The Ultimate Planner Supplies Guide

If you love decorating your planner, browse this list of planner supplies. It includes the best tools, stickers, pens, and more!

My planner is basically my external brain. I use it to write down all the things so that I don’t have to remember them.

Dates. Appointments. Lists. Errands. Chores. Work. Goals. Health.

You get the point. Everything goes in my planner and so I’m much more organized and much less stressed than I was before I started using one. The way I used my planner has changed over the years, so I want to share the supplies I’ve used at each stage.

This list of planner supplies is for everyone, whether you’re interested in getting started using a planner, you’re ready to take your planner to the next level, or you’re a lifelong #planneraddict. Add these goodies to your wishlist for yourself and for the planner user you love to shop for.

Choosing a planner

You only need a few things to get started. I always recommend that to start out, you just do the pen-and-paper planning until you make a habit of it. There is no need to go all out on an expensive planner, pens, and other supplies. That’s the frosting on the cupcake. First, you need to practice cooking with a box mix.

I’ve got several printable planner inserts here on the blog. You’ll find monthly calendars, a daily planner, habit trackers, and more.

Once you’ve got comfortable with the basics, grab my annual printable planner to organize a whole year. Right now the 2020 Printable Planner and 2021 Printable Planner are available.

Planner Supplies for Setup

If you’re using a digital planner to print at home, you’ll need a few things to get it set up before you start using it.

Color printer

While you can print planner inserts in black and white, they’re so much prettier in color. And these days a color printer doesn’t cost much more than a black and white one. Of course, you’ll need additional ink, but as long as you aren’t printing tons of solid-colored pages, it should last you a while.

I used an Epson Workforce WF-7620 for about 5 years until the print heads were clogged too often. Then I switched to an Epson XP-4100, which is much smaller!

Bright white computer paper

A good quality bright white paper makes a huge difference in how your printed pages will look. Additionally, the weight of the paper affects whether you can see what’s printed/written on the backside of a page.

My paper of choice is bright white paper at around 24lb. and 96 brightness.

3-ring binder

After you print your planner at home, you need something to keep it in. While you can have it bound at a copy shop for a few dollars, I like to use a 3-ring binder because it’s really sturdy. I’ve never needed more than a 1-inch binder and I like the ones with the clear front so I can slide in my cover page.

Here are several 3-ring binders with clear covers.

3-hole punch

You need a 3-hole punch to prep your pages to go into the binder. I use a vintage hole punch that was originally my grandmother’s. It still works fine, but it’s silly heavy.

I’ve found several flat 3-hole punches and can be kept in your planner binder.

Pens and pencils

In the beginning, any pens and pencils will do. I started out with basic Bic pens and Ticonderoga pencils because I was already buying them for my kids to use at school.

Planner Supplies for Organizing

Even if it’s messy, a planner you use daily to keep track of appointments and get stuff done is perfect. If you’re looking to take it to the next level and get a bit more organized, you might need a few extras.

Planner dividers

I use different kinds of planner dividers to separate my planner into quarterly and monthly sections. I also keep my blogging calendars in a separate section.

You can make DIY planner dividers with cardstock or purchase premade tabbed dividers.

Zip pencil pouch

Once you have a few favorite pens, pencils, highlighters, sticky notes, and other items, it’s handy to keep them all in a zip pencil pouch.

Use a 3-hole zip pouch in your binder or carry a separate pencil bag.

Sticky notes

I often find I need to scribble down extra info quickly or just write a note that can be transferred as I flip pages in my planner. So keeping a few pads of sticky notes in my pencil pouch is a simple solution.

These Redi-Tag Dividers are pretty cool. And I always love classic Post-it Notes.

Binder clips

Binder clips are great for marking your current section or holding pages together. It makes it quick to flip back and forth between this month and this week in my own planner.

There are basic binder clips that you can embellish if you want and pretty decorative binder clips.

Erasable pens

When I started planning, I did a lot of scribbling and didn’t feel bad just marking something out and rewriting. After a while, the messiness started to bug me and I discovered erasable pens are the planner lover’s best friend.

I’m currently using Pilot Frixion Erasable Pens in 10 colors so I can color-code my monthly calendar pages and erase the text every time I change my mind.

Planner Supplies for Decorating

Paper trimmer

A paper trimmer comes in handy for cutting paper into custom sizes. I love using scrapbook paper, which is usually 12×12-inches.

I originally started with a Fiskars 9-inch paper trimmer and have the 12-inch paper trimmer on my wishlist.

Washi tape

There is an endless supply of pretty washi tape at every craft store. I’ve recently been using it to cover up where I wrote in a non-erasable pen. It also makes a fun way to highlight big events.

Here are some super-cute ones:

• watercolor washi tape
• fruit washi tape
• Harry Potter washi tape

Planner stickers

Planner stickers can be decorative, motivational, or handy for organizing. My favorite way to use planner stickers is to mark holidays and recurring events (like payday, no school, etc.)

I really love the Happy Planner brand. Here are some of my favorite sticker books:

• Pastels Mega Value Sticker Book
• Brights Mega Value Sticker Book
• Seasonal Value Pack Stickers
• Christmas Joy Value Pack Stickers

Take a peek inside my planner and see some of my sticker layouts in my Instagram Reels.

Print your own stickers from the Keri Houchin Design shop:

• Printable Month Name Planner Stickers
• Printable Planner Date Stickers Watercolor Numbers
• Summerween Creepy Cute Ice Cream Stickers
• Printable Disney Quote Stickers

Vinyl sticker paper

I’ve made my own planner stickers by printing on label paper. I made these Printable Disney Quote Stickers using Avery DIY Decal paper.

The next thing on my idea list is making my own planner stickers with Cricut printable vinyl. You don’t even actually need a Cricut, although it comes in handy for cutting the stickers out.

Planner charms

Planner charms are strictly decoration, but they are awfully cute. Hang one from the rings if you have a spiral planner or attach it to the zipper on your pencil bag.

What’s next? Try these other fun and creative ideas on One Mama’s Daily Drama:

• Planner Accessory Storage with a Caddy
• Printable Planner Bookmarks
• Printable Reading List for Bullet Journal or iPad