Apple Pencil not working? Here’s how to fix it

If you have the Apple Pencil as an accessory for your iPad, chances are the accessory is pretty important to your workflow. This is why waking up one morning and seeing that your dear Apple Pencil is not working can be very disheartening. If you’re a designer or a creator, this may also be a disruption to your entire workflow.

Depending on what’s actually wrong with your Apple Pencil, you may get by with a simple fix, or need a full replacement. Here are some easy ways to find out what’s wrong with the stylus and how to fix it.

How to fix an unresponsive Apple Pencil

A few reasons could lead to your Apple Pencil not functioning as expected. Here’s a brief look at the steps we will take to diagnose the issue and rectify it.

1. Charging the Apple Pencil

2. Re-pairing the Apple Pencil

3. Tightening the nib on the Apple Pencil

4. Seeking professional help

1. Charge the Apple Pencil

The most likely reason your Apple Pencil has suddenly stopped working completely is because it is out of battery. This is also the easiest issue to fix. Simply leave your Apple Pencil to charge via the provided cable, and let it be for a while. If you have the new Apple Pencil Gen-3, you can charge the same with any USB Type-C cable.

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If your Apple Pencil supports passthrough charging, you can also attach it to the side of your iPad to charge it. Once you have completely charged the Pencil, connect it once again to your iPad and it should work just fine.

2. Unpair and pair the accessory once again

If a software bug is getting in the way of a smooth connection between your iPad and the Apple Pencil, you can make the iPad force-forget the connection, and re-pair the accessory to get it working.

To do this, head to the Bluetooth settings page on your iPad and find the Pencil from the list under My Devices. Tap on it and choose Forget This Device.

3. Tighten the nib of the Apple Pencil

If the Apple Pencil is still not working despite it having plenty of battery life and being paired correctly, you may be dealing with a loose nib. Not many people know this, but the Apple Pencil nib has been designed to be detachable and replaceable when it has worn out. If your nib is loose, you can tighten it by simply twisting the nib clockwise.

4. Get professional help

If the above-mentioned methods still don’t fix your Apple Pencil for you, it may be time to take it to the nearest Apple Store. Let a trained technician have a look at the accessory to determine what’s wrong, and if you have a serious problem, you should be able to claim a replacement under warrant or be guided on how to proceed with repairs.

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While a case of serious problems is hardly the case, remember to not panic, as most cases of an Apple Pencil not working can be traced back to a dead battery or a software bug, both of which can be easily fixed in minutes.