Benable — create shareable lists of things you recommend!
E.g., products you love, local businesses, travel recs - you can add anything to a Benable list!
Pens I Wish I Had When I First Started College
30
items My hand used to cramp up twenty minutes into every lecture. I burned through cheap pens that skipped, smeared, and made my notes unreadable. If you're a college student who writes for hours every day and your fingers are begging for mercy, this lineu...
Sections
6
Pens That Won't Destroy Your Hand During Long Lectures
Fine Tip Pens for Students Who Write Tiny Notes in Margins
Colorful Pen Sets for Color-Coded Study Notes
Smudge-Proof Pens for Left-Handed College Students
Refillable Pens That Save Money Over Four Years
Pen Storage and Accessories for Messy Backpacks
Pens That Won't Destroy Your Hand During Long Lectures
I used to leave my 3-hour econ lectures shaking out my writing hand like I'd just arm-wrestled someone. These are the pens that finally let me take notes without the death grip.
Grab these if your hand cramps after ten minutes of writing. The ink flows so smoothly you barely have to press down. I went from dreading my philosophy lectures to actually keeping up with the professor.
uniball™ Jetstream RT Ballpoint Pens, Black
Switch to these when your cheap pens start skipping mid-sentence. The rubber grip saved my fingers during finals week. Perfect for left-handed writers too since the ink dries before your hand smears it.
Pentel EnerGel Pearl Deluxe RTX Gel Pen
Keep this one in your bag if you're the student who writes literally everything by hand. The weight distribution is wild. Feels like the pen is doing half the work for you. My wrist stopped aching after day one.
PILOT Dr. Grip Center of Gravity Ballpoint Pen
Toss your dollar store pens and try these instead. They glide like nothing I've used before. Picked up a 10-pack before midterms and honestly felt like I was cheating compared to everyone else's scratchy pens.
Paper Mate InkJoy Gel Pens, Assorted
Use this if you write fast and hate waiting for ink to dry. I filled three blue books during a history final and not a single smudge. The clip is sturdy enough that it actually stays on your notebook too.
Zebra Pen Sarasa Dry X20 Retractable Gel Pen
Fine Tip Pens for Students Who Write Tiny Notes in Margins
My textbooks looked like crime scene evidence with all the margin scribbling. These pens let me cram annotations into the smallest spaces without turning pages into a blob of ink.
Snag these for writing tiny notes next to highlighted passages. The 0.5mm tip is precise enough to fit three lines where most pens can barely fit one. Saved me during open-book exams.
PILOT Precise V5 Rollerball Pens 0.5mm
Try this if you're the type who writes microscopic notes on flashcards. The line is so fine it almost looks printed. Ordered a pack from curiosity and now I can't go back to anything thicker.
Uni-Ball Signo Gel Pen Extra Fine 0.38mm
Pair this with your lab notebook if you need archival-quality ink that won't fade or bleed through thin paper. My organic chemistry notes from two years ago still look fresh. Worth it for any STEM student.
Sakura Pigma Micron Fineliner Pens, Black
Get a handful of these before the semester starts. They're slim, light, and the ink is so consistent it's almost relaxing to write with. For anyone who fills entire notebooks in a single class.
MUJI - 0.38mm Red Smooth Gel Ink Ballpoint Cap Pen
Use this for diagrams, charts, or anything where you need clean lines. My architecture friend turned me onto these and now every flowchart I make actually looks legible instead of like a toddler drew it.
Staedtler Triplus Fineliner Black 0.3mm x6
Colorful Pen Sets for Color-Coded Study Notes
Once I started color-coding my notes by topic, my GPA actually went up. Not even joking. These sets made it stupid easy to organize information visually without buying fifteen individual pens.
Grab the full color set if you color-code but also make mistakes constantly. Erasable AND they come in enough colors to assign one per subject. I stopped carrying whiteout entirely after switching.
PILOT FriXion Clicker Erasable Pens 0.7mm
Snag these for making study guides that don't look like a wall of black text. The colors are bright without being neon-obnoxious. My roommate borrowed one and then quietly ordered her own set the next day.
Paper Mate Flair Felt Tip Pens, Bold 16 Ct
Use these when your highlighter system isn't cutting it anymore. Thin enough for regular note-taking but colorful enough to separate topics at a glance. Carried me through every open-note quiz I've had.
STABILO fineliner point 88 ColorParade
Pair these with black ink notes for the cleanest study pages you've ever made. The mild colors don't bleed through most notebook paper. Everyone in my study group started copying my system within a week.
