Making reading a daily habit has countless benefits for our minds, including strengthening vocabulary, empathy, and brain function, as well as reducing stress. It is never too late to make a new reading goal, and a reading journal may be the perfect way to hold yourself to it.
Reading journals can help you track your reading physically. It can be as creative or as simple as you want, and can help you to keep track of the books you have already read and your TBR (to-be-read). They also encourage you to reflect and review the books you have finished to enrich your reading experience and make sure that you take something with you when you finish a new book.
Here, we have gathered five of the best reading journals out there. Each has something special to offer, and there is sure to be one that works best for you.
Papier
Papier is a popular stationery company known for their aesthetic and customizable journals. When it comes to reading journals, the company has a variety of different covers to choose from. Each of their reading journals features a wish list to write down all of the books you hope to one day read, a borrowing and lending tracker, a section dedicated to book reviews, and pages to highlight your favorite books. They even have a section to add the addresses of your favorite bookstores, libraries, and reading spots, which is a unique addition to this reading journal. It includes 192 pages to fill with all of your reading habits.
Papier is the way to go if, above all else, you are looking for an aesthetic journal. They are a pricier option, but they are of great quality, which may be worth the splurge. You can even have your name printed on the front. There are so many different styles to choose from, you are sure to find one that you can’t read without.
Lanpn
Lanpn offers a reading journal with a minimalistic cover that is filled with all of the essentials to help enrich your reading experience. Lanpn reading journals have a lot to offer for a very affordable price: they have an “About Me” section, a daily reading tracker, a place to set a reading challenge goal, a reading wishlist, a borrowing and lending tracker, and a section dedicated to your stats, including books finished, not finished, and pages to highlight all of your favorite reads. The book is 158 pages total, with 52 pages dedicated just to book reviews. It even has a fun bookish bucket list at the end.
With Lanpn, there is the chance to be as creative or as simplistic as you want. There are pages for you to color in your bookshelf or decorate your stack of books as you read. The review pages have plenty of blank space, leaving it up to you how creative you want to get. This reading journal really has it all and is a great option to inspire new reading habits.
Clever Fox
Clever Fox is another well-known planner company with a simple aesthetic cover but a whole lot to offer on the inside. In their reading journals, Clever Fox includes an index, a reading log to track your reading each month as well as a daily reading tracker, a reading list and a TBR list, pages to review all the books you have read, as well as stickers to decorate the review pages and give them a little something extra. There is also a pocket in the back to store anything you may need.
Clever Fox reading journals come in 11 different colors. They offer a simple and easy-to-use format to help you get more organized with your reading habits. This is the perfect option if you have a goal to make your reading a daily habit and keep track of your progress throughout the year.
TheBookSistersShop
TheBookSistersShop on Etsy offers a whimsical variety of reading journals. These reading journals are built for ambitious readers, with space to track and review up to 200 books. It also includes four reading challenges, trope and author backlist trackers, a space to keep yearly reading stats and monthly reading recaps, and spaces to track series, DNF (did-not-finish), and TBRs. It comes with a sticker pack that includes month stickers and genre stickers to help make your reviews look pretty.
TheBookSistersShop offers reading journals for readers who know what they are doing. It allows a space for avid readers to keep track of their many books and reflect each month on what they’ve read. If you are looking for a unique reading tracker to help you sort through the many books you read each month, then this is the reading journal for you.
Kunitsa Co.
If you are looking for something a little simpler, Kunitsa Co. offers a minimalistic approach to the reading journal. They offer two different types of reading journals: the Original has room for 52 book reviews, and the Avid Reader — for those with a more ambitious reading goal — has room for 104 book reviews. Both journals have the same format, including review pages with an “About the Book” section, writing prompts, and an entire blank page to share thoughts. It also has an index, a daily reading tracker, a section for a TBR list, and a “Books Finished” list.
Kunitsa Co. offers simplicity in its design and content. They have five different colors of the Original journal and two for the Avid Reader journal. The colors are neutral, sure to match any aesthetic.
With your new reading journal, not only will you feel encouraged to read more books, but you will also have an excuse to take a moment and form an opinion on what it is you have just read. These reading journals are about more than just filling out prompts and pages; they will help you build and strengthen your reading habits. Happy journaling and happy reading!
Want to learn more about apps that help track reading? Click here.
Find new books to add to your TBR list on our 2025 New Releases You Need to Grab Today bookshelf.
