Which is BETTER? Ballpoint Vs Gel Pens 💥

[@JetPens]

Team Ballpoint or Team Gel Pen? It's so hard to choose! Cast your vote in the comments below!

[@BK-os1rk]

Ballpoint 😂

[@jfgme]

Gel!

[@clear-radar]

Rollerball.

[@ManishMeena-pd6hr]

Gel pens for me, I think @jetpens can gift me g2 , zebra mark on and sarasa clip as a christmas gift .

[@SMaamri78]

Gel pen!

[@masonr1666]

Here is the major difference I have found in ballpoint pens versus gel pens: The line from a ballpoint pen tends to be thinner than a line from a gel pen. Ballpoint pens also tend to not have an even and consistent ink flow. You also need a bit more pressure to write with them. The benefit is they can write on most papers, so you don't have to pay attention to paper quality. They also tend to be cheap, and disposable. Gel pens, have much smoother and more consistent ink flow than ballpoint pen [it is rare to see an inconsistent line], however, not all gel pens are created equal, I have had some pens skip, and require some shaking of the pen to get it to write again. Gel pens do not do well on glossy paper. They are less finicky than fountain pens when it comes to paper choice. They are my preferred pen type. [Yes, I own fountain pens, ballpoint pens, rollerball, and felt tip pens.]

[@io-rj6sk]

this guy pens

[@irishswtpea]

On what planet is a gel pen thicker than a ballpoint pen? Just buy a 0.25 or a 0.3. Wild, incorrect info coming from you. 😮

[@adventurenfun]

@@irishswtpea He means the ink spread, if we compare a gel and ballpoint pen [same tip size], the gel ink will be thicker.

[@alexkerhead]

​@@adventurenfunIndeed. Thabks for pointing that out! I use gels exclusively for this reason. After some point all ballpoint writing seems harder to read once it has dried a week or so. The ink flows slightly out of the tip width, so newbies need to know a 0.7mm gel will "look" as wide as a 1mm ballpoint on the paper with a heavy writing hand.

[@N9TheNoob]

true, i can achieve some incredibly thin lines with some of my thinner ballpoint pens by using close to no pressure when writing @@adventurenfun

[@qwe1231]

Energel all day long. I spent SO MANY years trying different pens and for a long time settled on UniBall as the best of the bunch, but I was never completely satisfied. I bought a JetPens sampler pack a few years ago and was mind-blown at how well Energel worked with my lefty overwriting, in terms of ink vibrancy and quick drying.

[@tsukipon74]

Another EnerGel fan! I also got a sampley with one and fell in love with it.

[@mythiliramesh8256]

@@tsukipon74 same history of how I got my EnerGel 😁

[@akira_ariga]

I've been a gel pen person most of my life and use them for most normal writing. However, I still carry around a backup ballpoint just in case. I do love all the uniball stuff, especially their ballpoints, but for gel, I tend to prefer the energel. No real reason other than I just think it feels nice and the love the clonky click it has. (Also frixion because I hate commitment xD) *I've recently tried the sarasa grand and ohto liberty for the first time and they were also fantastic

[@kylielzx7018]

same

[@ItoeKobayashi]

Thanks to this video, I've discovered that a set of pens my father gifted me years ago are an older version of the Parker Jotter! The mention of the arrow clip had me pausing the video to dig it out and confirm it! Now I know what ink to get for it when it runs out!

[@eric_the_egggremlin]

my mom is an accountant who likes to color code and writes very fast. gel pens are her fave. she still uses ballpoints on receipts, but she covets Papermate Ink Joys like they're gold.

[@mellow-jello]

Professional trio: Parker Jotter, Pentel Energel Philography, and Uniball Signo 207. Can't go wrong with either, but 207 definitely for signatures.

[@yn020]

Here's my opinion: I prefer gel because unlike ball point pens, the consistency is perfect. You could draw straight lines smoothly unlike ball pens, their ink faints when exposed to longer consistency. Additionally, the blue which ballpoint pens have are more like purple, or maybe a dull version of blue. It just doesn't match with my preferences. Although there are some ballpoint pens with good blue, it's very rare to find them.

[@gerarddip]

You know a video producer is brilliant when i become entranced by pen ads of all things

[@clear-radar]

Rollerball pen lover: 🥺 Rollerballs are underrated. I love writing with Uni-ball Vision Elite, and Pilot V-ball which is not on JetPens.

