21 Sure-to-Please Pens for Your Bullet Journal

Grab your favorite Bullet Journal pens and relax with your journal. Not sure which are the best bullet journal pens? No worries – I’ve got you covered!

*This article was originally written by founder Megan. I (Katie) am currently updating it with my favorite pens, so please excuse if the numbers in the title don’t quite match the number of pens in the article…I’ll get it all matched up soon!

Sure-to-Please Planner & Bullet Journal Pens for Every Type of Person

When you first get into journaling, it’s my experience that the flood of information can be overwhelming.

Spend 5 minutes scrolling the bullet journaling hashtag on Instagram or TikTok, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the gorgeous spreads, artsy additions, colored pens and brush pens, and all around creative and productive beauty of the niche!

When I first started, I found it easy to get bogged down by overwhelm when it came to choosing the best bullet journal pens, notebooks, flair, and other supplies.

Approach with This Bullet Journaling Secret in Mind

I get that everyone wants the “right” supplies. I too fall victim to this!

But the truth is – and I hope I’m not the first to tell you this – supplies don’t make you more effective or productive.

Your mentality and willingness to find a productivity or habit tracking system that works for you, and sticking with it, day after day and week after week, is what makes the difference.

Start By Investing in Tools that Will Help You Commit

I’ll admit I’m a weak creature.

I am easily wooed by velvety paper, smooth ink, rich pigments, and cute stickers. Gel pens make me happy, and learning brush lettering is seriously relaxing for me.

Investing in a beautiful notebook, smooth writing pen, and colorful brush pens helped me commit to the process.

But choosing your Bullet Journaling supplies to get started does NOT have to be stressful or overwhelming.

Here’s the deal, guys… you can’t go wrong with a good notebook, and a quality, smooth writing fine tip pen.

Those are the only true essentials in bullet journaling.

Bam! I just solved all your problems. Ok, not quite.

(BTW, you can see my top choices of notebooks for Bullet Journaling or planning >>HERE.<<)

Okay Yes, I Will Share My Favorite Bullet Journal Pens

Since you took the time to drop by my place today, I’m going to assume you’re ready to go beyond a basic fine tip pen, and you want to know which pens will dance across the page of your journal like Snoopy on ice. 

I get that!

And I’m here to make it easy for you.

Below, you’ll find my list of some of the best bullet journal pens for Bullet Journaling, art journaling, planning, writing in your family journal, note taking, or filling in your habit trackers.

You can’t go wrong with any of these! 

They’re good quality, reliable, and they make writing in your journal a joy instead of a task. 

I like you guys too much to recommend a product I have not personally tried.

There are so many great options out there; I can’t try them all, and you shouldn’t either.

But the ones that are on this list, are the ones I (Katie) or original Page Flutter founder (Megan) have personally used, with the exception of one, which I note!

My List of the Best Bullet Journal Pens for Bullet Journaling, Planning, and Everyday Writing

Felt Tip and Fine Tip Pens You Can’t Go Wrong With

First of all, the basics.

Your everyday pen will be your go-to pen, your right-hand man, your girl Friday!

If you’re a bullet journal purist, you might only ever need the one pen.

No one would ever describe me as a minimalist or a purist, so I have a few trusty sidekicks that I reach for as my go-to Bullet Journaling pens, plus a selection of colors in all of these (at least, for the ones that come in something other than basic black pens).

It’s hard to say which of these are the best pens, because you may have different priorities and preferences than I do.

However, I’ve used all of these, and I’ve liked all of them for different reasons. When I like one more than another, I try to point this out.

They mostly all have something the journaling and lettering world would call “skip free writing,” which means they are smooth to use, and don’t jump on the paper, which leave inconsistent line-work.

Below are my trusty sidekicks and what I consider to be the best pens for Bullet Journaling basics.

Sharpie Art Pens &  Sharpie Felt Tip Fine Pens

I’m listing these together because I’m not convinced they’re different pens. 

Sharpie felt tip fine pens are my workhorse bullet journal pens. They’re affordable enough to keep four or five in my purse, so I end up reaching for them a lot as an everyday writing pen.

When I spotted the Sharpie Art Pens, I thought, “Cool, new pens!” But I can’t shake the feeling that they tricked me. I’m pretty sure they are the exact same pen with different packaging. Since they’re all great, I don’t mind too much – take your pick!

