Draw or handwrite on a Freeform board on iPad
You can sketch or jot a handwritten note with Apple Pencil (see compatibility) or your finger. You can edit and work with handwritten text just as you do with typed text.
![Drawings and handwritten text on a Freeform board. The drawing tools appear along the bottom.](https://help.apple.com/assets/6758C0F05C38883A170CE6F4/6758C0F55C38883A170CE700/en_US/3a12e1bd8d76e878468a459446fa8d46.png)
Draw or handwrite
Go to the Freeform app
on your iPad.
Open a board, or tap
to start a new one.
Tap
, then draw with your finger or Apple Pencil.
If you’re using Apple Pencil and want to be able to switch to draw with your finger, tap
in the drawing tools, then turn on Draw with Finger.
Tip: Hold your finger or Apple Pencil still for a moment when you finish the drawing to smooth or straighten its shape.
Tap a tool to switch to it. (Swipe to see other tools, such as Fill, Crayon, Fountain Pen, or Watercolor Brush.)
Tap any tool a second time to change its qualities, like the thickness or opacity of a stroke.
To fill a closed shape with color, use the Fill tool (the paint tube).
To draw a straight line, tap the Ruler tool. (You can rotate it by placing two fingers on it and turning your hand.)
Scribble
(next to the pen) transforms your handwriting to typed text as you write with Apple Pencil. To learn more about writing on boards with Apple Pencil, see Enter text with Scribble.
Note: By default, Apple Pencil works as a drawing and writing tool in Freeform. You can change this setting if you also want to use Apple Pencil to select and scroll.
If you have an iPad that supports Apple Intelligence and Apple Intelligence is turned on, you can use Image Playground to create one-of-a-kind images in Freeform. See Create original images with Image Playground.
Select and edit parts of a drawing
When you draw in the Freeform app , your strokes are grouped. If you want to break a drawing apart, you can separate your strokes and merge them. You can also delete, resize, or straighten parts of a drawing.
After you draw or write on your Freeform board with the drawing tools, tap
(between the Eraser and Ruler) in the drawing tools.
Tap or circle the part of the drawing you want to select, then choose an option.
Tip: Choose Snap to Shape to smooth or straighten hand-drawn lines.
You can also tap to select an entire drawing or other item when you’re not using the drawing tools. Tap an item to select it, tap in the formatting tools, then tap Cut, Copy, or Duplicate.
Work with handwritten text
When you write by hand in the Freeform app , your handwriting is recognized as words. You can search text you handwrite in the same way you search typed text. You can also select it, copy and paste it as text, straighten it, or translate it. When you write something like a phone number or an address, you can tap it to open related apps like Phone or Maps.
After you draw or write on your Freeform board with the drawing tools, tap
(between the Eraser and Ruler) in the drawing tools.
Tap or circle the words you want to select, then choose an option from the menu that appears. (Tap
to see other options.)
Tip: Choose Straighten to align the baseline of your letters with the grid, or choose Copy as Text to add the text to your clipboard—as if you’d typed it.
Do any of the following:
Open a menu or another related app: Tap a handwritten link, address, phone number, or date.
Drag and drop: Touch and hold the text.
Smart select: Double-tap the text.
Edit the text in your own handwriting: Move the cursor to a point in your handwritten text, and type. Your words appear in a style of writing that looks like your own.