The 10 Best Weekly Planners with sewn binding
If you follow my blog you’ve probably noticed that I’m a bit nit picky in my planner reviews, especially when it comes to sewn bound planners. If the pages don’t lay flat on their own it drives me nuts, I hate trying to keep the planner open with one hand while trying to write with the other hand.
So out of the 200+ planners I’ve reviewed, here are 10 sewn bound planners that actually lay flat when open without you having to hold the pages down with one hand and awkwardly write with your other hand. The planners on this list also have other features that I think make them better than the competition (unique weekly layout, detailed goal planning pages etc.).
In summary, my favorite sewn bound planners are:
- Mi Goals
- Clever Fox
- Dot Cross Planner
- LH Agenda
- Roterunner Purpose Planner
- Erin Condren Focused Planner
- Passion Planner
- Panda Planner
- Wordsworth Planner
- Legend Planner
Disclaimer: this post contains affiliate links. If you click one of these links and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
1. Mi Goals
Mi Goals was the first sewn bound planner I actually liked. After being fed up with limited choices for a horizontal weekly plus notes layout (Leuchtturm seemed to be the only option years and years ago and the paper is way too thin for my liking), I stumbled across the Mi Goals planner. It became (and still is), one of my favorite weekly layouts. Bonus points because it’s an Australian company (with free shipping to Australian addresses for orders over $75).
The quality of the planner is very good for the price point and the sewn binding holds up well after use. The only thing that could be improved is some thicker paper.
If you want to try this planner, they don’t seem to sell out so there’s usually a sale in March and September when they want to start clearing some of the dated planners.
Mi Goals Planners Haul & Review (Planners made in Australia)
2. Clever Fox
This planner has one of the best paper quality I’ve come across in a planner, at the price point it sells for.
Clever Fox has expanded their range of planners over the years to include daily, weekly, the weekly pro (US letter size pages which is rare to find with sewn binding), dotted notebook, budgeting notebook among others.
Clever Fox have my favorite type of weekly spread (horizontal weekly with notes page). The pro version in particular, has a very well thought out layout:
The company that makes the Clever Fox also makes the Legend Planner, Go Girl and Puffin Planner which have a similar style but slightly different weekly spreads and inside page layouts.
These affordable planners are readily available on Amazon and they have one of the widest ranges of cover colors to choose from!
3. Dot Cross Planner
The Dot Cross Planner comes in A5 and B5 page sizes. B5 page size is rare for sewn bound planners, even moreso is a planner with dot grid writing space (5mm spacing). And with the choice between dated or undated pages.
The creators of the Dot Cross Planner seem to update the weekly spreads each year. The version I purchased had dot grid for the entire weekly spread in a horizontal layout. Another version has since been released which has a mix of lined and dot grid writing space on a vertical weekly spread.
The paper is 120GSM thick which isn’t the thickest paper around, but it could be somewhat overlooked with the affordable price tag of only $35 USD for the A5 (12 month) version or $40 USD for the B5 version (also 12 months).
Scribbles that Matter used to have their own website, but it looks like it now automatically redirects you to their on Amazon store to purchase the planner.
Read more: Review of the DotCross Planner by Scribbles That Matter (B5 page size)
4. LH Agenda
The LH Agenda has too many features to show you photos of everything, you’ll have to check out my detailed review in this post.
I reviewed the first edition of the planner here, but it’s come a long way since then with a bigger page size and even more features. You can also get the cover monogrammed with your initials 🙂
This planner is on the pricey side but it has a very through goal planning system (not just a few goal planning pages like most planners have). If you’re someone that abandons a planner by February each year, try the LH Agenda to keep you on track.
The original LH Agenda Planner on the right, the new and updated version on the left
5. Roterunner Purpose Planner
The Roterunner Purpose Planner has a weekly layout I see more often in bullet journal spreads than in a planner. So many sections to keep everything organized! If only the paper was better quality (it’s very thin and has a yellowish tinge).
If you’re juggling a lot of things at once, this planner will help you keep everything in order.
