RunsOnLinux

Do drawing tablets work on Linux?

Verdict: Mostly yes

Mostly yes. Wacom tablets are supported by drivers already installed on most Linux systems, so you plug in and draw. Other brands generally work too, but expect to install something and to spend time on the buttons and pressure settings.

Wacom is the comfortable choice. The Linux Wacom Project contributes its work straight into the Linux kernel and says its drivers are pre-installed in most major distributions, giving out-of-the-box support for virtually all Wacom tablets and tablet PCs. Their own summary is that you can usually plug in the tablet and start working. They do note the exception that matters: very new or unusual models may arrive before support does, so a tablet released last month is less certain than one released two years ago.

For everything else there is DIGImend, a project whose stated aim is improving Linux support for generic graphics tablets. It covers Huion, KYE, UC-Logic and Waltop, plus the many tablets sold under other names such as Aiptek, Genius, Monoprice, Princeton and Trust. Its scope is effectively any USB tablet not made by Wacom. Pressure sensitivity, tilt and the tablet buttons are all in play, but the setup is more hands-on than with Wacom and the express keys often need mapping yourself.

Display tablets, the ones with a screen you draw directly on, add a second problem on top of the pen. The screen has to be recognised as a monitor and then the pen has to be told to point at that screen rather than your main one. It works, and people do it every day, but it is the part most likely to take an afternoon.

The drawing apps themselves are not the issue. Krita, GIMP, Inkscape and Blender all run natively on Linux and all read pen pressure. The weak spot is Adobe, which does not make Linux versions of Photoshop or Illustrator, so a tablet that works perfectly may still leave you changing the app you draw in.

Check yours before you switch

  1. Check the brand first. If it is a Wacom, you are in the well-supported group. If it is anything else, look your exact model up in the DIGImend supported devices list.
  2. Note the model number from the underside of the tablet, not the marketing name on the box. Brands reuse names across very different hardware.
  3. Boot a Linux live USB, plug the tablet in, open the drawing app that comes with the system and check that the pen moves the cursor and that pressing harder makes a thicker line.
  4. In the same session, try the tablet's side buttons and the pen's barrel button, since these are the parts most likely to need setting up by hand.

How the brands compare

Wacom

Works

Drivers ship pre-installed on most distributions and cover virtually the whole range. Plug in and draw. Brand new models can be the exception.

Huion

Partly · Mostly works

Covered by the DIGImend project. Pen and pressure generally work, with more manual setup for buttons and for display models.

XP-Pen

Partly · Mostly works

Widely used on Linux and generally usable, though setting up the express keys and getting a display model aligned takes more work than a Wacom.

Monoprice, Genius, Trust and similar

Partly · Mostly works

Mostly rebadged UC-Logic or Huion hardware, which is what DIGImend was built for. Check the model rather than the badge.

Hardware changes model by model, so the surest test is your own.Running Linux from a USB stick lets you try it with nothing installed.

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