With both of these pens, they are smooth writing, and they aren’t permanent markers. They don’t bleed through the paper like a regular Sharpie, but they allow for bold lettering and to create precise marks, such as when you’re planning a spread in your journal. If you’re looking for the best pen for Bullet Journals that doesn’t bleed, this is an *ultra fine* option (please excuse my pen joke!).

For the Felt Tip pens, Sharpie makes Fine or Ultra Fine pens. I prefer the Fine thickness to use as everyday journaling pens.

For the Art Pens, I’ve only seen them in the Fine thickness, sold as a multicolor pack.

Best for bold, smooth writing and as everyday journaling pens.

Paper Mate Flair Felt Tipped Pen

I think Paper Mate offers high quality pens and great value for money, and is an underrated brand in the journaling community. 

While they aren’t as smooth writing as the Sharpies (they are great for printing and straight lines, but can get a bit uneven on curves and cursive, and can get a bit too inky if you hesitate with the tip to the page for too long), they’re more economical.

Their black pens are a great workhorse alternative to the Sharpie, and they also come in a range if you’re partial to using colored pens for Bullet Journaling.

There are different thicknesses available. I prefer the ultra fine tip, but the medium point version is easier to find than extra fine.

Le Pen

Le Pen is very similar to Staedtlers or Microns, but some people swear by their LePens, and I’m a fan myself. 

If I swatch all three brands on a card together, I can barely tell which is which. They write well on smooth paper, like in a notebook, but aren’t as good on textured paper, such as watercolor paper.

However, LePens are IMO the most elegant-looking of the bunch, in terms of what the pen actually looks like, and how it feels in my hand. I’m an extremely small-handed person, and I appreciate how petite they are in my hand. Using them in my journal, I get no bleeding and only minor ghosting, and only then with the deeper and more vibrant colors.

I say go with your gut; if you choose Le Pens, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Le Pens are available in color multipacks and plain black if you want to use them as your everyday pen. 

Faber-Castell Manga Pitt or Pitt Pens

These are top quality fine art pens and markers, using pigmented India ink, and you can feel the difference once to take pen to paper.

The manga 4-packs come with four nib sizes to choose from. The 3 narrowest pens have a metal clad tip, which makes them more durable and prevents nib bending from improper storage or general wear and tear. In addition to 3 pens (including the extra fine 0.1mm, a 0.3mm and a fine tip 0.5mm), the fourth is a brush pen / marker.

You can get them in 4-packs that are all black India ink, and 6-packs and 8-packs which have shades a beautiful greys. They also have multicolor packs with different nib sizes and styles as well.

The 8-pack is a great go-to for professional inking pens, because the grey colors are really something special. I am in particular love with the brush pen in Cold Grey VI, which looks so calming and beautiful on crisp white paper.

Staedtler Pigment Liner Sketch Pens

I love these as an alternative to the Faber-Castell Pitt pens, and they tend to be a little easier on the pocketbook. These are great for laying out spreads.

Like the Faber-Castells, they come in sets with various nib sizes, but you can also buy multiple pens of the same nib size if you have one you prefer.

My recommendation if you’re just getting started is to get the multi-pack, and choose your favorite size from there.

Sakura Pigma Micron Pens

If you like rich black ink and a beautiful dark line, you can’t beat Sakura Pigma Micron pens.

Like the Faber-Castells and the Sharpies, Sakura Pigma Micron fine tip pens are another darling of the journaling and planning community.

Also like the Faber-Castells, you can buy them in multipacks with a range of nib sizes. These also have a metal enclosed tip on each, which is good for durability.

Unlike the Faber-Castells, however, they don’t come with one marker brush tip in the pack.

Of the 3 (Faber Castell, Staedlter Pigment, and Sakura Micron) the Sakura pens are honestly my favorite pen for a high quality art pen. The pigma ink colors are so dark and rich.

Unless you do a lot of sketching, I’d stick with 03 / 05 / 08 tip sizes. I find the 01 tip size has too fine a tip for Bullet Journaling, and when you go up to tip size 10 or 12, it’s really quite a thick line you get.

In my experience the black ones and the color ones write a bit differently, and the colored ones are more like Staedtler fineliners, but again, you can get them in different thicknesses

Staedtler Triplus Fineliners

I have softspot for Triplus Fineliners, and for a time they were my go to pen for note taking and studying during college.

And they are extremely popular in the journaling world. When you need to add color to your Bullet Journal, Fineliners are some of the best pens for the job. They’re great for filling in habit trackers, doodles, titles, or adding embellishment such as outlines to basic hand lettering…plus about a thousand other things.

