Why Some Planners Start In July: Mid Year Planners Pros & Cons

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There are tons of planner options out there (I know, I’ve tried plenty of them), and one thing that used to trip me up was deciding whether to buy a planner that starts in January, or one that starts in July. It got me wondering why do planners start in July at all, and what’s so great about buying a mid-year planner.

It turns out, some planners start in July or August (mid-year) because there is a HUGE need for them! Not everyone in the world relies on that arbitrary January 1st date in the calendar to go after their dreams…

Teachers,
Students,

Moms of students,
Companies that didn’t open/start in January, so they have a different 12-month year, etc.

I did some research to find out why planners start in July, and what makes them so useful compared to other planners, especially ones that start in January. (I’ve also been digging like crazy to find out which planner company published the first-ever “mid year start” planner, I’ll update this post when I find out!)

Let’s go through the Pros and Cons of each type of planner, then I’ll show you a list of my favorites in each category, and some neat alternatives to the traditional planners!

Table of Contents

When Do Academic Planners Come Out?

Most of the bigger planner companies start their planner season each April. So you can start ordering their July-start planners or academic planners for that year, some time in April or May.

However, for less money (and sometimes less options/bells & whistles), Amazon and Staples start stocking academic planners as early as March!

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Mid Year (Academic) Planners vs. January Start (12-Month) Planners vs. 18-Month Planners – The Showdown

There are so many brands of planners to choose from to begin with. Once you find your favorite, most also have the option of starting the planner either in January or July.

It’s hard to decide which works for you until you’ve lived it, but there are some glaring differences that are great for certain circumstances, and not great for others.

Let’s go through the pros and cons of each type of planner, starting with the Mid-Year Planners…

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Pros and Cons of Mid-Year Start Planners

Pros:

1. These planners align with the school year, and were most likely created with those customers in mind. Heck, most of them are called “academic” planners for that reason!

2. Some academic planners come with reference pages included, like periodic tables, or a dedicated place for a school schedule. Having these options all in one place is really convenient for students!

3. A lot of planners are on sale during the summer months, making it way easier to score a deal on a quality planner that would normally run anywhere from $35-$55.

4. Sparking up that motivation! This happened to me. Last year, I bought a planner in January that I lost steam with after a few months. By June, I realised how disorganized I’d become and looked around for deals – I picked up a mid-year planner and I’m still going strong with it through the new year!

I think it’s because I was able to get comfortable with it in July BEFORE the holiday craziness, and subsequent January exhaustion. By the time February comes, most of us are burnt out from spending too much money, and not keeping up with our “new year” goals.

Once the holidays came around last year, I already had a time management system in place with my planner. I wasn’t all frazzled and starting from scratch.

5. Speaking of starting, another pro is the fact that you can “start fresh” whenever you want with a mid-year planner. Who cares if it’s not January?

Cons:

Some academic planners end in June or July of the following year, which is not so good for students who are already planning out their next semester’s class & clubs schedule. Most colleges allow you to start picking classes for a new semester, in the middle of the previous semester.

It’s much easier to be able to continue planning straight through to the end of the year, especially when that schedule is pretty much set in stone, and has to be prioritized. (meaning you have to work around it)

Mid Year Planner Verdict: This planner type is definitely the best for students or teachers. Check out my favorite Planners below.

Pros and Cons of January Start Planners

Pros:

Motivation is at its peak in January. Having a fresh start with a clean slate (and clean pages) is part of the excitement of starting a new year with intention and freshness.

You can plan your whole year from start to finish. I’ve done this for many years, and it’s one of my favorite things to do with my kids. It gives you a bird’s eye view of your whole year, and you can include anything you want, like:

Documenting school breaks & holidays
Any major events (that come with big price tags you need to plan for)
Summer Vacation wish lists

School Break wish lists
Career or financial goal time frames
Birthdays

Volunteering opportunities
A theme for your year (like “focus” or “travel” or “intention” etc)
Spiritual or religious goals

Cons:

It’s not easy to plan your academic year with a January-start planner. You are basically starting fresh with something, in the middle of your school year. You’ll have to:

write out all of your year-specific info twice,

get used to the things you keep in your planner being in a totally different place in the middle of your year, etc.

Once the new year kicks off, we start to lose momentum and are more likely to give up on our goals and plans for the year. Shifting that start date away from the buzz of the new year may help keep ourselves on track.

January Planner Verdict: This one is perfect for:

anyone who owns a business that runs on a regular calendar year,
likes to plan out their year from beginning to end, and
Loves to get into that New Year New Planner spirit and run with it!

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Pros & Cons of 18-Month Planners

Pros:

All of the pros of a mid-year planner (since these planners also start in the summer)!

There’s a lot of space. An entire 18 months of pages is a LOT. Even if you end up buying a new planner before this one runs out, there are lots of ways to use up those empty pages! Grab my planner hacks guide for ideas:

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Cons:

There is a decent chance you will get sick of your 18-month planner way before you hit the 18-month mark. Even with the best of intentions, you’re likely to get bored with it.

One workaround is to plan as far in advance as possible and write everything into the planner, that way you’ll definitely have to rely on it the entire time.

18-Month Planner Verdict: Amazing for those of us who love (or need) to plan waaaaay ahead, and who enjoy holding onto items for the long haul. My favorites are below!

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Alternatives to a July-Start Planner

When you don’t want to start your planner journey in January, but can’t wait until Summer, there are actually plenty of options!

Half-year planners – these are usually undated, so you can start in July or January! Here is a perfect one for students who only want to plan for one semester:

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Daily Planners – if you find you need a lot of space to plan out your day, a daily planner is the perfect option. You can:
- Grab a printable one for free at https://passionplanner.com/daily-pdf/ to try out, or
- Take a look in my printables shop at my daily planner printables, they are in a beautiful set that comes with a daily reflection page and a coloring page:

Bullet Journals – These are notebooks where you get to draw the calendar & weekly or daily schedule spreads yourself. The options here are limitless. If you are artistic in any way, or are very picky about what goes into your planner, this is an incredible option. They can be as simple & minimal or as elaborate as you want.

Undated planners (my favorites are below)

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My Favorite Mid-Year & Academic Planners

Erin Condren LifePlanner. I bought one in July last year and It’s still going strong!

Some other Erin Condren options:

Academic Planner – Made for students, this one has pages for exams, class schedules, and more…

Teacher Lesson Planner – Made for teachers, this one has some very cool student planning pages.

At-A-Glance academic planners – These are a more affordable option and are usually more compact.

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My Favorite Undated Planners

LivingWell Planner – This planner has a TON of spreads included, like budgeting, goal setting, meal planning, pretty much anything you can think of.

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Passion Planner undated option – I love their goal setting worksheets at the beginning of this planner.

Bullet Journals – These are notebooks where you get to draw the calendar & weekly or daily schedule spreads yourself. The options here are limitless. If you are artistic in any way, or are very picky about what goes into your planner, this is an incredible option. They can be as simple & minimal or as elaborate as you want.

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My Favorite 18-Month Planners

Happy Planner – I’m trying these out as we speak! These are also sold in Michaels, Target, Jo-Anns & Hobby Lobby, so you can pretty much find them anywhere.

Here’s a picture of my new ones:

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You can also get pretty much any Erin Condren planner in an 18-Month option, just click under “personalization.”

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Conclusion

If you were wondering why do planners start in July, or trying to decide which type of planner to use, I hope this post was helpful to you! Let me know in the comments which start date is your favorite for a new planner.

XO,

-Mina

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Why Some Planners Start In July: Mid Year Planners Pros & Cons

When Do Academic Planners Come Out?