by When you go to the Add-ons store in Google Docs or Google Sheets to find some missing feature, you may actually get lost in the diversity of the products on offer. It's not that easy to look through so many add-ons, let alone try each one. How do you find real time-savers?
This is the question we are determined to answer. This post will start a series of reviews in which I will try different add-ons available in the store and focus on the features they provide, the ease of work, price, and feedback.
When it comes to customizing your document or spreadsheet for a particular purpose, there's no need to re-invent the wheel for typical documents like an invoice, brochure, or resume. The choice of templates is not limited by the standard ones you see when you create a new file. Let's look at the products that offer worthy supplements and let you work with custom files more efficiently.
How to get more Google Docs templates
When you create a document that is supposed to become a resume or a newsletter draft, where do you start? With a template of course. They are great at helping you avoid procrastination, overcome the writer's block, and at saving some time with formatting the headings and colors.
Let's look at four add-ons that create common documents and let you customize them.
Template Gallery
If you are trying to get a big choice of absolutely different docs templates, you will be happy to have this add-on at hand. The authors of Google Docs Template Gallery, Vertex42, created a similar product for every popular platform. Over the years they have managed to gather a pretty decent collection of professional templates that you can browse once you get the add-on. It is very simple in the way you interact with it: find the doc template you need and receive a copy of it in your drive.
Besides, the tool is universal. If you use Google Apps a lot, you don't even need to get a separate Google Sheets Template Gallery add-on because it allows you to select templates for either platform from the same window. It may be a bit misleading when you search for a Google Docs invoice template only to see it in a spreadsheet. However, a preview is there to help you, as well as the "type" drop-down list that filters all templates.
When looking for a template by any keyword, you need to click the "Go" button next to the field, as the usual "Enter" key won't work. Some templates look a bit old-school, but we can also call them classic. Once you pick a template, click the "Copy to Google Drive" button, and you will be able to open this document right from the same window. Here is what you see when you select your Google Docs resume template:
In general, this is a very simple, useful, and free add-on that provides a good starting point for your work. The reviews are all positive, no wonder it has attracted half a million users by now!
VisualCV Resume Builder
Though you get four standard resume templates in Google Docs, you're likely to find a well-designed and thought-through template that you will like with this add-on.
It is a part of a service, so it goes beyond offering sample resumes, it guides you through the process with a set of welcoming emails and advanced options.
Once you run the add-on, you can create a profile and import existing pdf, Word document, or even LinkedIn records. Since it is connected to the service, your profile will let you use the same information for other resume templates. If it's a one-time task, you can ignore the button "Create Resume Profile", simply use the link below to "Create a blank resume" and open the new file in a few seconds.
You will quickly notice that some resume templates are locked until you get a pro version for at least 3 months. If you'd like to unlock them, it will cost USD 12 per month. Not cheap for an add-on, but it is actually a bit more than that: you can get assistance with your CV or resume, multiple profiles, track CV views... These options make it a tool for job search, not just a source of Google Docs resume template.
Customizing Google Docs templates
If you often replace the same fields in a document, the possibility to automate the process will be very helpful. This is exactly what the following two add-ons do.
Doc Variables
Doc Variables is a similar tool that you can keep open in a sidebar. It uses multiple tags, a simple ${Hint} as well as more complex combinations with double colons that add a date, a drop-down list with possible options, and a text area. All the details and an example are there right when you start the add-on. Once you set up the variables in your document, you can use it as a template for entering new values and getting a copy of the document as soon as you click "Apply".
It's a free and pretty handy tool for work with any Google Docs templates.
How to get more Google Sheets templates
What about spreadsheets? Whether you are trying to write a report or an invoice in Google Sheets, chances are there are ready proofread documents that look a lot better than our attempts to create them from scratch.
Template Gallery
When you know the purpose of your table, take a look at the variety of Google Sheet templates provided here first. This is the same add-on like the one for Google Docs that I described above, but it has even more templates for Google Sheets than for Docs. Just search for the necessary category and get an adjusted table. For example, you will find 15 nice invoice templates:
There is a proper collection of planners, calendars, schedules, budgets, and even exercise charts. You will definitely find the Google Spreadsheet templates you are looking for.
Template Vault
Template Vault organizes its templates for Google Spreadsheets in groups that you can easily navigate.
There are many colorful templates for both, personal and business use. If we look at the invoice templates, there are eleven available now, so you'll get a good set of additional sheet templates. The interface is similar to Template Gallery: pick a file, create and open a copy. I was surprised to see the same drop-down list for choosing between sheets and docs templates because it doesn't always work. There is one doc template available, but I constantly got an error when I tried to use it. I assume we can wait for new ones to come.
I hope this will help you find the add-on with the Google Doc templates or spreadsheets that work for you. Please share the solutions that make creating new tables and documents easier for you.
5 comments
Can I do a spreadsheet in Google Docs?
Hello Patti,
You can add end edit tables in Google Docs. If you need something different, please specify.
Apologies for my technical inability! I am preparing a business plan for a NFP group who are seeking government funding for the redevelopment of a disused college as a PACE (Performing Arts Centre of Excellence). I am using a free business plan template from Google; all is well until the finances where I need to insert financial documents into the template. I cannot, for the life of me, work out how to do same. Please can you help?
Hello Judith,
For me to be able to suggest you anything, please specify the following:
Sir, 9th March,2020.
Very clearly and neatly you have given notes on " Google Sheet ". Hope person like me will
surely thank you. You have taken much efforts to clear the ideas.
I will eagerly await for your new ideas in future too.
Kanhaiyalal Newaskar.