Procreate is widely considered the most powerful, beginner-friendly, and intuitive digital art creation app available for iPad.

Procreate is packed with powerful tools and features like custom brushes and numerous layering options, making it easy to create art fast.

But can you still take advantage of these powerful tools and features if you don’t have the Apple Pencil?

Is Procreate Worth It If I Don’t Have The Apple Pencil?

A woman drawing on Procreate with help from others

Yes, Procreate is worth it without the Apple Pencil. Procreate was designed for the iOS platform but will work with your finger, Logitech Crayon, and a few other styluses on particular iPad models.

In fact, many Procreate users opt not to use the Apple Pencil and create stunning art pieces using only their fingers.

You can produce beautiful, complex, and high-quality art and design work using only your finger on Procreate.

But if only using your finger, you will lose some of the brush features – like shading and pressure-sensitive effects that you’ll only be able to do with an Apple Pencil.

But these features will not stop you from creating highly detailed art and design work.

Originally, Procreate was exclusive to iPads but Procreate Pocket soon followed to bring smaller iPhones into the fold as well.

What Styluses Is Procreate Compatible With?

As an Apple exclusive app, Procreate’s third-party pencil compatibility is pretty limited.

It varies by device and the Logitech Crayon is the only stylus that’s on the same level as the Apple Pencil—or Apple Pencil 2–as far as compatibility.

The two primary styluses that are guaranteed to work with Procreate are Apple Pencil and Logitech crayon.

The only difference between the Logitech Crayon and the Apple Pencil is that Logitech lacks a pressure sensor. 

Procreate works with several different styluses on older iPad platforms but is almost exclusively designed for the Apple Pencil 2 and Logitech Crayon on newer models.

Here are some styluses that might be worth trying out, but some may not work the best on newer iPads.

  • Pogo Connect (1st and 2nd gen).
  • First and second-gen Intuos Creative Stylus.
  • All three generations of Bamboo Fineline.
  • Bamboo Sketch.
  • Pixel.
  • Jot Touch 4 and Jot Touch Pixelpoint.
  • First and second-gen Jot Script.

Procreate only works with these styluses on particular iPad models that aren’t compatible with Apple Pencil (iPad Mini 2, iPad Mini 4, and Ipad 5th gen). 

Even though those three iPad models aren’t compatible with the Apple Pencil, Procreate can still be finicky with stylus models outside of Apple Pencil and Logitech Crayon. 

Choose carefully and check through all compatibility features if you’re looking to purchase a third-party stylus.

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Can I Use Procreate Without A Stylus?

Yes, you can use Procreate without a stylus. Procreate has some really great features that allow you to create illustrations without the need for a stylus, or even a steady hand.

Procreate allows you to work with custom color palettes that sit right there on the screen for easy access and you can quickly create, duplicate and combine layers to work efficiently.

You can use features like holding down on the screen of your device to turn a roughly drawn shape into a precisely drawn one.

There are guidelines to help you center shapes or precisely move them into position.

You can also use Procreate’s Warp feature to mold basic shapes into custom shapes to fit your illustration.

For example, using your fingers to stretch out the edges, you could easily warp a circle into the shape of an apple or a bell.

Finger Painting is made simple and accurate and is no longer just for creative two-year-olds with a penchant for mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, and pancake syrup art.

Procreate is perfectly fine with getting in touch with your inner terrible-twos without a stylus and there is definitely potential to create some pretty impressive pieces.

If you don’t fancy drawing from scratch, you can trace pictures using a brush pen and color them in using a brush – all with only your fingers.

It takes a bit of getting used to but using your fingers to draw on Procreate works great.

Thankfully, the thickness of the lines isn’t determined by the surface area covered with the pad of your finger.

Procreate can be set up to differentiate between a stylus tip and a finger.

How To Set Up Procreate For Finger Inputs

In the Procreate app, select the Settings Wrench Icon.

Select “Preferences“.

And choose “Gesture Controls“.

You’ll find that there is an entire submenu dedicated to finger and Apple Pencil settings so you can fine-tune your approach to drawing on the Procreate platform.

Simply switch on or off the toggles to get started. 

Does Apple Pencil Work With Procreate Pocket?

Procreate Pocket is designed for iPhones, not iPads and Apple Pencil isn’t compatible with iPhones at this point.

This version of Procreate is far more expansive with its stylus compatibility.

Just because Apple eschewed the use of Apple Pencil with its line of iPhones doesn’t mean that iPhones are incompatible with styluses. 

You can pick and choose from a wide array of styluses to suit your style and comfort.

Of course, you can also use your fingers as an effective way to illustrate, however, on the smaller screen you may find it’s more difficult than it’s worth.

Procreate Pocket comes with all of the features of its Procreate big brother, with a few alternative design features to deal with the smaller screen. 

How Well Does Procreate Work With Logitech Crayon?

Logitech Crayon was designed with the same technology as the Apple Pencil and Apple Pencil 2.

The primary difference between the two styluses is that the Logitech doesn’t have the pressure sensitivity of the Apple Pencil. 

When pressure is applied with the tip of the Apple Pencil to draw a line, the amount of pressure determines the width and boldness of the line.

Similar to real life, the pressure sensitivity brings a larger sense of realism to digital drawing.

The Logitech Crayon works perfectly with Procreate and Apple’s lineup of current-generation iPads.

It’s also very useful as a back-and-forth between Procreate Pocket and Procreate since it can be used on iPhones as well. 

However, despite the many features in Procreate that don’t require a stylus, the Apple Pencil is still the best stylus for the Procreate platform on newer generation iPads.

Ultimately, Procreate was designed with the Apple Pencil in mind, and it shows.