Zebra Pen MILDLINER No Bleed Highlighter
Swap out your single black pen for this whole set. Each color writes just as smoothly as the next. Perfect for anyone who needs to visually separate main ideas, definitions, and examples fast.
Pentel EnerGel-X Retractable Liquid Gel Pen
Smudge-Proof Pens for Left-Handed College Students
Being left-handed in a lecture hall is a whole experience. You're fighting the tiny desk, the spiral binding, and the ink smearing across your palm. These pens actually dry fast enough to survive southpaw life.
Try this if every page you write ends up with a silver streak from your hand dragging through wet ink. The quick-dry formula is no joke. First pen that didn't leave me looking like I dipped my pinky in ink.
Uni Jetstream Sport Ballpoint Pen 0.7mm Black
Keep a couple of these in rotation. The no-smear technology actually works, which is saying something because I've been burned by that claim before. My left-handed lab partner stole one and never gave it back.
Sharpie S-Gel Retractable Gel Pen 0.7mm
Use this for essay exams when you're writing fast and can't wait for ink to dry. The hybrid ink sits on top of the paper instead of soaking in, so your palm stays clean. Wish someone had told me about these freshman year.
PILOT Acroball Advanced Ink Refill
Grab a few before your next writing-intensive class. Dries in about one second, which sounds like marketing fluff but I timed it during a boring lecture. Zero smudging on standard notebook paper.
Pentel EnerGel RTX Retractable Liquid Gel Pen
Snag this for quick-drying ink that doesn't sacrifice smoothness. Most fast-dry pens feel scratchy, but this one glides. For any lefty who's tired of choosing between comfort and clean pages.
Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.5 Retractable Gel Ink Pen
Refillable Pens That Save Money Over Four Years
I added up how much I spent on disposable pens freshman year and almost choked. These refillable options cost more upfront but paid for themselves by sophomore spring. Your wallet will thank you.
Try a fountain pen if you've never considered one. Sounds fancy but it's under twenty bucks and refills cost almost nothing. I've spent less on ink in two years than I used to spend on pens in one semester.
PILOT Metropolitan Collection Fountain Pen
Get the metal body version and just keep buying refill cartridges. The pen itself feels solid enough to last all four years. I'm on my sixth refill and the pen still looks and writes like new.
Pentel EnerGel Alloy Retractable Gel Pen
Bring this to class if you want something that writes well and doesn't scream "I bought a 50-cent pen from the campus bookstore." Refills are everywhere and it clips perfectly to a planner.
Parker Jotter Stainless Steel Ballpoint Pen
Swap to this if you want comfortable long writing sessions without burning through disposable pens. The triangular grip forces proper hand position. Took me two days to adjust and now regular pens feel wrong.
LAMY safari umbra
Use this as your everyday carry pen that you actually refill instead of tossing. The twist mechanism is satisfying and the refills snap in easily. Paid for itself after about three months of constant use.
Uni Jetstream Prime Ballpoint Pen, 0.5mm
Pen Storage and Accessories for Messy Backpacks
Finding a pen at the bottom of my backpack used to take longer than the quiz itself. These organizers and cases stopped me from losing a pen every other week and showing up to exams empty-handed.
Toss all your pens, highlighters, and erasers into this instead of letting them float around your bag. Fits way more than it looks like it should. Stopped me from frantically borrowing pens before every exam.
ProCase 2-Layer Large Capacity Pencil Case
Grab this if you want to see every pen at a glance instead of digging around. Opens flat like a book so you can pick exactly what you need in two seconds. My color-coded system finally became functional.
LIHIT LAB Large Capacity Zipper Pencil Case
Keep one of these in your binder for pens you use in specific classes. The mesh lets you see what's inside without opening it. Costs almost nothing and saved me from the "wrong pen for the wrong class" panic.
Amazon Basics 30-Pack Mesh Zipper Pouch Bags
Use this if you carry a ridiculous number of pens like I do. Stands up on your desk so you can grab and go during lectures. Fits about 50 pens, which sounds excessive until you become a pen person.
EASTHILL Big Capacity Pencil Pen Case
Switch to this for a case that converts into a stand on your desk. Unzip the top half and it folds down into a cup shape. Saved me so much fumbling during fast-paced lectures where every second of note-taking counts.
KOKUYO Neo Critz Pen Case, Regular, Navy