Printable paper: lines, grids and number columns

How to use it

1. Pick a paper type: handwriting lines, ruled lines, squares, big squares, dots, number columns or plain. The Common sizes buttons set ruled paper to a spacing often sold in the US, or to 8 mm or 7 mm on A4 paper.
2. Under Size and spacing, choose millimeters or inches. Type a number, or use the Decrease and Increase buttons. If you type a number that is not allowed, the tool tells you and keeps the last good number. The Preview and the list under it change as you go.
3. Under Page, margins and style, pick US Letter or A4, tall or wide, how many pages, your margins, the line weight and color, and whether to add a margin line or Name and Date lines.
4. Press Print or save as PDF. In the print window, set the scale to 100 percent (Actual size), turn off headers and footers, and pick the same paper size. Print one page first and measure it with a ruler.

Good to know

• This tool draws lines and grids on a page at the size you choose and sends them to your printer. It cannot make paper with raised lines, and it does not decide which paper is right for you. People find different papers helpful, so try a few spacings and keep the one that feels comfortable.
• Printed size: every size is kept in millimeters and drawn at true size, so 8 mm in the settings is 8 mm on the paper. That only holds when the print window is set to 100 percent. If it is set to an option such as Fit to page, Fit to printable area or Shrink to fit, the printed lines come out a different size. We checked the layout by making PDF files in one browser, Chromium, and measuring the lines inside them. We have not tested other browsers or real printers, so always print one page and measure it.
• Page sizes: US Letter is 8.5 by 11 inches (215.9 by 279.4 mm) and A4 is 210 by 297 mm. Pick the same paper size in the print window.
• Common sizes: a reference page on ruled paper gives US wide ruled as 11/32 in (8.7 mm), college ruled as 9/32 in (7.1 mm) and narrow ruled as 1/4 in (6.4 mm). It says adult ruled paper in Britain is most commonly 8 mm. These are common names for those spacings, and brands and countries differ, so measure paper that has to match exactly. The A4 8 mm button uses that British spacing, and the A4 7 mm button is close to US college ruled.
• Where paper comes up in advice: a Reading Rockets page on dysgraphia, an Understood page on dyscalculia and a New Zealand Ministry of Education guide on dyspraxia each mention lined or graph paper. They are listed under Sources with what each one says. They are suggestions from schools and organizations. We make no claim that any paper makes handwriting or math easier for a particular person.
• Handwriting lines have a top line, a dashed middle line and a bottom line. Number columns have tall lines with no row lines. The middle line is dashed, and the margin line and the heavier column lines are thicker, so you never have to tell them apart by color alone.
• Many printers cannot print right to the edge of the paper. If lines near the edge are cut off when you print, make your margins bigger. In Firefox, the print preview has a More settings list where you can find Scale, Margins and Print headers and footers.
• Everything stays on this device. Your settings are saved in this browser only, and the page is drawn on your device and sent to your printer. Nothing is sent to Neuro-Common. The optional Name and Date labels use a plain sans-serif font that your device chooses.
• Limits: spacing from 4 mm to 30 mm (0.16 in to 1.18 in), space between handwriting rows from 0 mm to 30 mm, margins from 0 mm to 60 mm (2.36 in), and 1 to 20 pages in one print.

Where this comes from

• A Reading Rockets page on dysgraphia accommodations says to encourage primary students to use paper with raised lines to keep writing on the line, to allow older students to use the line width of their choice, and to allow graph paper for math, or lined paper turned sideways, to help line up columns of numbers: Reading Rockets: Dysgraphia accommodations and modifications
• Understood lists classroom accommodations for dyscalculia that include offering graph paper to help line up numbers and problems, and giving more space to write problems and solutions: Understood: Classroom accommodations for dyscalculia
• A New Zealand Ministry of Education guide on dyspraxia says to provide lined paper and easy-to-grip pencils, and lists lined paper to guide alignment among handwriting supports: Inclusive Education New Zealand: Support motor skills (dyspraxia)
• A reference page on ruled paper lists wide ruled as 11/32 in (8.7 mm), medium or college ruled as 9/32 in (7.1 mm) and narrow ruled as 1/4 in (6.4 mm), and says adult ruled paper in Britain is most commonly 8 mm: Wikipedia: Ruled paper
• The Letter paper size page gives its size as 8.5 by 11 inches (215.9 by 279.4 mm): Wikipedia: Letter (paper size)
• The ISO paper size page gives A4 as 210 mm by 297 mm: Wikipedia: ISO paper size
• Mozilla support explains that Firefox opens its print preview from Print, and that the More settings list there includes Scale, Margins and Print headers and footers: Firefox Help: How to print web pages in Firefox
• The dysgraphia guide
• The dyspraxia guide
• The dyscalculia guide

More tools

General support only. These tools are not medical, legal or diagnostic advice, and they do not replace professional help. If you are in crisis, go to Crisis help.