Guide · Updated August 2026
The GoodNotes planner, done right
A GoodNotes planner is a hyperlinked PDF you import into GoodNotes and write on with your Apple Pencil — a paper planner’s feel with tappable tabs, unlimited page copies and reusable stickers. Setting one up takes about a minute. Here’s exactly how to do it, the read-mode trick that makes the tabs work, and what separates a planner you’ll use all year from one you’ll abandon by February.
How to set up a planner in GoodNotes
Get the planner PDF
A GoodNotes planner is simply a hyperlinked PDF. Download it on your iPad — from your email, Files app or a purchase link.
Import it into GoodNotes
Tap the PDF and choose "Open in GoodNotes" (or use the + button inside GoodNotes → Import). It opens as a new document with every tab intact.
Switch tap mode to use the tabs
The one trick everyone misses: hyperlinks work in read mode. Tap the pencil icon (top right) to toggle editing off, then tap any tab to jump. Write with editing on, navigate with it off.
Everyday GoodNotes planning, in practice
Once your planner is imported, the daily rhythm is simple: open GoodNotes, tap today’s tab, write. Use the lasso tool to move anything you wrote (unfinished tasks migrate to tomorrow in two seconds), the shape tool for clean boxes, and duplicate any page you run out of — long week, extra notes page, done. Digital stickers are just images: paste them once into GoodNotes’ elements tool and reuse them forever.
One habit worth building: keep the planner as its own document, separate from your class or work notebooks. GoodNotes lets you split-screen two documents, so your planner can sit next to meeting notes — this is exactly where a landscape planner version earns its keep.
What makes a GoodNotes planner worth importing
Hyperlinked tabs on every page
A planner without working links means endless scrolling through hundreds of pages. Every month, week and section should be one tap away — from anywhere.
Undated layout
Dated planners expire every January. An undated GoodNotes planner lets you write the dates in, so one purchase lasts years and skipped weeks cost nothing.
A calm daily page
The planners people abandon are the overstuffed ones. Look for a short priorities section — a top-three box beats a page of forty empty checkboxes.
Extras included, not sold separately
Digital stickers, covers and note pages should come with the planner. Add-on stores add up fast.
Built for GoodNotes from day one
The Willow Daily Planner
Undated and fully hyperlinked (473 links), with daily pages built around a top-three priorities box, weekly and monthly spreads, habit tracker, budget and gratitude log. Includes a landscape companion for Split View and 120+ matching digital stickers — one purchase, $19, yours forever.
Try it free first
The free Willow Weekly Kit is a 7-page GoodNotes-ready planner — weekly spread, habit tracker and note pages in the same calm style. Import it, plan one real week, and you’ll know if digital planning fits you. New to all of this? Start with how digital planners work on iPad, or compare options in the best digital planners of 2026.
GoodNotes planner FAQs
What is a GoodNotes planner?
It is a hyperlinked PDF planner you import into the GoodNotes app on iPad and write on with an Apple Pencil. The tabs are tappable — tap a month to jump to it — and you can duplicate pages, add stickers and erase cleanly, like paper with superpowers.
How do I import a planner into GoodNotes?
Open the planner PDF on your iPad (from email or the Files app), tap the share icon and choose "Open in GoodNotes" — or open GoodNotes, tap the + button and select Import. The planner opens as a new document with all its hyperlinks working.
Why are the tabs in my planner not working?
GoodNotes ignores hyperlinks while you are in editing mode so that tapping writes instead of navigating. Tap the pencil icon in the top-right corner to switch to read mode, and every tab becomes tappable. Toggle back to write.
Is there a free GoodNotes planner?
Yes — the Willow Weekly Kit is a free 7-page GoodNotes-ready planner: weekly spread, habit tracker and note pages. No watermark, no trial. It is a real excerpt of our paid planner, so you can try digital planning properly before spending anything.
Is GoodNotes itself free?
GoodNotes has a free tier with some limits, and paid upgrade options. Any standard hyperlinked PDF planner also works in free alternatives like Xodo, so you can start without paying for an app at all.
What is the best planner for GoodNotes?
For a minimal, undated system: The Willow Daily Planner — 473 hyperlinks, daily pages with a top-three priorities box, weekly and monthly spreads, habit tracker and budget, plus a landscape companion and 120+ stickers for a one-time $19. We compare it honestly against other options in our best digital planners guide.
Start with the free Weekly Kit
A 7-page weekly planner + habit tracker in the full Willow style. Drop your email and it lands in your inbox.
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