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Preview on A4 in the Minimal style. The PDF uses exactly the same drawing.

Basic Paper

Printable Genkouyoushi (Japanese Manuscript Paper)

Printable genkouyoushi (原稿用紙) manuscript paper with one square per character and a narrow gap between lines, for Japanese essays and compositions. Use the classic 20 × 20 layout or set your own, and write vertically or horizontally.

Customize This Template Download a free PDF

What you can customize

  • Characters per line
  • Lines
  • Writing direction

Works well in

All page sizes, from Passport to A4

Try it in another style

Start from a preset

  • Genkouyoushi 20 × 20, vertical, A4 400 characters per page, written top to bottom and right to left. Open in the maker →
  • Manuscript paper 20 × 20, horizontal, US Letter 400 squares written left to right, for Chinese 稿纸 or Korean 원고지. Open in the maker →
  • Composition notebook, A5 Larger squares (15 × 10) for learners, printed as a booklet. Open in the maker →
  • Children's genkouyoushi, 10 × 8, US Letter Big squares for kana practice and short sentences. Open in the maker →

Genkouyoushi layout and settings

Each page is a grid of square cells arranged in lines, with a narrow gap between lines for furigana, corrections or punctuation, and a heavier outer frame. Below the grid, the page prints the character count. You can change:

  • Characters per line: 10 to 30.
  • Lines: 5 to 30.
  • Direction: horizontal (lines run top to bottom, written left to right) or vertical (columns run right to left, written top to bottom).

The squares stay square and are sized to fit the page, so A4 and Letter give you the most comfortable cells for 20 × 20.

How to print genkouyoushi

  1. For essay sheets, use the A4 or Letter preset and choose Download PDF → Reading order.
  2. For a composition notebook, use the A5 preset and choose Print-ready booklet. Print double-sided (flip on the short edge), fold and staple.
  3. Print at 100% (Actual size) so the grid isn’t shrunk.

Free sample PDFs

Print at 100% (actual size). Made with the same engine as the maker, so the spacing is exact.

  • Manuscript Paper (Genkō Yōshi), US Letter (1 page) PDF ↓
  • Manuscript Paper (Genkō Yōshi), A4 (1 page) PDF ↓

Frequently asked questions

How do you write on genkouyoushi?

Write one character per square, including small kana and punctuation. In vertical writing, start at the top of the right-hand column and move left. Leave one square empty at the start of each paragraph. The title and your name usually go in the first columns.

Why is 20 × 20 the standard?

Twenty squares per line and twenty lines make 400 characters, so you can count the length of an essay at a glance. The page shows the total (for example 20 × 20 = 400) below the grid.

Can I use it for Chinese or Korean?

Yes. Chinese 稿纸 and Korean 원고지 (wongoji) use the same one-square-per-character layout. Choose horizontal for left-to-right writing, which is common in Chinese and Korean schools.

How big are the squares?

The grid always fills the page, so the square size depends on the paper size and on your character and line counts (10–30 per line, 5–30 lines). Fewer characters or a larger page means bigger squares.

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