[@HS-ml8dx]

Pentel EnerGel Needle Tip is my current favourite, but for the past almost-3 decades I always have a Pilot V-ball 0.5 in my pencil case. Excellent pen.😊

[@coursefearwell4847]

I prefer ballpoint pens. Mainly because of the issue where the ink beads up at the tip and makes a mess when you write. It happens with both types, but it seems to happen more to me with gel pens.

[@karigori6415]

It happens to me more when using ballpoint 😂

[@themisterchristie]

If I had to choose between ballpoint or gel pen, it would depend on the situation. Normal paper, gel pen all the way, my choice the Pentel Energel. More extreme surfaces where gel doesn't work well would be a ballpoint, my choice is the Zebra X-701 because it can be used in all sorts of extreme situations, from under water to upside-down. That said, most of the time I'm neither team gel pen, nor team ballpoint, rather team fountain pen.

[@kateru638]

Team Ballpoint ;D Perfect pens for me: Uni Jetstream, Berlingo Skyline and Pilot Acroball.

[@sylviarienzo6955]

I discovered the Parker Jotter about twenty-five years ago. I still love this pen. I loved that it wrote upside down too so I could do my crossword puzzles lying down. I have struggled with buying refills for it. Sometimes the ink comes dried out (or something, I’m not sure why it won’t write properly). I wound up buying eight or ten of these pens so I could have them in every room in the house. They are great ball point pens!

[@jeffreytse8265]

As an int'l student in uk from china, I'm used to using gel pen (gel ink, not rollerball) but finding ballpoint is not bad recently. In China, ballpoint is not allowed to use in exams and signing formal documents and people use gel pen for them. Also, you get much better writing experience with gel pen when writing chinese due to its structure. However, after I started living in the uk, I found ballpoint pen here is nice even if it's just bic😂

[@pineapple8992]

I'm just collecting signatures on regular printer paper, and 1.0mm gel pens definitely are the best choice. Smooth feel, and 1.0 lays down a good amount of ink.

[@liz_violet]

Ballpoints may have less color options, but they gunk up and spill less then gel pens imo. at least, the good ones. i got a knockoff pen with Parker ink YEARS ago, and i like using it more then my 3 Sarasa Clips...but not as much as my Inkjoy bc its purple. The Gelly Rolls are *unwieldy* compared to all of those though, its ink is just GUSHING everywhere when i warm them up.

[@bunnymoonvii]

Well, gel pens are for fun, I get them in a ton of different colors, and they give me that dopamine hit, but ballpoints are for utility, you have one and you know it'll work

[@nonymus-un2px]

1:42 Missed the perfect opportunity to say ‘It de-pens’

[@loumacuser]

I find either the Fisher Space Pen refill or Zebra F701 standard ink are most versatile in a fast paced work or industrial environment. I do use however a Pilot Juice (gel) in my Karas Kustoms Retrakt for my planner. I just say, the Caran d’Ache 849 BP Ink writes amazingly well and smooth.

[@heathergleiser]

I’m primarily a fountain pen user, but I can’t give up my Signo 151 gel or Retro 51 rollerball. They all have a purpose in my collection.

[@sparklefulpaladin]

I'm a fan of the Uni Jetstream ink in the Parker Jotter body, as I'm not a fan of the super squishy grip and the Jetstream as-is feels a little cheap to me. My go-to gel pens tend to be either Uniball Signo or Pilot G2 (mostly because those are everywhere). I tend towards either fountain pen or rollerball, though.

[@Andidejager.]

I like ballpoint pens for sketching when I don’t want to option of using an eraser! I went to one of the Trump hotels all the way back in 2012 for a karate tournament and got a free pen there. Somehow that pen NEVER goes missing and I don’t even care for it. So that’s the ballpoint I’ve been using for over a decade😂 finally purchased a nice refillable one today! Gel pens are also really fun though, the colours are so fun and I often use them over the ballpoint sketches to add colour and darken the lines 😍

[@happytrails.]

I've swung from one to the other and back again. Things have changed again for me now need thicker tips for higher contrast/bolder colors that I can see better; thicker/cushier barrels for arthritis; inks that take longer to run out because the costs add up; retractable so I don't lose caps and they don't leak. Gels are out because the cost adds up, despite the pretty colors and ease of writing. I've been experimenting with putting ballpoint ink refills in old retractable gel pen barrels, I put dabs of glue on them so they work retractable. Sometimes I have to cut them shorter.

[@kejean12]

I'm a ballpoint pen person. I press very hard and write small. It feels like gel pens scratch the paper so it's a sensory thing for me. I have multiple different gel pens at all different price points and have yet to find a one I actually like. Ballograf Epoca P is my favorite pen at the moment with the fine point refill. I have a few of the Zebra Blen pens. I can't stand the grip on it. It attracts lint and dirt. I generally don't like any grips on my pens.

