Best Multifunction Pens of 2024: Top 10 Picks Ranked by Writing Feel

Introduction

Multifunction pens are easy to love and easy to get wrong. The good ones combine several refills and a pencil mechanism without feeling bulky, and the best ones write so smoothly you forget they are doing three jobs at once. This ranking focuses on one thing above all: writing feel. Every pen here includes a pencil mechanism, and each earned its place through daily use rather than spec sheets alone. Here are ten multifunction pens worth owning, counted down from tenth to first.

No. 10: Sakura Craft Lab 004

At around 8,800 yen, the Sakura Craft Lab 004 is a twist-action multifunction pen with 0.4mm black and red gel ink ballpoints plus a pencil mechanism. The standout feature is the slightly textured grip made of nickel silver, an alloy composed of more than 50% zinc and nickel. It has a restrained, mature look that grows on you, and the overall material quality is a big part of why this pen stays in regular rotation.

No. 9: Pilot 4+1 Ridge

The Pilot 4+1 Ridge sits at the top of the Ridge series and costs about 12,000 yen. You get 0.7mm black, red, blue, and green ballpoints alongside a 0.5mm pencil, with Acro Ink refills that glide very smoothly from the first stroke. It ranked higher in previous years, but simply got less use this time around. For anyone who cycles through many ink colors in a notebook, the 3+1 version is often cited as the better value.

No. 8: Ohto Multi B

At roughly 2,200 yen, the Ohto Multi B is remarkable value. This friction-knock multifunction pen carries 0.7mm black and red ballpoints plus a 0.5mm pencil. Its signature feature is a 45mm long knurled brass grip, and the needle-tip refills keep your view of the page clear while writing. It has the look of a drafting pencil, balances well in the hand, and writes better than its price suggests.

No. 7: Parker Sonnet Multifunction

The Parker Sonnet Multifunction, around 8,800 yen, is a twist-action pen with black and red ballpoints and a 0.5mm pencil. It is noticeably slim and compact for a multifunction pen, making it a natural fit for a small planner. The twist mechanism operates with a smooth, satisfying feel, the writing quality is solid, and the refined design works in almost any setting.

No. 6: Platinum Double Action R3 Rosewood

This swiss-style multifunction pen pairs black and red ballpoints with a 0.5mm pencil in a rosewood barrel. It was originally released as a limited model and has since been discontinued, which makes it a genuinely rare find: a wooden-barrel multifunction pen from a major Japanese manufacturer. The warm, pleasant feel of the wood barrel is calming to hold, and the pen tip wobble is minimal, so the writing experience holds up too.

No. 5: Uni Jetstream 4&1 Light Touch

Priced at about 1,040 yen, the Uni Jetstream 4&1 Light Touch is the cheapest pen in this ranking and arguably the best value. It is a slide-knock multifunction pen with black, red, blue, and green 0.7mm ballpoints plus a pencil, and it carries newly developed Jetstream ink introduced in 2024. The newly developed ink is dark and extremely smooth. The pencil advance works just like a regular pencil, and tip wobble is impressively low.

No. 4: Itoya romo Number 4 Brown

At around 7,150 yen, the Itoya romo Number 4 is a friction-knock multifunction pen with 0.7mm black, red, and blue ballpoints plus a 0.5mm pencil. The leather grip version in brown is the pick here, and it is the kind of material that rewards patience: the leather has already developed an amber tone with a growing shine. Strong looks and a genuinely good writing feel explain why this pen appears near the top of rankings year after year.

No. 3: Pilot 2+1 Slim

The Pilot 2+1 Slim is no longer in production, which is a shame, because it does something few pens manage: fitting black and red ballpoints plus a 0.5mm pencil into a remarkably slim metal barrel. Despite the short overall length, the thin body is the defining trait. The metal shaft is well balanced, tip wobble is nearly nonexistent, and the Acro Ink refills make writing feel very smooth. It is also perfectly sized for a small planner.

No. 2: Zebra Shabo X TF12

The most expensive pen on this list at 133,100 yen, the Zebra Shabo X TF12 is a quantity-limited model based on the Shabo X that revives the design of the original Shabo. It is a twist-action pen with 0.7mm black and red ballpoints plus a 0.5mm pencil. The twist action is silent and exceptionally smooth, tip wobble is minimal, and the whole pen feels finished to a noticeably higher standard than the regular Shabo X. The emulsion ink delivers a beautifully smooth writing feel to match the looks.

No. 1: Uni Jetstream Prime 2&1

Taking the top spot is the Uni Jetstream Prime 2&1, around 3,630 yen. This slide-knock multifunction pen combines black and red ballpoints with a pencil mechanism, drawn from the premium Prime line of the Jetstream family. The design was refreshed in 2022 and received a minor update in 2024, and that design carries on to this day. It is highly refined and easy to handle, the Jetstream ink delivers its well-known writing feel, and tip wobble is low. Three years after release, it still earns regular use, which says everything about how complete this pen is.

Final Buying Advice

If you want maximum value, the Uni Jetstream 4&1 Light Touch is hard to beat. If you want the best writing instrument regardless of budget, the Shabo X TF12 stands alone. For everyday carry with character, the Itoya romo Number 4 and the Jetstream Prime 2&1 both make excellent long-term companions. And if you find a discontinued model like the Pilot 2+1 Slim or the Platinum Double Action R3 Rosewood in stock, grab it, because multifunction pens this good do not always stick around.

Conclusion

A great multifunction pen is defined less by how many functions it packs and more by how naturally it disappears into daily writing. Every pen in this top 10 delivers a comfortable, low-wobble writing experience, and the best of them add materials and mechanisms that make each use feel like a small pleasure. Whatever your budget, there is a pen here worth carrying every day.