40+ Awesome ways to create a Key for Your Bullet Journal!

Updated 20 December 2019. Are you looking for bullet journal key ideas? Look no further we have some gorgeous keys below and some explanations on how to use them and what to add to them!

Keys are an important part of your Bullet Journal, They usually site up front or in the back as an easy reference tool for the way you want to develop your BuJo. A bullet journal key can help you keep track of what it is exactly you want to track in your journal.

We also explain what a bullet journal key is and how best to use it, and when to use it.

If you want to see all of our amazing topics – head here for more!

What is a bullet journal key?

BuJo Key explained!

Understanding the meaning of a BuJo key starts with the simple methodology of rapid logging that Ryder Carroll covers.

Having a bullet journal key essentially creates a personalized list if icons that represent priorities, or shows what has changed and what has stayed the same. It can also be called an index, or color code.

They can be simple keys or complex keys. They can also be considered the legend of your bullet journal notebook.

Some people color code their keys to suit certain themes, by giving some thought to how you want to use a key – or even if you need a key, can be important to your Bullet Journal journey.

How do you use a bullet journal key?

Simply put, you have a list of bullet journal symbols, or a color code, to define the tasks and activities you might encounter in your bullet journal, you may also want a key to define how an item looks when you finish a task or when something has been postponed or moved.

The bullet journal method redefines some keys as a starting point, but these might not work for you, and trying different ways of doing a bullet journal key could be really helpful.

For example you may want to color code your bullet journal key, and have colored blocks or colored text to show how something is progressing. You can use a combination of colors, numbers and letters to define your key.

You may also want to pop in washi tape as a tracker or key for certain months, or even as a tab divider on topics.

You can also use cute stickers or key icons to signify certain events or things in your schedule!

Should I have a bullet journal key?

Do you actually need a key for your bullet journal?

Quite often what happens is you seem to have predefined list of “keys” or signalers or icons and you can’t keep up to date with them because they don’t naturally work for you.

Look at how you usually manage your to-do list? Do you cross things out to put crosses over them, from there, start creating your key. When you look at how you manage your todo list you will find a key or legend that works more harmoniously with how you run you life.

Personally, I do not use a bullet journal key, I cross things out or write notes next to them. Therefore this does not mean that I am using my bullet journal wrong or that I am using my bullet journal key wrong, it just happens that it doesn’t work for me, so I do not use it. So there is no way you’ll find a key page in my bullet journal!

However you could make it simple and just use a pen and a highlighter, this means you could highlight where you are putting your priorities and time.

What should I put in a bullet journal key?

There are some basic key guides that the method defines, but you can also customize the list to things you might use regularly.

Event tracking
Has a item been rescheduled
Has an item been moved or changed?
Has something been cancelled?
Completed Items
Things or events that might happen in the future
Specific notes or memories
Ideas
things to research at a later date
Quotes
Topics

When should I use a bullet journal key

If you are starting out, then try using a key for while to see if it suits your style! You could use a bujo key for school, and include assignments, you could use a bujo key for work and include project due dates and more. The uses are endless!

Our featured bullet journal key ideas:

We took some time to round up some of our favorite bullet journal key page examples

What I love about these bullet journal key ideas listed below is many of them are so simple to use and easy to understand and follow.

The best bullet journal key is one that works for you, and while we can provide you with a ton of amazing bujo key ideas, color code ideas for your bullet journal and more, you’ll want to find something that works for you.