I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am that this journal is in the world! No really… I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited to write a product review than right this very minute! Humor me and go with it, ok? First, let me just get this part out of the way. I LOVE this journal.
Go buy it immediately! It’s in stores at Walmart all over the United States (and other countries?? not sure yet). And it’s only $8.64. If you need the whole story, fine… read on, my nerdy friend!
I didn’t use to love it…
Let’s take a step back in time to the olden days of Stationery Nerd (August 2017) when the original Exceed Dot Journal review was first published on this website. In fact, if you look back at my YouTube videos, the Exceed Journal review video was the second video I ever made. (Wait… don’t go look. That video is horrible. I had no idea what the heck I was doing!) To refresh your memory… I hated the Exceed Journal. It failed the pen tests, the bleeding and ghosting were horrible. And I pretty much told you not to buy that notebook.
But wait. I’m getting ahead of myself. I’ve got big news to share first!
I helped make the Exceed Journals better!
And a few months after I published my first Exceed review, I got an email from the folks at Exceed. It’s never a good sign when the vice president of a journal company wants to talk to you shortly after you publish a terrible review of their product. DUN DUN DUUUUN!!!
Imagine my surprise and delight when they asked me to help them improve their journals!
For the past year, I’ve been working with the fine folks at Exceed … I KNOW! I’ve been dying to tell you! I’m so sorry that I kept secrets from you. But let’s put that behind us, ok? Forgive me?
They asked me what the perfect journal would be – paper, construction, size, page configuration, everything – and then they went about making that dream come true. Bit-by-bit, we worked through the details of changing the paper, journal size, and page configuration. Over the past year I’ve received happy mail from Exceed – each box containing several journals to inspect, test, and give feedback on. Each new prototype was better than the last until finally we were happy with the new version of the journal and it officially went into manufacturing.
And now they are FINALLY in stores and ready to be loved by the journaling community. And if you don’t have a Walmart near you, don’t worry – you can buy the Exceed journals on the website. But before we go too much further, let me tell you about this amazing company.
Supporting a U.S.A. Company
The company that makes Exceed notebooks is called Norcom, Inc., located in Griffin, Georgia, a small town just south of Atlanta. Yes, folks, they are an American company, the largest paper manufacturing company in the United States, in fact. The Exceed journals are manufactured in China using socially conscious practices to choose responsible partners. From their website:
Norcom, founded in 1978, is committed to U. S. manufacturing and manufactures the majority of its products in its facility in Griffin, Georgia. For highly specialized items, or to supplement our domestic supply, we import products from countries and companies who have demonstrated sensitivity to human rights and environmental sustainability.
We’ll dig into the details below, but if you’re impatient (like me) here are the links to the new 100gsm paper versions of the journals. There are more than just these three, but this should get you started, anyway.
Large Exceed Soft Cover Dotted Book
100gsm | 78gsm
Dotted | Ruled
A5 Exceed Hard Cover Dotted Journal
100gsm
Dotted
Medium Exceed Hard Cover Notebook
100gsm | 78gsm
Dotted | Ruled
Small Exceed Hard Cover Notebook
78gsm
Dotted | Ruled
.
New Exceed Dot Journal … the full review!
Let’s get into it! Below is everything I know about the new Exceed Dot Journals (yes there several) with as many photos as I could possibly share with you. Plus, all the nerdy specs you would expect from a girl who calls herself a stationery nerd.
4 Journal Sizes
Large – 7.5″ x 9.75″
Medium – 5.0″ x 8.25″
Small – 3.5” x 5.5”
True A5 – 8.3″ x 5.8″
2 Paper Weights
100 gsm – available in A5, medium and large
78 gsm – available in small, medium and large
4 Color Options
Black
White
Lavender
Blue
What is new vs. old?
PAPER – In the past, all the Exceed journals were 78gsm paper with no coating (just a matte finish). However, the paper stock has been upgraded in both the 78gsm and 100gsm variation to include a slight coating on both weights – this helps to prevent bleed-through from wet inks or fineliner markers. The old paper had major bleeding with many of the pens I tested. But with the new paper style, bleeding is no longer an issue with the 78gsm paper. And when you look at the 100gsm paper, not only do you not have any bleed-through, but you also have very minimal ghosting for any of the pens I’ve tested. More on this below.
