Where to Buy Stationery & Journal Supplies in Tokyo

This is specifically for people interested in finding journaling supplies more than fine art supplies. I’m talking pens, stickers, washi tape, “junk journal stuff,” stamps, stencils, maybe some ink pads or cheap paint pens, etc. That’s the kind of stuff I’m interested in so that’s what I went looking for when I visited Japan this year.

Since I’m full-time traveling, I had to try REALLY hard to restrict my purchases to things I can fit into my suitcase and use enough to justify carrying it around, but even then I bought more notebooks than I needed and had to send it back to my parents to keep for me until the next time I visit. 🥹

The nice thing about stationery, though, is that it’s relatively small! As long as you don’t buy a bunch of blank notebooks, you can totally cram a butt-load of stickers, washi tapes, stamps, pens, and other stuff into your carry-on. They also make for nice gifts for family and friends who enjoy making junk journals other artsy notebook creations.

Here’s some of the best places to get interesting, unique and/or cheap journaling supplies in Tokyo.

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Traveler’s Factory

Traveler’s Factory are the people behind the Traveler’s Notebook system, where you buy a leather cover and different blank notebook inserts. The idea is to carry it around everywhere and have a great time filling it in with whatever you want. It’s much cheaper to buy these when you’re in Japan than importing it from elsewhere, and you can even pick up special editions of covers, inserts, and stickers.

There’s two branches in Tokyo proper and another in Narita Airport. They’re all easy to get to by public transportation, but the least crowded and cutest one is probably the Traveler’s Factory Nakameguro location. Highly recommend stopping by, especially if you like vintage travel-style stuff!

Traveler’s Factory stores are great places to pick up notebooks, travel-themed stickers, nice pens and ink, and even postcards and washi tape. Each store also has a selection of stamps you can use to customize your notebook cover, so if you’re already collecting eki stamps you’ll for sure want to stop by a Factory or two.

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I visited all the Traveler’s Factory locations in Japan and did a write-up of my visits here! If you’re going to Tokyo and Kyoto, you’ll want to read that post.

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Sekaido

The grand-daddy of art supplies store, and a proper art supplies store with fine art items like, idk, gouache paint. But they also have a ton of pens, washi tape, stamps, postcards, paint pens, paper, stencils, and notebooks. Basically, if you’re looking for it, they’ll have it!

The Sekaido Shibuya branch is (I think?) the largest one, with multiple floors and enough merchandise that you could spend a whole day in there. If you’re looking specifically for Japanese pens, this is a good place to come as they have a whole wall of them.

Loft

They sell more than just stationery here, but the biggest LOFTs also have the biggest office supplies section. I do think it’s more standard stuff, like things you’d use in an office or at university, maybe. They had way more planners, notebooks, paper things than stamps or ink pads, for instance, than I saw in other stationery stores.

LOFT is also where you can buy Hobonichi planners and covers, Midori notebooks (including Traveler’s Notebooks and covers), and even staples like Moleskine notebooks. I did find that LOFT was the most expensive of all the places I visited, but they had high-quality things which perhaps explained it.

HANDS

Similar to LOFT in that it has stationery and life goods, and it’s also fairly expensive. To be honest, I didn’t do much shopping here because of the prices, but they do have some adorable sticker sheets. They also have way more ink pads than any of the LOFTs seem to have, if that’s important to you.

They also have clearance sections so you might be able to snag a good deal on something.

Daiso

The premier discount store found worldwide, and the best (and cheapest) selection is always within its home country of Japan. Tons of stickers, washi tape, paint, pens, origami paper, notebooks, binders, folders, etc. and all for a mere ¥110 (with tax) each. I did a lot of shopping here and found it difficult to keep from spending all my money on every fascinating little trinket I found!

There’s some differences between stores but I found that most of them have the same thing. Bigger stores will have a larger selection than smaller ones, obviously, but even the smaller Daisos can have amazing things in there. They rotate out stock every so often, so it’s worth checking back if it’s been a few days since you last stopped by.

