Use Document Templates in Microsoft Word

Templates are a collection of styles and formatting settings, and they can save you a ton of time when creating a new document. You can find templates for almost any type of document, from flyers to resumés, and birthday cards to banners. You can also create your own templates to save yourself from having to remake documents from scratch. Follow this guide to learn how.

Steps

Creating a Document from a Template

1. Click the File button. Select New from the File menu. This will open the Template selection menu. A template is a collection of styles and formatting options. Every document in Word is based on a template. If you create a new blank document, it uses the Blank template.
2. Browse the templates. Depending on your version of Word, the layout of this menu will vary.
   • In Word 2013, Featured templates are shown by default. You can click the Personal tab to view any templates you’ve created (see Part 3). You can also use the Search field to look for specific templates or categories.
   • In Word 2010, basic templates are shown at the top, and a list of template categories are shown below. These categories will take you to templates provided by Microsoft’s website. You can also use the Search field to find specific templates. Any templates you’ve created will be found in the My Templates section at the top of the menu.
   • You can see a preview of each template by clicking on it. Word 2013 will open a new window with a template preview, and Word 2010 will show a preview in the menu.
3. Open the template. Once you have found the template you want, click the Create/Download button. The template will be downloaded to your computer, provided you have an active internet connection. Once the template has downloaded, your new document will open with the template you chose.
4. Replace the template information with your content. Once the template has loaded, you will be able to start editing it. Templates often come with text in the text boxes with instructions for what should go in them.
   • You can edit the template however you please, including changing the images, colors, fonts, style, and more.
   • Be sure to replace or remove all of the placeholder text before sending out your document.
   • Any changes you make do not affect the original template. You are creating your own file once the template has loaded. Be sure to save your work like you would a blank document!

Applying a Template to an Existing Document

1. Click File and select Options. Attaching a template to your existing document will apply any styles associated with that template to your document, but will not insert any of the template’s text or images.
2. Select Add-Ins from the Options menu. This is located towards the bottom of the list of categories.
3. Click the Manage drop-down menu. This menu is located at the bottom of the window. By default, it will be showing “COM Add-ins”. Select “Templates” and click the “Go” button. This will open the Templates and Add-ins window.
4. Click Attach. This will open a file browser where you can navigate to the template that you want to apply. You can only choose from templates that you have stored on your computer or network, such as templates downloaded from Microsoft or created by you.
5. Check the “Automatically update document style” box. This will ensure that the template’s style is automatically applied to the content of your document. Click the OK button.
6. Review the changes. Once you click the OK button, your document will adopt the style of the template. If you are not happy with it, you can press Ctrl+Z to undo, or follow the steps above and attach the “Normal” template.

Creating Your Own Template

1. Create your document. Creating your own template can be really useful if you are creating the same type of document on a regular basis. Having a template customized specifically for your needs can save you a significant amount of time.
   • When creating a template, format the original document in such a way that you can easily see what sections need updating when creating the latest copy. For example, on a form letter, you may put a “<name>” tag in place of the recipient’s name, a “<date>” tag in place of the current date, and so on.
2. Click File and select Save As. Click the “Save as type” drop-down menu underneath the file name. Select one of the template formats based on your needs:
   • Word Template – This will create a template compatible with Word 2007, 2010, and 2013.
   • Word 97-2003 Template – This will create a template compatible with older versions of Word. You may lose some of your style and formatting changes do to incompatibility.
3. Save your template. Make sure to give it a good name so that you can recognize what it’s for. This is especially important if you are creating a lot of templates.
4. Create a new document with your template. Once your template is made, you can start using it to create new documents. Click File, and then select New. Your templates will be listed in the “Personal” tab (Word 2013), or in the “My templates” section (Word 2007 and 2010).

Tips

• If this is your first time using the templates in word you will have to install them. To do this, just select the template you want to use and click "Ok" to install and open up the template.
• If you do have to install the templates be sure you know where your Microsoft Office installation disc is, because it may ask you for it, but this is extremely rare.

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