Best Surface Pen and Surface Slim Pen alternatives 2024

We're fans of the Surface Pen and the newer Surface Slim Pen. Still, there are plenty of alternative styli out there if you don't fancy Microsoft's official offerings, whether it's because you don't have one of the best Microsoft Surface PCs or just have your own preferences. Here's a list of some of our favorite options for the best Surface Pen and Surface Slim Pen alternatives.

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The best of the best Surface Pen alternatives

There are numerous alternatives to Microsoft's own Surface Pen stylus, should you wish to try something a little different or need a cheaper replacement. If we had to recommend a single listing in this guide, it would be the Dell Premium Active Pen because it's one of the better styli out there. With its 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, tilt support, trio of programmable buttons, and compatibility with both MPP and Wacom AES, the Dell Premium Active Pen is nothing short of top-notch. It's one of the best pens for drawing, as well as one of the best styli in general.

If you're looking to save some money, though, the Tesha Surface Pen will let you draw and use a tablet more efficiently when not accompanied by a mouse and keyboard. However, don't expect to create incredible works of art with it unless you have patience since it lacks tilt support and only has 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity.

The newest HP Tilt Pen offers a great balance between price and quality, as it's less expensive than the Dell Premium Active Pen, but its support for tilting and dual programmable buttons makes it better for advanced use than Tesha's offering. If you're looking for something in the mid-range, you won't find anything better. 

Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds was formerly a Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.

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