A document template is a starting point for a new page or piece (aka content type). It pre-configures the widgets, content blocks, and layout structure an editor begins with when creating a new document. A section template is a reusable layout pattern at the widget level: a saved configuration of a layout-oriented widget that any editor can insert into any page. Document templates solve the blank page problem at creation time. Section templates solve the repetitive layout problem across an editor's ongoing work.
Content templates: don't start from scratch!
ApostropheCMS Pro gives editors access to create and manage reusable section and document templates that eliminate the "blank page problem," promote layout consistency, and help content teams move faster. ApostropheCMS Assembly offers the ability to duplicate existing sites to create entirely new ones, and to set certain sites aside as "templates" for this purpose.
Key Takeaways
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Document templates eliminate the blank page problem: editors can choose a starting point to kick off the new page, rather than an empty canvas
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Section templates do the same thing at a smaller scale. They let editors save sections of a document, like a layout widget, for reuse as templates elsewhere
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Section and Document Template Libraries are Pro features. However, open-source users can still "Duplicate" existing documents and leverage Cut, Copy and Paste for widgets
Solving the blank page problem
Every time an editor sits down to create new content, they face the same decisions: which widgets to use where and with what configuration. For teams publishing at volume or for whom content management is only a small portion of their overall responsibilities, that overhead compounds quickly. Layout decisions get made twice, three times, ten times, and they're slightly different each time.
The result is a slow, inconsistent process that's hard to audit and even harder to fix.
ApostropheCMS's template system and tools aim to change that. Editors work from defined starting points with pre-configured layouts for documents and reusable sections for recurring layout patterns so the decisions that should be made once actually are.
Two kinds of templates, two slightly different problems
Document templates
The Doc Template Library solves the blank page problem at the document level. Developers and content managers configure templates for any page or "piece" type (think "Articles"), pre-populating default widgets, content blocks, and layout configurations for editors to start from. Templates are managed through a visual template manager in the admin bar, with search and filtering by document type. Editors choose a template when creating a new document; the template provides the starting point, then the editor can change the content as they see fit.
Templates can be created from scratch or saved from an existing page that's working well — turning a successful layout into a reusable starting point for the whole team. The Doc Template Library extension is available with our Pro and Assembly licenses.
Section templates
The Section Template Library operates at the widget level rather than the document level. Editors can turn any layout-oriented widget on a live page into a reusable section template, complete with a descriptive title, generalized content, and tags for easy discovery. Once saved, any editor on the site can insert that section into any page or piece rather than rebuild the layout from scratch.
Developers configure which widget types are available as section templates. After that initial setup, creating, organizing, and reusing section templates is entirely editor-driven. No developer involvement required.
What templates mean for your team
For editors and content teams
Both Doc and Section Templates make it easy to build and maintain strong UX patterns over time, and reduce unnecessary duplicate work over the long run. With these tools, you can create templates without active developer involvement and reduce the need to rebuild the same things time and again. Less time on layout decisions means more time creating solid content that makes an impact.
For developers
Set your content team up for success by configuring the document template and section template extensions. Then decide which widgets to allow in the section template library. After that, the template system runs without your involvement. Editors build and manage their own section library, choose document templates when creating content, and maintain layout consistency independently. Your work compounds across every piece of content your team creates.
For product managers and engineering directors
Templates are one of the clearest paths to content consistency at scale, especially for teams publishing frequently or managing content across multiple markets. The Doc Template Library and Section Template Library give your content team structure without hand-holding.
Give your content team a better starting point
Document templates and section templates both help to solve the same underlying problem: too much time spent on decisions that should only be made once. Like most of our Pro and Assembly features, they solve problems that arise at scale.
CMS templates: common questions answered
Yes, after initial setup. Developers configure which widget types are available as section templates. Once in place, editors save, organize, tag, and reuse section templates entirely on their own. An editor finds a widget arrangement that works, clicks "Save Section," gives it a descriptive title and tags, and it becomes available to every editor on the site immediately.
Document templates can be created from scratch through the template manager or saved from an existing page that's working well. Content managers with the appropriate permissions can create and manage templates without developer involvement after the extension is configured. Developers set up the extension and configure default content for templates where needed; ongoing template management is editorial.
At the document and section level, templates operate within individual sites, so each site manages its own section library and document templates independently. At the site level, any existing Assembly site can be saved as a template and used as the starting point for new sites on the platform, carrying over its configuration and structure. Cross-site section sharing is a separate capability on the roadmap.
They support it significantly. Document templates ensure new pages start from a layout that's already been designed and approved. Section templates make it easy for editors to reuse layouts that are known to work within the design system. Neither is a hard enforcement mechanism, but both reduce the number of layout decisions made ad hoc, which is where inconsistency typically enters.
ApostropheCMS supports JSX templating for server-rendered projects and Astro-supported languages for teams using the Astro integration. Nunjucks templating remains supported for existing projects. The editor-facing template features — Doc Template Library and Section Template Library — are independent of the frontend templating technology your project uses.
→ Developer ExperienceDeveloper Experience → Astro CMSAstro Frontend
Combine templates with these features for more power
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Editing Tools
Templates give editors a starting point. The in-context editing experience is where they take it from there — adjusting layouts, editing content, and publishing directly on the live page.
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Design Tools
Templates and design systems reinforce each other. Document and section templates built on a well-configured component library give editors both a consistent starting point and a consistent set of tools to work with.
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Multisite
Site templates are an Assembly capability. See how Assembly powers multisite platforms and how site templates fit into the broader multisite workflow.