drawing apps for iPad available.

The Apple Pencil support is top-tier. The app responds beautifully to pressure and tilt, offering natural-feeling strokes whether you’re laying down pencil sketches or brushing in shadows. There’s also a thriving community where you can download user-created brushes, materials, and assets to expand your toolkit even further.

While Clip Studio Paint offers a robust free trial, its pricing model can be a bit confusing; monthly and annual plans are available depending on whether you use one or multiple devices. Still, for those committed to comic art or pro illustration, the investment is easy to justify.

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12. Adobe Illustrator for iPad

Adobe Illustrator for iPad brings the power of vector design to your fingertips, literally. Built specifically with the Apple Pencil in mind, this version of Illustrator lets you create logos, icons, typography, and scalable illustrations with the same control you’d expect from the desktop version, but in a more touch-friendly package.

This is not just a slimmed-down port; Adobe has reimagined Illustrator’s tools for iPad. The interface is streamlined, intuitive, and gesture-driven. You can sketch shapes, draw paths, edit anchor points, and apply gradients with ease. Features like radial repeat, grid snapping, and typography tools are optimized for stylus input, making it a strong choice for professional designers and illustrators alike.

Apple Pencil support here is excellent, especially when it comes to path refinement and detailed strokes. You can outline sketches, trace over them, and tweak bezier curves with pixel-level accuracy. Plus, because it’s part of Adobe’s ecosystem, your files sync automatically through Creative Cloud, and you can move between Illustrator and other Adobe apps without breaking your workflow.

While it’s a subscription-based app, it’s ideal for those already using Adobe Creative Cloud or professionals looking for a portable design suite. For vector lovers, this is easily one of the best apps for Apple Pencil when precision matters.

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13. Noteshelf

While not a traditional art app, Noteshelf deserves a spot on this list for how beautifully it blends handwriting, sketching, and note-taking. If you’re someone who enjoys visual thinking, handwritten planning, or doodling as you organize ideas, Noteshelf is one of the most versatile apps for sketching on iPad with Apple Pencil.

At its core, Noteshelf is built for people who prefer to write and draw by hand. The writing experience feels natural and fluid, thanks to low-latency Apple Pencil support, and the brush tools are responsive, smooth, and deeply customizable. You can switch between pens, highlighters, and pencils, all of which react to pressure and tilt. It’s as close to writing in a real notebook as it gets.

But Noteshelf also brings creative flair. You can insert images, annotate PDFs, and use different paper templates like dotted, graph, or planner sheets. There’s even audio recording support, making it perfect for students and professionals alike. For creatives, it works well as a sketch-noting app, letting you combine diagrams, mind maps, and drawings in a single notebook.

It may not compete with Procreate or Illustrator when it comes to art features, but for those who blend writing and sketching, Noteshelf is a clean, flexible option.

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14. ArtRage Vitae

ArtRage Vitae is the closest you’ll get to painting on a real canvas, without the mess. Designed for artists who love traditional media, this app brings oils, watercolors, pencils, and palette knives into the digital space with incredible realism. If you’re someone who misses the tactile experience of paint mixing and textured strokes, this is one of the most satisfying iPad drawing apps you’ll find.

The beauty of ArtRage lies in its natural media engine. Paints blend like they would on a real canvas, watercolors bleed and dry naturally, and tools like pastels and pencils carry grain and texture. With Apple Pencil, every stroke feels nuanced. You can vary line thickness, pressure, and tilt to get exactly the look you want, whether it’s a dry brush effect or a smooth color gradient.

ArtRage also supports layers, custom brushes, stencils, symmetry tools, and color pickers. While the interface might feel a bit vintage compared to sleeker apps, it’s surprisingly deep and customizable once you get comfortable with it. There’s no subscription, just a one-time purchase, and it includes everything upfront.

It’s not ideal for precise design work or vector art, but for painters and fine artists who want to replicate the experience of physical painting on iPad, ArtRage delivers beautifully.

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15. GoodNotes 6

While GoodNotes 6 is widely known for digital note-taking, it’s also surprisingly capable when it comes to freehand drawing and visual journaling. If your creativity leans toward handwritten expression, diagrams, or sketch-style planning, this is one of the most balanced drawing apps for iPad that supports both structured notes and casual sketches in a single interface.

What makes GoodNotes special is how naturally it works with the Apple Pencil. The pen and brush tools offer fluid, low-latency input, supporting pressure sensitivity for handwriting that looks and feels real. It’s perfect for sketching diagrams, marking up documents, and even doodling in the margins during meetings or lectures.

