If you’re going to start a bullet journal, you might as well go with the top best bullet journal supplies recommended by the best of the best in the bullet journal or bujo community. And the votes are in! I’ve researched high and wide to see what popular bullet journalists like Little Coffee Fox, Boho Berry, Productive and Pretty, and Page Flutter use and love, compared prices, and came up with this list of top bullet journal supplies. Read on for the best bullet journal buys on whatever budget you may be on.
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This list will cover:
- Best bullet journal notebooks
- Best bullet journal pens (black, colored, dual brush)
- Best bullet journal pencils
- Best bullet journal highlighters
- Best bullet journal watercolor sets
- Best bullet journal accessories and extras
At the end, you'll find starter kits for different price ranges, including $5, under $25, and under $100.
1. Best journals for bullet journaling
Winner: Leuchtturm1917 Medium Size Hardcover A5 Notebook with Dotted Pages
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Across the board, the top recommended notebook is this dotted journal. It's hailed for paper quality and inclusion of an index, page numbers, two bookmarks, and a pocket at the back of the notebook. It comes in a classic black or a whole array of vibrant colors.
Thisclose Runner-Up: Scribbles That Matter (Iconic version) Dotted Journal Notebook Diary A5 - Elastic Band - Beautiful Designer Cover - Premium Thick Paper (Teal)
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Very comparable to the Leuchtturm. Quality paper, two ribbon bookmarks, a pen loop, and built in index and key pages. A more vibrant feel.
Lesser Known But Of Higher Quality: Rhodia Black Webnotebook 5.5 inch x 8.3 inch Dot Grid
Shop on Amazon.comThis notebook is actually a little lower in price than the Leuchtturm. The quality of the paper is smoother and better than the Leuchtturm, resulting in less bleeding through and ghosting.
Budget Alternative: Minimalism Art | Classic Notebook Journal, Size: 5" X 8.3", A5, Dotted Grid Page
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A more budget-friendly dotted journal notebook that also comes in bright colors is this one, which is still of great paper and overall notebook quality.
2. Best bullet journal pens
This one was a tough one since there were many suggestions, which goes to show that grip, point size, boldness and richness of color are all to your own personality. The best suggestion is to go out and try different styles to see which you like, but if you do want a few suggestions, I've got them broken down by color/style.
Best bullet journal pens - black
Winner: Faber-Castel PITT Artist Manga Drawing Pens, Black, 4-Pack
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This waterproof pen set comes as a variety pack so you can see which thickness you prefer for your everyday use. You can use these to write or draw, as they are meant to be manga drawing pens.
Alternative: Sharpie Pen Fine Point Pen , 4 Black Pens
Shop on Amazon.comSharpie is a trusted brand at a much lower price point. These fine-point pens are fast drying.
Best bullet journal pens - color
Winner: Staedtler Color Pen Set, Set of 36 Assorted Colors (Triplus Fineliner Pens)
Shop on Amazon.comThese come in different variety packs, but the 36-color one is a steal. The triangular shape is more ergonomic, which is great considered how addicted you'll be when using them for all your bullet journal collections and spreads.
Alternative: Stabilo Point 88 Fineliner Pens, 0.4 mm - 30-Color Wallet Set
Shop on Amazon.comAnother set of fineliners that are well-liked by those who own it. Seems to have a nice assortment of colors and works well with adult coloring books (though you'll need a piece of paper underneath to prevent bleeding onto your other pages).
Alternative: Sharpie Electro Pop Permanent Markers, Ultra Fine Point, Assorted Colors, 24 Count
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Not as many colors, but a reasonable assortment for a better price.
A steal: Crayola; Ultra-Clean Fine Line Markers
Shop on Amazon.comThe best deal would be this 40-count assortment. At least you wouldn't have to worry about getting the ink out if you were to accidentally get it on your skin or clothes.
Best bullet journal pens - dual tip
These dual tip pens have a fine point end that's great for writing and a brush tip end that's great for coloring.
Winner: Tombow Dual Brush Pen Art Markers
Shop on Amazon.comThese were the top recommended dual brush pens by many bullet journal enthusiasts for the richness of color. The junk thing is that they come in packs of 10 colors, so you'll have to get the primary set or pastel set, or what have you if you want to expand your collection.
Alternative: Dual Tip Brush Marker Pens, Tanmit 0.4 Fine Tip Markers & Brush Highlighter Pen Set of 36 for Bullet Journal Adults Coloring Book Note Taking Writing Planning Art Project
This set is slightly cheaper and comes in more colors. Although this wasn't part of the recommended list of products of the bullet journalists mentioned above, this was a popular pick on Amazon that worked out nicely for many other artists.
Best bullet journal pens - other
These were other recommendations that didn't necessarily fit in the categories above.