SIZE – There’s a whole new size option in the Exceed journal lineup. The A5 Dot Journal is new! However, they have kept the old size – which is now called Medium and is the same size as the Moleskine notebooks – which is slightly narrower than A5. I’m so glad that I was able to stress the importance of competing in the A5 size category because I think the new journal in this size is absolutely beautiful.
PAGE DESIGN – You’ll notice the addition of page numbers in the A5 Dot Journal, as well as four new Index Pages in the front.
LABEL & BRANDING – You can tell the difference between the old Exceed journals and the new journals by the label. There are still plenty of the old notebooks on shelves in Walmart stores, so be sure you’re getting the new version. This photo below shows the new branding — big, bold “Exceed” name across the entire width of the notebook. You can also clearly see the paper weight (78gsm or 100gsm) on the front cover label (the old journals don’t mention paper weight at all).
Exceed A5 Dotted Journal
KEY FEATURES:
- Key Features: Great value for a quality journal
- Size: True A5 – 8.3″ x 5.8″
- Cover: PU leatherette, hard
- Binding: sewn binding
- Lays Flat: Yes
- Pages: 240 numbered pages + 4 index pages
- Additional features: bookmark (extra long), back pocket
- Page styles available: lined | dotted | blank
- Paper Quality: 100gsm | coated
- Ghosting? Minimal
- Bleeding? None
- Feathering? None
This is a NEW size for the Exceed lineup of notebooks and the one I was most adamant about introducing. I’m glad they kept the narrower size but I’m super happy that we have a “true A5 size” journal with good quality paper …. and one that’s easily accessible in a local store at an amazing price. At only $8.64 for this one, you can’t beat the price.
This 100gsm paper is also available in the Large Soft Cover Notebook and the narrow Medium Hard Cover Notebook. The paper is the same and both sizes stand up to the full pen test in the same way as the A5. The photos below demonstrate the quality improvement of the paper.
I’ve used a full range of pen types – fineliner markers, gel pens, ballpoint pens, fountain pen, water-based markers, highlighters … and just for fun, I even tested a Sharpie Marker! I fully expected the Sharpie to bleed through but I was surprised at how well it stood up to that tough test (Sharpies should NOT be used in these types of journals, they bleed through everything and you’ll be very sad if you use them in your journal).
Exceed Hard Cover Dotted Notebooks
Large | Medium | Small
KEY FEATURES:
- Key Features: Great value for a quality journal
- Size: 3 size options:
Large – 7.5″ x 9.75″ (half-inch wider than B5)
Medium – 5.0″ x 8.25″ (same as Moleskine)
Small – 3.5” x 5.5” (same as Field Notes pocket notebooks) - Cover: PU leatherette, hard (Large notebook is soft cover)
- Binding: sewn binding
- Lays Flat: Yes
- Pages: 240 pages (not numbered)
- Additional features: bookmark (extra long), back pocket
- Page styles available: lined | dotted | blank
- Paper Quality: 78gsm or 100gsm | coated
- 78gsm Paper:
– Ghosting? Yes
– Bleeding? None
– Feathering? None - 100gsm Paper:
– Ghosting? Minimal
– Bleeding? None
– Feathering? None
The photos below illustrate how the 78gsm paper stands up to the pen test. Even though this paper weight is the same as last year’s version of the Exceed Notebooks, the paper is SO MUCH BETTER!! It’s that slight coating they’ve added to the paper that makes all the difference.
Last year we had feathering, bleeding, and excessive ghosting – but this new paper is amazing! Yes, we have ghosting but not as bad as it used to be. And there is absolutely no bleed-through (except on the Sharpie, which we expected) and no feathering either. Wow! I’m seriously amazed by this paper.
And the price is right! The prices are:
SMALL – 78gsm – $4.64
MEDIUM – 78gsm – $6.84 (for 100gsm it’s $2 more)
LARGE – 78gsm – $8.64 (for 100gsm it’s $2 more)
Let’s look at some pictures of the pen testing.
Hitting Stores Now!
The new Exceed Notebook line is hitting stores right now. My local Walmart only just got the full stock set up in the past couple days so you might need to check back over the next week or two if you don’t find it at your store yet. There appears to be limited stock available on the Walmart website, so grab it there if you can’t find the notebooks locally. Here are some photos from my local store (so you know what to look for).
So what do you think?
Have you picked up your new notebooks from Walmart? Either in the store or online? I’d love to hear your impressions of the improvements. Do you have any other requests or ideas that I could pass along to my friends at Exceed that could make this lineup of notebooks even better?
