I am one of those people who likes to buy a paper planner. I very seldom use a digital calendar. The only reasons I use one is to send my husband events or when I need my phone to give me an alert.
Since it’s already October, I wanted to buy a 2017 planner. I have events that I need to put on the 2017 calendar and let’s be honest, the new year is on the horizon! I almost bought the same planner I used this year, but it has a few shortcomings, so I decided to investigate other options and asked my Facebook friends for their help. I thought I’d share them with you, as you might be considering the same purchase yourself in the near future.
Here’s the one I bought, the main options I considered and the pros and cons of each:
Erin Condren: $55-$75
Numerous people referred this planner to me, and although it was one of the pricier options, it met my needs and wants. (They were also running a sale, so I got it for less than the original price.) I ordered it and it arrived within a few days and I’m super excited to use it this next year!
Pros:
- Weekly and monthly view. I follow Michael Hyatt and he has a philosophy of planning to your ideal week. I really like this idea and like to see my entire week listed out by the hour and try to plan daily chunks of time to work on things. I also like to view my entire month. When I see too much going on, I work at reducing my commitments so that I have more white space on the calendar.
- Super cute customizable design. I could not resist the purple with metallic letters! There are lots of other designs to choose from. The cover I ordered is permanently bound, but you can order removable covers and change them out when you want a new design.
- Built-in monthly tabs
- Personalization options
- Optional purchase items, like fun embellishments and snap-in accessories like a to do list and dinner planning list.
Cons:
- Since I’ve not used it yet, I don’t have much to report here other than the cost. It’s more than I planned on spending, but I caught it on sale and you can too through today (Tuesday the 19th). Use the code 20INAFLASH for 20% off.
For this and any of the planners you might like, I’d follow them on social media to find out about future sales and promo codes.
I love the story of this planner and was so close to buying one, but it didn’t have the hourly format that I really wanted.
Pros:
- It’s a planner that has weekly devotions and verses
- Space for your prayer list
- Beautiful cover design
- Daily or weekly formats
- Built-in monthly tabs
- Has a What’s for Dinner line on each day
- Goal-setting and memory making pages
Cons:
Passion Planner: $24.99-$29.99
Pros:
- This is the planner I’ve been using for 2016. Like the Erin Condren, this planner has the monthly and weekly view by the hour.
- It has planning tools for annual and monthly goals to help you work on your passions.
- Referral Program: When you refer three people and they purchase a planner, you get one free. Visit here for more info.
Cons:
- There are no monthly tabs. This has been the biggest deal-breaker for me. I added my own with Post-it notes, but prefer a planner that has them built in.
- There are also no future calendars in the back. I like to at least be able to look at dates for the following year.
- The string that keeps the planner closed just broke on me last week!
Franklin Covey Planner: $32.95 for pages + binder ($36.95 and up)
I love the Franklin Covey time management philosophy and used this planner for about three years. I decided to change because I wanted something less bulky to carry around.
Pros:
- Monthly, weekly or daily view options with tabs.
- The Sharpen the Saw snap-in cards, such a great way to help schedule time to work on improving yourself.
- Goal planning sheets
- You can reuse the planner case every year, you only need to purchase the refills.
Cons:
- If you want to change the look of your planner up frequently, you’ll have to buy a new planner case plus the annual refills, which can add up.
- When using the daily pages, you have to constantly add and remove them every month so it’s not so bulky.
Other Options:
I considered these others as well, but in the interest of time will just give you a list. A big thank you to my Facebook friends for helping me find all of these great options to share!
Purposeful Planner: $59
Day Designer: $49+
Get to Work Book: $55
iBloom: $30-$50
I’d love to know if you pick one of these planners. Leave a comment or send me an e-mail and let me know which one you chose.
