Word Template Guide - DocsAutomator

Word templates let you use a native Microsoft Word (.docx) file as the base for document generation. You type {{placeholders}} directly into the Word document, map them to your data source, and DocsAutomator fills them in and renders the result to a PDF at generation time. Your original template file is never modified. Word templates support the same placeholder syntax and almost all of the same features as Google Doc templates. Line items, conditional sections, dynamic images, conditional styling, and e-signatures all work the same way.

When to Use Word Templates

Word (.docx) Templates

Your team already designs documents in Microsoft Word
You want to keep editing the template in Word, not Google Docs
You need dynamic content: line items, conditional sections, e-signatures
You have an existing .docx brand template to reuse

Google Doc Templates

You prefer to build and edit templates in Google Docs
You want the in-app live preview while editing
You need nested (multi-level) line items
You collaborate on the template in real time

The placeholder syntax is identical between Google Docs and Word, so you can move between the two without relearning anything. If you already know how to build a Google Doc template, you already know how to build a Word template.

Three Ways to Start a Word Template

In the Template step of your automation, choose Word (.docx) as the template type. You then have three ways to get a template in place.

Word Template Gallery

Pick a ready-made .docx design from the gallery. DocsAutomator copies it into your automation, detects its placeholders, and you map your data.

Upload a .docx

Upload your own Word file with {{placeholders}} already typed in. DocsAutomator scans it and lists every placeholder it finds.

Create with AI

Describe the document you need and AI generates a complete .docx template, layout, formatting, and placeholders included.

Option 1: Choose from the Word Template Gallery

The gallery contains a large set of ready-made .docx designs (invoices, contracts, certificates, reports, and more). Select one and DocsAutomator copies the file into your automation and detects its placeholders automatically. From there you map each placeholder to your data source and customize the wording in Word if you want.

Option 2: Upload your own .docx

Build your template in Word

Type {{placeholders}} directly into your Word document wherever you want data to appear (see Placeholder Syntax below).

Upload the file

Click Upload a Word (.docx) file and select your document. The file must be a .docx (not the older .doc) and under 25 MB.

Review detected placeholders

DocsAutomator scans the body, headers, and footers and reports how many placeholders it found. You then map each one to a field in your data source.

Uploaded Word template showing the file name Non-Disclosure Agreement.docx, a 22-placeholder count, action buttons, and a live document preview

Only .docx files are supported, up to 25 MB. The older binary .doc format and other word processors’ formats are not accepted. Save or export as .docx first.

Option 3: Create with AI

Don’t have a template yet? Describe what you need (“a clean consulting invoice with a logo, line items, and totals”) and AI generates a complete .docx template for you, headings, tables, formatting, and {{placeholders}} in the right places. You can:

Refine the colors and title, let AI suggest a title or pull a brand color palette
Add images, upload a logo or graphic to embed in the design
Edit by chatting, ask for changes (“make the header navy”, “add a notes section”) and the document updates
Undo, step back if an edit isn’t what you wanted
Preview as PDF, see exactly how the document will render before you save

When you’re happy, save it and the generated .docx becomes your template, ready for data mapping. This is the Word counterpart to the AI Template Generator, no Google account required.

Placeholder Syntax

You write placeholders directly into the Word document using double curly brackets. This is the same syntax as Google Doc templates.

This is the opposite of PDF templates. In a PDF you must not type {{...}} (it would print literally); you position fields with a visual editor instead. In a Word template you do type {{...}} into the document, exactly like a Google Doc.

Standard Text Placeholders

Syntax	Description	Example
`{{fieldName}}`	Simple text replacement	`{{company_name}}`
`{{image_fieldName}}`	Dynamic image, any placeholder whose name contains `image` is filled with a picture from your data	`{{image_logo}}`

Dear {{client_name}},

Your order #{{order_number}} has been confirmed.
Invoice date: {{invoice_date}}

For a placeholder to be found reliably, DocsAutomator stitches text back together even if Word splits it across formatting runs. To keep things robust, type each placeholder in one go (avoid changing the font mid-placeholder) and apply bold/italic/color to the whole {{placeholder}} rather than part of it.

Line Items (Repeating Table Rows)

Line items repeat a table row once per record in a list, perfect for invoice line items, order details, or any repeating data. To build one in Word:

Insert a table with a header row and one data row.
In the first cell of the data row, type the marker {{line_items_1}}.
In the cells of that same row, type the bare field names for each column, for example {{description}}, {{quantity}}, {{price}}.

| Description        | Qty           | Price       |
| ------------------ | ------------- | ----------- |
| {{line_items_1}}{{description}} | {{quantity}} | {{price}} |

At generation time DocsAutomator repeats that row for every item in the list. You can have multiple independent line-item tables in one document by using {{line_items_2}}, {{line_items_3}}, and so on (up to nine).

Nested (multi-level) line items are not yet supported in native Word templates. The {{line_items_1_1}} / {{line_items_1_2}} syntax for sub-lists currently works only in Google Doc templates. If you need nested line items today, use a Google Doc template. Single-level line items are fully supported in Word.

See Line Items for the full feature reference, including grouping and calculations and automatic row numbers, all of which work in Word.

Conditional Sections

Show or hide whole blocks of the document based on your data. Put each tag in its own paragraph.

{{section_eu_terms}}
These additional terms apply to customers in the EU…
{{/section_eu_terms}}

Configure the show/hide rules in the section settings UI (the same six condition types as Google Docs: equals, does not equal, contains, does not contain, exists, does not exist; multiple conditions combine with AND). See Sections for details.

