Daily Planner or Weekly Planner: What’s the Best Choice?
by Brooke Forry
It’s planner season! As you seek out the perfect planner for 2023, we’re answering some frequently asked questions about Balance Bound Planners in this blog series. This post will focus on the difference between our two main types of planners: Undated Daily Planners and Dated Weekly Planners. But first, a little insight into what makes our planners different.
What is the one thing that makes Balance Bound Planners stand apart from other planners?
In short, all of our planners are based on one simple philosophy:
When you take in more goodness for yourself, you have more “good” to put back out into the world.
The longer version: We created an intuitively designed planner that helps you divide and conquer your tasks while also setting aside more time for yourself with an innovative and eye-opening layout. How? We have divided each day into four sections — work, self, others, and home — which are broad on purpose. No matter if you:
• work for yourself or someone else
• have a 9-to-5 job, attend school, or devote your days to volunteer causes
• care for kids, pets, neighbors, or ailing family members
• live in a dorm room, apartment, or own a home
...you still juggle many responsibilities and have a limited amount of time each day. (We checked: the allotted 24 hours per day isn't changing!) In order to show up for the people and causes that matter to you, you need to take care of yourself within the time you're given.
What kind of planners does Balance Bound offer?
We have two types of planners: Dated Weekly Planners and Undated Daily Planners. Our Dated Weekly Planners are available with wire or book binding for 2023 (January through December); our Undated Daily Planners are available with wire binding. All are available with a range of gorgeous cover designs to choose from, with clean and intuitive page layouts.
From left: Dated Weekly Planner with wire binding; Dated Weekly Planner with book binding; Undated Daily Planner.
When it comes to the Daily Planner vs Weekly Planner, the big question is:
What's the difference between a Weekly vs Daily Planner from Balance Bound?
The Dated Weekly Planners feature:
Twelve monthly calendar spreads for January through December.
365 days of planning from — you guessed it — January 1 through December 31.
Two different binding styles in this vertical weekly planner format to suit your preference: wire bound or book bound.
Our dated wire bound planners include twelve monthly tabs aligned with each month's calendar spread;
the dated book bound planners do not come with tabs, but we have monthly sticker tabs available as an add-on to add yourself, if you'd like.
TWO spreads per week:
one spread with a place for your weekly priorities & goals and columns for your Monday through Friday to-dos, all divided into the four signature sections;
a second spread with columns for Saturday & Sunday to-dos, an area for miscellaneous lists, and a full page for weekly notes, journaling, doodles, or whatever best suits you.
256 total pages.
A sample interior weekday spread of our Dated Weekly Planner with wire binding.
Undated Daily Planners are different in these ways:
They are undated (as the name states!) and are completely evergreen... so you could start using one immediately, take a break from it for a few months, and pick up right where you left off whenever you please, without any pages going to waste.
Instead of two spreads per week, there is one day per page, because...
Each day in an Undated Daily Planner has not only a column for your to-dos divided into our four signature sections, but also a column for your on-the-half-hour schedule from 6am to 8pm.
With space for 144 days, the Undated Daily Planner will last 6+ months of weekday-only planning, 4+ months of daily planning… or as long as you like (if you tend to use a planner more sporadically).
The Undated Daily Planner has a smaller page layout and fewer pages overall than our Dated Weekly Planners — so it has a smaller footprint, narrower wire, and weighs less.
180 total pages.
A sample interior spread of our Undated Daily Planner.
What are the similarities between the Undated Daily and Dated Weekly Balance Bound Planners?
The foundation of our planners, no matter the format, is the four signature sections by which each day is divided
Below each daily column is a small space with a dotted grid for miscellaneous notes, doodles, etc. This comes in so handy for all the jotting down you do (but don't have room for in other planners)!
There are 18 blank notes pages in the back of every Balance Bound Planner
All of our planners are hardcover wrapped with a gorgeous design or high quality linen
Both can be excellent productivity planners — it's just a matter of choosing the right one for your life. For me, the Dated Weekly Planners are the best productivity planners for me, as someone who only has a maximum of one or two appointments a day and really works best when seeing my full week at-a-glance. If you need a daily work planner where you can keep track of many appointments on any given day and you prefer the tunnel vision of seeing only one day's worth of to-dos at a time, the Undated Daily Planner is likely the ultimate daily task planner and appointment tracker for you.
So... what planner should you get?
The simplest question to determine which is right for you:
Do you have a preference for weekly planning vs daily planning?
If you prefer planning weekly — that is, seeing a full week at-a-glance — and don't have a lot of daily appointments on the regular, you'll likely gravitate towards the weekly view of the 2023 Dated Weekly Planner.
If you prefer a single daily view of your to-dos, have a busy schedule that requires keeping track of every half hour, or you prefer a planner that you can pick up sporadically without being tied to specific dates, the Undated Daily Planner is for you.
Still unsure? We made you a side-by-side comparison of the features:
So... what will it be: Daily vs Weekly Planner? Tell us below!
Ready to buy?
All planner pictures by Tina Crespo
