Comparison of Dot Grid Notebooks for Bullet Journaling with 160 GSM paper (Thick, bleedproof paper)
160GSM paper is usually thick enough to withstand brush pens, stamps and marker pens. There have been a few 160GSM notebooks released over the past few years so I thought it was about time I did a post with all of my 160GSM notebook reviews in the one place, so you can easily compare paper quality, page sizes, cover styles and other features of the various brands.
I’ve reviewed close to 70 dot grid notebooks on this blog over the past 8 years and have finally gotten around to updating my dot grid notebook comparison (it includes those with 160 GSM paper). You can quickly compare paper thickness, cover design, page sizes etc.
Click here to download the comparison. Existing blog subscribers can find this in the free printables library.
Notebooks with 160 GSM Paper
In no particular order (click the links below to be taken to the blog posts and video flipthroughs):
- Archer and Olive
- Scribbles That Matter Pro
- Buke Stationery
- Tekukor
- Amanda Rach Lee
- Seqes
- Notebook Therapy
- ESC. Goods
- Slow Journal
(I tell you my favorites at the end of this post if you want to skip ahead).
160 GSM is thick paper that usually has no ghosting or show through for pens, highlighters and stamps. So if all of these notebooks have 160 GSM what makes one better than the other? Well there are a few other things I check when notebook shopping:
- Price
- Page Sizes Available
- Binding
- Cover material
- Cover Options
- Cover Personalisation
- Numbered Pages
- Paper Weight (GSM)
- Paper Color
- # of Pages
- Is there an index?
- is there a future log?
- # of dots horizontally and vertically (important if you prefer to have a certain number of dots you like e.g. for a weekly spread minimum 6 dots horizontally for column width for each day)
- Ribbon bookmarks
- Pen Loop
- Elastic Enclosure Band
- Pocket folder
Easily compare all the details of the 9 notebooks with 160GSM paper mentioned in this post by downloading my comparison table here.
Since you probably clicked on this post because you wanted to see the pen tests, I’ve included a highlight of the main features from the notebooks, along with photos of the pen tests.
This list contains affiliate links. If you click one of the links and make a purchase I’ll receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you) in exchange for referring you
1. Archer and Olive
This notebook has 160 GSM thick paper. It’s a pricey notebook ranging between $30 – $35 USD (depending on if you want gold edges on the pages).
Shipping is expensive but they do ship internationally (from the USA).
QUICK FACTS
- Size: A5
- Hardcover
- Sewn binding
- Multiple cover colors & designs to choose from
- Bright white pages
- 2 Ribbon bookmarks
- Pen loop
- 160 GSM paper
Full review of the notebook in this post.
For the expensive price tag you do get decent paper that feels really thick and smooth to write on. After doing a pen testing and turning the page… I understood the hype around this notebook. No ghosting or bleed through for any of the pens or highlighters.
2. Scribbles That Matter Pro
Scribbles that Matter are know for their doodle covers in a range of colors.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: A5
- Hardcover
- Multiple cover colors to choose from (mint, sky blue, white, grey, purple, green and dark grey)
- Sewn binding
- 160GSM (thick), bright white paper
- 153 pages
- 5mm dot grid
- Key & color key page
- 3 lined index pages
- Pocket folder
- Built in pen loop (the notebook comes with a fineliner pen too)
- 2 ribbon bookmarks
- 39 dots vertical x 27 dots horizontal
- $26.97 USD on Amazon
If you don’t think it’s worth paying a bit more for a bullet journal with 160 GSM paper, here’s a good comparison of the Scribbles that Matter Pro (160GSM paper) with the original Scribbles That Matter (100GSM paper).
Full review of the notebook in this post.
Quite the difference! The pro’s pen test on the left was almost flawless with no ghosting or bleed through.
3. Buke Stationery
Buke Stationery have 2 versions – one with 160 GSM thick paper and another with even thicker paper (180GSM). The 160 GSM paper isn’t quite as good as some of the other options on this list (it has some ghosting). If you want paper that has no bleed through or ghosting for anything, then invest in the 180 GSM version. Just note: 180 GSM is practically cardstock, so erasable pens don’t erase very well and the paper is not as smooth to write on as the other notebooks on this list.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: 5.75″ wide x 8.25″ high
- Hardcover
- Sewn binding
- 160 GSM dot grid paper (5mm spacing) or 160 GSM thick paper
- Pen loop
- 1 ribbon bookmark
- Pocket folder
- Stencil
Full review of the 160 GSM thick paper version in this post. I did a review of the 180GSM when I tried it out in this post.
Pen testing results for the 160 GSM:
Some minor ghosting but nothing bled through except one of the MAMBI stamps.
Pen testing for the 180 GSM thick version:
No ghosting or bleed through at all!
So I thought I’d really test the paper out with some brush pens…
Now that is good paper!!!
Let’s compare this to the 160 GSM Buke Stationery notebooks paper. 180 GSM paper is on the left, the 160 GSM is on the right. As you can see the paper color is completely different, and there’s a bit of ghosting for the 160 GSM notebook.
For there being only 20 GSM difference in paperweights, there’s a huge difference in the paper quality!
4. Tekukor
The Tekukor notebook has a similar cover to the Archer and Olive with a foil design, but the Tekukor comes at a cheaper price point.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: 5.75″ wide x 8.25″ high
- Hardcover
- Sewn binding
- Bright white 160 GSM (thick!) paper
- 5mm dot grid spacing
- 192 numbered pages
- Price: $21 USD
Full review of the notebook in this post.
The 160 GSM paper is almost as good as Archer and Olive (which has the same paper thickness). There was a little bleed through for one of the MAMBI stamps.
