Not everyone looks for the same thing in filler paper. So let me tell you what I wanted, and how this paper delivered. 1. 8.5 x 11, not 8x10.5 size. I can't tell you how annoying it is to me when full sized printer paper is mixed in with undersized filler paper in a binder. It leaves the binder looking sloppy. Also, larger size means more space for writing on each page, which means fewer sheets of paper are needed for the same amount of writing. This helps keep binders trim as well as neat. Younger children will likely prefer a wide rule and smaller paper, but everyone who uses this paper in my household is in high school or is an adult. 2. Just the right weight. I wanted something thin enough to keep binders as trim as possible since we use a lot of filler paper each year. But I want it thick enough to stand up to heavy-handed pen-users (my children). If you prefer a heavier weight paper, or one where you can write in dark pen on both sides of the paper, you may want to look for a heavier weight. Notice that this product is a "medium weight" paper. 3. Good texture for pen & pencil use. (ETA: we now use fountain pens and they do feather with most inks) Users of fountain pens, roller ball pens, etc. will no doubt prefer a smoother texture paper. But we use only ballpoint pens and pencils. In fact, I'm a bit of a pencil fanatic and at any given time I have at least 4 varieties of pencil on hand depending on which paper I'm using, and what my purposes are. I love the texture of this paper for both fine-point and medium-point ballpoint pens, and for all my varieties of pencils. It has just enough texture to grab the graphite and create a dark pencil line, but not so rough as to make for coarse, over-textured lines. 4. White color. This is the same white as the all-purpose copy/print paper I buy--the perfect balance of white and economy. I can't stand to see yellow filler paper side by side with whiter printer paper. 5. Smooth, consistent lines; even holes. Lately I've noticed that cheap filler paper from discount stores have been getting thinner. But also the sheet sizes and hole positions and sizes are becoming inconsistent even within a single packet of 100 sheets. The lines are now thick, now thin from sheet to sheet and even on the same page. The margin width varies, as does the thickness of the red margin line. In fact, the horrid quality of these packets of filler paper is what drove me to Amazon to try to find a good filler paper. This is what I bought, and I haven't looked back since. 6. Square corners. I know some people like rounded corners and shiny plastic hole reinforcing along the inner margin. If you do, you ought to look elsewhere. Again, I like for the filler paper to be consistent with the printer paper it lies next to, and this fits the bill. Though I'm not opposed to the plastic along the margin, I don't consider it important, so we choose not to spend extra money for that sort of feature. Yes, the price seems high. But you get 500 sheets of higher quality paper. Consider that at discount stores you pay $.99 for 100 sheets of 8x10.5 wide ruled poor quality paper. Just to get the same number of sheets would cost you $5. Then consider how much it's worth to have clean, thin blue lines, consistent spacing and size, consistent hole position, larger paper size, better texture, whiter color, and better weight. To me, it's worth the extra money.
