A5 Planner Guide: Best Options Sizes & Customization

Okay so I just spent like three weeks testing different A5 planners because honestly my old system was falling apart and I needed to figure this out for myself AND for my clients who keep asking me which one to get.

The Size Thing Everyone Gets Confused About

First off, A5 is 5.8 x 8.3 inches. That’s the actual measurement. But here’s where it gets annoying—some brands call themselves A5 when they’re actually like 5.5 x 8.5 or something close but not quite. I tested a planner from Amazon last month that said A5 and it was definitely not, which messed up all my inserts. So if you’re gonna buy refills or want stuff to be interchangeable, actually check the dimensions in the product description.

The A5 size is honestly the sweet spot for most people. It fits in most bags—I can squeeze mine into my tote with my laptop and water bottle without it being a whole thing. But it’s big enough that you can actually write stuff without your handwriting looking like ant trails.

Ring Binder vs Disc vs Bound

So there are basically three systems and they’re NOT interchangeable which is super annoying but whatever.

Ring Binders (6-Ring)

Filofax is like the OG here. I’ve been using their Original A5 in burgundy for about two months now. The leather is nice, smells good if you’re into that, and it holds up. The rings are 30mm which means you can fit a decent amount of pages—I’ve got like 150 sheets in mine right now and it’s fine. Not bulging or anything.

The thing with ring binders is you can rearrange pages super easily. I move my monthly reviews around all the time because I’m weird about chronological order sometimes. Oh and another thing—the rings do get in the way when you’re writing on the left page. I’ve gotten used to it but my friend Sarah absolutely hates it, so that’s something to consider if you write with your whole hand on the page.

Kikki.K also makes ring binders and they’re prettier honestly, more colors and patterns. But they’re pricey. Like I love stationery but even I was like “hmm” when I saw the price tag.

Disc System

Levenger Circa and the Arc system from Staples—these use those plastic disc things instead of rings. I tested the Arc notebook because it’s way cheaper and okay so funny story, I initially thought discs would be flimsy but they’re actually really sturdy. You can remove and add pages by just pulling them out, which is SO satisfying. My cat knocked my planner off the desk last week and nothing fell out.

The discs don’t get in the way of writing like rings do. The pages lay flat which is chef’s kiss for someone like me who writes all the way to the edges. But you need a special punch to make your own pages work with the discs. The Arc punch is like $25 and it’s worth it if you’re gonna print your own inserts or customize a lot.

Bound Planners

Wait I forgot to mention—if you don’t care about rearranging pages, bound planners are totally fine. Leuchtturm1917 makes an A5 that I recommended to like half my clients last year. It’s dotted pages, numbered, has an index, and the paper quality is really good. Minimal ghosting even with my fountain pens.

The thing is you’re stuck with whatever layout it comes with. So if you hate the weekly spread after a month, too bad. But they’re less expensive than ring systems and there’s no setup required. You just start using it.

Paper Quality Actually Matters

This is gonna sound weird but I never cared about paper until I started testing planners seriously. Now I’m that person who talks about GSM at parties. Don’t be like me.

But actually though—if you use gel pens or markers, you need at least 100gsm paper or you’re gonna get ghosting and bleed-through. My current Filofax inserts are 80gsm and they’re fine for ballpoint but my Mildliners show through. Not bleeding exactly, but you can see them on the other side which bugs me.

For fountain pens you definitely want 100gsm minimum. Tomoe River paper is like the gold standard but good luck finding affordable A5 inserts in it. I found some on Etsy once and they were $40 for 50 sheets which like… no.

The Best Ready-Made Options

Okay so if you just want to buy something and start using it tomorrow:

Filofax Original A5

Leather cover, comes with basic inserts (monthly, weekly, notes). The inserts are kinda boring honestly but they work. You can buy their dated inserts separately—they release new years in like July which is early but whatever. Around $60-80 depending on the color. The clasp is magnetic which I thought would be gimmicky but I actually use it to keep everything closed in my bag.

Moterm A5 Ring Binder

I tested this last week and here’s the deal—it’s vegan leather but nice quality. Way cheaper than Filofax, usually around $35-45. Comes in a million colors. The rings are good quality, no snagging. It doesn’t come with inserts though so you gotta buy those separately. But if you’re gonna print your own anyway or buy from Etsy, this is a solid choice.

Staples Arc Customizable Notebook System

This is my budget recommendation. The notebook itself is like $20, comes with some basic paper. You can buy their expansion packs with different layouts—monthly, weekly, project planning, whatever. The quality is obviously not luxury but it’s perfectly functional. I used one for six months before upgrading and it held up fine.

Hobonichi Cousin

Okay so this is technically A5 size and it’s bound. It’s got a daily page layout which is A LOT of planner but some people love it. The paper is Tomoe River so it’s super thin but doesn’t bleed. Very popular with the bullet journal crowd. Comes with a cover that’s meh so most people buy a separate cover for it. The planner itself is around $45 and covers January to December.

