A template is a pre-created document that already has some formatting. Rather than starting from scratch to format a document, you can use the formatting of a template to save yourself a lot of time. You can use a template that comes with Word, download one from the internet, or create your own. For now, we’ll focus on creating a document from a template that comes with Word.

From the backstage view (File tab), you can scroll down and see what templates are available.

Near the top of the screen is a search box and some suggested searches. You can type a word or click on one of the suggested searches to help find a suitable template for your project. For example, clicking the suggested search “Business” will take you to templates related to business, with further subcategories on the right. (See below.)

Select a template, then click Create. You may have to wait a moment for the template to download.

Once the template is open, you can replace the placeholder text with your own text.

Creating a Document from a Downloaded Template

First, download the template. You may download a template from this course or from Microsoft’s template page. Note that the file extension for a template is .dotx, which is different than the file extension for a normal Word document. In fact, if you save any document with the file extension .dotx, that document will become a template.

Double-click on the downloaded template in File Explorer to open Word and create a new document based on the template. Any changes you make to this new document will not affect the original template; the new document is merely a copy.

To edit the template itself, open Word and go to File>Open>Browse, then select the downloaded template. Opening the template file this way opens the actual template, so any changes will be reflected in future documents you create from this template.

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