I just found the new ones last week and bought one. I actually like the old ones too and have a shelf of news ones in a couple of sizes.
They make excellent binder paper, binders, and spiral notebooks too.
I’ll be sure to pick up one and congratulations on working with Exceed!! Who better to tell them what a stationery addict likes but a stationery nerd???? LOL!!!
Great review! It’s so exciting that you were involved in making this a better product. Congrats! I’m going to share this review, too!
I just passed these up Tuesday because I didn’t see an indication of page numbering through the shrink wrap. Oops! Do you think there’s a chance of spiral bound dotted medium or A5 the WM lineup? Sometimes I just need the desk space.
I also almost passed up due to the no page numbers but lucky for me some other jerk had already unwrapped one and I took full advantage and saw that yes page numbers are there and I bought one! I love the fact that I saw this because I was so nervous I was making a big mistake giving up my 1917 or moleskine. I was hoping it would be comparable but had a feeling it wouldn’t be but now I feel like opening it up and diving in!
I opened the package before I bought mine because I wanted to see the dots. I don’t know why I bothered though because I could never bring myself to put it back after opening it and would have bought it even if I didn’t love it at that point. Luckily I did love it. Amazing notebook for so many reasons.
Thank you for writing this review. I went out and bought one right away and was not disappointed! I’m about to start my 4th bullet journal so this was timely. A few more observations that might help others. So far I have tried leuchtturm1917, Scribbles That Matter and Lemome journals. I just purchased a new STM and was planning to use that, but now I’m conflicted and may switch to the Exceed. The Leuchtturm1917 is out for me because of too much ghosting. The Lemome was nice for thick pages (120gsm), but the paper really felt too thick and pens dragged across it’s surface. STM and Exceed are really close for me. I did a pen test and found that both were very smooth for writing, although STM may be just a tad smoother, especially with a fountain pen. STM has a bit more ghosting. The STM paper is whiter, Exceed is more ivory. Both have a dot grid of 26 x 38 squares per page. The STM squares appear to be more like 4-4.5mm, whereas the STM is a true 5mm, which isn’t a big deal. A really nice attribute of the Exceed is that there is a “frame” of blank space around the edge, whereas the STM dots go pretty much all the way to the edge of the page. Also the page numbers in the Exceed journal are lager, also a bonus in my view. Although both are A5, the Exceed is a tad larger, I think because of the way the pages have a bit of a frame around the edge. I prefer the cover of the STM (plain), which has sort of a soft cushiony quality. The Exceed cover is not bad at all (especially for the price) and I would say it is most like the Leuchtturm. It’s a tough call for me as to which one to dive into next!!! I would definitely recommend the Exceed for a quality journal at a great price.
Checked it out. Nice little notebook. I’m just personally not a fan of cream colored paper.
You have sold me. I will have to pick up one the next time I am at WM.
I would love to see these with plain paper! And the large ones with index and page numbers. Also, how about a dated bullet journal planner – similar to the one they have now with the year at a glance calendar, monthly calendars and then blank pages so you can complete the rest with your own dates and collections. I sometimes don’t use my bullet journal for days or weeks because I don’t have the next month set up.
Wendy – There is actually an Exceed Planner that might work for you. It has a page per week for tasks with the facing page being dotted for tracking tasks or habits. Might be worth checking out. Here’s a link: http://bit.ly/2JOr5ES
I prefer a dot grid notebook in a B5 hard cover size. I might have to check out the large. My issue is that you didn’t mention how large the dot grid is. I find a lot of American companies use a .5” measure instead of a 5 mm size that seems to be standard in the European journals. Can you tell me what size the dot grid is?
Anna – the dot grid is 5mm in the Exceed notebooks. For the lined version of these, the line spacing is 6mm (which is often referred to as college ruled).
Do the New large softcovers have 240 pages or original amount?
Luna – No, they have 192 pages in the large softcover. That’s the same page count as it was in the past.
I bought one of the large notebooks in 2018 that had no mention of paper weight on it. I was visiting my family in the upper Midwest and found it at the local super Walmart. I like the size,dotted, and lay flat configuration for my pen and ink compares and configurations. Oh, and also the cover color options. Color cover is very important to me, I would no more use a black covered journal than I would buy a black car (yuck!). But I also like to play with sheen in inks, which do best with coated paper. Only some of the monster sheen inks show sheen in this journal. And the ghosting meant I could often only use one side of the sheet. Because of that, I was not sure if I wanted to keep using this for future journaling.
