One of the most common questions I get is “Can I convert a printable planner into a digital planner?”
The simple answer is yes!
I have created a 6 step process for converting a printable planner into a digital planner.
The 6 Steps to Convert a Printable Planner into a Digital Planner
- Download a planner template that you want to customize. You can find free and paid templates online, or use a PLR template. (You can use this one from CreativeFabrica).
- Open the template in a design tool (Affinity Publisher or Canva)
- Add tabs
- Duplicate the pages you need to duplicate.
- Add divider pages and a cover
- Add hyperlinks
To convert a printable planner into a digital planner we are just making the PDF Interactive. To do this we add a few visual cues and some hyperlinks… voila it’s a digital planner.
Let’s dive into this a bit below and I will give you more details on that 6 step process too!
💡 Understanding Interactive PDFs
An interactive PDF is a PDF that has hyperlinks, allowing you to navigate through the document with ease.
This means that you can easily jump to a specific page or section, and even click on links that take you to external websites, documents or videos (Hello YouTube).
When you convert a printable planner into a digital planner, you will be creating an interactive PDF that includes tabs and links throughout the page.
The goal here is simple… make that printable planner into something that is easy to use on an iPad with a pen to mark it up and move around the document.
📚Resources for Converting Your Planner
If you need more help with converting your planner from printable to digital, there are plenty of resources available online.
One of those resources is a very detail course I created. I show you the exact steps I use to convert a printable planner to a digital planner in Affinity Publisher.
There is no tech step unturned, so it’s a great resource for anyone wanting to learn Affinity Publisher and make their first digital planner.
It covers everything from file organization, setting the page size, adding hyperlinks, to compressing the PDF so that you can easily sell the digital
With a little creativity and some help from these resources, you can create your own digital planner that takes your planning routine to the next level!
📝 The Digital Planner Creators Quick-Start Toolkit
But wait, what if your getting started and you aren’t quite sure what the first steps are before you convert a printable planner template?
I’ve got you covered!
Let’s get you started with this process with the Digital Planner Creator’s Quick-Start Toolkit
This toolkit is your first step! Get your free copy today!
📝 How to Convert a Printable Planner into a Digital Planner a Step-by-Step Conversion Process
Now that you understand the key differences between printable and digital planners, let’s dive into the step-by-step process of converting your planner from printable to digital.
Here’s that overview of the process again, just so you don’t have to scroll up. 😉
- Download a planner template that you want to customize. You can find free and paid templates online, or use a PLR template. (You can use this one from CreativeFabrica).
- Open the template in a design tool (Affinity Publisher or Canva)
- Add tabs
- Duplicate the pages you need to duplicate.
- Add divider pages and a cover
- Add hyperlinks
Below you will find the 6 easy steps that will show you how to convert a printable planner into a digital planner with a little more detail and example images as I walk you through the process.
Convert a Printable Planner to a Digital Planner
1. Choose The Printable Planner to Convert to Digital
There are a ton of places to get a free printable planner, you may even have one sitting in your digital graveyard known as a hard drive. The very first step is to locate the printable planner you want to convert to a digital planner.
Please make sure you have the right to make adjustments to the planner if you are planning on selling your planner on Etsy or in a shop. It’s best to use either a planner you created or a PLR planner with edit rights.
I used a planner from CreativeFabrica for our example project (this one has resell rights as long as it’s modified).
2. Open the Printable Planner PDF in Your Design Tool
You can use your design tool of choice to convert a printable planner to a digital planner. I almost always choose Affinity Publisher because it’s a bit easier, but both Canva and Affinity Publisher work for this process.
I find Canva to be the least efficient tool because you can’t use master pages or master slides to create your tabs, and repeating pages. I find Affinity Publisher to be the most efficient if you are going to do a dated planner. It allows you to use Master Pages and import dates using a merge feature that totally rocks!
3. Add Your Planner Tabs
In this step, you will add the tabs for the navigation of the planner. Don’t try to link them yet. Although Affinity Publisher will keep the link if you add pages, I have noticed this sometimes breaks, so it’s best to add your hyperlinks in the very last step.
🎨Tip: Don’t be afraid to play around with different colors and clip art to make your planner pages unique and fun! Once you convert a printable planner to a digital planner you can add a lot more color to your planners because we don’t have to worry about printer ink!
4. Duplicate Your Planning Pages
In my Planner Creation Organizer, I cover determining the length of time your planner will cover. If it’s a yearly planner with weekly planning pages you will need 52 weeks worth of pages. This is where you will create your master pages if you are using a tool that lets you create master pages or master slides.
One thing to consider when you convert a printable planner into a digital planner is the idea of page templates. You can add more templates to your planner giving the user the option of using different formats.
If you are adding dates or other information to your template now is a good time to do that as well. This is typically the longest part of the transformation
5. Create Cover and Divider Pages for your Digital Planner
This step is optional, but creating unique covers and divider pages for your planner makes it fun and really draws your audience to your planner if it’s done right. The divider pages make a nice separation between sections and give you a clean transition between sections of your planner.
6. Add Hyperlinks to Your Digital Planner
Once your planner is complete the final step is to add hyperlinks. I find that planning out the pages in a spreadsheet really helps manage those hyperlinks. You will link each tab to the first page of the month for your productivity and organization pages. Often times this link goes to your pretty divider page.
I include a hyperlink planner page in the Magic Digital Planner Organizer and Workflow. It’s really helpful to plan out those pages and add hyperlinks.
Estimated Cost: -1 USD
Tools:
- Design Software (Affinity Publisher(Paid), Canva (Free or Pro))
- Tab Templates (Optional)
- Hyperlinking Tool (Optional)
Materials: PDF Printable Planner or Original Printable Planner Design File
🚀 Get Started on Your Digital Planner Today!
Converting your printable planner into a digital planner is easier than you think, and with the right tools and resources, you can create a planner that fits your personal preferences and goals.
I know I shared my free Quick-Start Toolkit above, but one paid resource you may want to checkout is my Google Sheet that helps you with a step-by-step work flow and has sheets to organize all the moving pieces of planner creation. Take a look below and see if it’s something you need. 🙂
This is just one of 6 tabs to help you create an amazing planner!
Share on Pinterest…
Disclaimer: Links on this site maybe affiliates links. This means I may get a commission if you choose to purchase after clicking my link. I only share software, tools and templates that I personally use and love.
