Whether you’re a student, teacher or someone in need of a halfway-through-the-year fresh start, a mid-year or academic planner can be a game-changer. Starting in July and running through July of the following year, these planners let you get organized right at the start of a new school year—or ahead of the third quarter—but these styles vary greatly, in terms of organization, design and price point.

Which one is right for you? As a hardcore paper planner user, I have thoughts. But to me, it’s more useful if I add context to these planner reviews, comparing the best academic planners and mid-year agendas side by side, so you can choose the ideal organizer for your needs.

To Choose the Best Planner for You, Ask Yourself:

• What size planner are you most likely to carry around? Too bulky = you’ll never use it, too small = you can’t fit everything you need to write
• How much space do you need per day to write down the day’s tasks? Do you like to block out your meetings/appointments, so you prefer an hour-by-hour breakdown of each day? Or just a blank space to write whatever comes to mind?
• Do you prefer dated or undated? Undated lets you start anytime, yet you have to keep writing in the next day/week/month’s dates, which can be tedious (especially if you’re trying to plan ahead)
• What kind of binding/cover appeals to you the most? Do you prefer a spiral-bound book that lays flat, so there’s no fighting to keep it open? Or hardcover, for a more polished appearance? Or softcover and a stitched spine, so it’s flexible?

The Best Mid-Year/Academic Planners of 2024-2025

1. Best Overall Academic Planner: Blue Sky 5″x8″ Tabbed Planning Calendar

Simply put, Blue Sky’s academic planner is affordable, compact and has plenty of space to jot down classes, appointments and daily to-do’s each week. It’s easy to slip into a backpack or wedge in a planner as you’re on the go, without making your bag weigh a ton.

While it may lack the bells and whistles of some of the more luxe designs, there are a ton of covers to choose from, the spiral binding helps the book stay flat, so you can easily scribble in notes, and the built-in tabs make it easy to flip from month to month. Ultimately, those features—plus the durability and price point—gave it the edge, making it my top pick for students.

2. Best Customizable Academic Planner: Papier Academic Planner

If you want to give someone a great going-away or graduation gift, this is the planner to buy. Papier features several academic planner covers, with hardcover and spiral-bound options, but my favorites are the ones that allow you to customize the cover text and images. The Best Year Yet style lets you select the binding style, choose between two colors (cream or blue) and fully personalize the cover text and image.

Even with all that, the planner ships quickly, and the interior is every bit as impressive as the exterior. Each week is a two-day spread, with each day represented as a column. I like to use the top half to time-block appointments and meetings, then use the bottom half to list to-do’s each day. Unlike the Papier Undated Planner, the Academic version spans an entire year—August to July—making it a bit cheaper per year.

3. Most Innovative Mid-Year Planner: Laurel Denise Mini Vertical Weekly Planner

Laurel Denise’s range of planners prides itself on being designed for “the way you think,” and it got me thinking in a whole new way. The slim, horizontal design—more akin to a photo album—got my attention, but the interior is what kept me using it. Each month features five “short pages” that allow you to see the entire month and the week at once, which are easy to flip to, given the included removable, clear bookmarks.

The design is particularly helpful for anyone into time-blocking to organize their day, yet the design also includes yearly goal planning, bullet-style note-taking areas and a daily habit tracker. It’s more of a splurge, and if you need to break down large goals or tasks to ensure you’ll actually get them done, this is the way to go.

4. Best Mini Academic Planner: Blue Sky Academic Monthly Planner

Sometimes, you just want something small you can tuck into your pocket to jot down notes, an upcoming exam or when an essay’s due without busting out your phone (and potentially getting lost in a doomscroll or notification). This affordable pick does just that. It’s slimmer than a standard pen, and as a result, the pages are more of a month-at-a-glance calendar, so you won’t have much room for extensive notes and appointments. But! If you need something super convenient to cover the basics—and you don’t plan on going hard on bullet journaling and the like—this is a practical pick.

5. Best Undated Academic Planner: Notcoy Undated Planner

Life is heavy enough, and tracking everything that’s on your plate can be stressful. If you can relate, you might need a planner that doesn’t take things too seriously. (Or, if you typically abandon planners three weeks in, maybe you need a style that makes updating it fun.) Each spread in Notcoy’s undated planner breaks down the day simply, getting you to narrow your focus to the essentials: your top three priorities, up to five classes or meetings in a “schedule” section, a to-do list and a few lines for stray notes. (Curious to know more? See my in-depth review here.)

6. Best Full-Page Planner: At-a-Glance Academic Planner

When you’re already hauling textbooks, binders and folders all roughly the size of a standard sheet of paper, it’s kind of convenient to have a planner the size of a spiral notebook (only with a more durable cover). Each two-page spread spans the full week, as shown above, giving you decent space to write down the day’s tasks. (I tend to divide it into two columns; one for scheduled meetings and one for that day’s to-do’s, often jotted down stream-of-consciousness style.)

Tabs are included, so you can flip from month to month, and the monthly calendar spreads have a column for to-do’s, though I found I tended to prefer having a fresh list for each week, rather than one for the month.