A tablet isn’t automatically faster just because you plug it in. Its main advantages are precision, more natural pen-like control, and pressure sensitivity—but those matter most for certain kinds of retouching.

If your work is mostly sliders, buttons, and basic edits, a tablet may not help much. Where it shines is in brush-based work: painting masks, dodging and burning, hand-drawn selections, cloning/healing, and other strokes where smooth curves and subtle control matter.

Compared with a mouse, a tablet can offer:

• more precise control for drawn edits
• smoother, more natural strokes
• pressure-sensitive control over brush strength, size, or feathering (if configured)
• absolute positioning, which some users find faster for moving around an image

There is a learning curve. Using a tablet means looking at the screen instead of where the pen touches, which can feel awkward at first. It also takes some setup and technique changes to benefit from pressure sensitivity.

So the answer is: a Wacom is better for many retouchers, but not for every workflow. If you don’t do much brush-based editing, or you simply prefer a mouse, the tablet may not offer a big advantage.