Using Excel Templates: From Out-of-the-Box Templates to Creating Your Own

May 15, 2025

When I sit down to do a project, sometimes I just don’t know where to begin. I know Excel is the tool of choice for a chunk of the work I do. However, with so many features and customizations available in Excel, finding the right place to start can be challenging. Luckily, Microsoft Excel is packed with pre-built Templates that can make getting things done quick and easy.

Let’s explore how Excel Templates are used and how they can give you an immediate boost in quality and productivity when working in this program.

How to Access Templates in Excel

Templates in Excel are available in the same place you would go to create a new workbook. When you first open Excel, you likely start on what’s called the Home tab, where you’ll find the Templates at the top. The first option is for a blank workbook, followed by several more suggested Templates you can start with:

Not seeing a template that matches what you are looking for? Click More Templates at the bottom right to access hundreds of additional templates publicly available online. Browse through templates by categories or type keywords into the search bar to narrow down what you see listed.

Note: If you open Excel and do not start at the Home tab as shown above, you most likely just need to click File in the top-left of the ribbon. If you still don’t see Templates, try clicking the New tab on the left.

Use Tutorial Templates to Learn Excel

You may have noticed that the first handful of suggested Templates in Excel are tutorials.

The “Welcome to Excel” Template is great for beginners to learn basic Excel use.
The “Formula tutorial” and “PivotTable tutorial” Templates go in depth into those commonly used Excel features.
The “Python in Excel tutorial” can be used to learn how to develop scripts in Excel.

Each Tutorial Template provides several pages with step-by-step instructions that demonstrate different features and techniques. This option is great for hands-on learners.

Use Templates to Jumpstart Your Work

Most of the publicly available Templates in Excel are designed to be used for a variety of business needs. These Templates can be used to quickly begin performing business functions without needing to put time into organizing and formatting a workbook of your own.

Common business uses include:

Project Management (Schedulers, Gannt Charts, and Milestone and Task Trackers)
Team and Resource Management (Shift Calendars, Timesheets, and Mileage and Expense)
Finance and Accounting (Invoices, Budgets, Income Statements, and Trend Analysis)
Service Delivery (Job Logs, Customer Information, and Satisfaction Surveys)
Business Development (Pipeline Reports, Estimators, and Marketing Insights)
Personal Management (To Do Lists, Calendars, and Idea Planners)

As useful as this program is in the workplace, Excel can be just as useful in your personal life. When you browse the Templates, you’ll see numerous options that can help in your personal life, such as event planners, diet and exercise trackers, and chore charts. The best way to find useful tools for yourself is to be curious and spend some time trying out different Templates that look interesting.

Keep in mind that after you create a new workbook with a Template, you can always edit its contents, adding additional pieces you will need and removing pieces you don’t need.

Advanced: Creating Custom Templates

Excel Templates offer much more than the purposes discussed above. If a team wants to create their own Templates and make them available to their organization, this can be done in Excel in a few different ways depending on the environment.

Take for example a construction company who builds custom homes. They may create a workbook in Excel that lists all the components of a new house to calculate an estimated price for a customer. One option is to create the workbook and then duplicate it each time a new estimate is created. Another option would be to create a Template from the blank version of the calculator workbook.

I’ll outline the basic steps and provide some additional resources to help you along the way.

(Note: This process can be complicated for some users and may require help from your IT provider).

Step 1: Create the Template

To create the template, you simply need to craft the workbook to your needs. Fill out the information and format the cells the way you want, leaving all fillable information blank (this is the information that will be filled in by those who use the Template in the future).

Once the structure, layout, and formatting of the workbook is to your liking, you are ready to save the file in Template format. Click File, Save As, and name the Template. Then, change the file type dropdown to Excel Template (*.xltx)—or Excel Macro-Enabled Template (*.xltm) if your workbook needs macros.

Step 2: Choose a Location for Your Template

This step can vary greatly depending on your environment. If your organization’s environment is cloud-based, you may choose a location in OneDrive or SharePoint. If you use local servers, you may choose a file share. Either way, ensure that everyone who needs to use that Template has access to your file in its new location. You may need to adjust sharing permissions in some cases, so be sure to consult your IT provider.

For our purposes of this blog, we’ll use the example of a SharePoint environment with a centralized folder where all the organization’s custom Templates are stored.

Step 3: Configure Personal Templates Location

In our example of a SharePoint environment, this step requires each user to sync that SharePoint site to their machine. In the case of a local server environment, the folder should be made available via file share, and after that the process is essentially the same for either environment.

Once the folder is accessible locally, you’ll need to copy its file path. In my case, the file path is:
“C:\Users\daniel\Kite Tech Group\Kite Tech Group – Documents\Excel Templates”

Then, in Excel, click File > Options and click the Save tab. Near the top you’ll see a field titled “Default personal templates location:”, which is likely blank. Paste your file path there, then click OK to apply the change.

Step 4: Create a New Workbook Using the Template

Now you are ready to put your Template to use. Simply open a new Excel window and access the Templates screen as described in the beginning of this blog. You should now see a tab called “Personal”. Click that to see all of the Template files (*.xltx and *.xltm) saved in that location. Now you should see all the contents of the original blank Template that you can fill out and save as its own file.

You can follow these steps anytime you want to use Custom Templates in your organization. There are even options to customize the way Excel opens, which your IT provider can implement according to your needs.

Saving Time with Microsoft Excel Templates

Whatever your needs, Excel is often the answer, and Templates offer a convenient way to save you time and help you build what you need. With your newfound access to Templates and a taste for what’s out there, I encourage you to explore and brainstorm how Excel Templates can make a difference for you and your team.

Interested in taking your Excel skills to the next level? Check out my video on Microsoft Excel Pivot Tables. Interested in getting the most of your organization’s Microsoft 365 subscription? Kite Technology offers Microsoft 365 Consulting, which is designed to help you take advantage of the latest and greatest features and services included in your Microsoft 365 subscriptions. Reach out to our team for your free consultation!