Templates are the backbone of how Heidi structures your clinical notes and documents: they define what sections to include, what to capture in each one, and how the output should read. When you record a session, Heidi uses your template as the blueprint to turn the transcript into a finished note. Think of it as a reusable format you set up once, so every note comes out exactly the way you want it.

Heidi also provides a library of ready-made templates based on your specialty that you can use straight away. You can also customise any of them or build your own from scratch, without needing to learn any special syntax.

Templates in Heidi come in two distinct types, and understanding the difference will help you find the right one when you need it.

Note Templates are for clinical documentation that goes into the health record - the notes your colleagues and future-you will read as a record of care. Think SOAP notes, progress notes, H&P notes, and so on. Heidi generates these directly from the transcript and any contextual notes you've added during the session.

Document Templates are for materials that are external to the health record - referral letters, discharge summaries, medical certificates, patient explainers, and similar outputs. Documents are generated after your note has been created, and they draw on the note as their source of truth.

After your session note has been generated, click Create in the top-right corner of the session. This will open a list of available document templates. Select the one you want, then Heidi will produce the document in a new tab alongside your note.

If you set a document template as your default, Heidi will automatically generate two outputs after each session: your specialty note and the document. This is ideal if you routinely produce the same external document (e.g. a referral letter) for most consultations.

To set a document template as a default, head to My Templates and locate the document template in-question. Select the three dots (…) menu to the right of the template, and click ‘Set as default template’.

After you stop recording, Heidi will ask how you'd like your notes structured. Scroll or search the list to find your template. Recently used templates appear at the top. Select one and Heidi will generate your note.

Already generated a note but want to try a different template? Click the template name button above your note - this reopens the template selector and regenerates the note using whichever template you choose.

If you create the same type of note for most consultations, setting a default template saves you from selecting one every time. There are two ways to do this:

Option 1 - From the template selector (quickest):

When Heidi asks how you'd like your notes structured after a session, tick the "Save selection as default template" checkbox on the right before selecting your template.

Option 2 - Via Preferences:

Go to Preferences > Session settings and select your preferred template from the

Default note template dropdown. This is the best option if you want to set or change your default outside of a session.

Option 3 - From My Templates:

Go to My Templates, locate the template you want to set as default, click the three dots (...) menu on the right, and select "Set as default template". This method works for both Note Templates and Document Templates.

There are three ways to get started when building out your first template.

There are three ways to refine any template in Heidi, depending on how hands-on you want to be.

1. Ask Heidi (easiest)

Type what you want to change in plain English in the chat bar at the bottom of the editor. For example: "Make the plan section a numbered list" or "Add a Social History section after Subjective." Heidi handles the rest and you'll see the result immediately in the Example view.

2. Edit the example note

The editor shows you a live example note generated from a demo transcript. You can edit this note directly to adjust formatting and structure - rearranging sections, changing how content is presented, adjusting layout - and Heidi will automatically update the underlying template to match. Note that edits to the example content itself (such as patient details or clinical values) won't reflect back to the structure, as the example text is just a demo.

3. Edit the structure directly

Switch to the Structure tab to edit the raw template syntax manually. This gives you the most precise control and is covered in depth in the Intermediate Guide.

For a full walkthrough of each method, see the Basic Guide and Intermediate Guide.

Every time you make a change to a template - whether through the chat bar, editing the example, or directly in the structure, Heidi automatically saves a new version. You never need to worry about losing a good version while experimenting.

To access your version history, click the Version dropdown in the top-right corner of the editor. Select any previous version to preview it, then click Save & exit to restore it. Versions are stored indefinitely.

When creating a template, you can upload example notes for Heidi to learn your preferred style and structure. Heidi will analyse the format and generate a template that matches it.

Accepted file types: .doc, .docx, .pdf

Not accepted: Spreadsheets (.csv, .xml), plain text (.txt), images (.png, .jpg)

You can upload up to 5 example documents at once. Heidi removes any patient-specific details automatically before processing.

If Heidi produces a document you love during a session (for example, a referral letter), you can save it as a reusable template. Click the three dots (...) menu above the document output and select "Save as new template". The template will be saved to your library for future use.

When editing any template, click Settings (top of the template editor) to access the following options.

Visibility: Set from the Settings menu in the template editor:

You can also manage sharing via the Share button, which holds the following functions:

Type: Sets whether the template is a Note or a Document template. This determines where it appears in your session workflows.

Default template: Toggle this on to set this template as your default, so Heidi automatically selects it after each session.

Direct template creation and editing using the Template Builder is not currently supported on the Heidi mobile app. To create or edit templates, open Safari or Chrome on your device and access the Heidi web app from there. For the smoothest experience, we recommend using the desktop app for template management.

Creating document templates and generating documents is available on all plans. However, if you're on the free plan, using custom templates and creating documents counts towards your monthly usage limit of 10 actions per month. Pro users get unlimited usage.

Do I need to learn syntax to use templates?

No. The Template Builder lets you create and edit templates using plain, natural language - no special syntax required. That said, if you're comfortable with the underlying structure, you can always edit the template directly from the Structure tab.

Can I still use my existing templates?

Yes, your existing templates work exactly as they always have, even with the new template builder and editing interface.

Does Heidi support templates in languages other than English?

Yes. The template editor works with all languages supported by Heidi.

I uploaded a note to create a template, but the example looks different from what I uploaded. Why?

This is expected behaviour. Heidi first generates a template structure based on your uploaded note, then creates a fresh example using a demo transcript. This gives you a more accurate preview of how the template will behave in a real session - not just a copy of your original note.

Why does it take a moment for the template to update after I make changes?

Heidi is updating both the underlying structure and the corresponding example note simultaneously in the background. This short wait is what ensures your template generates reliably in future sessions.

How long are my template versions stored?

Versions are stored indefinitely. You can always roll back to any previous version from the version history dropdown at the top of the template editor.

Ready to dive deeper? Our Template Academy has step-by-step guides for every level: