The notebook test is five questions to answer before you order: what size the book needs to be, which ruling suits the writing, how it should be bound, what paper is inside and what job it will do. Work through them in that order and the shortlist drops to one or two books that people will actually use, rather than one that only looked right online.
Each question below has a short decision, three things to check on the product page and one example from our range. If you are still working out which books suit which jobs, our Pads and Books Buyer Guide covers that in more depth. This page is for the moment just before you add one to the cart.
Q4 is a good time to settle on a standard notebook for the team, while the stationery cupboard is being restocked for the new year anyway.
If you are choosing for a whole team, order one book or a single pack first and let a few people use it for a week. A real book in the hand settles the size and paper questions faster than any product photo.
From our team in Tweed Heads
Five questions before you buy another notebook
Answer each one, tick the checks and note your answer. By question five you will know what to look for.
Prefer paper? Print this page (Ctrl + P or ⌘ + P) and only the test will print. Ticks are not saved once you leave the page.
What size does it need to be?
Where the book lives: desk, bag, pocket or glovebox
If the book stays on the desk and holds full meeting notes, choose A4. If it travels in a bag or laptop sleeve, choose A5. For a shirt pocket, smaller again.
Example: the Writer A4 Notebook holds 240 pages of 8mm ruled paper in a single side-spiral volume, which suits a running project diary or a shift handover book.
Which ruling suits the writing?
Ruled lines, grid or dots
If the notes are mostly sentences, choose ruled lines. 7mm fits more lines on a page, while 8mm leaves a little more room for larger handwriting. If the notes include figures, timelines or sketches, choose a grid or dot page instead.
Example: the Spirax Platinum Premium Journal has dotted pages, so timelines, tables and plain text can share one book with the dots keeping columns straight.
How should it be bound?
Spiral, twin wire, casebound or a glued pad
If the book needs to fold back on itself for writing in a tight space, choose spiral or twin wire. If entries must stay in order as a record, choose a casebound book. If sheets get torn off and filed, a pad glued along the top is simpler.
Example: the Spirax Black and Red Casebound Notebook is glued into a hard case with no wire to snag or bend, and its pages are not perforated.
What paper is inside?
Weight in gsm, colour and recycled content
Paper weight is shown in gsm, and a higher number means a heavier sheet. Many everyday notebooks are 60gsm or 70gsm, which is plenty for daily notes. If the book is a premium gift or a long-term journal, look at heavier stock, such as the 100gsm pages in the Spirax Platinum range.
Example: the Spirax Recycled Notebook A4 has 120 pages of 100% recycled 70gsm paper, ruled at 7mm with a date line on every page.
What is it for?
The main job decides the rest
If the work mixes writing with diagrams or glued-in handouts, choose a project book with plain and ruled pages facing each other. For quick desk notes and action items, a ruled pad does the job. For a record people will come back to, choose a bound notebook.
Example: the Writer Premium Project Book pairs an unlined page with a page of 8mm lines on every spread. In a school it suits inquiry units and science observations.
Educational writing books · Notepads and writing pads · Pens
Put the five answers together
Here is the test worked through for one buyer, a sales rep who writes up notes between appointments.
- Size. A5, to fit a laptop sleeve or glovebox.
- Ruling. 8mm lines, because the notes are mostly sentences.
- Binding. A side spiral, so the book folds back on a knee.
- Paper. 70gsm, stated on the product page.
- Purpose. Notes on the road that stay in the book.
That points to a book like the Protext Premium Spiral Notebook A5, the first example below.
Nine examples, sorted by question
These are chosen to show the difference each answer makes, not to cover the whole range. Details come from each product's own description.
Size
Protext Premium Spiral Notebook A5 200 Page PP Cover Black Pack of 10
An A5 notebook, 210 x 148mm, with 200 pages of 8mm ruled 70gsm paper behind a black polypropylene cover and a side spiral. Sold in packs of 10.
A5 fits a handbag, laptop sleeve or glovebox and still takes a full sentence across the page.
View product
Size
Writer A4 Notebook 240 Page 8mm Ruled Side Spiral Pack of 5
Twice the pages of the standard Writer A4 spiral book: 240 pages of 8mm ruled 60gsm paper under a board cover, in a pack of 5.
The side wire still lets it fold back to a single page, even at this thickness.
