Template Syntax Reference¶

This is a complete reference guide for Templify's template syntax. Use this as a quick lookup when creating templates.

Table of Contents¶

Placeholders
Conditionals
Loops
Operators
Format Specifiers
Loop Variables
Markdown Formatting
Line Breaks in Data

Placeholders¶

Placeholders are replaced with data from your JSON file. They're wrapped in double curly braces: {{...}}

Simple Placeholder¶

{{VariableName}}

JSON:

{
  "CustomerName": "Alice Johnson"
}

Template:

Customer: {{CustomerName}}

Output:

Customer: Alice Johnson

Nested Properties (Dot Notation)¶

Access nested data using dots (.):

{{Parent.Child.Property}}

JSON:

{
  "Customer": {
    "Name": "Bob Smith",
    "Address": {
      "City": "New York",
      "Zip": "10001"
    }
  }
}

Template:

Name: {{Customer.Name}}
City: {{Customer.Address.City}}
ZIP: {{Customer.Address.Zip}}

Array Indexing¶

Access specific array items by index (starting at 0):

{{ArrayName[Index]}}
{{ArrayName[0].Property}}

JSON:

{
  "Colors": ["Red", "Green", "Blue"],
  "Users": [
    { "Name": "Alice", "Age": 25 },
    { "Name": "Bob", "Age": 30 }
  ]
}

Template:

First color: {{Colors[0]}}
Second user: {{Users[1].Name}}, age {{Users[1].Age}}

Case Sensitivity¶

JSON keys are case-sensitive. {{Name}} and {{name}} are different. Always match the exact case used in your JSON data.

Conditionals¶

Conditionals let you show or hide content based on data values.

Basic Conditional¶

{{#if VariableName}}
  Content to show if true
{{/if}}

JSON:

{
  "IsVIP": true
}

Template:

{{#if IsVIP}}
Thank you for being a VIP member!
{{/if}}

Conditional with Else¶

{{#if Condition}}
  Content when true
{{#else}}
  Content when false
{{/if}}

JSON:

{
  "Status": "Active"
}

Template:

{{#if Status = "Active"}}
Your account is active.
{{#else}}
Your account is inactive.
{{/if}}

Conditional with ElseIf¶

Use {{#elseif}} for multiple conditions:

{{#if Condition1}}
  Content for condition 1
{{#elseif Condition2}}
  Content for condition 2
{{#elseif Condition3}}
  Content for condition 3
{{#else}}
  Default content
{{/if}}

JSON:

{
  "Score": 75
}

Template:

{{#if Score >= 90}}
Grade: A
{{#elseif Score >= 80}}
Grade: B
{{#elseif Score >= 70}}
Grade: C
{{#else}}
Grade: F
{{/if}}

Output:

Grade: C

Note: The {{#else}} branch must always be last.

Conditional with Comparisons¶

{{#if Variable operator Value}}
  Content
{{/if}}

Template:

{{#if Age >= 18}}
You are an adult.
{{/if}}

{{#if Score > 90}}
Excellent!
{{#else}}
Keep trying!
{{/if}}

Multiple Conditions¶

Use and or or to combine conditions:

{{#if Condition1 and Condition2}}
  Both are true
{{/if}}

{{#if Condition1 or Condition2}}
  At least one is true
{{/if}}

JSON:

{
  "Age": 25,
  "HasLicense": true,
  "Country": "USA"
}

Template:

{{#if Age >= 18 and HasLicense}}
You can rent a car.
{{/if}}

{{#if Country = "USA" or Country = "Canada"}}
North American customer
{{/if}}

Negation¶

Use not to negate a condition:

{{#if not IsExpired}}
  Subscription is active
{{/if}}

{{#if not (Age < 18)}}
  You are an adult
{{/if}}

Loops¶

Loops repeat content for each item in an array.

Basic Loop¶

{{#foreach ArrayName}}
  Content to repeat
{{/foreach}}

JSON:

{
  "Products": [
    { "Name": "Widget", "Price": 10 },
    { "Name": "Gadget", "Price": 20 }
  ]
}

Template:

Product List:

{{#foreach Products}}
- {{Name}}: ${{Price}}
{{/foreach}}

Output:

Product List:

- Widget: $10
- Gadget: $20

Nested Loops¶

You can nest loops within each other:

JSON:

{
  "Departments": [
    {
      "Name": "Sales",
      "Employees": [
        { "Name": "Alice" },
        { "Name": "Bob" }
      ]
    },
    {
      "Name": "Engineering",
      "Employees": [
        { "Name": "Charlie" },
        { "Name": "Diana" }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Template:

{{#foreach Departments}}
Department: {{Name}}
{{#foreach Employees}}
  - {{Name}}
{{/foreach}}

{{/foreach}}

Loops in Tables¶

Loops can repeat table rows:

Template (in Word table):

Product	Price
{{#foreach Items}}{{Name}}	${{Price}}{{/foreach}}

The row will be repeated for each item.

