A refillable absorbent swab applicator pen has a pen shell, a plurality of absorbent swab cartridges, and a cartridge advancement mechanism. The plurality of absorbent swab cartridges are positioned within the pen shell, and the cartridge advancement mechanism is integrated into the pen shell in order to advance the absorbent swab cartridges toward a dispensing end in order to expose a swab for use or discard a swab after use.