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.

Best Coloring Book App: Coloring

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.

  • Images sorted by type, including free and animals.

  • In-app purchases aren’t prohibitively expensive.

  • Limited images.

  • Pens can be glitchy.

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.

Best Input App for Styluses: Google Handwriting Input

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.

  • Consistent handwriting recognition.

  • Supports numerous languages.

  • Can be difficult to use on tablets.

  • Can’t switch between languages while in use.

Best Advanced Drawing App: Adobe Photoshop Sketch

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.

  • Lots of drawing tools.

  • Easy export to desktop.

  • Steep learning curve.

  • Only has brushes.

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.

Best Multi-Platform Note-Taking App: Evernote

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.

  • Convenient home screen shortcut.

  • Automatically syncs between devices that have the app.

  • Frequent upgrade prompts.

  • Search feature is glitchy.

The app also has a few Android widgets, including a pen input shortcut to capture your thoughts immediately.

Best Sketching App: Autodesk Sketchbook

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.

  • Generous pen, painting, and texture options.

  • Can draw from a blank canvas or import a photo.

  • Layers sometimes disappear.

  • Not very intuitive.

Best Handwriting App: Write (by Stylus Labs)

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.

  • Edit handwriting like written text.

  • Helpful undo and redo tools.

  • No cloud backup.

  • Can’t add typed text.

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.

Best App for Notes and Reminders: Google Keep

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.

  • Store notes and reminders.

  • Accurate handwriting to text translation.

  • No text formatting.

  • No lock option.

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.

Best ‘Paper’ Notebook App: Bamboo Paper

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.

  • Multiple notebook customization options.

  • User-friendly.

  • Limited pen colors.

  • Importing is iffy.

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.

Best E-Signature App: DocuSign

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.

  • Simplifies paperwork.

  • Customize documents as needed.

  • Can only save or change signature using the desktop app.

  • Limited support.

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.

Best Stylus-Friendly Game: Fruit Ninja

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.

  • Fast, entertaining gameplay.

  • Appropriate for all ages.

  • Ad-heavy.

  • Can be choppy.

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.

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