Get more precise on your Android device with these styli

Tablets and large-screened smartphones are designed for you to use your fingers to navigate menus and screens, type, select, and more. However, a stylus offers better precision, particularly with specific tasks like coloring, jotting down digital notes, or selecting items in a detailed document or spreadsheet. They’re especially useful for those with large hands, fingers, and/or thumbs who find it difficult to manipulate small text on the screen. We’ve rounded up the best universal stylus pens. For those who own a Samsung device, specifically, however, the absolute best option is an S Pen.

There’s a big difference between a stylus and an S Pen

If you own a Samsung Galaxy tablet or Note smartphone you’ll want to stick with Samsung’s own very excellent S Pen, and we’ve rounded up many of the most common S Pens available for purchase if you need an extra or replacement one. Keep in mind that a universal stylus will work for the basic tasks on a Samsung tablet or Note series phone, but you wouldn’t get all the smart features that Samsung built into the S Pen. Plus, you wouldn’t be able to neatly store the pen within the device when you’re not using it.

If you’re looking for a stylus that’s a jack-of-all-trades and designed to work with Android smartphones and tablets, along with any of Apple’s offerings, we’d recommend the Adonit Dash 3 or the Digiroot Universal Stylus if you like the value of getting a bunch of replacement tips.

However, when it comes to price, especially if you want to buy a stylus for everyone in the family, or one to keep at home, at the office, in your briefcase, your travel bag, and your backpack, it doesn’t get much more affordable than the AmazonBasics universal stylus, which works on virtually any capacitive touchscreen tablet or phone. It doesn’t have as narrow and precise a tip as the others, but it will do the job for basic activities when you want to gave your fingers a break.