Operators¶

Comparison Operators¶

Operator	Meaning	Example
`=`	Equal to	`{{#if Status = "Active"}}`
`!=`	Not equal to	`{{#if Status != "Pending"}}`
`>`	Greater than	`{{#if Age > 18}}`
`<`	Less than	`{{#if Price < 100}}`
`>=`	Greater than or equal	`{{#if Score >= 90}}`
`<=`	Less than or equal	`{{#if Stock <= 10}}`

Logical Operators¶

Operator	Meaning	Example
`and`	Both conditions true	`{{#if Age >= 18 and HasLicense}}`
`or`	At least one true	`{{#if IsVIP or IsPremium}}`
`not`	Negates condition	`{{#if not IsExpired}}`

Operator Precedence¶

Parentheses ()
not
Comparison operators (=, !=, >, etc.)
and
or

Example:

{{#if (Age > 18 or HasParent) and not IsBanned}}
  Can enter
{{/if}}

Format Specifiers¶

Format specifiers control how values are displayed. Add them after a colon (:) in the placeholder.

Basic Syntax¶

{{VariableName:format}}

Common Formats¶

Format	Description	Example Input	Example Output
`:uppercase`	Convert to UPPERCASE	"hello"	HELLO
`:lowercase`	Convert to lowercase	"HELLO"	hello
`:yesno`	true/false → Yes/No	true	Yes
`:checkbox`	true/false → ☑/☐	false	☐
`:number:N2`	Format number with 2 decimals	1234.5	1,234.50
`:currency`	Format as currency	1234.5	$1,234.50
`:date:yyyy-MM-dd`	Format date	(date value)	2024-01-15

Examples¶

JSON:

{
  "CustomerName": "alice johnson",
  "IsActive": true,
  "HasDiscount": false,
  "Price": 1234.567,
  "OrderDate": "2024-01-15"
}

Template:

Name: {{CustomerName:uppercase}}
Status: {{IsActive:yesno}}
Discount: {{HasDiscount:checkbox}}
Price: {{Price:currency}}
Date: {{OrderDate:date:MMMM d, yyyy}}

Output:

Name: ALICE JOHNSON
Status: Yes
Discount: ☐
Price: $1,234.57
Date: January 15, 2024

For more format specifier details, see Format Specifiers Guide.

Loop Variables¶

Special variables available inside loops:

`{{@index}}`¶

The current loop iteration index (starts at 0):

Template:

{{#foreach Items}}
Item {{@index}}: {{Name}}
{{/foreach}}

Output:

Item 0: Widget
Item 1: Gadget
Item 2: Doohickey

`{{@first}}`¶

True if this is the first iteration:

Template:

{{#foreach Items}}
{{#if @first}}
*** FIRST ITEM ***
{{/if}}
{{Name}}
{{/foreach}}

`{{@last}}`¶

True if this is the last iteration:

Template:

{{#foreach Items}}
{{Name}}{{#if not @last}}, {{/if}}
{{/foreach}}

Output:

Widget, Gadget, Doohickey

`{{@count}}`¶

Total number of items in the loop:

Template:

{{#foreach Items}}
Processing item {{@index}} of {{@count}}...
{{/foreach}}

Output:

Processing item 0 of 3...
Processing item 1 of 3...
Processing item 2 of 3...

Markdown Formatting¶

Apply formatting to text using markdown syntax in your JSON data:

Bold¶

{
  "Message": "This is **bold** text"
}

Or use underscores:

{
  "Message": "This is __bold__ text"
}

Italic¶

{
  "Message": "This is *italic* text"
}

Or use underscores:

{
  "Message": "This is _italic_ text"
}

Strikethrough¶

{
  "Message": "This is ~~strikethrough~~ text"
}

Bold + Italic¶

{
  "Message": "This is ***bold and italic*** text"
}

Combining with Template Formatting¶

The markdown formatting is merged with the template's formatting. If your template has red text, and you add **bold** in the data, the output will be red bold text.

Line Breaks in Data¶

Newline characters in your JSON data are automatically converted to line breaks in Word:

{
  "Address": "123 Main Street\nApartment 4B\nNew York, NY 10001"
}

Supported formats: - \n - Unix/Linux/macOS - \r\n - Windows - \r - Legacy Mac

Combining with Markdown¶

Line breaks work together with markdown formatting:

{
  "Steps": "**Step 1:** Download\n**Step 2:** Install\n**Step 3:** Run"
}

Output will have three lines, each with bold text for "Step X:".

