How to write notes by hand online (stylus, finger or mouse)

Some things are quicker to write than type: a fraction, a chemical structure, an arrow between two ideas, a signature-style scribble. If you have a tablet and stylus, handwriting can also simply feel more natural.

You do not need a dedicated app for that. The NoteDraft sketch pad works as a handwriting notepad online: an open canvas you can write on with a stylus, a finger or a mouse, free and with no account.

Write on screen online in five steps

1. Open the sketch pad Go to notedraft.com/draw. The canvas has no edges, so you will not run out of page.
2. Pick the pen Select the pen tool from the toolbar, or press P. Now any stroke of the mouse, finger or stylus draws freehand.
3. Choose a colour and stroke width In the style panel, pick a stroke colour and a stroke width. A thinner stroke keeps small letters readable; a thicker one suits headings and diagrams.
4. Move around with the hand tool When you reach the edge of the screen, switch to the hand tool and drag to pan to fresh space, then switch back to the pen.
5. Export your page Open the ☰ menu and export a PNG to paste anywhere, or an SVG if you want a vector file. The drawing also autosaves; My drawings at the top right lists every saved one.

Tips for neater digital handwriting

• Write larger than you would on paper. Screens and fingertips are less precise than a pen; bigger letters come out cleaner.
• Slow down. Quick strokes on glass tend to wobble. A steady pace gives smoother lines.
• Use a thin stroke for text. Thick strokes make loops in letters like "e" and "a" fill in.
• Rest your hand off the screen if your tablet picks up your palm as a touch.
• Leave space. The canvas is infinite, so start a new block of notes to the side rather than squeezing it in.

Write on a worksheet or photo

Take a photo or screenshot of a worksheet, then paste it into the sketch pad with Ctrl+V (⌘+V on a Mac) or drop the image file on the page. It fills the view with the pen already selected, ready to write on. Export a PNG when you are done. The image stays on your device; nothing is uploaded. Annotating a screenshot works the same way.

Fixing mistakes

There is no eraser brush. Instead, every stroke is its own object: choose the select tool, click the stroke you want gone and press Delete. Ctrl+Z undoes the last thing you did. Because strokes stay editable, you can also move or recolour a word after writing it.

What it will not do

It does not convert handwriting to text

This is a drawing canvas, not handwriting recognition. What you write stays as ink. If you need typed text, type it in the notepad.

Handwriting lives in the sketch pad, not in notes

You cannot write by hand directly inside a note. Export a PNG from the sketch pad and add it to a note as a picture instead.

The style panel is hidden on small phones

On a narrow phone screen the style panel is not shown, so colour and stroke width changes are easiest on a tablet or computer. The pen itself works fine with a finger.