Then I saw the medium notebook with 100 gsm at my local SoCal walmart! I got one, although I was displeased that the price at checkout was more than the price you mentioned or than the price on the shelf. I also don’t like the narrower size, preferring a true A5. I have only done a few ink tests so can’t say if sheen is greater, but in the medium the pages, being thick and hardbound, do not lay flat like the large journal.
Today I found the large softcover 100 gsm journal at my parents walmart. The bleed through is gone, ghosting much less, and maybe a bit more sheen (I’m only traveling with 2 sheening inks loaded). The pages lay as flat as the old and I got a lovely dark lavender cover. My only complaint is the price, which is $2 more than you mentioned in this post. I’m not sure I want to pay that price for a softcover notebook.
Mmm… I wonder if the notebook is priced differently in different parts of the country? I always hear that things are more expensive in California so maybe that’s why the A5 was $10.94 instead of $8.94 like it is here in Michigan.
OMG! It’s 2:51 am and I was just about to email them at Norcom with a suggestion about the dated planner. I googled “Exceed” and your review popped up! I live just minutes away from them and you can’t believe how I felt when I discovered the newly added items to their roster of products at one neighborhood Wal-mart but then drove late one evening to the next (located even closer to their headquarters), for the larger size. I had been looking since April for a date book with the horizontal weekly on the left and dotted pages on the right. Moleskin offers one but the right side is ruled. I like the flexibility of the dots. I’ve bought several new LEUCHTTURM 1917 dotted books but, I don’t want to have to draw every Sunday or Monday before I can get my week going. And dare I say to the bullet journal community that they are a little narrow for my preference. Because I’m a total addict I visit the journal/notebook isle in Wal-mart with each visit and there it was. A new full line of all kinds of exciting new styles and colors and types of journal books. Although the Exceed is nearly perfect and certainly worth getting REAL excited about, what it is missing is about 20 either blank or additional dotted pages in the back for flexible use. Can you get them to make me one? Otherwise it is ABSOLUTELY perfect! I love that it’s not marked with a bunch of decor or preprint. I love that it is perfectly composition book size. I love that it has 2 book mark ribbons and a pocket. I love that the pages are off white and weighty. And even though the additional pages in the back would increase the thickness a bit, I don’t think it would detract from all the other positives or add much weight to the book. Thanks for your review and what did we do before the internet?
Mona: I love that you found this post at 2:00 in the morning! LOL! What a joyful message to wake up to this morning. I also bought one of those Exceed planner notebooks and plan to use it as an editorial calendar starting next month. I agree that it’d be really nice to have extra dot pages in the back to keep collections.
So, I bought an Orca planner on Amazon a few months ago, so I would be prepared when I had to move over in July. Well, after 2 pages of setup, I’m about to tear my hair out! So, as I’m heading back to Amazon I remembered your massive post on journals. Before I could even get to that though, there was this post….. Thank you! I’m heading to Walmart after work, and throwing the Orca trash where it belongs. Bless you!
I have the Orca Planner in my pile of journals the review. Glad to know it wasn’t something you enjoyed.
So, after buying and starting my pre-planning, I’m not quite as happy as I thought I would be…. First, there is a DOT missing on ever left hand page!!! It’s in the 8th column over, 14th dot down. EVERY PAGE. That is more frustrating than I thought it would be. I checked my co-workers, and hers has the missing dot in the same place, every page. Also, every pen I use smears. Otherwise, I’m happy so far. We will see how it goes.
I found the new A5 with 100 gsm paper a few weeks ago. It has quickly become my go-to for Morning Pages, artwork, and lettering practice.
I’m now planning to get a Large 100 gsm notebook to become my lettering practice book.
I love exceed I’ve been using either a notebook or a planner from them for years. Right now I’m using a weekly planner from them and it may be my favorite I’ve ever used. My only complaint is they have ZERO note pages. I Love that their planners are a hybrid planner bullet journal. I just need 10-20 notepages at the end! (Pass it on 😂)
Would love to get some of the more masculine color options back on the shelf! I bought a navy one before they switched over, but my wife got ahold of it before I finished my black one.
Navy and burgundy/red back. Maybe a dark grey would be nice.
I just use it for a notes with Sharpie pens.