WHETHER you’re trying to keep track of your shopping list, to-do list, or meal plans, the best bullet journals can help you do it all with ease.
Bullet journals are a great piece of equipment with a wide variety of uses, and while you won’t be able to find an extremely popular brand like the Paperchase bullet journal now, as all their shops have shut down, there are plenty of others you can pick from.
Head on to find out how they work, and check out our pick of the best options.
What is a bullet journal?
The best bullet journals organise absolutely everything into a simple, easy-to-use notebook — so you can forget apps, fly-away post-it notes and pieces of scrap paper that end up in the bin for those of you that want to take a break from technology and disconnect.
The original Bullet Journal — or ‘BuJo’ — was created by New York-based designer, Ryder Carroll, to help with productivity and organisation in a streamlined, mindful way.
Since then, there’s been an absolute explosion of different options.
Best bullet journals at a glance:
- Best bullet journal: Mål Paper daily goal setter
- Best budget notebook: Lila Notebooks dot grid notebook
- Best large bullet journal:HIUKOOKA Bullet Dotted Journal
- Best dot journal: LEUCHTTURM1917 Bullet Journal
- Best for personalised bullet journal:Papier wellness journal
FMål Paper daily goal setter
- Mål Paper daily goal setter, £23.95 from Amazon – buy here
The Mål Paper daily goal setter exists to make your life goals clearer while providing inspirational daily quotes, and regular space to reflect on your wellbeing, as well as positive affirmations.
In all honesty, we loved it. On first impressions, we liked the soft-touch faux leather cover and the simple, gilded lettering on the front.
Each of the 274 pages felt thick and had space for our weekly goals, thoughts and feelings, with bullet points for important tasks and notes.
There is space for dates to write what you’re thankful and grateful for, and it’s an opportunity to really celebrate the accomplishments of the day, however small.
There’s space for 12 months of planning, with short, medium and long-term goals lists, a year-to-year calendar and space for loose documents in a pouch
It’s a super simple yet really effective way to set yourself goals, and we really started to celebrate the simpler things in life that aren’t often seen as accomplishments.
It has an amazing 4.6-star rating on Amazon, and reviewers call the product ‘very well thought out and good quality, with another calling it ‘amazing.’
Dimensions: A5
LEUCHTTURM1917 Bullet Journal
- LEUCHTTURM1917Bullet Journal, £26.47 from Amazon – buy here
The LEUCHTTURM1917 is the classic, original Bullet Journal, envisioned by and designed in collaboration with Ryder Carroll – the BuJo creator and trailblazer himself.
We tried it for a couple of weeks and found that the pared-back, classic affair is pretty special – if you can get your head around it.
On first impressions, we were pretty taken aback by all the blank pages. The paper felt luxuriously thick, though, and didn’t bleed through with ink when we wrote on it, while the sturdy, faux-leather cover made it feel like it was a pretty special notebook.
The Bullet Journal comes with brief but precise instructions, and can take a few days to get your head around; there are carefully curated unique dotted symbols for you to keep track of your week, month and year, alongside three ribbon page markers. There’s also space for you to create your own.
At first, we had to watch a tutorial and thoroughly read through the provided ‘tips’ pages at the back to try and get our head around it, but once we’d separated the pages correctly to give us a six-month plan, we felt a little more relaxed.
We really liked the stickers included in the pouch at the back of the A5 journal to help us keep track of our plans and goals – but as this reviewer is quite a creative person, it felt like we needed daily affirmations and instruction instead of blank space.
The original Bullet Journal is pretty special, though – it’s well-designed and has been thought through to fit a precise, organised way of life. We think we’d rather have something a little more rigid, with space for daily affirmations and questions to answer, but we can see why this crowdfunded BuJo is so popular.
If you’re quite a logical person, then this is absolutely the BuJo for you – it’s intricate, tidy, precise, and all yours to plan out your future, in line with your past and present.
Dimensions: A5
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The Positively Awesome Journal
- The Positively Awesome Journal, £9.64 from Amazon – buy here
Sometimes, it’s easy to feel a little down about life – especially if you’re stuck in a routine and live for the weekend.
The Positively Awesome Journal exists to change that.
It’s essentially a self-care toolkit, which encourages you and equips you with insights, tools and affirmations to get you through the day with a little more brightness and optimism.
There are simple, but inspiring and uplifting tasks to focus on your attitude and well-being and improve your mental health.
