Handwriting paper

Handwriting paper is ruled in rows of three lines: a solid top line, a dashed midline and a solid baseline. Capitals and tall letters reach the top line, small letters stop at the midline, and every letter sits on the baseline, so the rows show at a glance whether your letters keep the same height. Between rows there is a gap of half a row, room for the tails of g, p and y.

This page starts from rows 1/2 inch tall on US Letter, 13 writing lines on the page at a half inch margin, and rows 12 mm tall on A4, 14 writing lines at a 12 mm margin. The row height is one setting: pick 3/8, 1/2, 5/8, 3/4 or 1 inch, a size in millimeters, or type your own.

The handwriting lines, row by row

The row height is the distance from the top line to the baseline. The dashed midline sits exactly halfway between them, and the baseline is drawn a little heavier than the other two lines, because it is the line every letter stands on. Each row starts one and a half rows below the one before, and the block of rows is centered on the page inside the margins.

The same three-line ruling goes by several names. It is sold as primary writing paper, it is called dotted lined paper or dashed line paper after its midline, and printable handwriting practice sheets are usually this ruling with nothing written on it yet. Here it is a blank handwriting template you can fill however you like: print, cursive, a new alphabet or script, lettering drills, or a steadier signature.

Lines print in gray by default, so your writing stands out from the ruling. Choose Black for a sheet you will photocopy, or Non-photo blue for lines that many scanners and black and white copiers leave out.

Print it at 100%, not fit to page

Print dialogs shrink pages a little so nothing is cut off. On handwriting paper that shrinks every row: a 1/2 inch row printed with fit to page comes out about 0.486 inch, and the practice no longer matches the size you chose.

So when you print, choose Actual size, or set Scale to 100. The file asks viewers not to scale it, and Adobe Acrobat and Reader follow that request. Chrome's built-in PDF viewer, which opens most downloads, does not, so in Chrome or Edge open More settings and set Scale to Actual size, or to Custom and 100 if Actual size is not listed. The steps for other browsers and phones are in the list under the download buttons.

Print the Letter file on Letter paper and the A4 file on A4, or the page is shrunk to fit even at 100%.

Check your print with the calibration line

The line at the bottom of every sheet is exactly 4 inches long on inch sheets and exactly 10 cm long on metric sheets. Lay a ruler along it with zero at the left end; the small ticks mark every half inch or every centimeter.

The 4 in line measures	The 10 cm line measures	What happened
4 in, within about 1/32 in	100 mm, within about 0.5 mm	Printed at actual size.
about 3 7/8 in (3.89 in)	about 97.3 mm	A US Letter file was shrunk to fit A4 paper.
about 3 3/4 in (3.76 in)	about 94.1 mm	An A4 file was shrunk to fit US Letter paper.
about 3.8 to 3.9 in	about 95 to 97 mm	Fit to printable area or Fit to page was on.
about 4 1/16 to 4 1/8 in	about 102 to 103 mm	Borderless printing enlarged the page.

A short line means every row is short by the same ratio. At 3.89 inches a 1/2 inch row came out about 0.486 inch tall, which is small on one row but adds up to more than a quarter inch over the page.

Choosing a row height

1 inch and 3/4 inch rows give large letters room for every stroke, useful when learning a new script or working on letter shapes.
5/8 inch and 1/2 inch rows are a comfortable practice size for most handwriting.
3/8 inch rows are close to everyday writing, the step before plain lined paper or wide ruled paper.

The PNG download is the same sheet as an image at 300 pixels per inch, for writing on a tablet in a note app. Print from the PDF: image viewers often fit pictures to the paper.

What this page does not do

It does not upload anything, and there is no account. It cannot see your printer or change its settings, which is why the calibration line is there. It prints blank rows only, with no letters to trace. The preview is a picture of the sheet, not the sheet at actual size, so do not hold a ruler to the screen.

Frequently asked questions

What are the three lines on handwriting paper for?

The top line marks the height of capitals and tall letters such as b, d and h. The dashed midline marks the height of small letters such as a, c and e. The baseline is where every letter sits; tails of letters like g and y drop below it into the gap before the next row.

What size handwriting paper should I print?

Larger rows are easier for new letter shapes, and smaller rows are closer to everyday writing. A common path is to start at 3/4 or 5/8 inch and move down to 1/2 inch, then 3/8 inch, as the letters become even.

Is this the same as primary writing paper?

It is the same three-line ruling: a solid top line, a dashed midline and a baseline. Here you can choose any row height from 3/8 inch to 1 inch, or from 10 to 20 mm on A4, and the color of the lines.

Can I print handwriting paper on A4?

Yes. Choose A4 above and the rows switch to millimeters, 12 mm by default. Download the A4 PDF and print it at 100% on A4 paper, then check that the line at the bottom measures 10 cm.

Is this handwriting paper free, and is anything uploaded?

It is free printable handwriting paper, and there is no account. The sheet is drawn by code running in your browser, and the only thing sent anywhere is an anonymous count of page views and downloads, described on the privacy page.