The best iPad for drawing

There are so many iPad models and configurations it can be hard to decide which is the best iPad for drawing. But it’s worth making the effort, because modern iPads are a great choice for creating digital art. Slim and portable, they offer a fantastic alternative or compliment to the best drawing tablets, especially considering that you can also use them for other things besides drawing.

So which of the iPad generations is best for artists? The simple answer is the largest, newest iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil 2 or Apple Pencil Pro (the latest model), but there are other things to consider, including portability and budget. We’ve reviewed and tested all current iPads on the market, including using them to drawing via various programs. That puts us in a good position to be able to recommend the best options for different needs. 

If you’re using an iPad for drawing then Procreate is the best app, read our guide to the Procreate review for an explainer. Procreate is developed to work on any iPad, so why do you need to spend more on the latest one? Because iPad Pro 13-inch (M4, 2024), which tops my list, can do so much more and run every drawing and art app, which will soon include 3D sculpting app ZBrush for iPad.

Quick list

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The best iPad for drawing in full

The best iPad for drawing overall

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What you need to know

Released in May 2024, the new iPad Pro 13 (M4, 2024) is a faster, thinner upgrade to Apple‘s flagship tablet. It features several improvements that offer benefits for drawing specifically: OLED screen technology for improved contrast and compatibility with the new Apple Pencil Pro. We haven’t yet completed our full review, but based on our initial hands-on experience, we think it’s the best iPad for drawing you can buy right now if we exclude cost as a variable.

Design and build: The new iPad Pro is thinner than previous iterations, and the 13-inch version also has a very slightly larger screen (there’s also an 11-inch iPad Pro, but we think the 13-inch pro is the better size for drawing.). We found that despite being just 5.1mm thick, the tablet feels very robust. The size could be a drawback for anyone who wants a more discreet device (the base iPad or iPad mini is more comfortable for handheld use), but we find the larger screen more comfortable for drawing in most situations.

Display: With these new models, Apple has delivered one of the key things users were asking for: an iPad with an OLED display. Apple’s calling it Tandem OLED since it’s actually two OLED panels sandwiched together. Apple claims 1,000 nits of standard brightness and 1,600 nits of HDR brightness, the same as with the 2022 model, but based on our initial hands-on inspection, we think the Ultra Retina XDR OLED display looks even crisper than its predecessor, with outstanding contrast between darks and lights. 

The refresh rate of up to 120Hz provided excellent responsiveness when we were able to test it drawing with the Apple Pencil Pro. In fact, the support for this new stylus is a reason in itself to choose the new iPad Pro as a tablet for drawing because the Apple Pencil Pro introduces some improvements of its own that can help speed up  workflows. These include a new rotating barrel that can quickly changes the orientation of shaped pen and brush tools and the ability to squeeze the stylus to access tools and settings.

Performance: The new iPad Pros are simply the fastest Apple tablets yet, if not the fastest tablets from any brand. The 2022 models were already fast, blazing through all of our benchmark tests, but the new M4 chip looks to provide even more impressive performance. This power is much more than what you’ll need for drawing alone, and the iPad Pro can easily handle much more demanding tasks such as video editing and 3D modelling. And with up to 2TB of storage available, there’s no need to worry about file sizes. 

Pricing: The only real downside is that the iPad Pro 13 is Apple’s most expensive iPad to date, starting at $1,299 / £1,299. We highly recommend it for professional digital artists since we think the Apple Pencil Pro support, OLED screen and fast refresh rate all make it worth the extra outlay. However, if you’re not a professional it’s probably more than you need. Newcomers to digital art may be better going with the more affordable.

Read more: Apple iPad Pro 13 (M4) review

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The best value iPad for drawing

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What you need to know: Apple also has new iPad Airs for 2024. Powered with the M2 chip, the Air now comes in two sizes 11 inches and 13 inches like its Pro sibling, and they both support Apple Pencil Pro. However, we think the 2022 M1-powered iPad Air is currently a strong contender as the best value iPad for drawing since it’s coming in for some steep discounts.

Design and build: Compared with the 13-inch iPad Pro, the 5th gen iPad Air is a lighter, more portable device that still feels very robust and premium with its sleek aluminium finish. It has a USB 3.1 Gen 2 port for max speeds of 10Gbps (that compares to 40Gbps on the Pad Pro’s Thunderbolt 4) while the front camera is 12MP like the Pro.