[@melabonbon]

I love both, but for all-around daily use, I prefer ballpoint pens. I feel like gel pens run out of ink too quickly, and I love how ballpoint pens make the pages in my journal sound all crinkly after they've been written on.

[@AE1OU]

I like gel pens because of how smooth it feels to write with them but they do tend to over bleed and make a smudgy mess. Ballpoint feels cleaner and has a finer line but tends to feel like sometimes im scraping into the paper or that the ink sometimes stop coming out mid writing. Both to me has pros and cons but generally I go for a 0.5mm gel pen just to minimize smudges and overbleeding. Go to gel pen is always pilot's G-2 gel pens since school days to adulthood.

[@JericoJopio]

Seriously, I like both ballpoint pens and gel pens! My favorite ballpoint pens: -Pilot Acroball (Pure White, Acro 300, and M series) -Uni Jetstream -Uni Power Tank -Parker Jotter -Pentel Feel-It! (imported from India) -Dong-A Cronix and AnyBall (I haven't tried the Zebra bLen and Surari yet!😅) My favorite gel pens: -Sakura Gelly Roll -Pilot Juice and Juice Up -Uni-ball Signo DX and 307 -Platinum A-Pen (probably available only in China and Japan, I'm not sure though) -Zebra Sarasa Clip -Pentel Hybrid Technica (0.4 mm tip size) -Pentel EnerGel (retractable versions) -Paper Mate Inkjoy (made in India but the refills are from South Korea)😊

[@giacomoboffi9394]

Energel for fun, G-Tec for work. And a ball point, an all-metal Jotter, as sometimes one has to fill those multi-layered, self-copying forms.

[@Jess_isahotmess]

I bought the frixion pens online a couple years ago and even though I loved how well the erased and the ink was great I had to give them away. It never dawned on me that heat would make my writing disappear until my entire monthly payroll paperwork was gone after leaving my clipboard on the dashboard, in Ohio, mid-December. Now, I stick with writech or my clena for everything.

[@vivianlopez5202]

Since I was a child I used ballpoint pens, I have to pay the price, callouses in my middle finger 'cause I'm a heavy handwriter 😞😞, until I discovered gel pens a few years ago at college, nowadays I spread the word of gel pens 😌😌. My GOAT gel pen PENTEL ENERGEL. My fave ballpoint whichever low viscosity pen.

[@jelvlogs2011]

Pentel EnerGels and sarasa clip are best, while for ballpoint pens its uni jetsream and pilot actoball.😊

[@CristinaVillanueva-x7v]

Yes son it's 👍

[@penelopefp]

I'm pretty sure I started using the 307 gel after learning that gel ink couldn't be "washed" from checks by criminals that tried to rewrite stolen checks to themselves. My colored RSVP stick pens and another thick-body ball point pens are my fave ball points more for the body style than the ink. Maybe if I find a better refill for the thick body pen.... I could put pictures in the pen body and it was a fun gift to give, but I'm Team Gel all the way now. Frixion for school and Uni Ball for journaling.

[@rjp666]

As a left-handed person, there is no difference between gel or ink pens. They are both messy and always smudge. And as for fountain pens 😱😱😱😱😱

[@PrazgreenStudios]

I own primarily fountain pens, but I also have an Orenz AT, a set of gel pens, and a ballpoint pen. I plan on adding a Pilot Hi-Tech C to my collection

[@RadioBaby999]

I like both. Ballpoint pens have oil based inks and they are very thick. While gel pens, on the other hand, have water based inks and they are very thin.

[@Yohann_Rechter_De-Farge]

I would like to tell you that many uni-ball pens do have sharp nib which is good but unfortunately their colour in blue is quite light.

[@kerc]

For ballpoints, the correct answer is Bic Cristal. 🙂 Especially the 1.6 Bold.

[@archietheredcat]

so i just buy my first uni jetstream, but personally I like Sarasa zebra more, and their color line up are so wide I can use it to make art

[@nadiako4513]

The correct answer is mechanical pencils! Tactile turn user plus rotring 600

[@gessiwiggins3861]

Personally I would use both I just haven’t found the ballpoint pen for me yet. But I think it depends on the situation and what I’m using the pen for.

[@GamePlayer547]

I love my Uniball Jetstreams, but am thinking about trying out a gel pen, especially for the finer points. They seem to do well for those.

