Notebooks & Journals
Leuchtturm1917 vs Rhodia: Ten Grams Against Ninety-One Pages
Both are the answer to 'which notebook should I buy', from two different starting questions. The published specs make the fork unusually clean.
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The answer first
Buy the Rhodia Webnotebook if you write with a fountain pen. Buy the LEUCHTTURM1917 if you index what you write. That is genuinely the whole decision, and almost every other difference between them follows from it.
How we compared them
Two notebooks this well matched cannot be separated on impressions, and this site has not handled either. So the comparison runs on published figures only - paper weight, paper finish, page count, page numbering, binding and fittings - and where a maker publishes nothing, the table says so rather than filling the gap.
Price is deliberately not a criterion here. Both sit in the same bracket, both move, and the live figures on the two cards below are the current ones. Nothing in the ranking turns on which is a dollar cheaper this week.
The published differences
| Rhodia Webnotebook A5 | LEUCHTTURM1917 A5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper weight | 90 gsm brushed ivory vellum | 80 gsm |
| Pages | 160 (80 sheets) | 251, numbered |
| Page numbers | Not published | Printed |
| Contents page | Not published | Blank table of contents included |
| Perforated sheets | Not published | 8 detachable |
| Page markers | One ribbon | Two ribbons |
| Cover | Leatherette, elastic closure | Hardcover, elastic closure |
| Inner pocket | Gusseted rear pocket | |
| Binding | Not published | Thread bound, opens flat |
| Extras | Not published | Archival stickers |
Quick picks
Ranked for the person doing the buying. Every pick names who it is wrong for.
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Rhodia Webnotebook A5, Dot 90 gsm Clairefontaine ivory vellum - the heaviest weight published anywhere on this site, in a book with a ribbon, an elastic and a pocket. | A fountain-pen user, without qualification | |
| 2 |  LEUCHTTURM1917 Medium A5 Dotted Hardcover Notebook 80 gsm paper, 251 numbered pages and a printed contents page, which is why this is the default recommendation in every journaling forum. | The bullet-journal standard | $25.50 - View on Amazon #ad Price as of September 13, 2026. How this is funded |
1. A fountain-pen user, without qualification
Rhodia Webnotebook A5, Dot
90 gsm Clairefontaine ivory vellum - the heaviest weight published anywhere on this site, in a book with a ribbon, an elastic and a pocket.
90 gsm is the number to buy this for. Against 70 gsm Moleskine paper that is roughly 29 percent more paper between one page and the next, and that is where fountain-pen show-through stops being a problem.
The trade is page count. 160 pages against 251 for the Leuchtturm1917 at a similar size - heavier paper in a book of the same thickness means fewer sheets. That is physics, not a cost saving.
Ivory rather than white is a real preference axis. It is easier on the eye under a desk lamp and it flattens the contrast of a photograph, which matters if anyone is posting pages.
| Paper weight | 90 gsm Clairefontaine brushed ivory vellum10 gsm above the Leuchtturm1917 and 20 above the Moleskine Classic.Source: Amazon listing - Rhodia A5 Webnotebook, Dot, Black |
|---|---|
| Pages | 160 (80 sheets)Source: Amazon listing - Rhodia Webnotebook, A5 |
| Size | A5, approximately 5.5" x 8.25"Source: Amazon listing - Rhodia Webnotebook - A5 |
| Fittings | Leatherette cover, inner pocket, ribbon page marker, elastic closureSource: Amazon listing - Rhodia Webnotebook, A5 |
| Page numbers | Not publishedNot numbered. Rhodia does not target the indexed-journal use case. |
What it does well
- 90 gsm Clairefontaine paper, the heaviest weight published here, and the safe choice for fountain-pen ink.
- Ivory stock is comfortable under artificial light.
- Soft leatherette cover, pocket, ribbon and elastic as standard.
What it does not
- 160 pages, roughly two thirds of the Leuchtturm1917's count.
- No page numbers or contents page.
- Less recognizable as a brand than the other two, which matters in a gift.
Skip this: if the recipient keeps an indexed bullet journal. No page numbers means hand-numbering, and at 160 pages they will run out sooner than they expect.
2. The bullet-journal standard
LEUCHTTURM1917 Medium A5 Dotted Hardcover Notebook
80 gsm paper, 251 numbered pages and a printed contents page, which is why this is the default recommendation in every journaling forum.
