Updated weekly. The methodical review of fountain pens
Nib & Ink
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By use case.

The right pen depends on what you're going to do with it. A great journaling pen and a great travel pen aren't always the same pen. Each use case below ranks the catalog by the composite score for that scenario — drawn from the per-pen use case grid on every scored review.

36 pens ranked · 6 use cases

First pen

Forgiving writers, conventional shapes, low learning curve.

Top pick 96 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen Exceptional 93 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen Strong choice 86 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Strong choice 84 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Good fit 68 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Good fit 68 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review

Office EDC

Durable, professional in hand, comfortable across long meetings.

Top pick 90 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 84 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 82 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Strong choice 79 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Skip 48 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen Skip 46 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen

Journaling

Wet, smooth, paper-tolerant — for long-form writing sessions.

Top pick 91 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review Exceptional 88 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 84 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen Strong choice 83 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 80 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Good fit 72 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen

Travel

Robust under bag-rattle, dry-out resistant, TSA-friendly.

Top pick 91 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen Strong choice 84 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Strong choice 78 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 76 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Good fit 72 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review Good fit 71 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen

Calligraphic flourishes

Line variation — stub nibs, flex, expressive width.

Top pick 76 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Good fit 72 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Good fit 64 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Skip 48 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review Skip 14 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen Skip 8 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen

Gift

Reads more expensive than it is, looks intentional out of the box.

Top pick 89 out of 100 Pilot Custom 74 Fountain Pen Review Exceptional 88 out of 100 Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review Strong choice 86 out of 100 Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pen Review Good fit 72 out of 100 Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Acceptable 62 out of 100 Pilot Disposable Fountain Pen Acceptable 62 out of 100 Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen