---
title: Dashboard Templates
slug: reports/dashboard-templates
description: Design custom layouts for dashboards using a (DOCX) Word document.
image: https://archbee-image-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/10Nod6Ww95R3dPr0k0TCJ/oD9q118XXDogtcrUGpVCT_captura-de-pantalla-20260223-153216.png
docTags: 
createdAt: 2026-02-12T03:54:24.981Z
---

Dashboard templates let you design custom layouts for dashboards using a (DOCX) Word document. You create a Word file with one or more **tables** and insert special **placeholder tokens** (like `{{COMPONENT_#}}`) inside table cells. When the dashboard runs, Unaric Reports replaces these tokens with the actual dashboard components (charts, tables, metrics) and data.

This works very similarly to **report templates**, but is tailored for dashboard layouts.

## How it works

- Everything is placed inside **tables** in your Word document.
- The position and size of components are determined by where you put the placeholders in the table cells.
- Components are numbered starting from **1** (`{{COMPONENT_1}}`, `{{COMPONENT_2}}`, etc.). The numbering order (indexing) depends on whether you're building for **Classic Dashboards** or **Lightning Dashboards**:

::::Tabs
:::Tab{title="Lightning"}
Grid-based (can be less predictable due to responsive layout). Use the **info button** on the **Run Dashboard** page to see the exact indexes displayed on your preview.

::Image[]{src="https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/10Nod6Ww95R3dPr0k0TCJ/koGp5vB1tdx6h8ohmkbyj_indexes.png" size="76" width="2509" height="959" position="center" darkWidth="2509" darkHeight="959" showCaption="false"}
:::

:::Tab{title="Classic"}
The count is incremented a column down and then a row across. Meaning say you have a two column dashboard. The first column contains three chart components and the second column contains 2 chart components. Overall you have five chart components. The three chart components in the first column would have the indexes 1, 2, 3 (from top to bottom) and therefore placeholders of {{COMPONENT\_1}}, {{COMPONENT\_2}}, and {{COMPONENT\_3}}. The two chart components in the second column would have the indexes 4 and 5 (from top to bottom) and therefore placeholders of {{COMPONENT\_4}}, and {{COMPONENT\_5}}.
:::
::::

## Components

### Component types

**A. Charts**
The main visual building blocks (bar, line, pie, etc.).

- Use `{{COMPONENT_#}}` + any of the title/header/subtitle/footer tokens above.
- No extra tokens needed beyond positioning and labels.

**B. Tables**
Simplified dashboard tables (only tabular and only contain a header and data rows).
Supported tokens (same as report templates – see Report Templates help for details):

- `{{HEADER_ROW}}`
- `{{DATA_ROW}}`
- `{{ALTERNATING_DATA_ROW}}` (for striped rows)

**C. Metrics** (single KPI / summary values)
Place these tokens inside a table cell **or** directly in a paragraph within the table:

- `{{METRIC_LABEL}}` → Field name (e.g. "Total Opportunities")
- `{{METRIC_VALUE}}` → Formatted number (e.g. "142")

### Add components

Use this main token inside any table cell to define a component's position:

- `{{COMPONENT_#}}`
  (# = 1, 2, 3…)
  This marks **where** the chart, table, or metric should appear.

## Example

### Word example

[Full Dashboard Template.docx](https://reportbuilder.cloud4j.com/Full%20Dashboard%20Template.docx)

## Tokens

:::ExpandableHeading
### Customise individual components

Add these tokens inside the same cell of the corresponding `{{COMPONENT_#}}` to control its appearance:

| Token                      | What it shows   | Dashboard Type     |
| -------------------------- | --------------- | ------------------ |
| `{{COMPONENT_#_TITLE}}`    | Component title | All                |
| `{{COMPONENT_#_HEADER}}`   | Header text     | **Classic** only   |
| `{{COMPONENT_#_SUBTITLE}}` | Subtitle text   | **Lightning** only |
| `{{COMPONENT_#_FOOTER}}`   | Footer text     | All                |
:::

:::ExpandableHeading
### Global / Standard Data Tokens

These can be used **anywhere** in the document (inside tables or outside):

| Token                          | Description         | Default Format Example |
| ------------------------------ | ------------------- | ---------------------- |
| `{{USER_NAME}}`                | Running user's name | "Rodrigo F."           |
| `{{DASHBOARD_TITLE}}`          | Dashboard name      | "Sales Pipeline Q1"    |
| `{{DATE}}`                     | Current date        | 2/12/2026              |
| `{{FULL_DATE}}` or `{{TODAY}}` | Long date format    | February 12, 2026      |
| `{{DATE_TIME}}`                | Date + time         | 2/12/2026 1:03 am      |
:::

:::ExpandableHeading
### Advanced – Custom Formatting & Offsets

The last set of tokens further extend the control of the data values. Using the custom format tokens allows you to display the data in any format you wish. You can use the custom date format tokens with any of the date standard data variables. DATE, FULL\_DATE, TODAY, or DATE\_TIME.

- `\@` → Apply a custom format (uses standard date codes like MMMM = full month, d = day without zero, yyyy = four-digit year).
- `\+N` or `\-N` → Shift the date by N days.
- `\#` Allows formatting of numbers and currencies.

Examples:

| Token Example                        | Result Example            | Meaning                     |
| ------------------------------------ | ------------------------- | --------------------------- |
| `{{DATE\@MMMM d, yyyy}}`             | February 12, 2026         | Custom long date format     |
| `{{TODAY\+14}}`                      | February 26, 2026         | 14 days in the future       |
| `{{DATE\-30\@MMMM d, yyyy}}`         | January 13, 2026          | 30 days ago + custom format |
| `{{DATE_TIME\@MMMM d, yyyy h:mm a}}` | February 12, 2026 1:03 am | Custom datetime             |

You can combine offset and format: `{{TODAY\-7\@dddd, MMMM d}}` → e.g. "Thursday, February 5".
:::