As your organization grows, manually creating individual Microsoft 365 user accounts becomes increasingly time-consuming and error-prone. Entering the same information repeatedly – domain names, license selections, department information, and role assignments – for similar users wastes valuable IT resources and introduces inconsistencies.
Microsoft 365 User Templates solve this problem by allowing you to save common settings and reuse them for multiple users. Instead of configuring each account from scratch, you create a template once with all the standard settings for a particular role or department, then use that template to quickly add new users with just a few clicks.
This comprehensive guide walks you through both methods of creating templates, shows you how to use them effectively, and explains why many organizations are now considering more advanced alternatives for comprehensive user provisioning automation.
Method 1: Create a Template After Adding a User
The first method for creating Microsoft 365 User templates is to create a user manually, then save that user’s settings as a template. This approach is useful when you want to see exactly how the template will look before saving it.
Step 1: Sign In to Microsoft 365 Admin Center
Navigate to https://admin.microsoft.com and sign in with your administrator account. You need Global Administrator or User Administrator roles to create user templates.
Step 2: Navigate to Active Users
In the left navigation menu, select Users > Active Users. This page displays all current users in your organization.
Step 3: Click “Add a User”
Click the Add a user button at the top of the Active Users page. This opens the user creation wizard.
Step 4: Enter Basic User Information
In the first section, enter the user’s basic information:
- First name: The user’s first name
- Last name: The user’s last name
- Display name: Usually auto-populated as “First Last” but can be customized
- Username: The part before the @ symbol (e.g., “john.smith” for john.smith@company.com )
- Domain: Select the domain where the user will be created
You can choose to auto-generate a password or create a custom password. If you select “Let me create the password,” you can specify a custom password. If you select “Auto-generate password,” Microsoft 365 will generate a strong password.
Step 5: Assign Licenses
In the Licenses section, select the licenses you want to assign to this user. Common options include:
- License location: Select the country/region where the user is located. This determines which services and features are available.
- Microsoft 365 E5: Full suite with advanced features
- Microsoft 365 E3: Standard business suite
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium: For small businesses
- Exchange Online Plan 1: Email only
When you select a license, you can choose which applications to include. For example, if you select Microsoft 365 E3, you can choose to exclude specific applications like Microsoft Project or Visio if they’re not needed.
Step 6: Configure Optional Settings
Click Next to access optional settings:
- Role: Choose whether the user is a standard user or should have admin privileges (Global Admin, Billing Admin, etc.). Most users should be standard users.
- Profile information: Enter the user’s department, job title, office location, office phone, street address, city, ZIP or postal code and Country or region.
Step 7: Review and Finish
Review all the settings you’ve configured. Once you’re satisfied, click Finish adding.
Step 8: Save as Template
After the user is created, you’ll see a page with the message “User successfully created.” Below this, you’ll see an option labeled “Save these user settings as a template”.
Click this option and provide:
- Template name: A descriptive name (e.g., “Sales Representative – US” or “Support Engineer – Remote”)
- Template description: Optional description explaining the template’s purpose
Click Save as template to save the template.
Creating a template after adding a user in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center
The template is now saved in User templates. If you published your template, other admins will see it there, too.
Step 9: Add Another User (Optional)
You’ll see an option to “Add another user with this template”. Click this to immediately create another user using the template you just saved, or close the dialog if you’re finished.
Method 2: Create a Template First, Then Add Users
The second method is to create a Microsoft 365 User template directly without first creating a user. This approach is useful when you want to create multiple templates before adding any users, or when you want to set up templates for future use.
Step 1: Navigate to User Templates
Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center (https://admin.microsoft.com ) and go to Users > Active Users.
Step 2: Access the Templates Section
Click the User templates dropdown menu and select Add template. This opens the template creation wizard.
Create a user template in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center
Step 3: Name Your Template
Enter a descriptive template name and optional description:
- Template name: (Required) A clear name describing the template’s purpose (e.g., “Sales Representative – US”, “Support Engineer”, “Manager – Remote”)
- Template description: (Optional) Additional context about when to use this template
Step 4: Configure Basic Settings
In the Basics section, configure:
- Domain: Select the domain where users created from this template will be located
- Password settings: Choose whether to auto-generate passwords or require custom passwords
- Require the user to change their password when they first sign in: Check this box if you want users to change their password at first sign in (recommended for security)
Step 5: Configure Licenses
In the Licenses section:
- License location: Select the country/region for service availability
- License selection: Choose which licenses to assign (Microsoft 365 E3, E5, etc.)