Note: Do NOT buy paint pens here. They reek! Go find the Posca pens at Sekaido instead.

Watts 100¥ Shop

This is like another Daiso, a discount store with cheap stuff to buy. They have different selection of washi tape, stickers, notebooks and origami paper than Daiso does, so it’s worth checking out for sure.

I found some excellent stationery here I haven’t seen elsewhere, and for such a good price! For instance, they had a bunch of Mofusand stickers and keychains which can be hard to find elsewhere (especially outside of Japan).

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Interested in making your own junk journal using things you buy on your trip? Check out my guide to making one here! You might also be interested in learning how to keep a mindful travel journal, too.

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Don Quijote

Tourists usually come to Donki to get snacks and beauty supplies, but you can also grab some art stuff! I found a set of Posca paint pens for something crazy like $11 USD, which I was very excited about. They also have a fun selection of Japan-specific stickers made by local artists, and lots of washi tape, origami paper, postcards and so on.

Muji

Very small selection of stationery as it’s more a homegoods/clothing store, but good if you need a basic notebook for eki stamps, a small pair of scissors, basic pens and post-it notes, etc.

Some Lawsons convenience stores also have a Muji stationery section in their store, if you’re really desperate for a blank notebook.

Highly recommend picking up the small scissors, btw. They’re great for carrying around in a backpack and snipping little things out from pamphlets to put in a junk journal later. They might get taken away by airport security but they’re like $1 or less so nbd. I’m technically on my 3rd pair because I keep rebuying them.

Museum Gift Shops

My secret to finding unusual, high-quality stationery items: museum gift shops! At the very least, they’ll have some cool stickers and postcards to pick up, but if you’re lucky they’ll also have washi tape, origami paper, notebooks, and stamps. They’re sometimes a little more expensive than stuff you’ll find in regular shops, but they’re also more unusual and unique.

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I went to a GREAT museum gift shop when I explored the Mozu Tombs just outside of Osaka. Check out my write-up of the shop (and the tombs of course) here.

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Pop-Up Character Shops

If you’re looking for stationery with cute characters, like Sanrio or San-x or anything else, head to Tokyo Station and walk down Anime Street. You’ll find tons of little stores with all the stickers and stationery items you could want, including short-term pop-up shops for popular brands like Moomin.

This takes a bit more serendipity than going directly to a sticker shop, as you’ll won’t necessarily know what’s popping up during your visit, but it’s fun to see what kind of special items you can find. And most of them are only made for a short amount of time, too, specifically for the pop-up event!

Tourist Info Centers

Yes, you can find stationery here! Some of it will be free, like pamphlets you can use in your travel journal, but they’ll often have (at the very least) souvenir stickers and postcards for sale for that specific part of Tokyo.

For instance, here’s some of what I saw at the Ueno Tourist Info Center:

If you’re wandering around Ueno, be sure to get all these free stamps while you’re there.

Flea Markets

Yes! You can find stationery items at flea markets! Not as many as you might hope for, but for vintage postcards, posters, tickets, etc. you can snag some good deals. Also good for finding vintage beads or kimono fabric to use for journal covers.

Check Tokyo Cheapo for where the next flea market is being held. There’s basically one every day SOMEWHERE in Tokyo, if the weather is good.

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Flea markets are also a great place to find a unique souvenir or two (or three!) If you’re looking for vintage kimonos, for instance, you can literally get a pile of them for $10. I visited a flea market in Nagoya and wrote about my experience here, if you’re interested in seeing what it’s like.

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Post Offices

And finally, my other secret stationery location: the Post Office! Besides buying adorable postage stamps to use on your postcards home, most post offices have a souvenir/stationery section with letter-writing supplies, washi tape, stickers and fancy postcards.

Post Offices rotate out their stock every so often, as they tend to have promotional items only available for a certain time. They’re also more likely to have famous characters like Hello Kitty, Peter Rabbit, the city mascot and so on.

Tip: Some post offices also have a “local goods” section where local artists can sell their stuff! I got a handmade sock monkey at a post office in Nagasaki, which I still carry with me on my travels.

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