Paper
The best notebooks for journaling
A journal has requirements a notepad does not: both sides of every page, a binding that lasts years, and paper you will not resent in volume.
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A journal is used differently from a notepad, and the differences all push in the same direction. You write on both sides of every page, so show-through matters twice as much. You keep it for years, so the binding has to survive. And you write in it in volume, which means a paper you find slightly unpleasant becomes a paper you stop using.
Quick picks
Ranked for the beginner buying their first setup. Every pick names who it is wrong for.
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No image Dingbats Wildlife A5, dotted 100 gsm cream paper in a hardcover journal, which is the specification Leuchtturm buyers keep asking for. | Structure plus heavier paper | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 2 | No image Clairefontaine Age Bag A5, clothbound The same brushed vellum in a clothbound cover with 192 pages, which is the version to actually carry. | Clairefontaine paper in a book that lasts | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 3 | No image LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted Numbered pages, a printed index and a pocket, in the notebook that made bullet journaling a thing — but the paper is the thinnest here. | Structure, if your ink is well behaved | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 4 | No image Life Noble Note A5, grid A quiet Japanese notebook with cream paper and a reputation among fountain pen users that its own listing never claims. | Japanese paper in a plain, serious book | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 5 | No image Stalogy 365 Days Notebook B6 A thin-paper daily notebook with a full year of dated grid pages in a book you can still carry. | One book for a whole year | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
1. Structure plus heavier paper
Dingbats Wildlife A5, dotted
100 gsm cream paper in a hardcover journal, which is the specification Leuchtturm buyers keep asking for.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
100 gsm is the number that removes the argument. At that weight a wet medium nib is comfortable and a broad is workable, which is not true of the 70-80 gsm books this competes against.
The format copies the structured-journal template closely — hardcover, elastic, pocket, ribbon — so you are not trading features for the paper.
Cream paper warms every ink slightly. If you have chosen a color carefully, it will not look the same here as on white.
| Paper weight | 100 gsm, acid-free, creamSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Maker's claim | Made for fountain pens, gel ink and markers; outperforms standard 70-80 gsm paperThe maker's own wording on its listing.Source: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Format | A5, dot grid, vegan leather hardcoverSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Extras | Inside pocket, elastic closure, bookmarkSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- Published 100 gsm, comfortably above the fountain pen threshold
- All the structured-journal features
- Coated cover survives a bag
What it does not
- Cream paper shifts ink colors
- Heavier and thicker than a comparable 80 gsm book
- Less widely stocked than the market leader
Skip this if you want ink colors to read true — buy a white-paper notebook instead.
2. Clairefontaine paper in a book that lasts
Clairefontaine Age Bag A5, clothbound
The same brushed vellum in a clothbound cover with 192 pages, which is the version to actually carry.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
Twice the page count of the 1951 in a binding that survives being carried. For most people this is the Clairefontaine to own.
The paper is the same family and behaves the same way: ink sits on the surface, lines stay sharp, drying takes its time.
There are no page numbers and no index, so if you want a bullet-journal structure you will be drawing it yourself.
| Paper | 90 gsm brushed vellumSource: Clairefontaine Age Bag A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Size and extent | A5, 192 pages, linedSource: Clairefontaine Age Bag A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Binding | ClothboundSource: Clairefontaine Age Bag A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Numbered pages | Not published |
What it does well
- Published paper weight
- 192 pages in a durable clothbound cover
- Lies reasonably flat for a sewn book
What it does not
- No page numbers
- Slow drying
- Lined only in this edition
Skip this if you want a dot grid or a numbered page system out of the box.
3. Structure, if your ink is well behaved
LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted
Numbered pages, a printed index and a pocket, in the notebook that made bullet journaling a thing — but the paper is the thinnest here.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
The structure is genuinely excellent: numbered pages, an index you fill in yourself, two ribbons and a pocket. Nothing else at this price is as well organized out of the box.
The paper is the argument against. Read the buyer feedback on the maker's own listing and it splits down the middle on bleed-through — which is exactly what happens when paper is adequate for a dry nib and marginal for a wet one.
If you write with a fine nib and a dry ink, this is a fine book. If you have just bought a broad nib and a wet blue, it is the wrong one.
| Extent | 251 numbered pages, A5, dottedSource: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Maker's claim | Acid-free and ink-proof paperThe maker's own wording. Buyer feedback on the same listing is openly split on bleed-through, which is why we do not repeat the claim as a finding.Source: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Paper weight | Not publishedThe US listing for this edition does not state a gsm figure. We do not fill it in from a comparison chart. |
| Extras | Blank table of contents, expandable pocket inside the back coverSource: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- Numbered pages and printed index
- Hardcover with a pocket and two ribbons
- The most widely stocked structured notebook
What it does not
- No published paper weight on the US listing
- Bleed-through reports are genuinely split
- Costs as much as notebooks with better paper
Skip this if you write with a broad nib or a wet ink — pair the structure you want with paper that can take it.
