How to use an iPad as a drawing tablet for a Mac or Windows PC

Availability first: PadPad is not downloadable yet

Pad’s iPad client, PadPad, is coming soon and is currently awaiting App Store review. That means you cannot complete a Pad-based iPad setup today. This guide is useful prelaunch preparation: it explains the hardware and computer requirements, helps you choose between Sidecar and Pad, and gives you a clean setup sequence for the day the App Store listing goes live.

The computer hosts are already available for free. PadMac supports Apple-silicon Macs running macOS 15 or later. PadWin is a free Windows 11 beta. The Pad page always shows the current availability, while the full setup instructions cover Mac permissions and the additional components required by the Windows beta.

If you need to draw today and have an Android 9 or later device, PadDroid is already live and free. Follow the Android tablet drawing guide instead.

Decide whether Sidecar already solves the job

Apple’s Sidecar is built for supported Macs and iPads. It can extend or mirror a Mac desktop, and Apple Pencil can act as an input device in compatible Mac apps. For someone with a supported Mac who wants a second Apple display and whose preferred application behaves correctly with Sidecar, it is a sensible built-in choice.

Sidecar is not a Windows solution. It also follows Apple’s Continuity setup, including compatible Apple hardware and the same Apple Account on the devices. Pad takes a different approach: its client connects to a Pad host and returns tablet events to desktop applications. It is intended to cover both the free PadMac host and the PadWin beta, without requiring a Codonic account.

The fair choice is based on the computer and workflow, not on a blanket claim that one is universally better:

Need	Practical starting point
Extend or mirror a supported Mac with built-in Apple tools	Try Sidecar first
Use an iPad as pen input for a Windows 11 PC	Prepare for PadPad and PadWin
Use Pad’s capture choices, pressure curve, or per-app gestures	Prepare for PadPad and the matching host
Work immediately with an Android tablet or phone	Use PadDroid now

Prepare the iPad and Pencil

PadPad’s listed requirement is iPadOS 18 or later and an Apple Pencil. Before launch, check that your particular Pencil model is compatible with your iPad, pair it, charge it, and confirm that it writes normally in an iPad app. This simple native test prevents a Pencil pairing or hardware issue from being mistaken for a desktop connection issue later.

Think about physical comfort too. A stable stand with a shallow drawing angle is usually easier on the wrist than a tablet lying flat beside the keyboard. Leave enough room to rest your palm, and place the iPad where the charging connection will not catch your drawing hand. For long sessions, keep both devices powered.

Prepare the Mac or Windows host now

On an Apple-silicon Mac

Install PadMac from the Pad page, move it to Applications, and open its menu-bar icon. Grant Screen Recording so it can show the desktop content you select, and Accessibility so it can send incoming pen actions to the active desktop app. Reopen PadMac after granting the permissions. If Accessibility looks enabled but later produces no strokes, remove the stale entry and grant it to the current copy of PadMac again.

On a Windows 11 PC

Treat PadWin as beta software. Extract it to a stable location and follow the setup guide for the required .NET desktop runtime and ffmpeg.exe. When Windows Firewall asks, allow PadWin on private networks so a client on your trusted local network can discover it. Do not broaden that permission to public networks just to make setup easier.

Installing a host early lets you resolve operating-system warnings and capture permissions before PadPad arrives, but it does not make the iPad client available sooner.

Connect after PadPad launches

Once the App Store button is live, the expected sequence is straightforward:

1. Install and open the correct host on the computer.
2. Install PadPad on the iPad and allow local-network access when requested.
3. Put both devices on the same trusted local network for the first test.
4. Select the host from the client, then choose a display, app, window, or region to show.
5. Open a pressure-aware brush or pen tool on the computer and test light-to-firm strokes.

Pad connects the devices directly on the local path. There is no Codonic account, and the screen stream is not relayed through or stored in a Codonic cloud service. A pairing code is an optional host setting for approving a device, not a mandatory sign-in. Settings currently remain on the device; iCloud settings sync is not active.

Test input in the right order

Do not start by customising every gesture and pressure point. A short diagnostic sequence finds problems faster:

1. Position: draw a line and confirm that the desktop cursor follows the visible canvas.
2. Pressure: use a brush whose size or opacity responds to pressure, then vary Pencil force gradually.
3. Tilt and eraser: test them only if the chosen Pencil, host, and desktop application use those signals.
4. Shortcuts: add app-specific gestures after the basic pen path works.
5. Working area: decide whether a full display, a window, or a selected region gives the clearest canvas.

For Krita specifically, the Krita drawing-tablet guide explains its Tablet Tester, Windows input API, and pressure-curve checks.

Plan workflows beyond digital painting

An iPad drawing surface can also make a desktop computer friendlier for study. Keep the source material and full keyboard on the Mac or PC, then use Apple Pencil for equations, diagrams, lecture annotations, or a shared whiteboard. The desktop application still owns and saves the file.

The same arrangement is useful for document review. Open a PDF or form on the computer, select its ink or signature tool, and write from the iPad rather than exporting the document to iPadOS, signing a second copy, and transferring it back. That reduces duplicate files and keeps the surrounding desktop workflow intact. See the guide to handwriting, annotating, and signing on a computer for task-specific examples.

Troubleshooting to keep for launch day

The iPad cannot see the host

Check that the host is running and both devices are on the same normal local network. Guest, hotel, school, and office networks may block communication between devices. Restart the client and host after switching networks. On Windows, verify the private-network firewall permission.

The screen appears but Pencil strokes do nothing

On macOS, recheck Accessibility and relaunch PadMac. On Windows, confirm that PadWin’s prerequisites are present. Also make sure the intended desktop window is active and has a pen or brush tool selected.

Lines draw, but every line has the same width

First choose a brush known to use pressure. Then inspect the desktop application’s tablet-input settings. A mouse-compatible brush may draw perfectly while hiding the fact that tablet pressure is unavailable. Test another pressure-aware application before changing connection settings.

Drawing feels less responsive than expected

Move closer to the local access point, pause heavy network transfers, and test a smaller window or region instead of the entire desktop. Change one factor at a time. Avoid relying on unsupported latency promises: the useful measurement is whether your own network, computer, and chosen canvas feel consistent enough for your work.

Launch-day checklist

• Confirm on the Pad page that PadPad is marked live, not “coming soon.”
• Install the App Store build and approve local-network access.
• Start with one host, one display, and one simple pressure brush.
• Enable the optional pairing code if your network environment calls for it.
• Try a five-minute sketch or handwritten page before tuning shortcuts.

Until PadPad clears review, Sidecar remains a practical Mac-only option and PadDroid is the available Pad client. This guide will still be here when the iPad release arrives, without pretending that an unreleased app can already be installed.