My client canceled yesterday so I spent an hour comparing the Hobonichi to my Filofax setup and honestly they serve different purposes. Hobonichi is better if you journal a lot or want daily structure. Filofax is better if you want flexibility.

Customization Options That Actually Work

This is where A5 planners get fun but also overwhelming because there are too many options.

Printing Your Own Inserts

You need A5 paper obviously. In the US this is annoying because we use letter size, so you have to either order A5 paper online or print on letter and cut it down. I bought a pack of 500 A5 sheets from Amazon for like $15 and it’s lasted me forever.

For ring binders you need a 6-hole punch. I use the Filofax one which is $12 and works fine. Line up your paper, punch it, done. For discs you need the disc punch I mentioned earlier.

There are a million free printables online. I like the ones from Scattered Squirrel and also there’s this Etsy shop called Planner Addiction that has really clean designs. You can get monthly calendars, weekly layouts, habit trackers, all that stuff. Just make sure they’re sized for A5 before you print a hundred pages and realize they’re A4.

Etsy Inserts

If you don’t wanna deal with printing, Etsy sellers will print and punch inserts for you. Usually $15-30 for a pack depending on how many pages and how fancy. I bought some from a shop called PlannerPrintables last month—they’re pre-punched for 6-ring, good paper quality, and the layouts are actually useful not just pretty.

Stickers and Decorative Stuff

Look I’m not a super decorative planner person but stickers do help me actually use the planner. I use simple functional ones—checkboxes, headers, little icons for different types of tasks. The brand I like is called Planner Kate and they’re on Amazon. Not too cutesy, just useful.

Washi tape is good for marking sections or decorating the edges of pages if that’s your thing. I have like three rolls that I actually use—one for marking the current week, one for flagging important pages, and one that I bought because it was pretty and never use.

Layouts You Actually Need

Okay so everyone thinks they need every possible layout and then they don’t use half of it. Here’s what actually gets used in my planner:

• Monthly calendar for the big picture view and appointments
• Weekly layout with time blocking for my actual planning
• Notes pages for meeting notes and random thoughts
• A running task list that I can keep adding to
• A section for goals but I’m not gonna lie I barely look at it

I used to have habit trackers and meal planning pages and all this stuff but I never used them consistently so I took them out. Now my planner is way less bulky and I actually use everything in it.

The weekly layout is where everyone has opinions. I’ve tried vertical (time slots down the side), horizontal (days across the top), and block style (just boxes for each day). I landed on vertical because I like time blocking my day, but if you don’t schedule your day by hour, horizontal or block is probably better.

Covers and Accessories

This is where you can spend infinite money so like, be careful.

If you bought a cheaper binder system like the Arc, you can get a nicer cover separately. Galen Leather makes gorgeous leather covers that fit A5 notebooks and they’re around $60-90. I don’t have one but my friend does and I’m jealous every time I see it.

Pen loops are useful if your planner doesn’t come with one. You can buy stick-on ones for like $3. I have one stuck to the inside of my Filofax and it holds my favorite pen so I’m not constantly losing it in my bag.

Wait I forgot to mention—page markers are actually helpful. The sticky tab kind. I use them to mark my current week, my monthly calendar, and my notes section so I can flip to them quickly. Staples sells them in packs of a million colors for cheap.

What Doesn’t Work

Okay real talk—some things sound good but are actually annoying in practice.

Zipper pouches that attach to ring binders. They’re bulky and make your planner twice as thick. Just use a separate pouch in your bag.

Super decorative layouts with tons of boxes and sections. They look pretty on Instagram but when you’re actually planning your week at 7am before work, you just want something simple and clear.

Too many inserts. I had like 200 pages in my planner at one point and it was so heavy and the rings could barely close. Now I keep it under 150 pages and remove old months regularly.

Expensive fountain pens for daily planning. I love fountain pens but for quick planning sessions I just use a ballpoint or gel pen. Save the nice pens for journaling or whatever.

My Current Setup

Since you’re probably wondering—I use a Filofax Original in burgundy with custom printed inserts that I designed myself. Monthly calendars, weekly vertical layout, and blank notes pages. I print them on 100gsm paper and punch them myself. Takes me like an hour every few months to print and prep new pages.

I use a Pilot G2 0.7mm pen for most stuff, and I have stickers for headers and checkboxes. That’s it. Nothing fancy. My planner looks boring compared to the ones on Instagram but it actually helps me get stuff done which is the whole point.

The total cost was probably around $100 including the binder, punch, paper, and initial setup. Now it costs me basically nothing because I just print new pages as needed.

If You’re Starting From Scratch

Get a Moterm or similar affordable ring binder in A5 size. Buy a simple insert pack from Etsy or print some free ones to start. Use it for a month and see what you actually need versus what you thought you’d need. Then customize from there.

Don’t buy a million accessories right away. You don’t know what you’ll actually use yet. Start minimal and add stuff as you figure out your system.

And honestly if you’re still not sure, just get a Leuchtturm1917 bound notebook and use it for a few months. It’s like $20 and you can figure out if you even like analog planning before investing in a whole ring binder system.