4. Japanese paper in a plain, serious book
Life Noble Note A5, grid
A quiet Japanese notebook with cream paper and a reputation among fountain pen users that its own listing never claims.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
Life publishes almost nothing about this notebook, which is itself informative: the company sells it on the writing rather than on the specification.
What its listing does say is that fountain pen ink does not bleed or bleed through on the paper used in the main range.
It is a plain object with a paper cover. If you want ribbon markers and an elastic band, this is not that.
| Format | A5, grid ruled (N33)Source: Life Noble Note A5, grid (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Paper weight | Not published |
| Also available | Ruled (N39) and plain (N36) in the same A5 formatSource: Life Noble Note A5, plain (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Numbered pages | Not published |
What it does well
- Well regarded Japanese writing paper
- Three rulings in the same format
- Understated to the point of invisible
What it does not
- Almost nothing is published about the paper
- Softcover with no protection
- Harder to find than the mainstream brands
Skip this if you need a published specification, or if you want a hardcover journal.
5. One book for a whole year
Stalogy 365 Days Notebook B6
A thin-paper daily notebook with a full year of dated grid pages in a book you can still carry.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
The idea is a single book for a year: thin paper, high page count, and a date grid printed at the top of every page so you do not have to write one.
Stalogy does not publish a weight, and the buyer feedback on its own listing is openly divided on bleed-through — some inks are fine, some are not. That division is what thin paper looks like when it is well made but still thin.
Ghosting is guaranteed. Whether it bothers you is a matter of taste, and some people like it.
| Format | B6, 365 Days NotebookSource: Stalogy 365 Days Note B6 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Paper weight | Not published |
| Ruling | Grid, with date and time markers printed on each pageSource: Stalogy 365 Days Notebook, B6 slim, squared (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Also available | A5, A6 and B5 in the same formatSource: Stalogy 365 Days Notebook, A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- A full year in one carryable book
- Date grid printed on every page
- Several sizes in the same format
What it does not
- No published paper weight
- Bleed-through reports are genuinely mixed
- Ghosting is unavoidable at this thickness
Skip this if show-through bothers you, or if you want to use a broad nib every day.
Both sides of the page is the whole problem
A notepad can be written on one side and torn out. A journal cannot: writing on one side of a bound book halves your page count and doubles your cost per year.
Which means show-through is not a cosmetic concern here, it is the spec that decides whether the notebook works. Ghosting — seeing the writing through the sheet without ink penetrating — is tolerable and normal. Bleeding is not, because it makes the reverse side unusable. The difference is explained here.
Structure: numbered pages and an index
The Leuchtturm1917 popularized numbered pages with a blank index at the front, and it is a genuinely useful pattern for anyone who wants to find something again. Dingbats and Rhodia's Goalbook offer similar structure.
The trade is that structured notebooks are typically thinner-papered than plain ones at the same price, because the printing and finishing cost money. If you write with a broad wet nib, structure may cost you more than it is worth — the Leuchtturm versus Moleskine comparison covers the paper question directly.
Binding
| Binding | Lies flat? | Survives a bag? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sewn hardcover | Mostly, after breaking in | Yes | The standard journal binding. |
| Clothbound softcover | Yes | Reasonably | Lighter, more flexible, less protection. |
| Twin-wire spiral | Completely, and folds back | Poorly | Best for working notes, worst for archiving. |
| Staplebound | Yes | No | Cheap. Fine for drafts, wrong for a journal. |
Size
A5 is the default for a journal and is the right answer for most people: big enough for a real entry, small enough to carry. B6 is noticeably more portable and suits a daily log more than a long-form entry — the Stalogy 365 is built around exactly that use.
Match the ink to the notebook
The thinner-papered picks here reward a fine nib and a dry ink; the heavier ones will take anything. Inks for journaling works through the choice from the ink side, including why permanence matters more here than anywhere else on the site.
Questions people actually ask
What is the best notebook for journaling with a fountain pen?
Dingbats Wildlife, on published specification — 100 gsm acid-free paper in a hardcover with an index pocket. For coated paper in a durable binding, the Clairefontaine Age Bag at 90 gsm.
Can I write on both sides of the page in a journal?
On 90 gsm or better with a fine nib, comfortably. On thinner paper expect ghosting, which is normal, and possibly bleeding, which is not. Ghosting is cosmetic; bleeding costs you the reverse page.
Is the Leuchtturm1917 good for fountain pens?
Its structure is excellent and its paper is the thinnest of our picks — the US listing does not state a weight, and buyer feedback on that listing is genuinely split on bleed-through. Fine nib and dry ink, or choose something heavier.
What size notebook is best for journaling?
A5 for most people: large enough for a full entry, small enough to carry. B6 suits a short daily log better, and a B5 is a desk book rather than a carried one.