Other recommendation: Paper Mate InkJoy Gel Retractable Pen, 0.7mm, Ink, Pack of 14, Assorted
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These pens aren't ideal for coloring, but they are super useful in making you writing look pretty.
Other recommendation: Pilot FriXion Clicker Retractable Erasable Gel Pens, Fine Point, Assorted Color Inks, 7-Pack
Shop on Amazon.comA tad pricey, but if you are shy about making mistakes in pen, then these erasable ones would be perfect.
3. Best bullet journal pencils
Winner (sort of): Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils, Soft Core, 72-Count
Shop on Amazon.comTechnically, these watercolor pencils were recommended, but the price point is quite high. An alternative from the same company are the colored pencils you see pictured above.
Alternative: Crayola Colored Pencils, 64 Count
Shop on Amazon.comIf you don't mind 8 fewer colors, this set from Crayola is only about 1/4 the cost of the set above.
4. Best bullet journal highlighters
Winner: Zebra Mildliner, 15-pack
Shop on Amazon.comThis set is super popular among bullet journalists for the lightness, brightness, and not too wetness.
Alternative: Stabilo BOSS Original Highlighter, Pastels - 6-color Set
This pastel set is another option, but by far the Zebra mildliners are a clear winner. If pastel is too light for you, here's a set with regular colors like red, green, yellow, etc.
5. Best bullet journal watercolor set
There are no winners for this category since there were different suggestions from the different bullet journalists. The one thing they agreed on, though, were these water brushes.
As for the watercolor sets, this was a recommended budget option: Prang Oval Pan Watercolor Set, 16 Classic Colors
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6. Best bullet journal accessories and extras
White-out/correction tape
A whole set might seem like a lot, but if you're going to spend a lot of time with your bullet journal, doodling, journaling, and whatnot, you probably need quite a bit of this stuff.
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Washi tape and dispenser
There's so much you can do with washi tape, like hack your way through your bullet journal. You can use it to decorate your pages, cover up mistakes you made, color code, and affix memorabilia. The hardest part is picking out from the wide variety of sets to choose from. These fantastic assortments are all under $10 each.
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And here's a handy dispenser to keep them organized and easy to use when you need it.
Rulers
Having a straight edge will be very useful when setting up your monthly, weekly, daily logs or lists. This clear plastic one is lightweight, easy to match up when you want to make perpendicular lines, and will fit nicely in your purse if you want to take it on the go.
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Shop on Amazon.comThis is perfect for making circles and other more complicated shapes beyond a square and rectangle.
Post-its
These come in very handy when you want to record things in your bullet journal that you know will most likely be updated. For example, some bullet journalists don't draw out daily log pages and instead use post its that are easy to toss when no longer needed.
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Clear date stamp
For a few shortcuts, from bullet journal printables to genius tools, a stamp will save you so much time when creating your planner.
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All right, now that the top supplies of your favorite bullet journalists have been revealed, let's get into the starter kits at different price points.
Bullet journal starter kit $5
First off, the budget-friendly option. Truthfully, all you really need to make bullet journaling work is a basic notebook and pen.
Bullet journal starter kit $25
If you're looking for a little bit more to your starter kit, here's one that comes in under $25:
With a set like this, you'll have a quality notebook, assorted pen colors to work with, a ruler that'll make perfect circles, and post its to help your bullet journal remain flexible for your needs.
(Note: the four items in this starter kit should all appear on a desktop computer, but may only display part of the list on a mobile device)
Bullet journal starter kit $100+
And if you want to splurge a little, here's a kit that comes in at about $75:
- top quality notebook,
- sharpie black pens,
- Tombow dual brush colored pen set,
- Zebra mildliner highlighters,
- straight ruler,
- helix circle ruler,
- washi tape,
- assorted post-its and
- mini month stamps.
A set like this will give you the highest quality notebook, reliable pens for writing or coloring, highlighters to help with color coding, rulers to make perfect lines circles, washi tape to embellish your notebook, post-its to take quick notes, and a useful mini month stamp to save you time when creating logs.
If you feel like spending more, feel free to include the watercolor set, colored pencils, or some of the other picks from above.
(Note, the 8 picks for this starter kit appear below; you should be able to view all items from a desktop but may only see a partial display on a mobile device)
This rounds up the top recommended bullet journal supplies by your favorite bullet journalists. Whether you're looking for the best journal for bullet journaling to the best bullet journal pens and accessories, I hope you were able to find picks that fit whatever your budget.
And if you're new, consider checking out this comprehensive bullet journaling roadmap with printable bujo pages.
Happy journaling!
Bullet Journal: The Ultimate Bujo Guide
Bullet Journal Tips and Hacks