You’ve just spent a small fortune on an iPad Pro and that sleek Apple Pencil. It feels like magic in your hand. You tap it against the screen, expecting a masterpiece to just... happen. But then you open the App Store and realize there are roughly a million options. Honestly, it’s paralyzing. Most people just download whatever is at the top of the "Top Charts" and call it a day, but that’s usually how you end up paying for a subscription you don’t need or fighting with an interface that feels like it was designed for a desktop mouse from 1998.
Let’s be real for a second. The "best" app doesn't exist. There is only the app that doesn't annoy you while you’re trying to draw.
Why Procreate isn't always the answer for apple pen drawing apps
Everyone talks about Procreate. It is the titan of apple pen drawing apps. If you watch any "Speedpaint" on TikTok or Instagram, nine times out of ten, they are using that minimalist black interface. And yeah, for $12.99, it’s a steal. No subscriptions. No "Pro" tiers hidden behind a monthly fee. You buy it once, and you own it forever.
But here is the thing: Procreate is a raster-based beast.
If you’re planning on printing your work on a massive billboard, you might run into issues. Raster means pixels. If you resize something too much, it gets crunchy and blurry. For most hobbyists, this literally never matters. But for pros who need infinite scalability, you're looking in the wrong place. Also, the file management system in Procreate is... well, it’s a bit of a nightmare if you have hundreds of sketches. It’s just a big pile of thumbnails.
The Adobe Fresco "Free" Curveball
Adobe Fresco used to be the annoying younger sibling that charged you a subscription. Then, in a weirdly consumer-friendly move, Adobe made Fresco completely free for most users. This is huge because Fresco does something Procreate can't: it mixes raster and vector.
You want that "Live Brush" that mimics oil paint bleeding into a canvas? It has that. You want a crisp, clean line that stays sharp even if you scale it to the size of a building? Switch to the vector brushes. It’s a hybrid. It’s also much more forgiving for people who already live in the Creative Cloud ecosystem. If you’re a designer who needs to bounce between an iPad and a MacBook, Fresco handles that handoff way better than Procreate’s manual export process.
The "Big Three" you actually need to care about
When you’re looking at apple pen drawing apps, you’re usually choosing between three different "vibes."
- Procreate: The "I just want to paint" choice. It feels like an extension of your hand. The gestures are legendary. Two-finger tap to undo is so intuitive you'll find yourself trying to do it on real paper.
- Clip Studio Paint: The "I’m making a 200-page graphic novel" choice. This app is dense. It’s basically the desktop version ported to iPad. It has 3D models you can pose to get your anatomy right and specialized tools for paneling and speech bubbles.
- Concepts: The "I’m an architect or an infinite doodler" choice. Concepts uses an infinite canvas. You can draw forever in any direction. It’s entirely vector, but it feels like pencil on paper.
Clip Studio Paint (CSP) is the one that causes the most drama. Why? Because the iPad version is subscription-only. You can't just buy it once like the PC version. For some artists, that’s a dealbreaker. But if you’re doing professional line art or cell shading, the brush engine in CSP is widely considered superior to Procreate’s. It has "stabilization" that makes your shaky hands look like they belong to a master calligrapher.
The hidden power of the Apple Pencil Pro
If you’re lucky enough to have the Apple Pencil Pro (the one with the "squeeze" feature), your choice of app matters even more.
In apps like Tayasui Sketches or Art Set 4, the haptic feedback is wild. When you squeeze the pencil, a palette pops up right at your nib. You don't have to reach for the top of the screen. It keeps you in the flow. Art Set 4 is specifically great for beginners because it looks like a real art set. You see the tubes of paint. You see the wooden palette. It’s less intimidating than a screen full of sliders and hex codes.
What about the free stuff?
If you aren't ready to drop ten bucks, there are actually some incredible options that don't cost a dime.
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Krita finally made its way to tablets, and while the UI is still a bit "clunky" on a small screen, it is the most powerful free, open-source painting program on the planet. It’s a bit like having a free version of Photoshop. Then there’s ibis Paint X. It’s massive in the manga community. It has an "Ad" system where you watch a short video to unlock all the brushes for 18 hours. It sounds annoying, but for a broke student, it’s a godsend.
And don't sleep on Apple Notes. Honestly. If you just want to sketch a quick idea or practice your line weight, the default Notes app is surprisingly responsive. It has almost zero latency.
Choosing based on your skill level
If you’re a total beginner, stay away from Clip Studio Paint. You’ll spend three hours just trying to find the eraser. Start with Sketches or Paper by WeTransfer. These apps limit your choices on purpose. They give you five tools and a few colors. It forces you to actually draw instead of fiddling with settings.
For the "Intermediate" crowd—people who know what a "clipping mask" is—Procreate is the sweet spot. It grows with you. You can start with basic doodles and eventually learn how to animate or paint 3D models.
Expert-level nuance: Vector vs. Raster
This is where most people get tripped up.
Raster apps (Procreate, ArtRage, Photoshop) are for painters. You’re working with "paint."
Vector apps (Illustrator, Linearity Curve, Affinity Designer 2) are for designers. You’re working with "math."
If you want to make a logo, do not use Procreate. You will regret it when your client asks for a version that works on a t-shirt and a billboard. Use Affinity Designer 2. It’s a one-time purchase, and it is a beast for vector work on the iPad.
The hardware reality check
Your app choice is only half the battle. If you’re using an older Apple Pencil (the 1st gen with the cap you have to plug into the bottom of the iPad), your experience will be different. You won't have the "Hover" feature found on the M2 and M4 iPads.
Hover is a game-changer. It shows you exactly where your brush is going to land before you touch the screen. It even shows you a "shadow" of the brush shape. If you’re doing precision work in an app like Concepts, Hover is almost mandatory once you've tried it.
Actionable Next Steps
Don't just take my word for it. Here is how you should actually find your "forever" app:
- Try Adobe Fresco first. It’s free and gives you a taste of both vector and raster drawing. It’s the best "no-risk" entry point.
- Watch one "Procreate for Beginners" video. If the interface looks like something you’d enjoy, spend the $13. It is the best value-for-money purchase in the entire App Store.
- Check your storage. Professional apple pen drawing apps eat iPad space for breakfast. If you’re on a 64GB iPad, you’ll need to offload your files to iCloud or a physical drive regularly.
- Get a screen protector. If the "glass-on-plastic" feeling of the Apple Pencil bothers you, look into a matte "paper-like" screen protector. It makes a massive difference in how much control you have over your lines.
Drawing on an iPad isn't about the app; it's about getting the technology out of the way so you can actually create something. Pick one, stick with it for a month, and stop looking at the App Store. The best art is made by the person who knows their tools inside and out, not the person who has the most apps installed.