The Best Japanese Planners (2026): Hobonichi Techo, Kokuyo Jibun Techo

This isn't thing you'll spot successful Japanese planners. Instead, you're fixed much escaped abstraction to constitute successful your ain things similar regular wont trackers oregon a regular schedule, alternatively than having those sections pre-made for you. You tin besides physique a planner with antithetic workbooks, similar the Jibun Techo First Kit, which is reminiscent of refillable Filofax-style systems but with a overmuch cooler aesthetic.

As I got utilized to utilizing Japanese planners, I recovered I really similar their open-ended customization. If my goals alteration during the year, I'm not locked into a conception I cooked up successful January—it gives maine a existent caller commencement for each month, week, and time spread.

Which Ones Are Worth Buying?

I've tried a fewer antithetic Japanese planners this past year. Here are the ones I'll support utilizing successful 2026.

Hobonichi

While Hobonichi's beloved flagship is undoubtedly the OG Techo, I emotion my Techo Cousin. It adds a play dispersed astatine the beforehand of the planner, and the A5 size is perfect for maine to person capable abstraction to constitute retired my regular must-haves. This includes my enactment to-dos, my idiosyncratic to-dos, my wont tracker, and my docket for the day, and there's inactive country for different miscellaneous lists oregon musings without needing to ace retired an other notebook.

The regular Techo is cheaper since it skips retired connected the play dispersed conception (which you truly don't need, since it's successful the beforehand of the book, abstracted from the regular spreads, and casual to hide about). It's besides a small smaller—A6 size alternatively of A5. I truly similar the A5 size, but the regular Techo is simply a large and affordable spot to commencement if you privation to spot if Japanese planners are for you.

Kokuyo Jibun

As idiosyncratic who already has a favourite play planner, I was amazed to find myself falling successful emotion with the Kokuyo Jibun Techo. I got the 2026 First Kit, which included the past 2 months of 2025, truthful I've already been capable to commencement investigating it retired successful my regular life. It's a rarity among Japanese planners successful that it has 3 notebooks built into it: Diary, Life, and Ideas. The Diary is the existent planner portion with monthly and play spreads, positive different pages similar a publication list, wealth tracker, and task tracker (which has go my wont tracker). The Life booklet has much punctual pages, similar 100 Wishes and places to way accusation astir your life, including a password manager and anniversaries list, and abstraction to log your beingness events betwixt ages 0 and 99. Finally, the Ideas notebook successful the backmost is conscionable grid insubstantial wherever you tin constitute lists and ideas to your heart's content.

All 3 books are interlaid successful the screen to beryllium arsenic 1 planner, but you tin region 1 and refill it immoderate time. It's a truly useful system, particularly arsenic idiosyncratic who volition decidedly request to refill the Ideas booklet earlier the twelvemonth is up. I've got the B6 slim size, and it's been a truly bully size to acceptable onto my desk.

Midori

The Midori notebooks are popular—specifically, those with MD paper. It's described arsenic versatile, and the insubstantial does consciousness plentifulness versatile, but it besides feels a small thicker and much akin to a regular notebook than the super-thin insubstantial you'll get connected a Hobonichi oregon Kokuyo Jibun planner. It's inactive a small smoother to the interaction than my American planners, though the insubstantial value feels similar.

I'm investigating some the MD Diary and the Stand+ notebook, and I truly similar however the Stand+ is created to basal up connected its own; it makes for a overmuch much amusive mode to presumption my to-do list. There's a monthly calendar astatine the beforehand and past grid insubstantial pages afterward for freeform notes and lists. The Diary has a akin consciousness to it and a akin design, but alternatively of grid paper, it has lines. The lines are wide, which is bully if you person ample handwriting, but it doesn't consciousness similar capable abstraction for maine fixed however tiny the notebook is.

Are These Planners Available Only successful Japanese?

If you interest that you won't beryllium capable to work the Japanese characters successful a Japanese planner, bully news! Some of these planners besides person English versions oregon usage English phrases. The Hobonichi has English versions connected Amazon, and the Jibun Techo uses English titles connected its pages. For the Jibun, I inactive person to look up immoderate translations since the descriptions nether those titles are successful Japanese, but I tin usually infer however to usage a leafage from the rubric and design. JetPens has an full leafage dedicated to translating the Jibun Techo here.

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