Display: In our review, we noted that screen resolution is comparable to previous Pro models while backlighting is even and colour-accurate, making it a great choice for visual creative work, including drawing. The drawbacks are lower brightness levels compared to the Pro’s Ultra Retina XDR OLED display, and a refresh rate of 60Hz (compared to the Pro’s 120Hz), which may cause some delay in the display of strokes when drawing. 

Performance: The 2022 tablet has the disadvantage of not supporting Apple Pencil Pro, but we should point out than until the appearance of this new stylus, we had no complaints with the 2nd-gen Apple Pencil, which continues to deliver an exceptional drawing experience. In terms of processing power, this Air isn’t the best option for those who want a tablet that they can also use for more demanding tasks such as video editing, but for drawing, the M1 chip is plenty powerful.

Pricing: If you’re looking for a tablet with a larger screen and more power than the iPad mini, but without the hefty price tag of the iPad Pro, the 2022 iPad Air is definitely worth considering. However it’s only worth it if you get a deal because the new 2024 iPad Air 11 has the same starting price. The best prices we have seen so far were $399 in the US and £524 in the UK l (we’ve linked to both iterations in the price list below).

Read more: iPad Air (5th Gen, 2022) review

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The best iPad for sketching on the move

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What you need to know

The iPad Mini hasn’t been updated since 2021, but we think the 6th generation model remains a great choice for artists who travel a lot or just want a portable device that lets them doodle and sketch wherever they find themselves. It still offers higher specs than the entry level iPads.

Design and build: The big iPad Pros aren’t the most comfortable option if you want to work on the move, such as on public transport, for example. We found the mini to be wonderfully compact, suitable for carrying anywhere since it can fit neatly into a small bag (read our guide to the best iPad cases)

Display: The 8.3-inch Liquid Retina screen offers a crisp resolution at 1488 x 2266 pixels. Of course, the downside of the screen size is less space to work with. If you’re looking to replace your Wacom drawing tablet then this isn’t for you. But, if you want a tablet to doodle on or sketch digitally, and then transfer those rough ideas to a large drawing tablet, it could be ideal. 

Performance: The iPad Mini hasn’t been updated for a few years now, but it still performs well, providing more than enough power for sketching and more. It’s more powerful than the base iPad 10 (see below), and, unlike the standard iPad, it supports Apple Pencil 2 rather the first-gen Pencil. In our review, we found that Apple’s claims of 10 hours of battery life were accurate, so you should have no problem drawing for several hours while on the move before needing to find a power socket. There’s up to 256GB of native storage space, which is probably more than enough if for drawing.

Pricing: Now three year’s old, the iPad mini is regularly discounted with around $100 / £100 knocked off the price at third-party retailers. That takes the price down to around $399 / $499. That’s less than the sale prices that we’ve been seeing on the 2022 iPad Air.

Read more: Apple iPad mini (6th Gen) review

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The best budget iPad for drawing

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What you need to know

Apple gave the basic iPad a refresh in 2022, upgrading the chipset for better performance and adding an improved rear camera. The result is a reasonably priced iPad that has a more premium feel than its predecessor and great colour options too.

Design and build: The 10th-generation iPad is slightly larger than the 9th-gen iteration, and that extra 0.7 inches can make all the difference for a comfortable drawing experience. It also comes in a variety of bright colours. When we reviewed it, we thought it felt more premium than its predecessor, with the robust build standing up to some enthusiastic colouring from our reviewer’s young son.

Display: The display is notably dimmer than the Pros, but we still found it to be a pleasure to draw on even outside. We do wish Apple could have found room to include Pencil 2 support. The first Apple Pencil is a fine stylus and does the job well enough, but the lack of built-in controls makes it less efficient to use when copared to the second-generation model, while the introduction of USB-C charging ports on this iPad means that you need to buy an additional adapter to charge it (note that Apple has since launched a USB-C Apple pencil, but this cheaper stylus has no pressure sensitivity, which is desirable for drawing).

Performance: Like the more expensive iPad models, this tablet includes True Tone support, which is Apple’s technology that adjusts colour balance depending on the quality of light in the room. When we reviewed it, we found that battery life was generally good too, while the new A14 chip provides a small but noticeable speed boost in operation.

Pricing: Despite the missed opportunity to provide support for Apple Pencil 2, we think the 10th-gen iPad is a solid value tablet for drawing and for more general use too. Depending on the deals available, the price is sometimes very close to the iPad mini above, in which case your choice really comes down the size you prefer and whether you want to go with the mini for Apple Pencil 2 support.

