Our Big Hobonichi-Guide

Anyone exploring Hobonichi for the first time quickly runs into a surprisingly long list of names: Original, Planner, Avec, Cousin, Weeks, Weeks Mega, Day-Free, 5-Year Techo, HON. They all share the Techo idea, but some of them differ quite clearly in format, layout and how they fit into everyday life. In this guide we introduce all current Hobonichi variants, show what they have in common and work out how they really differ, so you can make the right choice for you.

One thing connects almost all Techo books: the fine Tomoe River paper. It is thin, light and yet surprisingly robust, takes ink well and shows hardly any bleed-through, even with fountain pens. The binding is designed so the books lie flat when open, without any extra help. All formats build on this shared foundation, but then differ in page layout, size and who they are made for.

The A6 classics: Original, Planner and Avec

The Original is the book where it all began, and it is still the most widely used format today. one page per day as an open space for everythingEvery day gets its own A6 page, with no set structure apart from a small mini monthly overview in the margin. That makes the Original equally suited as a planner, a diary and a place to collect tickets, drawings or spontaneous notes. It is available in Japanese and English, with different week-start options, and is one of the most affordable ways into the Techo system.

The Planner is the English-language sibling of the Original and was Hobonichi's first fully English book. the simplified English edition with a 4 mm gridThe grid is slightly larger than in the Japanese Original, which makes writing in Latin script easier, and instead of changing colours each month, the design stays grey throughout with Sundays marked in red. The daily pages also show the ISO 8601 calendar week and the running day of the year, which makes it popular with internationally minded users. To match, it only comes as a January-start edition with weeks beginning on Monday.

The Avec edition takes the Original or Cousin year and splits it into two separate half-year books. two half-year books instead of one thick annual volumeThis keeps the book you actually carry around much thinner and lighter than a full annual volume. Both half-year books start in January, there is no April-start version of the Avec, and the format is so far only available in Japanese. If you love the feel of a slim book and enjoy starting fresh twice a year, this is an elegant solution.

More room: Cousin in A5

The Cousin is the A5 version of the daily format and shares the Original's basic principle of one page per day, but offers noticeably more space for writing, sticking things in and sketching. vertical weekly pages that only the Cousin hasThese weekly pages run along a timeline from five in the morning until four at night of the following day, giving an overview of the shape of your week that no other Techo format offers in this way. Thanks to its thread binding, the Cousin also opens completely flat, which is especially pleasant at a desk, where the book often stays rather than being carried around. Because of its size, it is particularly suited to anyone who wants to bring journaling, planning and creative projects together in one book.

The weekly overview: Weeks and Weeks Mega

The Weeks leaves the one-page-per-day principle behind and uses a horizontal weekly view instead. a weekly overview in a slim, tall formatThe slim, elongated book is roughly the size of a long wallet, so it fits into jacket pockets or handbags where an A6 or A5 book would no longer fit. To the right of each weekly overview there is a grid page with 3.55 mm squares, which can also be divided into seven sections for the individual days if needed. At the back of the book, additional grid pages are waiting for free notes, lists or sketches.

The Weeks Mega is essentially the same weekly planner, but comes with much more free space. around three times as many note pages as the regular WeeksWhile the regular Weeks has a modest number of grid pages at the back, this section grows to around 210 pages in the Mega version. If you love the Weeks mainly for its compact weekly overview but regularly need more space for notes, sketches or lists, the Mega edition is the better fit. Both versions share the same dimensions and therefore fit the same covers.

An extra start in spring: the Spring Edition

In addition to the regular January start, Hobonichi releases an April-start edition every February, the Spring Edition. It is only available in Japanese and has so far been released for the A6 Original, the Planner, the A5 Cousin and the Weeks, each with its own cover designs exclusive to the Spring Edition. If you would rather begin your Techo year in April than in January, for example in line with the start of the Japanese business and school year, this gives you an additional way in. The 2027 Spring Edition is not yet available from us; we will add the links as soon as it is listed in the shop.

No daily pressure: Day-Free

The Day-Free is the undated notebook within the Techo family and is aimed at anyone who wants to move away from rigid daily pages. monthly calendar plus notebook, with no daily pressureInstead of fixed daily pages, it combines a classic monthly calendar with a free grid notebook that you can fill however you like, whether with appointments, sketches or longer texts. It comes in both A6 and A5, so format and size can be matched to how much you write. If empty, unused daily pages stress you out, this is the more relaxed alternative to the classic Techo rhythm.

The long view: 5-Year Techo

The 5-Year Techo shifts the perspective from one year to five. the same day across five years on one pageEach page shows the same calendar day over five consecutive years, so your entries from year to year sit right next to each other and changes, repetitions or small rituals emerge all by themselves. The entries are kept correspondingly short, which makes the 5-Year Techo more of a brief diary than a classic planner. The cover is reminiscent of a bound reference book and works on its own, but can also be combined with a matching cover; the format is available in A6 and in an A5 edition.

Already dressed: HON

The HON series takes the Original or Cousin layout and binds it permanently into a hardcover. the hard cover is already built inIf you don't want to buy a separate cover, or want a particular cover design permanently attached to your Techo, you get a book that is ready to use straight away, with no extra buying decision. The designs change every year and range from calm, graphic patterns to collaborations with museums or designers. Because cover and book block form one unit, the HON costs more than the open books, but you skip the search for a matching cover entirely.

All formats at a glance

A6 overview (without HON)

You can find all current A6 Techos in the A6 & A5 overview, and matching covers in the A6 cover overview.

A5 overview (without HON)

You can find all current A5 Techos in the A6 & A5 overview, and matching covers in the A5 cover overview.

HON and Weeks are deliberately not shown here, as both appear in new designs every year and can't be reduced to a single image. You can find all current HON editions in the HON overview and all current Weeks designs in the Weeks overview. Matching Weeks covers are available here.

Which Hobonichi is right for you?

If you are still unsure, it helps to start from your own everyday needs. If you want as much free space as possible for journaling, collecting and sticking things in, the Original or Cousin is a good choice, depending on whether compactness or writing space matters more. If you mainly want to keep track of your week while carrying as little weight as possible, go for the Weeks or, if you need more room for notes, the Weeks Mega. For anyone who feels more stressed than motivated by empty daily pages, the Day-Free is the more relaxed choice, while the 5-Year Techo is especially suited to anyone who wants to make changes visible over the years. Avec and HON are less separate layouts than additional options: Avec for anyone who prefers a thinner book, HON for anyone who would rather skip the search for a matching cover.

In the end, it is worth looking not only at the format but also at how you write day to day. Some users even combine several formats, such as a Weeks for on the go and a Cousin for longer entries at the desk. In our shop on Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße you can take your time to hold the different formats in your hands and compare them directly before you decide.