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Drypoint is a printmaking technique of the intaglio family, in which an image is incised into a plate by scratching the surface with a hard, sharp metal (or diamond) point. Traditionally the plate was copper, but now acetate, zinc, or plexiglas are more commonly used. The deeper the scratch on the surface, the darker the ink will be at that point. This technique is different from engraving, in which the incisions are made by gouging, although the two can easily be combined, as Rembrandt often did. While engraved lines are very smooth and hard-edged, drypoint scratching leaves a rough burr at the edges of each line. This burr gives drypoint prints a characteristically soft, and sometimes blurry, line quality. Because the pressure of printing quickly destroys the burr, drypoint is useful only for very small editions; as few as ten or twenty impressions. To counter this, and allow for longer print runs, electroplating (here called steelfacing) can harden the surface of a plate.

Like etching, but perhaps less so, drypoint is easier for an artist trained in drawing to master than engraving, as the technique of using the needle is closer to using a pencil than the engraver's burin.

The technique appears to have been invented by the Housebook Master, a south German fifteenth century artist, all of whose prints are in drypoint only. Among the most famous artists of the old master print: Albrecht Dürer produced 3 drypoints before abandoning the technique; Rembrandt used it frequently, but usually in conjunction with etching and engraving. As intaglio techniques, they can all be used on the same plate. In the 20th Century, Hermann-Paul produced drypoint engravings late in his career. Famous Canadian artist David Brown Milne invented coloured drypoints of which he made over 3000.

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