How to Set Up Email Templates in Gmail

Gmail has a built in feature that saves any email as a reusable template, so you stop retyping the same replies, follow ups and confirmations. Most people never find it, because Google hides it under an Advanced settings tab and leaves it switched off. You may also know it by its old name, Canned Responses. It is the same feature, just renamed.

Once it is on, saving and inserting a template takes two clicks. There is also a power user trick that most guides skip: you can attach a template to a filter so Gmail sends it automatically as a reply when mail matches your rules. One catch to know up front: templates live only in Gmail on the web. The mobile apps cannot create or use them.

Turn on Templates

The feature is off by default, so the first job is to switch it on. This lives on the web only, on a computer.

1. Open Gmail, then click the Settings gear at the top right.
2. Click See all settings.
3. Open the Advanced tab, the last tab in the row.
4. Find the Templates row, then select Enable.
5. Scroll to the bottom, then click Save Changes. Gmail reloads.

Google sets out the same steps in its Gmail help on templates. After the reload, a Templates option appears in the three dot menu of every compose window. If you do not see it straight away, refresh the Gmail tab once more, since the menu only updates after a full reload. If the Advanced tab itself is missing, you are likely in the mobile app or a managed account where an administrator controls the setting.

Save a reply as a template

Write the message once, then store it. Anything you type goes in, including the subject line, formatting, links and even your signature.

1. Click Compose, then write the email exactly as you want to reuse it.
2. Click the three dot More options menu at the bottom right of the compose window.
3. Hover over Templates, then Save draft as template, then Save as new template.
4. Give it a clear name, something like Meeting follow up or Invoice reminder, then click Save.

To update a template later, follow the same path but pick Overwrite Template, then choose the one to replace. Note that overwriting replaces the old text with no history kept, so keep a copy elsewhere if a version matters.

Insert a template into an email

With at least one template saved, dropping it into a message is quick.

1. Open a reply or click Compose for a new message.
2. Click the three dot More options menu, then hover over Templates.
3. Click the template name. Gmail drops the saved text into the body.
4. Fill in the recipient, swap any placeholders, then send.

That last point matters. Gmail templates do not have live placeholders. If you write {first name} in the text, Gmail treats it as plain text. You have to replace it by hand each time, so keep the fixed wording in the template and personalise the few changing bits after you insert it.

Templates worth saving first

If you are starting from scratch, a handful of templates cover most repeat typing. Build these first, then add more as patterns show up in your sent mail.

• Acknowledgement. A short note that says you have received the message and will reply in full by a given day. It buys time and sets expectations.
• Meeting follow up. A recap of what was agreed plus the next step, with blanks for the date and the action owner.
• Polite decline. A warm no for requests you cannot take on, so you are not rewriting the same refusal each week.
• Invoice or payment reminder. A neutral nudge with space for the amount and the due date.
• Onboarding or info pack. The links and instructions you send every new client or contact.

Keep each one lean. A template you trim by hand in ten seconds beats a long one you have to gut every time. Most people end up with five to ten that carry the bulk of their routine mail.

Send a template automatically with a filter

This is where templates become genuinely powerful. You can tie a template to a filter so Gmail fires off a set reply on its own whenever incoming mail matches your rules. Think auto-acknowledging support queries or replying to a booking address with the same set of next steps.

1. In the Gmail search bar, click Show search options.
2. Enter your criteria, for example a sender, a subject phrase or words in the body, then click Create filter.
3. Tick the Send template box, then choose the template you want to send.
4. Click Create filter to switch it on.

One strong warning: a broad filter will reply to the wrong people. Test the search first to see exactly what it catches, then narrow it before you attach the template. These auto-replies run on the same filter engine described in our guide on auto-deleting old emails in Gmail. Google details the Send template action in its filter help.

When a template is the right tool

Templates shine for medium length replies you send often with small edits. For other jobs Gmail has lighter native options worth knowing, so you pick the right one rather than forcing everything into a template.

For one or two line replies, Smart Reply and Smart Compose already suggest wording as you type, with no setup at all. For a fixed block that should sit at the foot of every message, a signature is simpler than a template, since Gmail adds it on its own without a menu. Templates fit the middle ground: a full message with structure that still needs a personal touch before it goes out. The honest limits are worth repeating. There are no dynamic fields, no open or click tracking and no version history, so for heavy mail merge or analytics you would outgrow the built in feature. For everyday repetition though, it does the job for free and without another app.

Things to keep in mind

Templates pair well with the rest of Gmail's quiet productivity tools. Save a standard message as a template, then use our guide on scheduling emails in Gmail to send it at the right moment rather than the instant you finish writing.