5. Amanda Rach Lee
You might’ve heard of Amanda Rach Lee from her popular bullet journaling YouTube channel.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: 5.75″ wide x 8.25″ high (A5)
- Vegan leather cover with foil doodles on the front and back cover
- Sewn binding
- Multiple cover colors to choose from (black, grey, pink, teal and camel)
- Thick 160 GSM bright white paper
- 160 pages
- 5mm dot grid
- Numbered pages
- Pocket folder
- 2 Ribbon bookmarks
- Pen holder
- Price: $26 USD + shipping (cheap international shipping rates)
Full review of the notebook in this post.
Given that Amanda Rach Lee’s spreads usually involve brush markers which are notorious for the ink bleeding through the page, I was expecting very good paper…
… And was not disappointed! No ghosting or bleed through for highlighters and pens (even the thick maker pens). There is a tiny bit of ghosting from the Happy Planner stamp (not very obvious and wouldn’t stop me from using the back side of the page).
6. SeQes
If you’re looking for a dupe to the popular Archer and Olive dot grid notebook, then you might be interested in the SeQes notebook.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: 5.75″ wide x 8.25″ high (14.5cm wide x 21cm high)
- Linen hardcover
- Various cover designs to choose from, in different colors and with different silver foil graphics
- Sewn binding
- 160 Numbered pages
- 160 GSM thick paper
- 5mm dot grid spacing
- 27 dots horizontally x 39 dots vertically
- Pen loop
- Pocket folder
- Mini Metal Stencil Bookmark
- 2 paper clips
- 2 sheets of stickers
- 2 ribbon bookmarks
- Comes in a gift box
Price: $19 – $22 USD (price varies depending on the cover design) on Amazon + shipping. Oddly more expensive on their own website (approximately $33 USD)
Full review of the notebook in this post.
The all important pen testing…
No bleed through for the ballpoint, gel, fine tip and marker tip pens I tried, nor the highlighters or stamps. But there was some ghosting for the Uni Pi’s marker pens, dot markers and the MAMBI stamps.
7. Notebook Therapy
Another option if you prefer a dot grid notebook with a foil design on the cover, is the Notebook Therapy.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: I chose the A5, but B5 and 135mm x 195mm are also available
- Hardcover (but feels like velvet!)
- Sewn binding
- 160 GSM bright white paper
- 5mm light grey dot grid
- Page count:
- 135mm x 195mm = 128 pages
- A5 = 176 pages
- B5 = 176 pages
- Pages lay flat
- 2 bookmark ribbons
- Storage pocket at the back
- Gold dolphin paperclip
Price: $28 USD + FREE shipping worldwide ($40 minimum spend). If you need to make up the cart value, they have bullet journaling stencils. As someone located in Australia, free international shipping is very much appreciated!
Full review of the notebook in this post.
The paper quality… is disappointing. For being 160 GSM there was some light show through for all pens, highlighters and dot markers. I’d still write on the back side of the pages but there’s usually no show through on 160 GSM paper.
8. Esc Goods
If you live in Australia like I do, the ESC Goods is an Australian company (yay for cheap shipping).
QUICK FACTS
- Size: A5 (5.75″ wide x 8.25″ high / 14.5cm wide x 21cm high)
- Vegan leather cover (grey)
- Sewn binding
- 5mm dot grid (27 dots horizontally x 38 dots vertically)
- Double sided lined index page
- 158 numbered dot grid pages pages
- 160 GSM thick paper
- Pen test page
- 2 bookmarks (different colors)
- Elastic pen holder
Price: $38 AUD + $5 AUD flat rate shipping to Australia. Orders above $49 free shipping to Australia.
Esc Goods ship worldwide. Flat rate $15 AUD for New Zealand customers or $20 AUD for rest of the world.
Full review of the notebook in this post.
The pen test went well, but the paper is not as good as some of the other notebooks on this list. There was a little bit of show through for MAMBI stamps and the Uni Pi’s marker pen.
9. Slow Journal
Another option for my fellow Aussies, is the Slow Journal.
QUICK FACTS
- Size: A5
- Hardcover (linen cover)
- Sewn binding
- 160 GSM thick paper
- 5mm dot grid
- 192 pages
- Numbered pages
- 1 Key page
- 2 Index pages
- Pocket folder
- 2 black ribbon bookmarks
- Pen loop
- Elastic band
- Comes in a storage box / gift box
Price: $42.95 AUD fom the Slow Journal website. Get 10% off using the code RACHAEL10SJ at the checkout.
Shipping $5.95 to Australia, or free for orders over $80.
Full review of the notebook in this post.
Which one is my favorite?
I like them all! If I had to choose, I’d say:
- Scribbles That Matter Pro (as it’s has great paper and page numbers). Plus there are bright cover colors to choose from
- Slow Journal (good quality paper, page numbers and cheap shipping for me as they’re located in Australia)
- Amanda Rach Lee (for the unique cover designs and good quality paper)
I would recommend Archer and Olive but no page numbers is a deal breaker for me. They appear to be refreshing their notebook range at the moment, so maybe this is a feature that will be added to their new range.
I’m yet to find a discbound option with 160 GSM paper so in the meantime, my favorite discbound bullet journals remain the Happy Planner and Inkwell Press.
I haven’t reviewed these 160 GSM notebooks but once I do I’ll update this post:
I hope you found this post helpful! Don’t forget to download the notebook comparison.
Planning tips
- 10 Things I don’t put in my planner (and why)
- 7 Ways to quickly and easily cover up mistakes in your planner or bullet journal
- 5 Ways to get ideas for your planner spreads
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