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Comparison

Apple Pencil Pro vs Apple Pencil (USB-C)

Squeeze, barrel roll and pressure sensitivity: which Pencil you need depends on whether you draw or take notes.

Apple Pencil Pro vs Apple Pencil (USB-C)

Apple sells two current Pencils, and the right one is determined first by your iPad and second by what you do with it.

Compatibility first

Apple Pencil Pro works with recent iPad Pro, iPad Air and iPad mini models. The USB-C Pencil works with almost every iPad with a USB-C port, including the entry iPad.

The differences

Pencil ProPencil (USB-C)
Pressure sensitivityYesNo
Squeeze and barrel rollYesNo
ChargingMagneticUSB-C cable
Find MyYesNo

Our advice

For drawing, the Pro is the only choice: without pressure sensitivity, line weight is fixed. For handwritten notes and marking up PDFs, the USB-C Pencil is perfectly good and much cheaper.

Devices in this article

TA
Tom Akers · Mac & iPad editor

Tom is a software developer who reviews Macs and iPads. He has opinions about keyboards and keeps a spreadsheet of battery cycle counts.

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