[@elysianblues]

question: in gel, ball, and fountain pens, is there such thing as a lavender ink? i havent ever found an ink that looks lavender / true purple. ive only seen wine purple in pens :/

[@phasmine_]

Sakura Gelly Roll has a Lavender colour in their Moonlight series!

[@MeikamiB]

Yes! Fountain pen inks have what you want. Try Sailor Ink Studio 335, 150, or 350, Organics Studio Potassium, Monteverde Purple Mist, or J Herbin Violet Imperial. Colorverse also has some nice softer purples!

[@garischmidt4171]

The frixion lavender is really lovely! I used to love Pentel RSVP stick pens with purple ink, but once I found erasable gel I've left the RSVP alone, neglected, drying out.

[@jonr6680]

Aside from writing sensation and performance, oil based ballpoints tend to be waterproof by default, so more resilient to spills. I tested a page of all my pens and was shocked at how water immersion literally dissolved many of the water based inks. Like ERASED them. So for college notes or bujos, be careful... One spilled coffee or rainstorm could be disaster.

[@SnowYukiYap]

I'm not a fan of Uni Jetstream Ballpoint Pen, but I prefer Pilot Acroball XF As I'm a Gel Pen lover, I love uniball Signo 307 more than Pentel Energel after I have a test

[@siddharth.246]

Hi... I'm from India. I love the feel of writing with a gel pen - the flow/fluidity, writing with less pressure. My first favorites were ADD Gel Zero Gravity. 🙂

[@rebeccamartin3744]

My Uni Jetstream #1!!

[@hood1148]

What's the best pen for holding the pen at an acute angle to the paper when writing? The way I hold my pen makes it difficult to use most pens

[@JetPens]

Hi there! You might like a fountain pen or rollerball pen. Check out our blogs for our recommendations: www.jetpens.com/blog/The-Best-Fountain-Pens-for-Every-Budget/pt/368 www.jetpens.com/blog/The-Best-Rollerball-Pens/pt/961

[@apostateant]

Definitely Team Fountain Pen first. Between ballpoint and gel, I'll take the ballpoint.

[@peatato]

In my opinion, I would say both. I keep my favourite gel pen and ballpoint pen in my pencil case. My favourite gel pen being the Uni-ball Signo Premier 207 with the Pentel Energel 0.5mm refill, and my favourite ballpoint pen being Pilot Acroball. They both are smooth to write with, have vibrant black ink and dries quickly. So I would say both of them will be a tie. What if I have to choose one? Well I would go for gel pen. Gel pen writes smoother and perfect for me who has a callus on my finger

[@gegegebebebe5087]

Hi, off topic question: In some of your videos you have a piece of paper (?) under the palm of your writing hand. Do you have an explanation video about that?

[@JerichoTheCity]

I find gel pens to be too smooth. I feel like I'm going all over the place compared to ballpoint pens that are usually more grippy on paper; kind of like a pencil.

[@HeidiRaatz]

Team All The Pens! 😂 For ballpoints I like Uni Jetstream and Caran d'Ache 849, gel Zebra Sarasa MarkOn or Sarasa Nano, and all sorts of fountain pens and inks for the better paper. Oh, and then there's the fineliners...

[@rebeccaanderson4728]

Hands down always a ball point pen for me.

[@SethyReach]

I own a Parker jotter and it is pretty good

[@vladdreemurr40]

I am so gel pen person! Mainly because ballpoint pens always stop writing having very much ink inside.

[@JericoJopio]

Although most gel pens are tricky to use for signing receipts, the Uni-ball Signo UM-151 gel pen is an exception. I actually used it to sign the back of my ATM card which had a smooth surface, and the Signo worked! Some gel pens like the Sakura Gelly Roll-specifically the Glaze, Metallic, Moonlight, and Gold Shadow- could even write on smooth plastic surfaces (though you'd have to wait for several hours until the ink dries).😊

[@dosgos]

Which pen should you get? It DE-PENS !

[@LamMarshall]

Oh😂

[@augustthetoboggan9449]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[@mercedes7087]

Ballpoint is my favorite & need to have a grip

[@tsukipon74]

The Uni Jetstream pen changed my life and opinion on ballpoint pens. It's my favorite ever and I have yet to find anything that could top the comfort of writing.

[@LazyStory]

Must be waterproof ! So ballpoint pen... and it comes to: Uni Jetstream

[@hamzariaz1873]

Team Ball points here! 💜

[@Balaxfilms]

I’m a gel pen person. My fav gel pen is probably the pental energel in black and blue

[@Pumpdurd]

It depends on my mood. Sometimes i just want that smooth feel of the ballpoints, but other times I want the clean lines and tactile feel of the get pens.