GoodNotes offers unlimited notebooks, customizable covers, and paper templates (like dot grid, music sheets, planners, and even storyboards), and easy organization with folders and tags. It also includes shape recognition, allowing you to quickly clean up circles, arrows, or boxes, which is useful when planning ideas visually.

While it’s not meant for detailed illustrations or professional art, it shines for people who like mixing words and visuals. Many artists and designers use it for thumbnailing ideas, mapping out layouts, or journaling their creative process.

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Comparison Table: The Best Drawing Apps for iPad with Apple Pencil

App	Type	Apple Pencil Optimization	Offline Capability	Brush & Tool Variety	Layer Support	Export Options	Pricing Model	Ideal For
Procreate	Illustration/Painting	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, PSD, JPEG	One-time	Professional and hobbyist illustrators
Concepts	Vector Sketching	Excellent	Yes	Moderate	Yes	PNG, SVG, PDF	Free + Subscription	Designers, planners, technical sketchers
Adobe Fresco	Painting/Illustration	Excellent	Partial	Extensive	Yes	PSD, PNG	Free + Subscription	Illustrators, digital painters, Adobe users
Sketchbook	Illustration/Sketching	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, PSD, TIFF	Free	Hobbyists and professionals
Linea Sketch	Sketching/Notes	Good	Yes	Moderate	Yes	PNG	One-time	Casual sketchers, planners, designers
Tayasui Sketches	Sketching/Watercolor	Excellent	Yes	Moderate	Yes	PNG, PSD	Free + Pro Upgrade	Artists who enjoy natural media look
Affinity Designer	Vector + Raster Design	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, SVG, PDF, PSD	One-time	Professional graphic designers
Paper by WeTransfer	Sketching/Idea Boards	Good	Yes	Limited	No	PNG	Free + Subscription	Visual thinkers, educators, casual artists
MediBang Paint	Comics/Manga	Good	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, JPG, PSD	Free	Comic and manga artists
Inspire Pro	Painting	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, JPEG	One-time	Artists wanting fast, offline performance
Clip Studio Paint	Comics/Animation	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, PSD, PDF	Subscription	Manga artists, animators, illustrators
Adobe Illustrator	Vector Design	Excellent	Partial	Extensive	Yes	SVG, AI, PDF	Subscription	Logo designers, typographers, professionals
Noteshelf	Note-taking/Sketching	Good	Yes	Limited	No	PDF, PNG	One-time	Note-takers, students, visual thinkers
ArtRage Vitae	Traditional Painting	Excellent	Yes	Extensive	Yes	PNG, JPG	One-time	Traditional painters seeking realism
GoodNotes 6	Notes/Visual Journaling	Good	Yes	Limited	No	PDF, PNG	Free + Subscription	Planners, journalers, educators

• Best All-Rounders: Procreate and Adobe Fresco offer the most comprehensive feature sets, ideal for users who need serious brush variety, layer control, and seamless Apple Pencil performance.
• Best for Vector Work: Affinity Designer, Adobe Illustrator, and Concepts are your top picks if you’re working with logos, UI layouts, or scalable artwork. They also offer strong export options and pro-grade tools.
• Offline Champions: Inspire Pro and Sketchbook shine in offline performance. They’re perfect for on-the-go creators who don’t want to rely on cloud syncing.
• Note-Taking + Sketching: Noteshelf, GoodNotes 6, and Paper blur the line between writing and drawing. These are great for students, journalers, or visual planners who like a mixed workflow.
• Best for Comic/Manga Artists: Clip Studio Paint and MediBang Paint lead in features like panel layout tools, comic tones, and animation support, ideal for story-driven artwork.
• Real Media Simulation: ArtRage Vitae and Tayasui Sketches provide a highly realistic experience for artists who want oil, watercolor, or pastel tools that feel tangible.

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Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs]

Wrapping up: The Best Drawing Apps for iPad [Apple Pencil Drawing]

Choosing the right drawing app for iPad isn’t just about features; it’s about how naturally the app fits into your creative process. Whether you’re an illustrator who thrives in Procreate, a planner who sketches daily notes in GoodNotes, or a comic artist laying out panels in Clip Studio Paint, the best app is the one that makes drawing feel seamless.

This list covered a wide range of creative needs from vector design in Affinity Designer to expressive brushwork in ArtRage Vitae. Some apps offer sleek note-taking with artistic flair, while others recreate traditional painting tools with impressive depth. Most importantly, they all support Apple Pencil well, turning your iPad into something far more personal than just a screen.

So, if you’ve been asking yourself, “What’s the best drawing app for iPad?” the answer depends on what you want to create. Try a few, see what clicks, and trust your instinct. The right app can open up your workflow in ways you didn’t expect.

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