Creating your own custom planner can be an incredibly helpful way to stay organized and productive. But once you’ve designed your perfect planner, where do you actually go to print it out?
As someone who relies on planners to keep my busy schedule under control, figuring out printing logistics was an important step. As a professional planner printing manufacturer, through some trial and error, I’ve discovered the best places to print your own planner based on a variety of factors.
Why Print Your Own Planner?
Before jumping into the printing specifics, let’s quickly cover why you may want to create and print your own planner instead of buying one:
Total Customization
Designing everything yourself lets you fully customize your planner however you want. Include the exact sections, layouts, and designs that work for your lifestyle. Store-bought planners just won’t offer that level of personalization.
Cost Savings
Making your own planner instead of constantly buying new dated ones every year adds up financially. And printing on your own terms avoids retail markups.
Environmental Reasons
Using a refillable custom planner is also eco-friendly, reducing waste from constantly buying disposable planners. You can print on recycled paper too.
Flexibility
With a custom planner, it’s easy to tweak your system if needed instead of being rigidly stuck to a preset layout.
Clearly, creating a tailored planner to your needs makes a lot of sense. But how do you actually print a professionally bound planner book based on your design?
Key Factors When Printing Planners
As you evaluate the myriad of printing options available today, keep these key factors in mind:
Binding Styles
How do you want your printed planner to be bound? Common options include spiral, wire-o, disc, post, and binder clip bindings. Then you’ll need to select a printing service that offers your preferred format.
Paper Quality
Pay attention to the paper quality too. Do you want ultra-thick, bright white, glossy, or recycled paper? Different printers offer different paper types, weights, textures, and environmental sustainability standards.
Order Quantities
What’s the minimum and maximum print order you can place? If you just want one single planner printed vs ordering in bulk, some online printers cater better to lower quantities.
Pricing
Of course, budget is always a consideration too. Printer pricing varies based on order quantities, customizations, binding format, shipping fees, and more. Run the numbers.
Turnaround Time
How quickly do you hope to get your printed planners delivered? Turnaround times range from same day printing to 1-2+ weeks for custom orders. Plan accordingly.
Now that we’ve covered what to consider when researching printers, let’s explore some top recommended services to print your brilliant custom planner designs.
Where To Print Your Own Planner
Here are my picks for the best places to print your own planner based on binding type:
For Spiral Bound Planners
If you want a spiral coil binding, I suggest:
48 Hour Books
- Minimum Order Quantity: 1 book
- Binding Types: Spiral only
- Paper Types: 60-100 lb text/cover
- Turnaround: Ships in 48 business hours
- Pricing: $$
I’ve used 48 Hour Books several times to print professional quality spiral bound books in small batches and single quantities. Their name says it all – quick turnaround!
From your PDF, you can customize bindings, page finishes, cover textures, and paper weights. Top-notch printing quality. They also plant a tree for every order placed which is awesome.
Highly recommend for spiral coil binding printing.
MMPrint
- Minimum Order Quantity: 25 books
- Binding Types: Spiral, Wire-O, Perfect Bind
- Paper Types: Wide selection
- Turnaround: 4+ days
- Pricing: $-$$
For slightly larger spiral bound print batches, MMPrint is fantastic. They offer very competitive pricing paired with great quality and loads of customization options. I had a 50-book order printed here seamlessly.
Just be mindful of their higher minimum order quantity before using them. But once you hit that 25 book threshold, they make spiral binding easy.
For Wire Binding Printing
To print planner refills with wire combs and punch holes, use:
Doxzoo
- Minimum Order Quantity: 1 book
- Binding Types: Wire, Plastic Comb
- Paper Types: 160-300 gsm
- Turnaround: 6 business days
- Pricing: $$
Doxzoo stands out for ease of single quantity orders and quick 6 day turnaround times. As a bonus, their online instant quote calculator makes pricing estimates effortless.
I’ve had great results using Doxzoo for short-run wire binding printing projects. Top notch quality too!
For Disc Binding Printing
If you want easy tear-out and replaceable disc bound pages, try:
Stationery HQ
- Minimum Order Quantity: 1 book
- Binding Types: Disc, Screw Post, Loose Leaf
- Paper Types: Various weights
- Turnaround: 7-10 days
- Pricing: $-$$
Stationery HQ offers super flexible disc binding printing perfect for planner refills. I really like that you can print single sheets or batches. Makes iterating as you tweak your planner design simple.
Their online design studio is also crazy robust for building disc bound planners. And volume discounts kick in at super low quantities saving money.
To Print Planner Refill Sheets
If you already have a planner cover and just want neatly printed refill sheets, use:
FedEx Office Print
- Minimum Order Quantity: 1 sheet
- Binding Types: Loose leaf printing
- Paper Types: Wide selection
- Turnaround: Same day for 24 lb. paper
- Pricing: $
Sometimes you don’t need a full custom bound book printed – maybe you just want some clean planner refill sheets. FedEx Office Print shops make this fast and affordable.
I’ve used them same-day to print sheets to test planner designs I was iterating on. Being able print single page quantities makes revisions super nimble. Their online file submission and pricing is really slick too.
To Print Planner Covers
For printing just planner covers, check out:
KDP Print from Amazon
- Minimum Order Quantity: 1 book
- Binding Types: Paperback binding
- Paper Types: White, cream, matte
- Turnaround: 4+ days
- Pricing: $-$$
Amazon’s print on demand book printing arm, KDP Print, offers exceptional paperback book printing. Since planner exteriors are often paperback style bindings, they excel at covers.
I’ve been pleased with their print quality, competitive pricing, and lightning fast shipping speeds. Bonus points for nice integration if you sell on Amazon too.
Highly recommend for print book covers and paperback binding projects.
One-Stop Custom Planner Printing
Gobook Printing is the ultimate destination for all your custom planner printing needs, providing top-notch quality and exceptional service you can rely on.
To guarantee the quality of books, we have equipped with the best facilities from all over the world, including Heidelberg and KBA offset printing machines, MK cutting and folding machines. All the printing machines have color management system to make the color precise and vivid.
Key Takeaways
- Creating a custom planner tailored to your needs makes organizing your life much easier
- But finding the right service to print your planner can be tricky with so many options
- Focus on binding types, paper quality, order quantities, pricing, and delivery speed
- Top services exist for all binding formats like spiral, disc, wire-o, and screw post
- FedEx Office Print and KDP Print from Amazon offer specialized services
Let me know in the comments if you have any other awesome planner printing recommendations! I’m always looking to test out new printers.