If you were wondering whether handwritten notes are better than typing on a laptop or phone, research from Europe and the United States is giving stronger scientific support to the idea that writing by hand may help the brain remember and understand information more deeply.
In 2024, Norwegian neuroscientist Audrey van der Meer and her team at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology published a study in the journal Frontiers in Psychology examining how the brain responds during handwriting and typing tasks.
The researchers recruited 36 university students and fitted each participant with a cap containing 256 EEG sensors to monitor brain activity. Words appeared on a screen one at a time. Participants either wrote the words by hand on a touchscreen using a digital pen or typed the same words on a keyboard.
According to the study, those who wrote by hand showed broader communication across brain regions linked to memory, movement, sensory processing, and learning. But for those who typed, typing produced far less coordinated brain activity.
Van der Meer explained that handwriting involves “precise control of hand movements” and requires the brain to coordinate vision, movement, and spatial awareness at the same time. Typing, by comparison, relies on repeated movements that demand less varied coordination.
The researchers argued that this difference may affect how information is stored and recalled, especially among children and students learning new concepts.
The findings added to earlier work carried out in the United States by Pam Mueller and Daniel Oppenheimer. Their 2014 study tested 327 students across several experiments comparing handwritten and laptop note-taking during lectures.
The study found that students who used laptops typically wrote more words because they could type more quickly. However, students who wrote notes by hand performed better on questions that tested understanding and long-term recall.
Mueller and Oppenheimer concluded that laptop users often copied lectures almost word-for-word without carefully processing the information, whereas handwritten note-takers had to summarize ideas in their own words. That process, they argued, improved learning.
The studies have generated fresh discussion online after a long thread shared on X, formerly Twitter, by writer Ihtesham Ali on Monday, May 18, 2026, gained millions of views.
Ali wrote: “Handwriting makes the brain work. Typing lets it coast.”
The post drew responses from teachers, lawyers, students, and professionals who described similar personal experiences.
Rachel Pitzel, who said she attended law school between 2003 and 2006, wrote that she switched completely to handwritten notes after noticing she retained less information while typing.
“I realized I wasn’t retaining info from typing that I normally do, having to summarize and handwrite notes,” she posted.
Susan Oh also wrote that she takes handwritten notes during calls “not for the sake of the notes but because I found it made recall much easier.”
Other users connected the findings to long-standing educational practices.
Rick, another X user, pointed to the work of Italian physician and educator Maria Montessori, whose teaching methods focused on physical interaction and handwriting for children.
“Till this day, true Montessori schools still rely heavily on children writing cursive,” he wrote.
Some educators also argued that handwriting supports reading development because students physically learn the shapes and structures of letters as they write.
Researchers caution, however, that the findings do not mean typing is harmful or useless. Computers remain important for drafting, communication, research, and professional work. Typing can also improve speed and accessibility.
Still, many neuroscientists and education researchers say that handwriting appears to encourage deeper mental processing because it slows people down and forces them to organize information as they write.
For students preparing for examinations, professionals taking meeting notes, or people trying to remember new information or seeking to upskill, the research suggests that using pen and paper may still offer advantages that digital devices do not fully replace.