They write smoothly on the paper without bleeding, and with minimal ghosting on the other side of the paper, so long as you’re using a fairly high quality notebook. Using water based ink is also a bonus come cleanup time.

*These are not the same as Staedtler Rollerball pens. They look identical, so you need to pay attention to the labels. I used rollerballs when I first started bullet journaling (and I still like them for letter writing), but they bleed through my journal much easier than the fineliners. Trust me, if you’re journaling, you want the fineliners.

Stabilo Point 88 Fineliner Pens

After gushing about the Triplus Fineliners above, I now have to let you down with a truth bomb: I actually prefer the Stabilo Point 88s these days.

They tend to be slightly more expensive, but not by a bank-breaking amount, and I find they write more smoothly and I get a more even and consistent line with them.

Variety wise, both the Staedtler Triplus and Stabilo Point 88 Fineliner felt tip pens have a ton of colors to choose from. And realistically, you can’t really go wrong with either, especially if you’re starting out, or can’t find the color you need in one brand or the other.

After all, the best fineliners are the ones you have in your case when inspiration strikes, so I wouldn’t worry too much over which brand you’ve chosen.

Rollerball Pens + Gel Pens that Amp Up the Artsiness

I love the look, feel and flow of a gel pen, but as a left-handed person I don’t love the smudging. As such, I don’t actually use gel pens as often as some other journalers.

However, I do like and use the following gel pens.

Sakura Gelly Roll Gel Rollerball Pens

I love these colored pens! They’re fluid, flowy and deliver tons of vibrant pigment to a Bullet Journal page!

The Moonlight pens are gorgeous on both white and black paper, offering a pop of color even if you’re using dark paper. However, the Sakura Gelly Roll line has lots of different fashion gel ink pens.

I like the Stardust collection, which are more or less a glitter gel pen.

Extremely smooth to write with, they have archival quality ink, resist fading, and don’t bleed.

As a leftie, I generally struggle with using a gel pen, because smudging. These are actually pretty good in the smudge department – they need about 10 seconds to dry, and then the ink stays in place pretty well.

Because of this, I use these pens for titles, setting up spreads, embellishments and decorations, and small chunks of text, rather than long form writing, which does result in some smudges from my hand.

PaperMate Ink Joy Gel

These PaperMate InkJoy Gel pens are different from the Gelly Roll pens, as they feel way more like everyday ballpoint pens rather than the flowing and almost paint-like experience of a Gelly Roll.

They also dry instantly for me, leaving a smudge free experience even for lefties.

I think these are some of the best pens for bullet enthusiasts who love the feel of a gel pen, but hate the smudge.

Uni-ball Signo Gel Metallic Pens

When it comes to metallic pens, gel is often the way to go.

I use the Uni-ball Signo 1mm metallic pens. They have the same free-flowing, paint-like ink quality as the Gelly Rolls, but are slightly gloopier.

This is another one of those cost vs quality trade offs similar to the Paper Mate Flairs (value!) vs Sharpie Art Pens or Le Pens (quality!). The Uni-Ball Signos are an economical choice, and pretty darn good for everyday use, with a few minor tradeoffs.

Brush Pens & Fude Pens

Once you have a solid routine down with your everyday pen, you might choose to add more flair and embellishments.

The next few pens won’t be your primary writing pen, but if you like to dress up your Bullet Journal or planner, these can make life a little easier.

Tombow Fudenosuke (AKA Fude Pens)

You won’t catch me pretending I have any talent in the hand-lettering department.

I mean, I try. But I also don’t mind leaving the high notes for the sopranos. Know what I mean?

One of the leading ladies of hand lettering, Dawn Nicole, demos these tiny brush pens quite a bit, and can do far more things with them than I can.

Even with my limited talent, however, I find these fude pens easy to use for headers, hand-lettered quotes, and small embellishments.

They come in two varieties: hard and soft tip (I’ve linked to a combo that includes one of each). I prefer the soft tip, myself.

(affiliate link)

Tombow Dual Brush Pens

If you’ve been journaling for awhile, these brush pens don’t need any introduction.

Tombow Dual Brush Pens are a great option for hard-core decorators. If your bullet journal is covered in colorful hand-lettering and doodles, these bare some of the best pens for your bag of goodies.

They make bold and expressive lines, and you can control them to create fine, medium or bold strokes.

