Which planner size is best for you? Find out here!
For this week’s blog, we will be talking about planner sizes.
Being new to planning can be fun, but it can also feel overwhelming in trying to figure out which size is best to use for our needs. This is why I decided to look over the planners I have used and to share a little bit about them and what my experience has been using these various sizes. So, sit back, relax, and let’s get this going!
If you are just starting out on your planner journey or are wanting to try a new size, but aren’t sure, then read on. There are so many people trying new sizes, so we thought it would be a good idea to go over several planner sizes for you and show you the ins and outs. We have a blog that goes over most of the planner sizes very briefly, but this one will provide more details.
Pocket Pm Size
Pictured below is the pocket planner from our collection, which comes in several colors.
Pocket size is also known as “A7” size, or “PM” if you’re using the Louis Vuitton
agenda.
The pocket size measurements are 5.75″ x 4.20″
The pocket planner comes with 6 rings that can range between sizes (depending on what
you will be using it for).
The pocket planner is one of the smaller planners in the planner sizes. It is known for being compact and easy to carry, because it can fit practically anywhere, and makes it easy to travel with.
Because this planner is small, it can best be used for those who do not have much to do throughout the day, or do not have to write down a lot of information, since the pages have a limited amount of space to write in, as you can see below.
It’s also important to keep in mind that because there is a limited amount of space in this planner, you have to keep the most important/most used inserts.
For example, depending on the ring size, it may not allow you to put a full years’ worth of all the monthly and all of the weeklies, so you may need to decide whether you want to keep a years’ worth of monthlies and half a years’ worth of monthlies etc.
As mentioned earlier, the size of the rings can vary. Some planners come with 15mm, 19mm, 20mm, 25mm, or 30mm size rings.
In some planners you can easily switch out the rings yourself, and in others, you may need to do a little bit more of adjustments.
You may need to experiment with ring sizes to figure out which ones work best with your planning style and needs.
My thoughts and experiences on the POCKET size:
Personally, I found that this planner was best used as an on-the-go planner that carried my grocery list, an inventory list of necessary items, such as shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste etc, an order tracker, and a list of items that I needed from other stores like Target, Costco etc.
Personal Mm Size
When I first got into planning, I would get A6 and personal sizes confused, because they are a bit similar in height. However, they do have their differences.
Personal sized planners are also called “medium” sized planners. (Louis Vuitton also names this size as “mm”).
Personal size measurements are: 95mm x 171mm or 3.75” x 6.75.”
Pictured below is our personal sized planner, which is available to purchase and comes in this pretty pink and gorgeous lavender color. The measurements for this planner are 7.2” x 4.20”. This planner comes with 6 rings. And there is also a gap in the middle of the rings (to separate the top and bottom rings, as you can see in the bottom right picture).
The rings in some personal sized planners can be changed to your liking, depending if you want to choose a certain color and size.
In looking at the measurements, you can see that personal size is narrow compared to other planner sizes. Depending on your planner style, this may or not suit your needs. One planner hack that has been seen on IG is that you can use A6 sized paper in your personal planner. The trick is that you print A6 sized inserts, but you have to punch the inserts to fit in a personal sized planner, this is because even though A6 and personal size planners have 6 rings, the measurements are a little bit different. In this way, you can still carry around a personal sized planner, but use a different insert that works best for you.
One of the reasons many people like personal size is because it’s also portable,
functional, and easy to carry around.
My thoughts and experiences on the Personal size:
Personally, I found personal size a bit too narrow for my needs. While I loved the fact that I could take it with me everywhere and it fit in most of my purses, I didn’t like that I kept running out of room when I was writing. Because I was using this planner as my main planner and everyday carry, I felt like I didn’t have enough space. Perhaps this size could work for me if I was using it to make lists, like for example, a grocery list, where I could just jot things down and write one word like “apples,” “bananas,” “strawberries” and not necessarily “plan” in this size, since I tend to run out of room when writing from left to right.
BONUS: there are personal wide planners out there, and we will go over that size. Stay tuned.
Personal Wide
In ring planners for personal wide size, the measurements are typically 4.75 in. x 6.75 in. or 121 x 171 mm.
Some personal wide planners have 6 rings like the regular personal sized planner. The ring size is the same for both of these planner sizes. Like the other previous planners we have discussed, depending on the planner itself and the ring mechanics, you can switch out the rings to your liking (whether it’s a different color, or ring size). So, you are able to change rings in both of these planners if you are not using one at the moment. For example, if you have a regular personal sized agenda and you are not using it at the moment, you can switch those rings to the personal wide planner.
The personal wide size has also been called a “B6 size.” As mentioned in its name, “Personal” wide has the same height as the regular personal size. The main difference between personal wide size and personal size, is that personal wide has a bit more room in the width; which is why it’s called “personal wide.” Whereas personal size is a bit narrower.
In the first pic below you can see how the pages of the personal size are narrower than the ones on the right side of the personal wide size.
I like to think that personal wide is in the middle between pocket size and the next size up, which is A5. I feel like personal wide gives you the perfect amount of space without it feeing overwhelming.
My thoughts and experiences on the Personal Wide size:
Personal wide size feels like the perfect size because it has plenty of space, and you won't feel like you’re running out of room when writing. Like I mentioned before, trying out personal size felt like I was running out of room when I was using it as my main planner where I stored my weekly and monthly inserts. I had seen several people use personal wide planners, and they looked so good. (Leave it to IG to make you want to try a whole new planner system lol).
Personal wide planners are also portable and can fit in a medium sized purse or bag. I think this is another reason why I like the size of this planner. I love that I can take it with me, without having to sacrifice which purse or bag I will be taking with me, because I know that this planner will fit.
A5 Size
This is one of the larger planner sizes. The A5 size measures 148 x 210mm or 5.8 x 8.3”
The A5 size is also called the “GM” size in Louis Vuitton, and they share the same
measurements.
Below is a picture of our business planner, which is in the A5 size. And on
the right is a picture of our motivational quote planner’s, which are also in A5 size. We have additional A5 planners for purchase as well on our website.
inspiring quote on the front covers.
Some planners come with rings, and others, like our business planner come with coiled rings. The rings can be interchangeable, depending on the planner you use.
The A5 size can meet your needs if you are a busy person and have a lot to do. Or, if you don’t have a ton to do, but you like a lot of empty white space/more deco, then this is for you.
My thoughts and experiences on the A5 size:
I had fan-girled over a lot of IG pictures of beautiful spreads using this size. I liked how much space it had, since the pages had a ton of room on them!
During the time I was going to try out A5 size, my life was busy with work, errands, events, birthday parties etc. So, after doing some very important planner research (lol), I had preordered a planner cover and even purchased inserts to go along with it – everything was set.
I waited months for my planner to arrive, because it was preordered and the pandemic had started and mail came slower than normal, which was understandable. But, by the time I had received my planner and other stationery goods I needed to set it up with, we were in lock down, everyone was ordered to stay at home, and basically everything was closed except essential businesses.
When I set up my planner, which was right away because I was super excited, I had no idea how I was going to use it because the things I needed it for were not currently happening. While I still used the planner, and filled it with other things that I could do, I found that because I didn’t have much to do/plan, I had a lot more empty space in my planner than I hadn’t anticipated, and I didn’t like that so much.
I feel like I didn’t get to fully experience the A5 size in its entirety the way I wanted to, so I would definitely have to try this planner size again as we head into “normal” life again.
So now I want to know about you, what size do you think it would work the best for you?