Published: November 5, 2020

I love using paper planners. For me, nothing beats the feel of putting pen or pencil to paper. But over the last year I’ve been using a digital planner more and more. I still use paper to plan sometimes, but much less than before. If you’re considering digital planning, here are 8 reasons to give it a try.

1. PORTABLE

With apps like GoodNotes 5 and Notabilty, you can plan on an iPad and access or annotate it on an iPhone to reference while you’re away from home. iPads are also easy to carry around, so you might bring that with you instead. I love doing some planning while sipping coffee in a little café, especially during cozy weather.

2. ECO FRIENDLY + LESS CLUTTER

Digital planners create much less paper waste and doesn’t require a lot of supplies (like stickers, stamps, and binders), which results in fewer things to store or throw away.

*While there are debates on e-waste, an iPad isn’t normally just a planner or notebook. It has many other functions that help to offset it’s eco footprint.

Our Introduction to Digital Planning blog post expands on this a bit more. Check it out here.

3. STICKERS + CUSTOMIZABLE

Digital planners are nearly endlessly customizable. You can change pen colors, type/handwrite text of any size, and add as many stickers as you want. No two planners look the same. Also, digital stickers never run out!

4. DUPLICATE AND MOVE PAGES AROUND

You can duplicate and move pages around to customize your planner even more. A lot of digital planners have additional pages that function like planner inserts. You can add a budget or habit tracker to the beginning of every month, blank pages for notes between days, goal or project planners as you need, the list goes on.

5. UNDO BUTTON

I used to hesitate when starting a new paper planner because what would happen if I made a mistake or plans changed? Its no fun looking at scratched out words and eraser marks. With digital planning you can undo or erase mistakes. You can also move, copy, and paste text and stickers as plans inevitably change.

6. HANDWRITTING IS SEARCHABLE

Apps like GoodNotes 5 and Notabiliy can also search your handwriting for specific words and phrases so it’s easier to find past events, appointments, and notes.

7. BACKUP

You don’t have to worry about losing your planner with cloud backups. You can also save digital planners and notebooks as PDFs when you’re done with them so you can look back through them whenever you want.

8. LOTS OF OPTIONS

There are so many great options for digital planners. I have several in my Etsy shop. You’re sure to find one that fits your needs!

The most important thing when it comes to planning is finding a process that works for you. For some that’ll mean using all digital planners, for others all paper, and for some yet it’ll be a combination.