[@Jasen-M74]

Ballpointer-all the way, Baby! 💪🏻

[@kokolexx]

Fountain pen > gel pen > everything else

[@junjunjamore7735]

But they're not waterproof.

[@garischmidt4171]

Gel pens for SURE.... FRIXION is my fave!! Preferably the 0.38 multi pen!!

[@jfgme]

Sarasa Clip pens are my go to!

[@loumacuser]

Also. I love my Pilot VanishPoint Fiuntain pens and are reserved for writing letters, cards and special notes. I limit daily use because of the industrial environment I spend most of my time in.

[@thinaphonpetsiri9907]

For me I carry my fountain pens but have Jotter as a backup when encountered a low quality paper.

[@yami_yomiel]

As an artist, i fancy ballpoints more than gels. Mostly because they were the only pens i could get my hands on. Plus i cpuld always tell if it works because.. the gels i had were very finicky, to say the least (lol)

[@phasmine_]

I love rollerball pens but I also have both gel and ballpoint pens for when I can’t use rollerballs or when it isn’t practical to use rollerball pens.

[@charliemoorejr.]

Team Gel Pens. Team Uniball right now. Dec 21, 2023 7:50 PM

[@pinkmagicali]

We’re not allowed to use gel pens at work. The ink fades and quality rules mean we have to use ball point.

[@micaylab1]

Uniball Signo 307 gel pens aren’t really the best anymore because recently I’ve been finding that despite the fact they still have lots of ink in them They Do Skip and the Ink Has A Tendency To Thin Sometimes!

[@bhaveerathod2373]

Omgg i want all of them 😭😭

[@norcimorci]

Well I'm a fountain pen lover. But between these 2....gel of course! Nobody hates ballpoint pens as much as I do😅

[@Cocoa-k4h]

Are zebra mark on pens supposed to be scratchy to write with? The one I bought was scrathchy

[@JetPens]

The smaller tip sizes can feel scratchier if you're used to something like the G2!

[@athenaenergyshine7616]

Team Gel pen, roller ball fountain pen. Pentel energel for me.

[@naziarahaman4212]

Both!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@warrenrhinerson6373]

Which will I use? Whatever is available.

[@randy-9842]

May I vote outside the box for the Fountain Pen? Also, as far as ballpoints go, the Fisher Space Pen doesn't get enough "love." You're right though, it all comes down to application and preference! Great suggestions.

[@thankscovey]

a true pen enthusiast knows the answer is both. my fave combo is a pentel calme and a uniball one.

[@ayeshaqaisar4399]

Team Gel Pen

[@universederp4782]

The correct answer is a fountain pen

[@ilikepens]

I came here to say the same thing!

[@JackRose666]

YES

[@somewhatboxes]

there are dozens of us!

[@StuggleIsSurreal]

Can you show an example of writing with a fountain pen when the paper is not flat, and you are forced to write a quick note on your knee, for instance?

[@Pumpdurd]

ya

[@Cfarmer2009]

Both' depends on my writing mood.

[@DannyMexen9]

Both.

[@TomoyoYumemi]

I need the pen stand show at 1:50 !

[@Rhotane_v]

If you still need an answer, then it's a Sakura belly roll

[@pimolrukpopra8847]

Happy Holidays Jetpens team 😊❤

[@TheSaharaBallYT]

I would rather pick Gel pen cuz my writings are very clean when i use it but sad my gel pen ink exploded 😭😭😭😭

[@sameeralazawee7524]

Thank you

[@somirbhaitipstrick6602]

Coffee or tea guys?😊

[@nicknick6960]

What about post it index tabs?

[@jellyfishes-png]

energel foreverrrrrrr rahhhhh 💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼

[@simimik.]

"TEAM BALLPOINT" here! 😊

[@VukanRistic]

Im using uni signo 207 its Just so good.

[@wrecktech]

I was a police officer for 30+ years and had to deal with cold and wet conditions which meant that many times the best writing instrument was a pencil.

[@mf6532]

As someone with more then 30 years in the outdoors I was so happy to have found the Uniball power tank.

[@amandajingleheimerschmidt3050]

Gel pens have come so far in the last 25 years! They were originally too “slippery” to write with and the ink was very smear-y. Now they have a much better feel when writing with, and inks can often be waterproof. I especially love the erasable inks ❤ Ballpoint pens haven’t changed much in the last 100 years; though they ARE good to have on hand as a backup.

[@Oraclestwin]

Rollerball FTW

[@HorazonGaming7098]

PENTEL ENERGEL FOR THE WIN! GEL PENS ARE PRIORITY!