Free Printable Lined Paper

About lined paper

Lined paper is the everyday sheet for notes, letters, homework and journaling. This generator draws it from scratch at the exact spacing you choose, so it prints crisply on any home or office printer instead of coming from a blurry scanned image.

The three standard rulings are one click away. Wide ruled paper has lines about 8.7 mm (11/32 in) apart and suits younger students and larger handwriting. College ruled sits at 7.1 mm (9/32 in), the usual choice for class notes. Narrow ruled is 6.35 mm (1/4 in) and fits the most text on a page.

Everything is adjustable. Change the thickness and colour of the lines, switch to dashed or dotted rules, leave blank space at the top for a title, add a single or double red margin line, or tint the page yellow for a legal pad look.

What you can use it for

• Class notes and homework
• Letters, lists and journaling
• Handwriting practice at a larger line height
• A legal-pad style sheet for meetings
• Lined inserts for cards and stationery

The options explained

• Line spacing. Distance between lines. 8.7 mm is wide ruled, 7.1 mm college ruled and 6.35 mm narrow ruled.
• Blank space at top. Leaves room above the first line for a title or date.
• Line style. Solid, dashed or dotted rules. Dotted lines use less ink and are easier to ignore while writing.
• Vertical margin line. A single or double line, placed at the distance from the left edge that you choose.
• Paper tint. Adds a coloured background. Leave it on White to print with no ink on the page background.

Printing tips

• Print at 100% (Actual size), not Fit to page, so the lines keep their true spacing.
• If your printer clips the edges, raise the page margin to 10 mm or more.
• For a three-ring binder, turn on the hole-punch guide and keep the margin line well clear of the holes.

For more detail, read the guide to printing paper at home.

Frequently asked questions