Create branded emails with customized layouts

Using customized layouts, you can send professional-looking emails to a large audience. In Gmail, select a template, and then customize the template with logos, images, and more.

Important: You can also create branded emails with other Google Workspace editions.

• Business Standard
• Business Plus
• Education Standard
• Education Plus
• Enterprise Standard
• Enterprise Plus
• Workspace Individual

If you use Gmail with a work or school account and can't find email layouts, reach out to your administrator and confirm if Docs creation is turned on.

Customize default email layout style & branding

1. On your computer, go to Gmail.
2. At the top left, click Compose .
3. At the bottom of the window, click Layouts .
   • Tip: If you don’t see Layouts , check More options .
4. If you haven’t used layouts before, click Default styling.
5. Customize default email layouts with default styles:
   • Logo image
   • Colors
   • Fonts
   • Footer details, for example your business name, address, and phone number.
   • Contact and social media links
6. Click Save Changes.
   • Tip: Style changes will apply across the default email layouts once saved.

Create a new email layout

Create a new email layout

1. On your computer, go to Gmail.
2. At the top left, click Compose .
3. At the bottom of the window, click Layouts .
4. Select an email layout from the “Default layouts” tab or from previously saved or shared email layouts under “My layouts,” or create a new custom email layout from "My layouts."
5. Click Edit layout.
   • Tips:
     • In Gmail, to edit in full screen, open an email layout click Open in new .
     • Email layouts in the “My layouts” tab are saved in Google Drive.
     • In Drive, you can open and edit an email layout in full screen by double clicking the saved email layout.

6. Use the email layout editor to insert, resize, and rearrange text boxes, buttons, images, and content.

   • Make sure you update links for any buttons already present in the email layout.
   • If you add images, Google recommends you include alt text in case an image is not rendered. Alt text also helps people who use screen readers better understand your branded email.
   • To change how a section looks:
     1. Point to a section on the page.
     2. At the left, click Background .
     3. Choose a style or add a photo.
   • To change an image in an email template:
     1. Click the image.
     2. Select More options Action Menu Replace image Upload or Select.

   Add a theme to your email layout

   Themes include options like custom colors, fonts, spacing density page frames:

   1. On the right panel, click Themes.
   2. Under "Custom," select Create theme .
   3. Enter a name for your theme.
   4. Select Next.
   5. Select a color palette Next.
      • To choose specific colors for different parts of your site, select Custom colors.
   6. Choose your fonts.
   7. Select Create theme.

   Add a color frame to your email layout:

   1. On the right panel, click Themes.
   2. At the top right corner of the Theme you want to add a color frame, select More Edit.
   3. Under "Spacing," check the "Show frame" checkbox.
   4. Select the color of the frame.

   Adjust the spacing in your email layout:

   1. On the right panel, click Themes.
   2. At the top right corner of the Theme you want to add a color frame, select More Edit.
   3. Under "Spacing," select the Density dropdown and choose your preferred spacing (e.g. Compact, Cozy, or Comfortable.)

   Add social media links to your email layout:

   • On the right panel, click Insert Social links .
   • You can add a URL or email address for each social link.
   • Optional: you can also add a custom icon image for each social link.
     • Tip: For popular social media websites, Google Sites will automatically provide icon images.
   • Click Insert.
   • Click the social link icons to edit them. You can edit the icons' size, shape, style, color, and alignment.
7. To preview your email layout, select Preview and toggle between mobile, tablet, and desktop views.
8. Click Insert to add the email layout to the Compose window in Gmail.
   • Tip: If viewing or editing an email layout in full screen, Click “Insert in Gmail” on the upper right corner to add the email layout to your message.

Important: After inserting the email layout into the Compose window in Gmail, you can’t change the contents of the email draft directly. To update the email layout, click Edit on the top right and make changes in the email layout editor. Clicking Clear which removes the email layout from the Compose window.

Duplicate, share, or delete email layouts

Duplicate an email layout

1. On your computer, go to Gmail.
2. At the top left, click Compose .
3. At the bottom of the window, click Layouts .
4. Select an email layout from under “My layouts.”
5. Select More options Duplicate.
   • Tip: Your customized email layouts are saved in Drive and can be reused if you go to the “My layouts” tab. You can also share layouts with other users from Drive and collaboratively edit them.

Share an email layout from the email layouts editor

1. On your computer, open or create a new email layout.
2. At the top right, click Share .
3. Enter a name or email address.
4. Click Send.

Share an email layout from Google Drive

1. On your computer, go to Drive.
2. Select the email layout you want to share click Share .
   • Tips:
     • Only users who have access to Layouts feature can edit layouts you share with them. Other users can still preview it in Drive but won't be able to edit in Gmail.
     • Users you’ve shared the email layout with can only edit the shared email layout from Gmail, and won’t be able to edit it directly from Drive. You can share with specific people, or with a group of people. Learn more about how to share files from Google Drive.

Delete an email layout

1. On your computer, go to Gmail.
2. At the top left, click Compose .
3. At the bottom of the window, click Layouts .
   • Tip: If you don’t see Layouts , check More options .
4. Select a previously saved or shared email layouts under “My layouts.”
5. Select More options Delete.
   • Tip: In Drive, you can also delete the email layout.

Understand limitations with email layouts

Display fidelity limitations

Layouts are designed to look great across all email clients. However, some versions of Outlook use Microsoft Word to render HTML emails, which may cause your email layout to render differently from what you see in Gmail.

Character, image, tile limits

Important: All the images cannot exceed 25MB in size.

The following character, image, and tile limits apply to email layouts:

• Characters: 10,000
• Images: 40
• Tiles: 50

If you reach one of these limits, reduce the number of characters, images, or tiles to continue editing and to send your email layout.

Related resources

• Send personalized emails with mail merge
• Learn about bulk email best practices