Special Characters¶

Literal Curly Braces¶

To include literal {{ or }} in your document without creating a placeholder, there's currently no escape mechanism. Best practice: avoid using {{ in your document text unless it's a placeholder.

Whitespace¶

Templify preserves whitespace in your templates:

{{#if IsActive}}
  This line is indented
{{/if}}

Will output with the indentation preserved.

Quick Syntax Summary¶

Feature	Syntax	Example
Placeholder	`{{Name}}`	`{{CustomerName}}`
Nested	`{{Parent.Child}}`	`{{Customer.Address.City}}`
Array	`{{Array[0]}}`	`{{Colors[0]}}`
If	`{{#if ...}}...{{/if}}`	`{{#if IsActive}}...{{/if}}`
If/Else	`{{#if ...}}...{{#else}}...{{/if}}`	See above
If/ElseIf	`{{#if ...}}...{{#elseif ...}}...{{/if}}`	See above
Loop	`{{#foreach ...}}...{{/foreach}}`	`{{#foreach Items}}...{{/foreach}}`
Format	`{{Name:format}}`	`{{Price:currency}}`
Loop Index	`{{@index}}`	`{{@index}}`
Loop First	`{{@first}}`	`{{#if @first}}...{{/if}}`
Loop Last	`{{@last}}`	`{{#if @last}}...{{/if}}`
Loop Count	`{{@count}}`	`{{@count}}`

Common Patterns¶

Numbered List¶

{{#foreach Items}}
{{@index}}. {{Name}}
{{/foreach}}

Comma-Separated List¶

{{#foreach Tags}}{{.}}{{#if not @last}}, {{/if}}{{/foreach}}

Conditional with Multiple Checks¶

{{#if Age >= 18 and HasLicense and not IsSuspended}}
Eligible to drive
{{/if}}

Nested Conditionals¶

{{#if IsLoggedIn}}
  {{#if IsPremium}}
    Premium content
  {{#else}}
    Regular content
  {{/if}}
{{#else}}
  Please log in
{{/if}}

Table with Conditional Rows¶

| Product | Price | Status |
|---------|-------|--------|
{{#foreach Products}}
| {{Name}} | {{Price}} | {{#if InStock}}Available{{#else}}Out of Stock{{/if}} |
{{/foreach}}

Best Practices¶

Match case exactly - {{Name}} must match "Name" in JSON
Test with simple data first - Start with basic JSON and gradually add complexity
Use meaningful names - {{CustomerFirstName}} is better than {{N1}}
Validate JSON - Use jsonlint.com to check JSON syntax
Comment your templates - Add notes in Word comments about complex logic
Keep conditionals simple - Break complex logic into multiple simpler conditionals

Next Steps¶

Placeholders Guide - Deep dive into placeholder usage
Conditionals Guide - Detailed conditional examples
Loops Guide - Advanced loop techniques
Format Specifiers - Complete formatting reference
Examples Gallery - Real-world template examples

Quick Troubleshooting¶

Problem	Solution
Placeholder not replaced	Check that JSON key matches exactly (case-sensitive)
Conditional not working	Verify operator syntax and value types
Loop not repeating	Ensure JSON has an array for the loop variable
Formatting not applied	Check format specifier syntax: `{{Value:format}}`
Syntax error	Validate JSON at jsonlint.com
Missing data	Check for typos in placeholder names

For more help, see Best Practices or FAQ.

Template Syntax Reference¶

Table of Contents¶

Placeholders¶

Simple Placeholder¶

Nested Properties (Dot Notation)¶

Array Indexing¶

Case Sensitivity¶

Conditionals¶

Basic Conditional¶

Conditional with Else¶

Conditional with ElseIf¶

Conditional with Comparisons¶

Multiple Conditions¶

Negation¶

Loops¶

Basic Loop¶

Nested Loops¶

Loops in Tables¶

Operators¶

Comparison Operators¶

Logical Operators¶

Operator Precedence¶

Format Specifiers¶

Basic Syntax¶

Common Formats¶

Examples¶

Loop Variables¶

{{@index}}¶

{{@first}}¶

{{@last}}¶

{{@count}}¶

Markdown Formatting¶

Bold¶

Italic¶

Strikethrough¶

Bold + Italic¶

Combining with Template Formatting¶

Line Breaks in Data¶

Combining with Markdown¶

Special Characters¶

Literal Curly Braces¶

Whitespace¶

Quick Syntax Summary¶

Common Patterns¶

Numbered List¶

Comma-Separated List¶

Conditional with Multiple Checks¶

Nested Conditionals¶

Table with Conditional Rows¶

Best Practices¶

Next Steps¶

Quick Troubleshooting¶

`{{@index}}`¶

`{{@first}}`¶

`{{@last}}`¶

`{{@count}}`¶