- Application selection: Choose which applications within the license to enable or disable
Step 6: Configure Role and Profile Information
- Role: Select whether users created from this template should be standard users or admins
- Profile information: Enter:
Job title, Department, Company, Office location, Office phone, Street address, City, State/Province, Postal code, Country/Region
Step 7: Publish the Template
By default, the “Publish this template” option is enabled. This makes the template visible to all admins in your organization who can create users. If you want to keep the template private (only you can see and use it), uncheck this option.
Important: Once a template is published, it cannot be made private. If you need to keep a template private, uncheck this option before saving.
Step 8: Review and Save
Review all the template settings. Click Finish adding to save the template.
Step 9: Use the Template to Add a User
After saving, you’ll see an option to “Add a user using this template”. Click this to immediately create a user using the template or close the dialog if you want to create the template first and use it later.
Managing Your Microsoft 365 User Templates
As you create more templates, you’ll need to manage them effectively. The Manage Templates page provides tools for organizing and maintaining your templates.
Accessing Manage Templates
- Go to Users > Active Users in the Microsoft 365 admin center
- Click User templates > Manage templates
- You’ll see a list of all templates you’ve created
Managing Microsoft 365 user templates in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center
Viewing Template Details
Click on any template name to see its details:
- Template name and description
- All configured settings (domain, licenses, profile information, etc.)
- When the template was created
- Whether the template is published (visible to other admins)
Limitations of Microsoft 365 User Templates
While Microsoft 365 User Templates provide value for basic user creation, they have significant limitations that organizations should understand:
Cannot Add Group Memberships
Microsoft 365 User Templates do not automatically add users to groups. After creating a user, you must manually add them to:
- Distribution Lists
- Security Groups
- Microsoft 365 Groups
- Mail-Enabled Security Groups
- Entra ID groups
For a user who needs to be in 4-5 groups, this adds 10-15 minutes to the onboarding process.
No Mailbox Configuration
Microsoft 365 User Templates do not capture any Exchange Online settings beyond the basic email address. You cannot template:
- Mailbox type (User, Shared, Room, Equipment)
- Email forwarding
- Auto-reply messages
- Mailbox delegation (Send As, Send On Behalf, Full Access)
- Mailbox archive
- Litigation hold (important for compliance)
- Calendar delegation
- Regional settings and Outlook folder localization
- Mail nickname
- Additional email aliases and domains
- Email address format automation
Limited Profile Information
Microsoft 365 User Templates capture only basic profile information. Critical organizational attributes cannot be templated, including:
- Employee Type: Cannot template Member, Contractor, Vendor, or Guest classifications
- Employee Hire Date: Must be entered manually for each user
- Manager: Cannot be set in the template; must be configured manually in Entra ID
- Sponsors: Cannot be assigned through templates; must be configured manually for access reviews
This limitation is particularly problematic for organizations with compliance requirements or those using HR system integrations.
Cannot Add User Identity Based on Naming Conventions
Microsoft 365 User Templates do not support automated generation of user identity attributes based on naming conventions. This means:
- User Principal Name (UPN): Cannot automatically generate UPN based on naming conventions (e.g., firstname.lastname@company.com). Must be entered manually for each user.
- Email Address: Cannot automatically format email addresses following your organization’s naming conventions.
- Email Aliases: Cannot automatically create additional email aliases following your organization’s naming conventions.
- First and Last Names: Cannot be automatically derived from the display name or generated based on naming patterns.
Even when your organization follows strict naming conventions, each user’s identity attributes must be manually entered, eliminating the potential for automation and consistency at scale.
Templates Cannot Be Edited
Once created, Microsoft 365 User Templates cannot be modified. If you discover an error or need to update a template, you must:
1.Delete the template
2.Create a new template with the correct settings
This immutability is frustrating when managing dozens of templates and makes it difficult to adapt to organizational changes.
No PowerShell or Scripting Support
Microsoft 365 User Templates cannot be managed or deployed via PowerShell scripts. This means:
- You cannot automate template creation or updates
- You cannot integrate templates with HR systems or other automated workflows
- You cannot bulk-deploy multiple users from templates programmatically
- All template operations must be performed manually through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center
This limitation prevents organizations from building sophisticated automation workflows around user provisioning.
No Hybrid Active Directory Support
Microsoft 365 User Templates work only in cloud-only environments. Organizations with on-premises Active Directory synced to Entra ID cannot use Microsoft 365 User Templates to provision users in both environments simultaneously. This is a critical limitation for hybrid organizations.
Why Consider EasyEntra Virtual User Templates?