Read more: iPad 2022 review

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The best last-gen iPad for drawing

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What you need to know

If you fancy a 13-inch iPad Pro for that big, bright screen for drawing on, but don’t like the price tag of the new M4-chipped 2024 devices, there’s always the option of looking out for a good deal on the 2022 M2 iPad Pro. You miss out on the OLED screen and Apple Pencil Pro, but the performance of the M2 chip vs M4 probably won’t to be noticeable for drawing.

Design and build: When we did our original review of this tablet on release, we gave the device 4.5 stars, and we think it’s still a fantastic machine worth of any creative. Build-wise, the tablet pretty is thicker than the new model and very slightly heavier. It has the front-facing camera on the portrait side rather than the landscape side of the device, which we found to be awkward for video calls since it’s not conducive to use docked in a keyboard. Again, if you’re looking for a smaller display, there’s also an 11-inch iPad Pro M2. However, I personally prefer the larger screen for artwork and think it’s the main advantage of going for a Pro.

Display: Until the release of this year’s Pros, this was the best screen on an iPad, boasting what Apple called Liquid Retina XDR technology. This provided improved brightness and detail in dark areas, and indeed this provides the same peak brightness of the new model at 1600 nits. That said, the newer iPad’s Tandem OLED display provides for still better contrast, and it supports Apple Pencil Pro with the advantages that come with that (see our top pick above). I

Performance: It’s not the M4, but the M2 chip is still very fast by today’s standards, and can easily handle drawing, as well as much more intensive creative work, such as video editing and motion design. We found stylus performance to be excellent, providing a smooth and efficient drawing experience thanks to the 2nd generation Apple Pencil’s touch controls.

Pricing: Going for an older iPad doesn’t always make sense since since the starting price of new models tends to be around the same as the previous generation. However, in the case of the iPad Pro 13 there was a $200 / £200 jump in the starting price for the 2024 iteration because the cheapest configuration (128GB SSD) has been dropped, with storage now starting at 256GB. We think that for the older device to be worth buying over this year’s model, you need to hold out for a saving of around $200 on top of that since there’s every change the new iPad Pro could have discounts of up to $100 in its first year. Some third-party retailers do sometimes still have stock of new models, and going for a renewed device is also an option for further savings. 

Read more: iPad Pro 2022 (M2) review

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How to choose the best iPad for drawing

Ultimately, the best iPad for drawing is going to depend on the individual needs of the artist, and there’s no objectively right or wrong answer. Here are some key factors to think about when selecting your iPad for drawing.

Screen size: How much screen do you need when drawing? Larger iPads naturally have larger screens, which gives you more space but also makes the tablet less portable and heavier to carry around, which arguably defeats the purpose of having a portable drawing tool. Then again, if you’re going to leave the iPad at home or in the studio, portability doesn’t matter. Personally, I prefer the 11 or 12.9-inch displays ideal. At 10.2 inches, the 9th-gen standard iPad is too small for my liking, but I also know artists who love using the iPad mini for sketching.

Processing power: Newer iPads have faster processors and are capable of handling more complex tasks without stutter or slowdown. Drawing is not the most intensive task that an iPad can perform, so this is not necessarily a very important factor. However, if you are working with very high resolution files, or if you want to use you iPad for other creative work as well as drawing, then it’s going to be very important that your tablet has enough power to load and display files efficiently. 

Stylus compatibility: Different iPads are compatible with different versions of the Apple Pencil. The Apple Pencil 2 is the superior stylus, with on-pen controls, but it’s also more expensive and works with the more expensive iPads, so it’s up to you whether you can justify the outlay. Read our guide to Apple Pencil vs Apple Pencil 2 for more details here.

Price: iPads are expensive, especially the Pros. Your budget may dictate what you have to choose from to an extent. A good way to expand your options is to keep an eye out for the latest sales and offers. We’re currently updating our guide to the best iPad deals, which is a good place to start. 

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How we test the best iPads for drawing

We test and review all the latest Apple products here at CreativeBloq, which means we have a lot of experience in using Apple devices for creative work, including for drawing. Our reviewers are experts in their field. Many of them are working creatives and have years of experience reviewing iPad and other tablets (for more details, see How we test and review on CreativeBloq.)

The iPads on this list have been tested and rated by our team of expert reviewers, after weeks of use. We put them through a series of benchmark tests but also real-world situations, using them for a range of tasks, including drawing via different iPad art apps, including Procreate. 

We evaluated the drawing experience using an Apple stylus, and compared specs, including screen size and resolution, RAM and storage size. We considered the strengths and weaknesses of each tablet and factored in the cost to make recommendations for a range of budgets.

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The best iPads for drawing: FAQ

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