#ad Price as of September 13, 2026. How this is funded
Numbered pages plus a printed contents page is the whole reason bullet journaling settled on this book. An index needs page numbers, and printing them saves the user writing 251 of them.
80 gsm against the Moleskine Classic's published 70 gsm is a 14 percent difference in paper weight, and it is the difference most people notice as ghosting on the reverse of a page.
Two ribbons is not decoration in a journal that has an index. One marks the index, one marks today.
| Paper weight | 80 gsmSource: Amazon listing - LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Hardcover Medium A5, Dotted |
|---|---|
| Pages | 251 numbered pages, with 8 perforated detachable sheetsSource: Amazon listing - LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Hardcover Medium A5, Dotted |
| Size | A5, approximately 5.75" x 8.25" (145 x 210 mm)Source: Amazon listing - LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Hardcover Medium A5, Dotted |
| Fittings | Blank table of contents, two page markers, gusseted rear pocket, elastic band, archival stickersSource: Amazon listing - LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Hardcover Medium A5, Dotted |
| Binding | Thread bound, opens flatSource: Amazon listing - LEUCHTTURM1917 Notebook Hardcover Medium A5, Dotted |
What it does well
- 251 pre-numbered pages and a blank contents page, ready for an index.
- 80 gsm published, the heaviest of the three mainstream hardcovers here.
- Thread bound, so it lies flat from the first page.
What it does not
- Still not fountain-pen-proof; 80 gsm reduces show-through, it does not eliminate it.
- The dot grid is fainter than some users want for straight-line work.
Skip this: if the recipient has never mentioned journaling. A 251-page dotted notebook handed to a non-journaler is 251 blank pages of obligation. See how to pick a journal as a gift.
Ten grams, and who actually feels them
Ninety against eighty is about a 13 percent difference in weight, and unlike most spec gaps this one has a threshold behind it. Eighty gsm is roughly where ordinary fountain-pen ink stops coming through the sheet as a wet mark. Ninety is where it becomes unusual even with a wetter nib.
If you write with a gel pen or a ballpoint, that difference is close to invisible and you should ignore this entire section. If you write with a fountain pen, it is the only section that matters. Notebooks for fountain pens puts both books in context against the rest of the field.
Ninety-one pages is a bigger gap than ten grams
The Leuchtturm holds 251 pages to the Rhodia's 160 - about 57 percent more paper in a book of comparable bulk. That is the quiet cost of 90 gsm: heavier sheets take up more room, so a heavier book in the same covers holds fewer of them.
For somebody filling a notebook every couple of months, ninety-one pages is weeks of writing and a real recurring cost. For somebody who keeps one book for a year of occasional notes, it is nothing at all.
The numbering is not a small feature
Printed page numbers plus a blank contents page is an indexing system in a book, and it is the reason one of these two notebooks became the default for bullet journaling and the other did not. An index needs numbers, and writing 251 of them by hand before you start is not a plan anyone keeps.
The Rhodia publishes no page numbering, and for a book used as a journal or a writing pad that is not a defect. It only becomes one the moment you want to find something again.
What each one refuses to publish
Rhodia does not publish a binding type for the Webnotebook, which is the one thing a fountain-pen user most wants to know after the gsm - a book that will not lie open is a book you fight. Leuchtturm states thread binding and that it opens flat.
Leuchtturm, in turn, publishes a weight but not a surface finish, and finish is why two sheets at the same gsm can behave differently. Rhodia names its paper - brushed ivory vellum, made by Clairefontaine - which is a more specific claim than a number alone.
Questions people actually ask
Is Rhodia better than Leuchtturm1917?
On paper, yes - 90 gsm against 80, in a named brushed vellum finish. On usability as a reference book, no: Leuchtturm prints page numbers, includes a contents page and holds 91 more pages.
Which is better for bullet journaling?
The LEUCHTTURM1917, clearly. An index needs printed page numbers and a contents page, and it is the only one of the two that publishes either.
Which has better paper for fountain pens?
The Rhodia Webnotebook, at 90 gsm brushed ivory vellum against 80 gsm. That is the threshold where wet nibs stop marking through the sheet.
Do they open flat?
Leuchtturm publishes thread binding and states the book opens flat. Rhodia does not publish a binding type for the Webnotebook, which is a real gap for anyone writing across the gutter.
Are they the same size?
Both are A5 format, about 5.75 by 8.25 inches, so A5 covers and sleeves fit either. Notebook sizes explained has the full set of dimensions.