View product
Ruling
Spirax Graph Book A4 5mm Grid 128 Pages Box of 10
An A4 graph book with 128 pages of 5mm grid on 70gsm paper, stapled into a blue polypropylene cover. The pages open from the side and are not perforated.
Suits a technical drawing folio or a lab notebook that keeps growing.
View product
Ruling
Spirax Platinum Premium Journal A5 160 Page Dotted Jet Pack of 10
An A5 journal with 160 pages of 100gsm dotted paper under a faux leather cover, with an elastic closure, a ribbon marker and an expanding back pocket.
ACCO do not publish the dot pitch, so check the open-page photo if spacing matters.
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Binding
Spirax Black and Red Casebound Notebook A5
A single A5 casebound notebook with 200 pages of 60gsm paper ruled at 7mm. The pages are glued into a hard case, with no wire to snag or bend.
Pages are not perforated, so entries stay in the order they were written. An A4 version comes in a box of 5.
View product
Binding
Spirax Hardcover Notebook A4 200 Pages Black
An A4 notebook with 200 pages of 7mm ruling and a red margin, twin wire binding and hard covers that ACCO say will not dog ear or distort. A card pocket sits inside.
The plain black cover reads as a working record, such as a maintenance log or a reception register.
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Paper
Spirax Recycled Notebook A4 120 Pages
A side-opening A4 spiral notebook with 120 pages of 100% recycled 70gsm paper, ruled at 7mm. There are no punched holes, perforations or margin.
ACCO state the paper is 100% recycled, and the cover prints it too.
View product
Purpose
Writer Premium Project Book A4 96 Page Plain Plus 8mm Ruled with Margin Banana Pack of 10
A 96 page A4 project book on 70gsm stock. Every spread pairs an unlined page with a page of 8mm lines and a red margin. Pack of 10.
Good for any project where a diagram and a paragraph belong side by side.
View product
Purpose
Writer Premium Bond Pad Ruled A4 Yellow 50 Leaf Double Sided Pack of 10
Ten yellow A4 bond pads, each with 50 leaves of 70gsm paper ruled at 8mm on both sides, so every leaf gives two pages of lines.
A yellow sheet is easy to find under a pile of white printouts, which suits action items and follow-ups.
View productBefore you order for the team
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Trial one before a box
Order one book or a single pack first and let a few people use it. Once it passes, make it the standard line for that job.
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Add pens to the same order
Put notebooks, pads and pens into one order. Free standard delivery applies to eligible orders over $149.95 to most ACT, NSW, QLD and VIC metro areas.*
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Ask for a quote on volume
If you are buying for a whole team or several sites, use Add to Quote or Bulk Enquiry on the product page, or talk to our team.
*Bulky items, hardware, regional and remote deliveries are excluded. See shipping and delivery information for full details.
Frequently asked questions
What are the five questions in the notebook test?
The notebook test asks five questions before you buy: what size the book needs to be, which ruling suits the writing, how it should be bound, what paper is inside and what main job it will do. Answering them in order narrows a long list of notebooks down to one or two that fit how people work.
Should I choose an A4 or an A5 notebook?
Choose A4 if the book stays on a desk and holds full meeting notes or long records. Choose A5 if it travels in a bag, laptop sleeve or glovebox. A5 is half the footprint of A4 but still takes a full sentence across the page.
What is the difference between 7mm and 8mm ruling?
The number is the gap between the lines. 7mm ruling fits more lines on each page, and 8mm ruling gives each line a little more room, which many people with larger handwriting prefer. Grid and dot pages suit figures, timelines and sketches.
What does gsm mean on a notebook?
Gsm stands for grams per square metre and describes the weight of the paper. A higher number means a heavier sheet. Many everyday notebooks are 60gsm or 70gsm, and premium journals such as the Spirax Platinum range use 100gsm paper. If a product page does not list the gsm, do not assume it.
Does free delivery apply to notebook orders?
Free standard delivery applies to eligible orders over $149.95 to most ACT, NSW, QLD and VIC metro areas. Bulky items, hardware, regional and remote deliveries are excluded. See our shipping and delivery information for full details.
Five questions, one short list
Size, ruling, binding, paper and purpose. Answer them in order and most notebook decisions get much easier. If you are setting a standard notebook for a whole team, our team can help you narrow it down.
Mega Office Supplies helps Australian workplaces, from small offices to schools, keep the everyday essentials covered, from our Tweed Heads team and our suppliers' warehouse network nationwide.
