Ever been on a train while it whooshes through a tunnel? That's what our panicky brains feel like when it sees a seemingly endless list of things to do. Or, at least, that's where my mind goes when I'm feeling pressed for time.

Productivity planners help us frame our goals. Although there are numerous productivity apps on the market, pen on paper still has its place. Today, with the monkey of productivity on our backs, printable productivity planners are making a comeback.

We searched and found the best printable productivity planner templates. They're about to become one of your favorite planning tools.

Why Do Printable Planners Work?

What is it about a free productivity planner that makes getting our lives together so much more fun? We can name three main reasons:

  1. Productivity templates are flexible.
  2. There is no learning involved.
  3. There is no download, no irritating notifications, and no annoying updates.

Trust me, there is no perfect app or tailor-made productivity system (Although some do manage to come close). A printable productivity planner PDF will give you everything that an app gives you, only in a simpler, more self-contained package.

Printable planners are helpful because you can download and tweak their design to make them your own. If they don't work, you can discard them and simply start a new one.

1. The Pumpkin Productivity Planner PDF

There is no time in a person's life more pivotal than their time in school. If you're a new college student, and you're struggling to keep it all together, you're far from alone.

The Pumpkin Productivity planner PDF is a productivity journal template designed to improve your study habits. Created by an actual student named Ruby, you can download this planner assured that it was made with a real-world perspective in mind. It includes a to-do list, but, more importantly, it helps you keep track of your time during each study session.

Are you hitting the books, but can't seem to make any progress? This productivity journal template is meant to help you identify those problem areas and improve your approach next time. You can use it digitally or as a paper print-out.

A word of warning: the Pumpkin Productivity planner PDF is not free, but it's cute, useful, and exactly what the average student needs to organize everything that they need to do. Worth it? We think so.

2. Intelligent Change

If writing a diary or a journal scratches your itch, a printable productivity planner that mimics the feeling of journaling might be just the thing for you. I would especially recommend Intelligent Change's 5-minute journal to those reluctant to take the plunge.

For a deeper sense of accomplishment, you can buy their Productivity Planner or put together one of your own by following the concept as laid out in their template.

3. Productive Flourishing

You can use a time tracker and Productive Flourishing's Productivity Heat Map to find the times of day when you tend to be in the zone. This quick visualization exercise should help you assign your most important tasks to your zones of maximum productivity. The Productivity Heat Map helps you understand both the quality of your work and the quality of the time that you spend working.

Printable productivity templates come in all shapes, sizes, and purposes.

Take a look at the other free planner templates available on this site. The Productivity Jumpstarter and Individual Project Planner deserve a click if you frequently work alone. The Handoff Holder is great for when you are working on a project with a team.

Related: Digital Journal Apps That Help Boost Mental Health

4. Daily PlanIt

Rosemary Rice's focus is on using simple systems that combine the best of digital productivity tools with offline paper systems—flexible list-making systems that you can use for any situation. To complement her paid tools, she offers a whole page of free productivity templates, as well.

Browse and choose one that fits your needs. Maybe you're trying to set up a morning routine and need a simple system to jot everything down. The Daily Routine List can help you start the day like an athlete. Try the Monthly Repeating Tasks template to track your life goals across a month and turn them into good habits.

A productivity journal PDF might be just what your routine needs.

You'll find a bunch of planning printables perfect for carrying out a self-review or setting smart goals for a bigger project. If you have a fondness for paper planners, the productivity planner PDF page is definitely worth a bookmark.

5. Weekly Desk Planner

This productivity planner template is in French, but it is still cute enough to easily duplicate in the language of your choice with Microsoft Word.

The three-faced productivity journal template covers the most important parts of the day and the week. There's space for your key objectives and people to contact, as well as dedicated space for some positive musings to push you forward on a drowsy Monday morning.

This tri-fold productivity journal PDF is attractive and perfect for your desk.

Print this on slightly thicker A4 paper, fold along the dotted lines, and prop it up on your desk.

Related: The Best Bullet Journal Apps

6. Organise My House

Chrissy Halton offers a fantastic time-saving (and tree-saving) tip that you can use for almost any productivity planner PDF:

I printed mine out and then laminated it. I can simply keep it in my diary and write on it each day with a dry erase marker. I then reuse it the following day–it saves paper and ink!

This productivity journal PDF was designed for the supermom in us all.

Her Daily Productivity Chart is a useful insert for any productivity journal. It helps you take a quick overview of the day without getting bogged down in the details. You might like the idea of tracking five critical areas of your life with the S.M.I.L.E boxes, which stand for Social, Manage the Home, Income, Leisure, and Energy.

7. The List Lab

The List Lab is an online shop, but I discovered some freebies available to download. My favorite pick? The Daily Routine productivity journal PDF, which is thoughtfully divided into morning, day, and night.

We love the simplicity of this productivity planner template.

I am also partial to their Streak Challenge printable, perfect for setting long-term goals that require some amount of commitment.

Related: Our Favorite Minimalist Productivity Apps

8. DIY Planner.com

If your desire to use a printable PDF planner is strong, you will love all the resources available here. The site feels a bit dated, but don't let that detract from the collection, which is still as good as gold.

Check the article topics in the left sidebar. You can find printable planner templates as well as more specific productivity templates and other time management tools to organize your life.

Related: These Habit-Tracking Methods Help You Build Better A Better Life

Do You Set Goals With a Planner?

Paper planners are still relevant in the age of smartphone productivity apps. Planners are organizational systems, after all, not just gimmicks. The actual work starts after you dump your brain out onto the sheet. You can create a bulleted list or envision your dream life.

Shake the productivity tree and DIY printable planners will drop like ripe fruits. The trick is not in the planner, however; the secret ingredient is actually you. Every paper system will put your drive to accomplish your goals to the ultimate test. Just keep trying until you finally manage to push through.