This bullet journal notebook has you at its heart and really is Positively Awesome.
While the superb rating of 4.7 stars could speak for itself, we still had to see what those that bought it had to say. One calls it ‘motivational and colourful’ while another says it ‘brightens up her day.’
Dimensions: 14.8 x 1.5 x 21 cm
Lila Notebooks dot grid notebook
- Lila Notebooks dot grid notebook, £3.75 from Amazon – buy here
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly, no-frills bullet journal notebook, then look no further than this Lila Notebook.
It comes in an array of colours — including coral, two shades of purple and black — and boasts 106 thick, dotted pages.
It’s a minimalist yet classic bullet journal and has a soft-feel matte laminated cover that repels spills (so you don’t need to worry too much if you accidentally spill a cuppa on it while you’re working).
Another notebook with an extremely impressive rating of 4.7 stars and reviewers giving it high praise.
One says they ‘love these notebooks’ with another leaving a perfect 5-star rating calling it ‘great value for money.’
Dimensions: 21.59 x 0.69 x 27.94 cm
Papier wellness journal
- Papier wellness journal, £29 at Papier – buy here
This beautifully designed wellness journal from the luxury paper brand Papier is ideal for self-care and wellness.
There’s space for 12 weeks of daily reflection, including bullet points and dotted pages for your usual bullet journaling, and space to ponder on your goals and the week ahead.
It’s ideal for pausing to reflect on how your life is going, and great if you want to take a breather and write about your sleeping pattern, water intake or meals.
It takes the complication out of planning your week and future and makes it fun and mindful.
It can be personalised with your name and is available in a range of different colours.
Dimensions: 15.3cm x 21.5cm
Amazon Basics Classic Black Casebound Notebook
- Amazon Basics Classic Black Casebound Notebook, £9.47 from Amazon – buy here
Sometimes, all you want is a small notebook for all your notes, thoughts, feelings and plans that can be easily chucked in a backpack for when you’re commuting or travelling.
Amazon’s basics range offers just that, including this gorgeous small bullet journal.
The cover has a handy elastic cover to keep your secrets (and documents or photos) safe.
The pages are archival-quality, meaning your notes and secrets will be homed on smooth, acid-free paper that has resistance to air and light damage.
The basic notebook has a more than basic rating. With its fantastic 4.5-star rating and over 50,00 reviews, it comes as no surprise to us that shoppers praise it for being ‘really solid’ and a ‘great note sketchbook for the more creative.
Dimensions: 13.4 x 1.7 x 21 cm
Moleskine art bullet notebook
- Moleskine art bullet notebook, £26.99 from Ryman – buy here
This larger format journal is ideal for those who love to doodle.
There are 120 pages, with a mix of lined and dotted layouts, so you can get creative with how you use the notebook.
There’s also an index and two bookmark ribbons so you can keep track of all your thoughts.
Thanks to the hard cover and elastic band, any documents inside can be kept safe and protected as well.
With a perfect 5-star rating, it comes as no surprise to us that a review left calls the notebook ‘lovely’ along with ‘perfect seamless service.’
Dimensions: 21x13cm
HIUKOOKA Bullet Dotted Journal
- HIUKOOKA Bullet Dotted Journal, £12.59 from Amazon– buy here
We all use notebooks, so our thoughts and ideas are all in one place, but who says that 100-200 pages are ever enough?
That’s where this HIUKOOKA Bullet Dotted Journal comes in. With a staggering 320 pages, this notebook is perfect for taking notes, sketching, or just planning your days.
The pages come numbered, so if you managed to fill up this behemoth of a notepad, you won’t spend too much time flicking back and forth to find a note. Simply remember the page number.
Our notes, sketches and things we want to remember are all extremely important to us. Luckily, to help avoid your notes getting damaged, it’s encased in premium faux leather, making the book more durable.
With an extremely credible 4.4-star rating, it’s no shock that this product has customers calling it ‘perfect’ or that it has ‘lovely paper.’
Dimensions: 21.3 x 15cm
Yop & Tom Dotted Journal Notebook
- Yop & Tom Dotted Journal Notebook, £19.99from Amazon – buy here
Dream diaries are another way you can use your notebook, and we’ve spotted a perfect dream-themed book for you to keep them safe in safe in.
It’s not restricted to just remembering your dreams for you because of its theme. With 160 pages that include a pen test page, you have the space to keep a dream journal, a sketchbook or make a shopping list.