All the details are in this post: roterunner purpose planner review
6. Erin Condren Focused Planner
I know Erin Condren is known for bright colors but… I actually prefer their minimalist focused style planner range. The colors in the planner are a lot nicer these days than the muted tones and sometimes awful color combinations they used to do, but since I use colored pens and highlighters I prefer minimalist planners nowadays. Then you don’t have to worry about the colors you want to use clashing with the colors of the planner.
I like that the Focused Planner range doesn’t have the chunky coil either.
The spreads extend right to the edges of the page maximizing the usable space.
Erin Condren Focused Planner (Softbound Version)
7. Passion Planner
If you’re looking for a vertical planner with timeslots, the Passion Planner would be my recommendation. You can schedule out every hour in 30 minute increments all the way from 6am to 11pm.
It comes in 2 page sizes including the original and very roomy 7″ wide x 10″ high size.
This was one of the first really minimalist but very detailed planners that is still popular today, If you want to give to a try, Passion Planner have free printable versions of their planners (and digital planner versions too) on their website. They also have printables sized to fit over the notes box e.g. if you want to put a habit tracker there instead, you don’t need to rule it up by hand, you can just print and add it with some washi tape or glue it to the page.
This is another planner that regularly goes on sale. There’s an undated version as well.
Rainbow Color Coded Weekly Spread Using the Passion Planner
8. Panda Planner
If the Passion Planner isn’t quite right for you, the Panda Planner is another option. It also has a vertical weekly layout but the columns extend the entire length of the page.
I reviewed the daily version of the Panda Planner in this post. The weekly planner is available on Amazon.
9. Wordsworth Planner
A planner you probably haven’t heard of but worth a mention. With it’s practical layouts and affordable price tag, the Wordsworth Planner is a good option if you’re trying a sewn bound planner for the first time.
The planner is only $25 USD on Amazon. and you can choose between the horiztonal weekly, vertical weekly or daily versions.
Love this weekly spread! I reviewed the horizontal version in this post. See how I used it in this post.
Read more: Wordsworth Planner review
10. Legend Planner
The Legend Planner is similar to the Wordsworth Planner, but with a more structured weekly spread. It was made by the same company that makes the Clever Fox planners, Go Girl and Puffin Planner.
I think this planner includes a bit more than the other brands they offer with a cover that has a 3D printed design (not just a plain cover), plus there’s more goal planning pages.
Read more: Legend Weekly Planner review
The main reason I added this one to the list, is because the weekly spread has separate work and personal to do lists which can be hard to find.
Other Noteable Mentions
I could add far more planners to the list but I have to stop at some point! Here are some other options worth considering:
Happy Planner bookbound – They only seemed to do this one year but I really liked the bookbound version – much more than I was expecting! I think it was because the planner was the same size as the discbound classic version (7″ wide x 9.25″ high), which is larger than most sewn bound planners come in. The pages laid flat on their own too.
Paperchase Agenzio – unfortunately they’ve gone out of business but they had a clean and simple horizontal weekly with notes planner that was very lightweight for it’s page size
Cossac Planner – Another planner that unfortunately isn’t available to buy anymore – it had a day to a page layout that I converted into weekly spreads
Live Whale – a planner with day to a page and a one page weekly spread. The Live Whale planner squeezes a lot into it’s compact page size.
Related post: daily and weekly planners with lay flat binding
Here is one sewn bound planner I don’t recommend:
The Emily Ley Simplified Planner.
If you follow me this one might surprise you, as you would think a pretty rainbow spread like this planner has would make it to my list of favorites but… due to the binding style, pages at the front and back of the planner do not lay flat unless you hold the page open with one hand while trying to write with the other. Interestingly when I went to her website to see if the same style of planners were offered, all of the daily and weekly planners now have spiral binding but the Dapperdesk (which has the worst / most impractical / the pages don’t stay open binding I’ve ever come across in a planner)… is still offered in the bookbound style.
Instead, I preferred the Emily Ley for At a Glance collab planner. Shame that was only a limited edition.
Planning tips
- 10 Different ways to do a monthly goals review in your planner
- Using blank pages: 50 useful lists to add to your planner
- 7 Quick & Easy Ways to Personalise Your Planner
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