Compiled from 3 sources; we haven't tested this product ourselves yet. How we research
Quick answer
The Nouto Nombre Note N is a Japan-made A5 (210 × 148 mm) notebook with 189 pre-numbered pages, a 5 mm dot grid, a bicolor cover and an exposed-spine codex binding that opens flat. Nouto lists it at ¥1,700 (about US$11) before tax since May 2026, in our $$ band ($5 to $20).
No ratings yet. Be the first to rate this product.
Notes on these facts
Made by Nouto Co., Ltd., with the bookbinder Seibundo. Made in Japan: Nouto's spec says it is domestically made and prints JAPAN MADE on the back cover. Source. Price: example listing. Released: Nouto funded it on Makuake and says backers' copies shipped by December 23, 2018; the general release followed.
Colors: names per Nouto (maker's product page and photos), checked November 4, 2026. Each cover is two colors: the front is one and the back the other. Nouto names the pairs in Japanese; the names here are our translations. Two pairs are shown, with tints sampled from Nouto's own photos; the others are listed in the text without a tint. Tints are representative, not measured. Shops stock different colors.
Price bands are typical US retail, checked October 2026. Conversions to US dollars are approximate, at October 2026 rates (US$1 = ¥158 = ₩1,330 = NT$32.5 = CN¥6.7 = SEK 9.9 = DKK 6.7 = ₺49.6 = C$1.41 = A$1.43 = CZK 21.7; €1 = US$1.12; £1 = US$1.32; CHF 1 = US$1.21).
Key takeaways
Nouto lists 210 × 148 mm (A5), about 9 mm thick, with 189 pages that are numbered from the factory.
The ruling is a 5 mm dot grid in a gray-beige ink, and the outermost line is left out on purpose.
The binding is a codex binding with the thread-sewn spine left visible, so the book opens 180 degrees and has no center gutter.
Pages are Seibundo diary paper, made for the binder by Oji Paper; Nouto does not state a paper weight.
Nouto raised the price from ¥1,500 (about US$9.50) to ¥1,700 (about US$11), both before tax, in May 2026 (our $$ band), and says it is made in Japan.
What is the Nouto Nombre Note N?
It is an A5 notebook whose pages are numbered at the factory, made for bullet-style journaling. Nouto is a small Tokyo stationery maker, founded in April 2017, that develops its own notebooks and cards. Its product page says the idea came from wanting a lower-priced numbered notebook than the hardcover imports on sale in Japan in 2018, and that the first run was funded on Makuake, a crowdfunding site. We read the maker’s page and price notice on November 4, 2026.
The name uses the French word for “number”, the term Japanese printers use for page numbers. Nouto explains that a numbered book is built like a book, which ordinary notebook lines cannot easily do, so it asked a diary bookbinder, Seibundo, to make it.
What are the size, paper and binding?
210 × 148 mm, 189 numbered pages, a codex binding and a varnished two-color cover. These are the figures from Nouto’s spec list.
Spec
Nouto says
Size
210 × 148 mm (8.3 × 5.8 in), about 9 mm thick
Pages
189, with page numbers
Paper
Seibundo diary paper
Endpapers
Tant Select TS-1
Cover
Fancy paper with a varnish coat, two colors, silkscreened logo
Binding
Thread-sewn codex, white page edges, rounded corners
Made in
Japan
Price
¥1,700 (about US$11) before tax, from May 2026
Price band
$$ ($5 to $20)
The codex binding leaves the sewn spine in view with no tape over it. Nouto says that is why the book opens 180 degrees, with no valley at the center, and notes that the sewing marks show through the spine. Our notebook sizes chart puts 210 × 148 mm next to other formats; it is the same footprint as A5.
What is the paper like?
Seibundo diary paper, thin and tuned to resist show-through. Nouto says Seibundo has it made specially at an Oji Paper mill and that it is rarely sold in ordinary stationery. The maker describes it as smooth with a slightly damp feel, and says the mill changed from Tomakomai to Nichinan and the feel changed with it. It gives no paper weight, and we have not tested it with fountain pens, brush pens or watercolor, so treat the claims as the maker’s.
How is the page ruled?
A 5 mm dot grid in gray-beige, with no outermost line. Nouto mixed a special gray-beige ink so the dots stay out of the way of writing, and left out the outer line so the margins are yours to set. Page numbers are printed, so you can use the first pages as an index.
Every cover is two colors, one on the front and the other on the back. Nouto’s May 2026 price table lists these two-tone pairs: Yellow × Sky Blue, Hot Pink × Peacock Green, Candy Pink × Chocolate, Mint Green × Chocolate, Red × Black, Dark Gray × Black, Kusamochi × Azuki (a green rice-cake tone with a red-bean tone), Dark Indigo × Jade, Mocha × Chocolate, Lavender × Bitter Chocolate, Berry Pink × Turquoise and Ash Gray × Smoke Gray. It also lists a plain white cover for decorating and three collaboration editions, NN-21 to NN-23. Orange × Royal Blue and Peacock Green × Royal Blue are marked discontinued, because the paper maker dropped the royal blue.
Nouto also sells a mystery cover in a foil bag, but only through its own shop and at events, and each bag is a different color.
Who is the Nombre Note N for?
It suits people who build their own planner in a blank book, because every page already has a number and a dot grid.
Journaling and planning: 189 numbered pages and a 5 mm dot grid, a layout Nouto designed for bullet-style notebooks.
Skip it if you want a lined notebook or a stated paper weight: Nouto offers the dot grid only and gives no gsm. For other dot-grid choices, see our guide to notebooks for bullet journaling.
Where is it made, and what does it cost?
In Japan, and ¥1,700 (about US$11) before tax from May 2026. Nouto’s notice says costs had risen to 1.5 times the launch level, so it raised the price from ¥1,500 (about US$9.50) before tax. That puts it in our $$ band ($5 to $20). The page lists shops in Japan and its own online store; we did not check overseas prices, which change with shipping and tax.
210 mm tall by 148 mm wide, about 9 mm thick, which is the A5 format. Nouto lists the figures on its product page.
Are the pages numbered?
Yes. Nouto prints page numbers on every one of the 189 pages, and it calls this the point of the notebook, so an index at the front can point to any entry.
Does the notebook lie flat?
Nouto says it opens a full 180 degrees. The codex binding leaves the sewn spine uncovered and uses no binding tape, so there is no spring-back at the center.
Is the paper good for fountain pens?
Nouto's page title calls it ideal for fountain pens and says the paper is thin but resists show-through, with no weight stated. We have not tested it, so check a sample first.
How does the dot grid work?
The dots are 5 mm apart in a gray-beige ink, and Nouto leaves out the outermost line so you can set your own margins.
How many colors does it come in?
Nouto's May 2026 price table lists 12 two-tone covers, a plain white cover for decorating and three collaboration editions. Two older pairs are discontinued.
Where is the Nombre Note N made?
In Japan: Nouto's spec calls it domestically made, and JAPAN MADE is printed on the back cover. Seibundo, a bookbinder in Koshigaya, sews it.
