Magazine flatplan template

What a flatplan is

A flatplan is a map of an issue on one sheet: every page in order, laid out as the spreads a reader sees when the magazine is open. Each page carries a note of what goes on it, such as an article, an ad or a house ad, so editors, ad sales and design work from the same plan.

Take a 32-page magazine with a self cover, where the cover is printed on the same paper as the inside and counts in the 32. Page 1, the front cover, sits on its own on the right. Pages 2 and 3 form the first spread, with the inside front cover on the left. From there even pages are always on the left and odd pages on the right, until page 32, the back cover, which sits alone. The example loaded above has nine ad pages, one house ad and 22 editorial pages, which is about 29 : 71 ad to editorial.

How to fill it in for 32, 48 or 64 pages

Start with the fixed positions. The front cover is editorial; the inside front cover, inside back cover and back cover are often sold as premium ad positions. Then place what is already promised: ads booked for a right-hand page or a set position, regular sections such as the contents and the editor’s letter, and features that should open on a spread.

32 pages. After the covers and regular sections there is usually room for two or three features. Keep ads next to short sections so they do not split a feature.

48 pages. There is space for more features and a second group of ads in the middle of the book. Check that no two ads for competing advertisers face each other.

64 pages. Plan in sections, front, middle and back, and keep each feature on whole spreads. Give every page a label so the sheet still reads clearly at a glance.

Page counts go up in fours because one sheet folded in half gives four pages. Printers often fold larger sheets into sections of 8, 16 or 32 pages, so ask yours which counts suit the press before you settle on one. When the plan is set, check the ratio against your target and download the CSV to share it. For a longer walk-through, read how to plan a magazine flatplan. To decide the themes and features of each issue before you lay out pages, start with the magazine editorial calendar template.

Where a spreadsheet flatplan breaks

A spreadsheet works well for one person and one issue. It starts to break when ads and editorial move every day. A salesperson books a half page, a feature grows by two pages, an advertiser moves to the next issue. Each change has to be made by hand in the sheet and in the orders, then sent round again. Soon there are three versions in different inboxes, nobody is sure which one is current, and an ad that was sold never reaches a page, or a cancelled ad still holds one.

Plan issues, ad positions and page status together in RunMags, where the flatplan is built from booked advertising orders.

Template or flatplan software: which do you need?

Use the template when one person plans one issue, when you are starting a title, or when you want a sheet to talk through with a designer or printer. Move to software when a sales team books ads every day and the plan has to follow the orders. How to plan a magazine flatplan walks through both, from a template to software.

Once the pages are set, the next job is dates. The magazine production schedule template counts every stage back from the print date.

Flatplan template questions