ADHD planners in the UK: paper, wall and app compared

What makes a planner work with an ADHD brain?

A planner works if you look at it every day, so the right one is less about layout and more about where it lives.

Planners get abandoned for predictable reasons. Dated pages go blank after a bad week and start to feel like a record of failure. Pretty planners live in a bag and never come out. Complicated layouts ask for goals, habits and gratitude before you have written down the dentist. An undated planner, kept somewhere you already look, with fewer sections than it offers, avoids those traps.

We have not tested these planners. Details come from each maker's site, Amazon UK listing or App Store page, checked on 11 September 2026.

What to look for in an ADHD planner

Look at these before you buy:

• Undated pages. Undated means you write the dates in. Roarganise and Papier are both undated, so missing a week wastes nothing.
• Size. A5 (148 by 210mm) fits a bag. The Papier pad is 241 by 211mm, a desk size. The TMS board is A4 (21 by 29.7cm). The Timeminder board is 90 by 60cm, a wall.
• Paper weight. Heavier paper takes felt pens and highlighters without bleeding through. Roarganise uses 170gsm and Papier 150gsm; ordinary printer paper is usually 80gsm.
• Where it lives. A bag, a desk, a wall or your phone. Pick the place you already look ten times a day.
• Reminders. Only apps can nag you. Paper and whiteboards wait for you to look.
• Reusable or not. Whiteboards and the Rocketbook wipe clean, so there is no half-used planner guilt. Paper pads tear off and start fresh.

Paper, wall or app planner?

Choose by where your eyes already go: a wall for a shared house, a pad for a desk, an app if your phone is always in your hand.

Wall. A week on the fridge or by the front door means nothing lives only in your head, and everyone in the house can see it. The TMS A4 board is made in the UK, sticks to metal by its magnetic back, and comes with a pen. The Timeminder board, made by Metroplan, is far bigger at 90 by 60cm, in an aluminium frame with mounting brackets already fitted.

Paper. A page on the desk stays in view without a battery or a notification. Roarganise's A5 inserts come from an autistic-founded UK brand and have space for appointments, tasks, priorities and routines. Papier's Weekly Happenings pad puts Monday to Sunday on one sheet, then tears off. If you want everything in one bound book, Clever Fox's undated Planner PRO has monthly and weekly spreads, habit trackers and goal pages at 21.5 by 28cm. For lists rather than days, Papier's Life Admin pad costs £12.

App. Tiimo shows the day as coloured blocks with timers, and its listing says it was Apple's 2025 iPhone App of the Year. Structured lays tasks and calendar events on one timeline so you can see whether the day fits before you agree to more. Both can nag you, which paper cannot.

Both. You can use an app for reminders and a wall board for the shape of the week. The Rocketbook sits in between: write on paper, scan it to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneNote, wipe it and start again.

If you have given up on every planner before

Buy undated, plan one day at a time, and keep the planner where you already spend time.

Start with three things a day, not ten. Keep a pen clipped to the planner or tied to the board, because hunting for a pen is a good enough excuse to stop. Look at it at a moment you already have, such as while the kettle boils. When you miss a few days, turn to a new page and write today's date. An undated planner has no gaps to stare at.

Things to know

• Roarganise pages are inserts. They are made for an A5 six-ring binder, so check you have one.
• Rocketbook needs its own pen. Use the erasable pen it comes with, and the Rocketbook app to scan pages.
• Check your fridge takes a magnet. Some fridge doors are not magnetic. The TMS listing says the board sticks to many metal surfaces.
• Wall boards need fixings. The Timeminder is wall-mounted with brackets; if you rent, check what you are allowed to put up.
• App plans vary. Tiimo's free version limits the AI and allows one profile. Structured Pro adds calendar integration, recurring tasks and custom notifications, from £2.99 to £5.99 a month or £59.99 for life.