For whatever reason, Plum Paper have an option to order your planner pre-punched for use with discs, however do not sell any planners with the pages already on discs, nor do they sell any discs for you to thread the pages on yourself.

Being a long time lover of disc binding, I wanted to see which discbound brands and which disc sizes were compatible with Plum Paper’s pre-punched for discs option.

Related post: Plum Paper Planners Haul & Review (better than the Erin Condren?)

Which discs are compatible with Plum Paper’s pre-punched planners?

This is what my Plum Paper planner looked like when it arrived (after I took it out of the plastic packaging bag).

There wasn’t any cardboard on either side of the planner so some of the outside pages were a bit scuffed.

I ordered 2 different page size planners – A5 which was 0.75″ thick and 7 x 9″ which was just over 0.75″ thick.

It took me 7 minutes per planner to load the pages onto the discs. I worked in small chunks (probably about 1mm thick at a time) which was easier to load onto the discs than a larger chunk of paper which is more likely to bend around the stems.

I wanted silver discs and used some plastic ones from my sister’s shop, Carefully Crafted. It turned out really nice! I usually use black discs but I prefer how the silver looks with Plum Paper’s colors.

What disc size should you use?

I used 2 different disc sizes. If you order a Plum Paper planner with no extra add on pages and don’t intend to add your own printables, then I recommend 1.25″ (31mm) diameter disc size (which I used for the A5 planner).

If you’ll be adding pages, go for bigger discs. The planner in the photo below has 1.5″ (38mm) disc size.

Different brands come in slightly different disc diameters. I think any discs sized between 1.25″ and 1.5″ will work fine.

The pages easily turn but there is less resistance if you have less free space on the discs (i.e. use smaller discs).

Plum Paper’s pre-punched inserts versus ARC punch

The mushroom stem and hole of the pre-punched Plum Paper pages are identical to the ARC’s mushroom stem and hole.

Here are the A5 size inserts in the ARC A5 planner. The ARC planner is also compatible with Levenger Circa so these inserts will work with the Levenger Circa too.

Related post: Levenger Circa Discbound Planner

Yes I can easily make inserts like these myself but… Plum Paper has really smooth paper that feels really nice to write on.

There is the option to order the inserts unpunched and punch them yourself.

The Plum Paper insert is on the right, and my own printable which I punched with my ARC punch is on the right. As you can see in the photo below, both sit fine on the discs.

BUT it’s worth pointing out, that if you use the Arc punch on the Plum Paper 7″ wide x 9″ high pages, the hole placement won’t be even at the top and bottom of the page. See how there’s a bit more space at the top and not a lot at the bottom in the photo below?

Read more: Arcing my Plum Paper Planner – everything you need to know if you’d like to try it yourself! 

Plum Paper’s pre-punched inserts versus MAMBI Happy Planner

If you prefer the Happy Planner, you can use the inserts with MAMBI’s punch.

The pages pre-punched by Plum Paper don’t sit as nicely as the ARC but they would still work with Happy Planner disc size and spacing. If you grew bored of your Plum Paper cover and wanted to switch it out, you could mix and match it with the Happy Planner.

The medium size Plum Paper planner is 7″ wide x 9″ high, so only slightly shorter in height than MAMBI classic size at 7″ wide x 9.25″ high.

There is no A5 size Happy Planner, so here are the Plum Paper A5 inserts in the Happy Planner Classic 7″ wide x 9.25″ high. Still doable, you’ll just have some extra space on the side and bottom.

Compatible brands

I didn’t take photos of the Plum Paper inserts with every discbound brand, but this post will give you a good idea of which ones are interchangeable: discbound planners & notebooks: brands that are compatible

The pre-punched Plum Paper pages work with these brands:

• Solid aluminium and plastic discs from Carefully Crafted
• ARC discs and punch
• Happy Planner (Plum Paper has an A5 version, the Happy Planner does not), however you could still use Happy Planner discs or the Happy Planner punch
• Inkwell press (both Plum Paper and Inkwell Press have a 7″ wide x 9″ high version)
• Levenger Circa discs and punch (A5 size)
• Eleven Discs (A5 size)
• TUL (A5 size)
• Dokibook (A5 size)
• Maggie Holmes (note Plum Paper has a 7″ wide x 9″ high page size but the Maggie Holmes is 7.5″ wide x 9.5″ high)

Related post: Where to find discs to make a discbound planner or notebook (downloadable comparison)

Not Compatible brands

• Atoma – their round part of the mushroom stem is much more oval shaped. If you bought the pages unpunched and punched them yourself it might work, but there are better and cheaper discbound brands available anyway

Would I order the Plum Paper pre-punched pages again?

I love disc binding and now that I know it’s easy to find discs that are compatible, I’m definitely going to be doing the pre-punched option for future Plum Paper orders.

If you want to add printable pages to your Plum Paper planner (very easy if you choose the discbound option!) See this post for a tutorial: how to print printables at Plum Paper planner size from your home printer (step by step tutorial) 

More Plum Paper reviews

• Ultimate Comparison: Erin Condren Life Planner versus Plum Paper Planners – Which planner is better? 
• Plum Paper planners comparison (all layouts + add ons)
• 9 alternatives to the Plum Paper planner

Planning tips

• How to print printables at Plum Paper planner size from your home printer (step by step tutorial) 
• Planner pen testing in the Erin Condren Life Planner, Plum Paper, Happy Planner by MAMBI and Limelife Planner 
• 10 Functional Ways to Use Washi Tape in your Planner

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