Looking for bullet journal meal planning ideas that leave room for a little creativity? Think colorful weekly grids, grocery checklists and tiny food doodles.
These pictures include handwritten spreads, planner sheets and a few decorating ideas you can borrow for your own notebook.
You can keep it simple or go all out with an illustrated kitchen. Start with the space you need for your meals, then add the little details you love.
Meal Planning Pages and Details Worth Saving
pink kitchen doors
How cute is this kitchen-themed weekly spread? The pink cupboards hold daily lists while the open fridge illustration has little shelves of trackers.
That matching stove is such a pretty detail.
This is a general planning layout rather than a meal menu. Borrow the cupboard idea for your meals by giving each door a day of the week.
a simple weekly grid
Don’t want to go all out with the drawings? No problem!
This black-and-white planner has columns for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, plus a grocery list down the side.
Try the same arrangement across two journal pages if you want extra writing room.
colorful weekday lettering
I love the little patterns inside these weekday letters. They make a plain lined page look so cute without filling the space meant for meals.
The menu and groceries sit side by side, with leftovers written into two days. Leave room for those nights in your own plan too.
tiny illustrated plates
I am obsessed with these little food drawings. The patterned plates, tiny cups and colorful bowls make this spread feel like a miniature menu.
This is an illustrated food record rather than a weekly planning grid. Try a smaller version beside a list of meals you’d like to make again.
recipes and kitchen doodles
Want to keep your recipes near your meal plans? These banana bread and lasagna pages are a lovely starting point.
Ingredients sit above the instructions, with kitchen doodles tucked into the spaces around them.
The little mixer and patterned oven mitt are my favorite parts. Use the layout for recipes you already know and trust.
pantry inventory checkboxes
If you are looking for a way to organize what’s already in your kitchen, this one is for you. The inventory sheets separate pantry, fridge and freezer items, with columns for dates and quantities.
Borrow the rows of little checkboxes for your notebook. Choose what each box represents before you start filling them in.
food stickers and yellow dates
How cute is this weekly menu? The big yellow dates and colorful meal names look so good beside those food stickers. I especially love the little avocado.
Add a sticker beside a few meals if you want a decorated page without drawing every detail yourself.
pastel banners and graph paper
This is one for you if you like plenty of detail. Pink, yellow and peach banners divide the meal categories, with handwritten food lists beneath them.
I love the fruit and coffee stickers scattered across the grid. You can borrow the color scheme without copying the quantities shown here.
snowflake freezer list
The little snowflakes are such a cute touch on this freezer inventory. Item names, quantity circles and dates all fit into one narrow table.
Give your own freezer page a blue heading, then keep the rest simple with black lines and small circles.
a little supermarket awning
This supermarket spread may just be my favorite one so far. I love the blue-and-green awning above the lists.
The tiny drawings beside the category names are adorable too.
Try this as a master shopping reference rather than rewriting every item each week. You can check it when putting together your next grocery list.
pumpkins around the calendar
How pretty are those pumpkins? This October calendar has small dated boxes surrounded by curling vines, with a big orange pumpkin in the lower corner.
The page shown is an events calendar, not a meal plan. For your version, use the boxes for dinner names and keep that gorgeous pumpkin border.
pastel meals and prep notes
If you want your meals, groceries and prep reminders together, there’s plenty to borrow here. The pastel grid includes a water column and daily notes, with separate writing spaces underneath.
I’d keep the little meal prep area when adapting this to a journal. It gives those reminders somewhere to go besides the dinner box.
bold borders and colorful writing
The colorful handwriting looks so pretty against these thick black borders. There’s a weekly meal grid on one sheet and a more detailed daily layout on the other.
The pictured pages include nutrition totals, exercise and reflection. For a simpler version, keep the meal spaces and reflection area without copying someone else’s targets.
leafy lines and blue letters
This is a lovely starting point for bullet journal meal planning if you want everything on one page. Breakfast, lunch and dinner go at the top, with grocery categories underneath.
I love the blue stripes inside the headings. Those thin leafy borders add just enough decoration.
a takeout reference page
Not every dinner needs a recipe, right? This page sorts restaurant choices into takeout, delivery and fast food beneath a big flowing heading.
Make your own version with places you actually order from. The pale purple lines are a pretty way to separate the categories without adding lots of decoration.
green sticky-note meals
I love this sticky-note idea. Bright green notes sit inside outlined boxes for the days, with a separate box for prep.
The little food doodles across the top are so cute.
Try writing your meals on movable notes if your plans tend to change. You can rearrange them instead of crossing out the whole page.
green blocks and leafy corners
If you love green, this one is for you. The daily planner pairs pale yellow with green meal blocks, a tall grocery checklist and leafy corner drawings.
There are smaller nutrition boxes beside the meals. You could relabel those for recipe page numbers or prep reminders in your own journal.
Read also: 20 Make Ahead Meals and Prep Ideas for Your Weekly Menu
tall daily panels
Don’t want to add stickers or lots of color? This spread keeps things simple with tall outlined panels and gray highlights behind the weekday names.
Small tracking rows sit below each writing space. Keep the open panels for meal notes, or divide them into breakfast, lunch and dinner if you prefer more structure.
favorite meals under banners
A page of favorite meals is such a good companion to a weekly plan. This one has pastel banners for chicken, beef, vegetarian and other dishes, with a cooking-method key between the lists.
Read also: 20 Make Ahead Dinners to Inspire Your Weekly Meal Plan
I especially love the blue lettering and little hearts at the top. Start your version with the meals you already enjoy making.
smiling breakfast stickers
Last but definitely not least, we have these adorable breakfast stickers. The smiling toast and little croissant are just too cute!
This is a sticker sheet rather than a finished spread. Add one beside your breakfast heading, or use a few around the edges of a weekly menu.