Google Docs offers a few dozen templates you can use to get a jump-start on document creation, but maybe you’ve looked through them without finding any that meet your specific needs. No problem: you can build one from scratch.
This could be ideal if you want to design one or more standard document templates for your organization to use. As a bonus, understanding the text, image, and other elements described below can also help you format any of your Google Docs documents better.
Note: If you need help getting started with Google Docs, see our Google Docs cheat sheet.
How to create a template file in Google Docs
Templates are designed to be used over and over, with users adding or changing the text each time. You’ll want to preserve the template itself in its original form so there’s always a pristine version for users to work from.
If your organization has a paid Google Workspace subscription, you can create a template and add it to the company’s template gallery. From there, your co-workers will be able to select the template and create documents based on it — without affecting the template itself.
If you instead have a personal Google account, you can still create a document to act as a template, but you and your colleagues will have to remember to make a copy of it each time to prevent changes to the original.
Either way, get started by creating a new blank document and giving it a descriptive name that includes the word “Template.”
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Use the word “Template” when you name a template doc.
Build out the document with placeholder text and other elements such as your company logo, headers or footers, dropdowns, and so on, as described later in this story.
Under an organizational Workspace account, you can add your finished template to the gallery — if your company has enabled custom Google Drive templates and you’ve been granted permission to add templates to the gallery. On the Google Docs home screen, click Template gallery > [organization name] > Submit template. (If you don’t have permission to submit templates, you won’t have access to the “Submit template” option.) On the panel that appears, select your template document, designate a category, and click Submit.
Depending on how your organization’s template gallery is set up, your template might have to be approved by an administrator before it appears in the gallery. See the Google support doc “Turn custom Drive templates on or off for users” for details.
If you’re using a personal Google account (or your organization hasn’t enabled custom Drive templates), you’ll need to share your finished template doc with others in your organization or place it in a shared drive that your co-workers can access. When you or others want to use the template, open the file and make a copy of it by selecting File > Make a copy from the menu bar at the top of the page.
On the “Copy document” panel that appears, type in a new document…
2024-01-04 06:00:03
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