About the Pencil Tool
The pencil draws solid, hard-edged lines with no soft fade, which makes it ideal for pixel art, thin outlines, diagrams and marking up screenshots. Choose a colour and a size from one pixel up and drag over the picture with a mouse, finger or pen. Strokes are drawn with no gaps even when you move quickly. Undo any stroke, start over and download a full-size PNG. Nothing is uploaded: the editing happens in your browser. For soft, airbrush-like painting use Brush Tool instead.
Updated October 2026
How to use the Pencil Tool
- 1Select an image or drop one on the page.
- 2Choose a colour and a pencil size. Use 1 to 3 pixels for fine lines.
- 3Drag over the picture to draw. Lift to start a new line.
- 4Use Undo to remove the last stroke if needed.
- 5Press Download PNG to save your picture.
Why a hard-edged pencil
Some jobs need exact pixels: pixel art, thin outlines around a shape, grid lines on a diagram, a red circle on a screenshot. A soft brush makes fuzzy results for these jobs. The pencil gives crisp edges at the size you choose, with the colour you chose.
Choosing size and colour
One pixel makes the finest line. Three to five pixels suit markup on a normal screenshot. On a very large photo the same number of pixels looks small, so scale the size to the picture. For visibility, choose a bright colour that contrasts with the picture.
- Pixel art: 1 pixel, small picture
- Screenshot markup: 3 to 5 pixels, red or yellow
- Outlines on a big photo: 8 to 20 pixels
Smooth, gap-free lines
Fast mouse or finger movements usually leave gaps between sample points. The tool fills them with a continuous line, so even quick scribbles are solid. If the line looks wobbly, slow down and draw shorter strokes.
A quick example
Say you have a floor plan screenshot and want to mark a route. Choose blue, size 4 and drag along the corridors in a few strokes. The line is solid and sharp. If you made a mistake, press Undo and redraw only that part.
Phone and computer
On a phone, draw with one finger; the page does not scroll while you touch the picture. On a computer, a ring shows the size before you start. Pictures up to about 16 million pixels work and are saved at full size.
Working at the right zoom
The pencil paints in image pixels, so on a large photo displayed small on your phone each touch covers many pixels. Choose the size with that in mind: a 4000 pixel wide photo needs a pencil of about 10 to 20 pixels to look like a normal line on screen. On a small icon or a pixel-art canvas, a size of one pixel is exactly one square. If lines look too thin or too heavy in the finished picture, undo and try again with a different size.
Good to know
The result is a PNG with your original pixels plus your lines. For soft strokes or glow effects use Brush Tool, and to rub something out use Eraser Tool. Your original file is never changed. For soft lines use the Brush Tool, and fill a closed shape fast with the Paint Bucket Tool.
Features
- Crisp, hard-edged lines
- Sizes from 1 pixel upwards
- Any colour
- No gaps in fast strokes
- Undo and Start over
- Touch, mouse and pen supported
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between the pencil and the brush?
The pencil always has a hard edge and full opacity, so every pixel is either your colour or untouched. The brush can be soft and see-through.
Can I draw straight lines?
Draw them by hand with steady strokes. The tool joins fast movements without gaps, but it does not snap to a straight line.
Can I draw pixel art with it?
Yes, with a size of one pixel on a small picture. Zoom your browser in to see single pixels.
How do I change the line colour?
Use the colour box above the buttons. You can change it between strokes.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. Draw with a finger or stylus. The page does not scroll while you touch the picture.
Is my picture uploaded?
No. It stays in your browser.