Microsoft 365 User Templates are a good starting point for standardizing user creation, but they have significant limitations. Many organizations find that as they scale or want to automate and optimize IT operations, these limitations become increasingly problematic. This is where EasyEntra Virtual User Templates come in.
What Makes EasyEntra Different
EasyEntra Virtual User Templates address all the major limitations of Microsoft 365 User Templates:
Automatic User Identity Generation: EasyEntra automatically generates user identity attributes based on your organization’s naming conventions. This includes:
- User Principal Name (UPN) generation (e.g., firstname.lastname@company.com)
- Automatic email address formatting
- Automatic email alias creation
- First and last name derivation from display name
No more manual entry of identity attributes – they’re automatically created based on your template’s naming conventions.
Complete Profile Information Automation: EasyEntra templates capture all organizational attributes that Microsoft 365 User Templates cannot:
- Employee Type (Member, Contractor, Vendor, Guest)
- Employee Hire Date
- Manager assignment
- Sponsors for access reviews
- All contact information and organizational details
Automatic Group Membership: Unlike Microsoft 365 User Templates, EasyEntra automatically adds users to all required groups during provisioning. No more manual group management – users are added to Distribution Lists, Security Groups, Microsoft 365 Groups, Mail-Enabled Security Groups, and Active Directory groups automatically.
Complete Mailbox Configuration: EasyEntra captures and templates all Exchange Online settings, including:
- Mailbox type (User, Shared, Room, Equipment)
- Email forwarding
- Auto-reply message
- Mailbox delegation (Send As, Send On Behalf, Full Access)
- Mail nickname
- Additional email aliases and domains
- Mailbox archive and litigation hold
- Calendar delegation
- Regional settings and Outlook folder localization
This is essential for organizations with compliance requirements.
Editable Templates: EasyEntra templates can be edited after creation. If you need to update a template, you simply modify it- future users created from the template will have the new settings. No more delete-and-recreate cycles.
PowerShell and Scripting Support: EasyEntra Virtual User Templates can be managed and deployed via PowerShell scripts, enabling:
- Template based user creation based (Automated user onboarding)
- Integration with 3rd party systems for creation of new users (e.g. HR, ITSM)
- Bulk creation of multiple users based on templates
- Sophisticated automation workflows around user provisioning
Hybrid Active Directory Support: EasyEntra automatically provisions users in both on-premises Active Directory and Entra ID with consistent configurations. This is critical for hybrid environments
If you want to see a detailed comparison of Microsoft 365 User Templates and EasyEntra Virtual User Templates please see this blogpost: Microsoft 365 User Templates vs. EasyEntra Virtual User Templates.
How to Create an EasyEntra Virtual User Template
Creating an EasyEntra Virtual User Template is simple and takes seconds. Here’s the basic process:
- Right-click an existing user that matches your template requirements and select “Create Template”
- Name your template (e.g., “Sales Representative – US”) and add a description.
- Review all the user settings you want for the template: User Identity naming convention formats (UPN, email, aliases), Profile and Organizational Information (department, job title, manager, address etc.), M365 Licensing, AD and Cloud Group Memberships, Mailbox settings, Calendar permissions etc.
- Save your template. It’s now ready to use.
How to create an EasyEntra virtual user template
How to Create a New User from an EasyEntra Virtual Template
Once you’ve created a template, deploying new users is incredibly fast – typically 30 seconds per user. Here’s how:
- Open EasyEntra and right click your template, select “Create User”
- Enter the user’s display name. All other settings will be automatically generated based on the selected template.
- Review all the settings that will be applied from the template: e.g. M365 licenses, groups, mailbox configuration, profile and organizational information. When finished – click “Create”.
- The user will be fully provisioned and ready to use in seconds.
How to create a new user from an EasyEntra virtual user template
How to View or Edit an EasyEntra Virtual User Template
In every organization, change is inevitable, and there are times when standard user onboarding procedures need to be reviewed or updated. With EasyEntra Virtual User Templates, it’s easy to adapt to changes such as new naming conventions or updated group memberships—without rebuilding your onboarding process from scratch.
How to View or Edit an EasyEntra Virtual User Template
Ready to Streamline Your User Onboarding?
Microsoft 365 User Templates are a good starting point for basic standardization. However, for organizations with complex onboarding requirements – particularly those needing to automate group membership, mailbox configuration, user identity generation, or compliance settings – EasyEntra Virtual User Templates offer a comprehensive solution that addresses all limitations of M365 templates.
Learn More: Watch our comprehensive webinar on EasyEntra Virtual User Templates to see template creation and deployment in action:
Nine-minute webinar on working with EasyEntra Virtual Templates
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