Excel : 8 Basic, Templates

Instead of creating an Excel workbook from scratch, you can create a workbook based on a template. There are many free templates available, waiting to be used.

Existing Templates

To create a workbook based on an existing template, execute the following steps.

1. On the green File tab, click New.

2. To choose a template from one of the sample templates (these are already installed on your computer), click on Sample templates.

3. To choose a template from the Office.com Templates, click a category. For example, click Calendars.

4. To download a template, select a template and then click Download.

Excel creates a workbook (UniversalCalendar1.xlsx) based on this template. Excel also stores the template (UniversalCalendar.xltx) in the Templates folder. You can access this folder by clicking on My templates (see first picture). Read on for more information about the Templates folder.

Create a Template

If you create your own template, you can safely store it in the Templates folder. As a result, you can create new workbooks based on this template without worrying that you overwrite the original file.

To create a template, execute the following steps.

1. Create a workbook.

2. On the green File tab, click Save As.

3. Enter a file name.

4. Select Excel Template (*.xltx) from the drop-down list.

Excel automatically activates the Templates folder. Notice the location of the Templates folder on your computer. It's usually located here:

C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates

5. Click Save.

To create a workbook based on this template, execute the following steps.

6. On the green File tab, click New.

7. Click My Templates.

8. Select WeddingBudget.

9. Click OK.

Excel creates a workbook (WeddingBudget1.xlsx) based on this template.

Note: to edit a template, on the green File tab, click Open to open the template. Edit the file and save the file to its original location.