Launch InDesign
- InDesign User Guide
- Get to know InDesign
- Introduction to InDesign
- Workspace
- Generative AI
- Introduction to InDesign
- Create and layout documents
- Documents and pages
- Create documents
- Work with parent pages
- Work with document pages
- Set page size, margins, and bleed
- Work with files and templates
- Convert PDFs to InDesign files in InDesign (Beta)
- Create book files
- Add basic page numbering
- Number pages, chapters, and sections
- Convert QuarkXPress and PageMaker documents
- Share content
- Understand a basic managed-file workflow
- Save documents
- Grids
- Layout aids
- Documents and pages
- Add content
- Text
- Add text to frames
- Threading text
- South-East Asian Scripts
- Arabic and Hebrew features in InDesign
- Create type on a path
- Bullets and numbering
- Glyphs and special characters
- Text composition
- Text variables
- Generate QR codes
- Edit text
- Align text
- Wrap text around objects
- Anchored objects
- Linked content
- Format paragraphs
- Format characters
- Typography
- Format text
- Review text
- Spell check and language dictionaries
- Add references
- Styles
- Tables
- Interactivity
- Graphics
- Color and transparency
- Text
- Find and replace
- Share
- Publish
- Place, export, and publish
- Printing
- Extend InDesign
- Automation
- Troubleshooting
Equitable Language: We are replacing non-inclusive language from InDesign 2022 (version 17.0) onwards, to reflect core Adobe values of inclusivity. Any reference to Master page is replaced by Parent page in our Help articles for the English, Danish, Hungarian, Spanish, Italian, Brazilian, Portuguese, and Japanese locales.
While creating a document in InDesign, instead of beginning with a blank document, you can choose from a wide variety of templates, including templates from Adobe Stock. Templates include assets that you can build on to complete your project. When you open a template in InDesign, you can work with it just as you would work with any other InDesign document.
In addition to templates, you can also create a document by selecting one of the numerous presets available in InDesign.
Templates and presets
Templates
provide rich, inspirational, and reusable content for your documents. You can download templates from Adobe Stock that include quality graphics and illustrations right within InDesign. You can then build on these templates to easily create documents that share common settings and design elements. InDesign also provides blank templates with predefined dimensions and settings for common tasks, such as designing business cards or brochures. Templates open as .indd files in InDesign.
Blank Document Presets
are blank documents with predefined dimensions and settings. Presets make designing for specific device form factors or use cases easier. For example, you can use a preset to quickly start designing for the iPad. Blank document presets have predefined size, pages, column, orientation, positioning, margin, and bleed settings. You can modify these settings before creating a document using the preset.
Templates and presets are categorized into these sets:
- Web
- Mobile
Access the New Document dialog
-
-
Do one of the following:
- Select File > New.
- Click New or Start New in the Start workspace.
- Use the following keyboard shortcut:
- (Mac) Cmd+N
- (Windows) Ctrl+N
- Right-click the tab for an open document and choose New Document from the in-context menu.
Overview: New Document dialog
Among other operations, the New Document dialog lets you:
- Create documents using selected templates from Adobe Stock across several categories: Print, Web, and Mobile
- Search for more templates on Adobe Stock and create documents using them
- Quickly access files, templates, and items that you've have recently accessed (Recent tab)
- Quickly access templates that you've downloaded from Adobe Stock (Saved tab)
- Create documents using Blank Document presets for multiple categories and device form factors. Before opening the presets, you can modify their settings.
Create documents using presets
-
In the New Document dialog box, click a category tab: Print, Web, or Mobile.
-
Select a preset.
-
Optionally, change the settings for the selected preset in the Preset Details pane on the right.
-
Click Create. InDesign opens a new document based on the preset.
Modify presets
Before opening a document using the preset, you can modify its settings in the right pane.
-
Specify a name for the document
-
Specify the following options for the selected preset:
Width and Height:
Specify the size of the document.
Units:
Specify the measurement unit for the document.
Orientation:
Specify a page orientation for the document: Landscape or Portrait.
Pages:
Specify the number of pages to create in the document.
Note:Notice that the pointer changes to a small black arrow icon when you hover over a preset element such as Width or Pages. Swipe the arrow horizontally to increase and decrease a preset value.
Facing pages:
Select this option to make left and right pages face each other in a double-page spread.
Start#:
Specify which number the document starts on. If you specify an even number (such as 2) with Facing Pages selected, the first spread in the document begins with a two-page spread.
Primary Text Frame:
Select this option to add a primary text frame on the parent page.
Columns:
Specify the number of columns to add in the document.
Column Gutter:
Specify the amount of whitespace between columns.
Margins:
Specify the margins for each side of the document. To use different values for different sides, delink the dimensions by clicking the chain icon.
Bleed and Slug:
Specify the position of the bleed and slug along each side of the document. To use different values for different sides, delink the dimensions by clicking the chain icon.
Preview:
Select this option to preview the orientation and size of a document before creating a new file.
-
Click Create to open a document with the preset settings.
Create documents using templates from Stock
InDesign comes with a variety of templates from Adobe Stock, including templates for tablets, mobiles, letterheads, envelopes, business cards, and many more. Templates with font layers use basic fonts or fonts that can be activated from Adobe Fonts.
To create a document using a template, do the following:
-
In the New Document dialog, click a category tab: Print, Web, Mobile.
-
Select a template.
-
Click See Preview to view a preview of the template. A preview is an image representation of a template that you can review and decide if you want to license that template.
-
Click Download.
InDesign prompts you to license the template from Adobe Stock. See Adobe Stock Help for more information about licensing and related considerations. After the template has been licensed using asset entitlements or credits in your account, you can open it as an InDesign document (.indd) for you to work on.
-
After the template has downloaded, click Open. While opening the template, if you are prompted to activate some fonts from Adobe Fonts, click OK.
You can now work with the open document in InDesign just as you would work with any other .indd document.
Downloaded templates are added to a Creative Cloud library called Stock Templates. You can access this library in the CC Libraries panel.
InDesign templates carry the .indt filename extension. However, when you open a template, an instance of it is opened as a document with the .indd extension. Changes made to that .indd document don't affect the original .indt template.
Search for more templates from Adobe Stock
Aside from the pre-selected templates from Adobe Stock, you can search for and download numerous other such templates directly from within the New Document dialog.
- While working in the New Document dialog, enter a search string in the Find More Templates On Adobe Stock box. Alternatively, simply click Go to browse the full selection of available templates.
InDesign opens the Adobe Stock website in a new browser window for you to explore. License and download the one that best meets your project's requirements.
For more information about Adobe Stock, see:
FAQ | Adobe Stock basics
FAQ | Usage and licensing
Using Adobe Stock
Use the legacy New Document experience
If necessary, you may disable the latest New Document experience and revert to the experience that InDesign provided by default in versions CC 2017 and earlier.
-
Select Preferences > General.
-
Select Use Legacy New Document Dialog.
-
Click OK.
See Create new documents for more information about options in the legacy New Document dialog.
More like this
Create and publish ebooks, brochures, flyers, postcards, posters, interactive page layouts, and more with Adobe InDesign.