E-Signature Placeholders

Word templates work with DocsAutomator eSign using the same text-based tags as Google Docs:

{{esign.signature_1}}   Signature field for signer 1
{{esign.date_1}}        Auto-filled date for signer 1
{{esign.text_1_label}}  Text field for signer 1
{{esign.checkbox_1_label}}  Checkbox for signer 1

Type these tags where the signing elements should appear, then configure signers in the e-signature output settings.

Supported Features

Almost everything you can do in a Google Doc template works in a Word template. The table below maps the platform’s features onto native Word support.

Feature	Native Word	Notes
Simple text placeholders	Yes	`{{fieldName}}`
Dynamic images	Yes	Any placeholder whose name contains `image`
Line items (single level)	Yes	`{{line_items_1}}` in the table row, up to 9 tables
Nested line items	No	Google Doc templates only (for now)
Auto row numbers	Yes	Inserts a numbered column into the line-item table
Conditional sections (show/hide)	Yes	`{{section_x}}…{{/section_x}}`
Conditional show/hide of placeholders	Yes	Empty/hidden values drop their paragraph or table row
Conditional styling	Yes	Bold/italic/color rules per placeholder
Markdown formatting	Yes	Rich text from markdown values
Date & number formatting	Yes	Per-placeholder formatting options
E-signatures	Yes	`{{esign.*}}` tags
In-editor live preview	Yes	Sample data rendered to PDF in the split view

Per-placeholder options (formatting, conditional show/hide, conditional styling, markdown) are configured in the field-mapping UI, exactly like Google Doc templates. See Advanced Placeholder Options.

How Word Templates Render

When you generate a document, DocsAutomator fills your Word template and produces a clean .docx, then converts it to a PDF for the final output. To make those PDFs faithful, keep the following in mind.

Fonts

For the PDF to match your design exactly, embed your fonts in the Word file. In Microsoft Word:

File ▸ Options ▸ Save ▸ “Embed fonts in the file”

If a non-standard font isn’t embedded, the PDF renderer substitutes the closest available font, which can shift spacing and line breaks. Standard system fonts (Arial, Times New Roman, Calibri, and similar) render reliably without embedding. DocsAutomator lists the fonts it detected in your template after upload so you know what to embed.

Table Borders

The renderer automatically neutralizes invisible white borders on white backgrounds (which some converters would otherwise render as faint gaps in the PDF). Intentional, visible borders and dividers are always preserved, this fix is non-destructive and only touches borders that were invisible anyway.

Floating & Anchored Objects

Floating text boxes and anchored drawings are kept as-is but can shift position when rendered to PDF. For the most predictable results, prefer in-line images and standard tables over floating objects.

Replacing or Removing a Word Template

Once a Word template is attached, the template card gives you two controls:

Action	What happens
Replace	Upload a new `.docx` in place of the current one. Placeholders are re-detected from the new file.
Delete	Removes the Word template and returns you to the template-type picker so you can start over (or switch to Google Docs or PDF).

Data Source Compatibility

Word templates work with every DocsAutomator data source:

Airtable

Notion

Google Sheets

SmartSuite

ClickUp

https://mintcdn.com/docsautomator/RhMPtoP5XSWiJkcL/icons/api.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=RhMPtoP5XSWiJkcL&q=85&s=2f0e1eabd2ab8a14abf889932233692c

API

Zapier

Glide

Make

https://mintcdn.com/docsautomator/aWJzng63hl4bgVX9/icons/n8n.svg?fit=max&auto=format&n=aWJzng63hl4bgVX9&q=85&s=14338d858c53c845d1156f6beadc5140

n8n

The placeholder name is what maps to your data source. Field mapping is free-form: a placeholder named {{company_name}} can map to any column or field, regardless of what that field is called in your source.

Limitations vs Google Docs

Native Word templates support nearly the full feature set, with a few differences to be aware of:

Nested line items ({{line_items_1_1}}) are not yet supported, use a single level, or a Google Doc template for multi-level lists.
Fonts must be embedded in the .docx for non-standard typefaces to render faithfully in the PDF.
Floating/anchored objects may shift position in the PDF; prefer in-line layout.

For documents that need nested line items or heavy real-time collaboration on the template itself, a Google Doc template may be the better fit.

Templates Overview

Compare Google Doc, PDF, and Word template types

Placeholder Syntax Reference

Complete reference for all placeholder types

Line Items

Repeating rows and tables from list data

Sections

Show or hide blocks based on your data

DocsAutomator eSign

E-signature configuration and workflows

AI Template Generator

Generate a template from a prompt

​When to Use Word Templates

Word (.docx) Templates

Google Doc Templates

​Three Ways to Start a Word Template

Word Template Gallery

Upload a .docx

Create with AI

​Option 1: Choose from the Word Template Gallery

​Option 2: Upload your own .docx

​Option 3: Create with AI

​Placeholder Syntax

​Standard Text Placeholders

​Line Items (Repeating Table Rows)

​Conditional Sections

​E-Signature Placeholders

​Supported Features

​How Word Templates Render

​Fonts

​Table Borders

​Floating & Anchored Objects

​Replacing or Removing a Word Template

​Data Source Compatibility

Airtable

Notion

Google Sheets

SmartSuite

ClickUp

API

Zapier

Glide

Make

n8n

​Limitations vs Google Docs

​Related Pages

Templates Overview

Placeholder Syntax Reference

Line Items

Sections

DocsAutomator eSign

AI Template Generator

When to Use Word Templates

Three Ways to Start a Word Template

Option 1: Choose from the Word Template Gallery

Option 2: Upload your own .docx

Option 3: Create with AI

Placeholder Syntax

Standard Text Placeholders

Line Items (Repeating Table Rows)

Conditional Sections

E-Signature Placeholders

Supported Features

How Word Templates Render

Fonts

Table Borders

Floating & Anchored Objects

Replacing or Removing a Word Template

Data Source Compatibility

Limitations vs Google Docs

Related Pages