Who am I kidding? If you’re a hard-core decorator, you already have the giant set of these!

Pentel Sign with Fude Brush Tip

The Pentel Sign Fude Pens are kind of like what would happen if felt pens and fude pens had babies. They write like a super upgraded and flowy version of a Papermate Flair felt tip, but have the flexible brush tip of a Fude pen.

In terms of hard tip vs soft tip, I feel like the Pentel Sign is somewhere in between the Tombow Fudenosuke Brush hard and soft tips.

Hot tip on these is to use with water to dilute, giving you a massive range of color and richness to work with.

Gorgeous Fountain Pens for Cursive Writing

If you like to write long sections in your journal, or have a process for unloading your uncensored stream of consciousness thoughts, a fountain pen can be easier on your hands. They are especially handy for cursive writers, and can help you create gorgeous cursive “faux calligraphy” passages in your journal, to boot!

One of my key “things to look for” when buying fountain pens that double as good Bullet Journal pens or planner pens is quick drying ink.

Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen

The Metropolitan is my go-to fountain pen. It’s an affordable fountain pen for people who like an easy writing experience when writing longer entries or note taking.

It’s one of my all-time favorite pens. You can get it at Amazon and a few other places online.

I warn you, though, it’s a gateway pen. There’s no end to that rabbit hole. 

Don’t, whatever you do, look at Goulet Pens and all their beautiful jewel-colored inks.

Don’t get excited and drool over all the amazing pens on their site.

Ok, fine, go ahead.

Just don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Pilot Varsity Disposable Fountain Pens

This is the one pen on this list that I haven’t actually used. Because I have the Metropolitan, I don’t see the need to also buy and try these, because I’m already sold on the virtue of fountain pens for bullet journaling.

However, if you’re on the fence, and not sure if a fountain pen is right for you, I’d suggest trying one of these, which is easier on the pocket book, and will give you a taste of what a fountain pen can do for your journaling experience.

Lovely Highlighter Markers for Bullet Journaling and Planning

Stabilo Boss Highlighters

These have a true “highlighter” tip, and remind me of the cheapies I used to use during study sessions in high school and college. The tip is wide and angled, making them a breeze to use, and you can highlight important things in one or two swipes, making them fairly no fuss to use.

They also come in a beautiful array of pastel colors in addition to the originals. The pastel hues are my go to, because they do the job, but don’t look like the garish old highlighters of yore.

Zebra Mildliners

I love Zebra Mildliners.

They come in a great range of colors, and the colors really are “mild” as the name suggests, when compared to old style drugstore highlighters you might have used in elementary school or high school.

Great for coloring in larger spaces, like a full page habit tracker or challenge.

Zebra Kirarich Glitter Highlighters

Put something shiny and glittery in front of me, and I will have a hard time saying no.

And that’s how I feel about the Zebra Kirarich highlighters – once I remember they’re there, I have a hard time resisting.

The markers go on with a slightly painty quality, and the glittery effect is striking and obvious, adding to the vibrant, bright colors available. Despite the flowiness and glitter, they really do act like highlighters, in terms of being “see through” enough for the writing underneath.

My tip for using these ones is to only give medium pressure, otherwise they get a bit gloopy, and don’t pause the marker tip on the paper for too long, or else you get it pools a bit.

What Makes a Good Bullet Journal Pen, and What Should You Avoid

Bleeding, Ghosting, and Other No Nos

Bleeding is when the ink from the pen soaks into the paper and becomes less crisp, with a less defined line. It will often also bleed through to the other side of the page, which kind of ruins the other side of your page for journaling.

Ghosting is less of a problem than bleeding, and is almost impossible to avoid completely. It’s when you can see the pen work from one side of the paper on the reverse / back side of that piece of paper.

Ghosting and bleeding tend to be a two-factor problem. The pen you’re using, and the paper you’re writing on, meaning both are worth considering.

Choosing the Pens That are Right for You

So, are you overwhelmed yet? Don’t be! Deep breath.

My advice is to start with one of the good everyday writing pens I’ve listed. Once you get the hang of things, you can add colors if you need them. Starting a ournal shouldn’t be a big production. Let your system drive your supplies. Some people flourish when they color code the world, whereas others are more efficient in black and white. Don’t try to force your journal to be like someone else’s.

It’s you. It’s your life. Be you!

Have you tried the pens on my list? Let me know which ones you loved, which ones let you down, and tell me about your favorites that didn’t make the list!

Brainstorm with me!

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