Pure white extra thick paper means that no matter the pen you use, it won’t bleed onto the other pages.
For animal lovers, no animals were harmed in the making of, and there’s an added bonus of the leather hardcover being vegan.
The book has been going down a storm with customers as it has a 4.7-star rating, with reviewers raving about how it’s the ‘best bullet journal’ and another calling it ‘superb quality.’
Dimensions:21.2 x 15 cm
andsotheymade personalised notebook
- andsotheymade personalised notebook, from £15.95 at Etsy – buy here
This lovely-looking journal from Etsy can be personalised to make a great self-care gift for you or a friend.
You can get a textured faux leather notebook adorned with the name or phrase of your choice on both the cover and spine if you wish.
It comes in an endless list of unusual colours, too, including cyan, Adriatic, hot pink, moss, park green, pristine white and much more.
The A5 journal has 160 sides of white, vegan and environmentally-friendly paper, which can be left dotted or lined — and is complete with a wipeable cover.
These notebooks are extremely popular with customers, too, since for one customer, it’s their ‘third-time’ ordering, and another is over the moon as it ‘looks lovely.’
Dimensions: A5
Katie Leamon bullet notebook
- Katie Leamon bullet notebook, £8 from Katie Leamon – buy here
This beautiful pistachio-green bullet notebook is from a sustainable British brand, Katie Leamon.
All Katie Leamon products are made in the UK from trees purposely planted to be used as paper, and a replacement tree is planted for every one used.
There are 96 thick, fountain pen-friendly pages, which is more than enough space for your everyday planning and organisational needs.
The soft-feel cover is textured and embossed, to really give it that feel of luxury.
Customers speak extremely highly of this brand, too, as one who left a perfect 5-star rating says they offer ‘impeccable service along with beautiful products.’
Dimensions: 15.5 x 24.cm
Where to buy bullet journals in the UK?
As you can, there is a huge range of Bullet journals, and each one is unique. You will have to shop around a little to find the one that best suits your needs.
Should you be a sketch artist or frantic notetaker, having a look around at the different retailers is a great way to get your hands on a journal as unique as you, so here is a list to help get you started.
How much do bullet journals cost?
The cost of items is always at the forefront of our minds, and you aren’t alone in wanting to know how much it’ll cost to get you your very own Bullet journal.
Since there’s such a wide variety, with some being catered more towards other functions like sketching rather than notetaking, as well as a whole heap of designs, they too range in price. However, they’re fairly affordable, with the journals on the cheaper end only costing as little as £8, and the more personalised ones cap out at around the £30 mark.
How to start a bullet journal
There’s usually a simple guide that comes with each BuJo, including a series of symbols and dashes to help you code your activities or thoughts.
And, as creator Carroll has stated, it “tracks the past, organises the present and plans for the future”.
But it doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s there to be used by the author in whatever way they think is best for them, making their life easier by removing any unnecessary activities or thought processes.
That said, we found this tutorial on how to start your BuJo really helpful in organising an index and a six-month plan.
How to draw in a bullet journal
The great thing about bullet journal notebooks is that each page has symmetrical dotted lines, which make a fantastic base for making well-proportioned sketches and doodles.
Geometric shapes look great in a bullet journal – but you can even stick with a simple ruler if you’re wanting to create box-outs, for various goals, tasks and to-do lists.
There are no rules – it’s entirely up to the author how to bullet journal.
Must haves for bullet journaling
Your first must-have is a great ballpoint pen that won’t let you down – you could even treat yourself to a fountain pen, or a range of fine liners if you’re sketching.
If you’re hoping to map out your bullet journal notebook, you’re going to need some of the classic maths lesson supplies – like this geometry kit (it has stencils, too) – and, of course, one of the best pencil cases to store it all in.
Then, if you’re hoping to be more creative, you’re going to want a range of colourful pens, pencils for adults, stencils and stickers.
What is the best bullet journal?
The best bullet journal depends entirely on your needs or budget – but they all exist for a similar purpose: to organise your life, and goals, or act as a positive constant in life planning.
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly journal, this notebook from Amazon is under a fiver and ideal for you.
If you’re looking for something to help with wellness or your mental health, then these beautiful hardback journals from Papier are perfect.
We would recommend the original Bullet Journal, too, if you’re looking for a precise, logical way to organise your day – or the Mål Paper daily goal setter if you’re looking for positive affirmations and goals to kickstart your day.
