The 29 Best Pencils for 2025: Wooden and Mechanical Pencils

The Twist-Erase is available with 0.5 mm or 0.7 mm lead for everyday writing and drawing alike.

When it’s time to write, an integrated button in the cap allows you to extend the lead whether the cap is posted or unposted. It’s no wonder that the Sharp Kerry is the top pick in our guide on The Best Mechanical Pencils!

Both versions of the Kaweco Special Mechanical Pencil fit right at home on an office desk. You can also pair it with a clip to keep it tucked in a suit pocket. And it doesn’t just have looks—it offers a variety of tip sizes ranging from fine 0.3 mm to wide 0.9 mm. We should note that the pencil doesn’t hold much lead, so if you’re an avid writer you may find yourself refilling the pencil often (a small price to pay for a pencil of this quality!).

The Zebra DelGuard comes in several different styles, including the standard plastic version and the ergonomic Type-GR.

The Kuru Toga comes in several versions, but two of our favorites here at JetPens are the KS and the Advance. The Kuru Toga KS is perfect for long writing sessions. It has a comfortable rubber grip section and an updated rotation mechanism that keeps the pencil’s lead pipe from wiggling.

Depending on your grip, hand size, and writing style, you can choose from a variety of models including the Shaka Shaker, Slim, and even Kuru Toga, which incorporates Uni’s famous lead rotation mechanism. The Shaka Shaker line extends lead with a shaker mechanism and offers two additional grips: firm and medium firm. Don't be fooled by the names though—the grips are still quite squishy; they're just slightly firmer than the original soft grip for those who need more support.

We always get questions about whether you can put multiple pencil components into one pen body in order to have access to multiple tip sizes. You can always DIY a customizable multi pen, and even combine mechanical pencil components with ink refills.

The Mono 100 comes in a wide range of lead grades. This makes it a favorite among students, designers, and engineers, though we also highlight the best technical pencils below.

If you enjoy tinkering with your pens and pencils and want a customized grip, we recommend the Pilot Dr. Grip CL Play Balance Mechanical Pencil. It comes with two types of materials for the inner grip: metal and silicone. The metal parts produce a firmer grip and weighted writing experience, while the silicone parts provide a cushier grip and lighter weight.

Those who don’t like large writing instruments can check out the Faber-Castell Grip 2001 Pencil. This great alternative is no thicker than a typical pencil, but it features a triangular body lined with grippy dots to reduce slippage. The Grip 2001 comes in a set with 2B, B, and HB grade pencils, an eraser, and a sharpener.

The Opt also has two handy extras: a shaker mechanism that lets you advance the lead without readjusting your grip, and a binder clip for fastening the pencil to notebooks and pockets. In addition to these practical features, the Pilot Opt comes in fun body colors so that you can express your style.

The Fure Fure Me fits easily into pencil cases, bags, or even a pocket. Plus, the tip is completely retractable, so you don’t have to worry about it accidentally bending or breaking. Like the Opt, the Fure Fure Me is a shaker pencil (the name comes from the Japanese word fureru (ふれる), which means to shake), but sensitive users take note—it’s a little noisier than the Opt.

The Pentel Orenz comes in four different styles, ranging from the lightweight standard Orenz to the premium Orenz Nero. They all boast sliding lead sleeves that prevent lead breakage.

This pencil is part of Tombow’s Mono Graph line, which has been designed to—fingers crossed!—be the only stationery products you’d ever need.

Because the Kutsuwa Neonpitsu is a mechanical pencil highlighter, you don’t have to sharpen it as you would a traditional wooden pencil. The barrel is transparent so you can see how much lead you have left and refill it when you run out. It uses 3.8 mm lead, which covers a little over half of normal handwriting if you’re using 6 or 7 mm rule paper. It’s enough to draw attention to important points, but if you prefer to have the whole line highlighted, you can go over it twice.

Most impressively, Faber-Castell Polychromos are lightfast. Asterisks on each pencil indicate how well that particular color resists degradation from light exposure. This lets you choose hues that will remain vivid over time and show your work to the best effect.

As a bonus, Polychromos pencils are color-matched with other Faber-Castell products including watercolor pencils, brush pens, and fineliners for easy mixed media work.

Although Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer pencils are a pleasure to use dry, they truly shine when used as watercolor pencils. Their colors dissolve into even more intense hues when touched with water, allowing you to blend new colors and spread them into lovely watercolor washes.

For a more extensive and interesting color selection, check out the Uni EMOTT Color Mechanical Pencils. These minimalist pencils feature unique colors like Khaki Green and Vermilion. However, they're only available in three 4-color sets, and their thin diameters may not be comfortable to hold for long drawing sessions.

If you want a greater variety of colors, try Tombow Irojiten Color Pencils. They have harder cores and come in several unusual hues, including fluorescent and grayscale.

This pencil isn’t just about ergonomics, though—unlike most mechanical pencils, it has a generously sized twist eraser so you can correct mistakes without relying on separate erasers. The FitCurve also has a sliding lead sleeve to protect the lead from breaking.

The vermillion side is an orange-leaning red that works well for underdrawing, while the darker Prussian blue side is perfect for overdrawing and adding emphasis. This pair of colors would also work well for capturing warm light and cool shadows, a combination often found when drawing in sunlight.

Choose from three versions: the Standard has a traditional wooden pencil form factor, while the travel-friendly Pocket includes a leather tip protector. Finally, the Light Knock that’s about the same size as a mechanical pencil and features a push button to extend and retract the tip. The tips on the Standard and Pocket pencils are replaceable.

Many lead holders use a drop clutch mechanism that releases the lead with a push of a button, but the Staedtler Silver Series has an incremental advance clutch that works just like that of a mechanical pencil.

The Kaweco Sketch Up does come with a built in lead pointer, but the tip doesn’t sharpen to a precise point, which is normal for leads this size. Kaweco offers other 5.6 mm colored leads including primary and highlighter colors. For everyday carry, we recommend grabbing a clip for attaching to a notebook or pocket.

Handy features include a lead grade indicator and a 4.0 mm lead sleeve that makes it easy to use with a straightedge. Additionally, it has a spring-loaded binder clip that fastens easily onto thick notebook covers and pockets. Opening the clip retracts the pencil tip, so there’s no danger of accidentally poking yourself through your clothes.

The Staedtler Mars Lumograph is also a genuine pleasure to use. It sharpens and erases easily, so your work will always look tidy. The Lumograph comes in a full range of lead grades if you prefer harder or softer options, which is great for both architects and artists.

The Sumo Grip’s eraser crumbs clump together for easy cleanup, and since it’s black, it won’t get dirty from graphite smudges no matter how much you use it.

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