Klaviyo Email Templates: How to Build a Set That Converts
Klaviyo templates explained: the free library, drag-and-drop vs HTML vs hybrid, Shopify product blocks, and the template set every ecommerce store needs.
Table of contents
- Klaviyo templates: what you get
- Drag-and-drop vs HTML vs hybrid templates
- Klaviyo email templates for Shopify
- Moving templates over from Shopify Email
- The ecommerce template set every store needs
- What makes a Klaviyo template convert
- Free and third-party Klaviyo templates
- Using AI for Klaviyo templates
- Free plan limits
- The bottom line
- Sources
Klaviyo’s templates are the most visible part of the platform and, in our audits, the part most often left at default. That matters because the template is where your data meets your customer: the product block, the dynamic cart, the personalised recommendation. This guide covers what Klaviyo’s template tools actually do as of September 2026, how they work with Shopify, and the template set we build for ecommerce brands.
Klaviyo templates: what you get
Klaviyo includes a library of 160+ customisable email templates, free once you sign up. Templates are built in a drag-and-drop editor, are mobile-friendly by default, and can pull live product data from your store. You can also code custom HTML, save your own templates, and reuse headers and footers across every email with universal content blocks.
The key features, from Klaviyo’s template pages and help centre:
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| Template library | 160+ templates, including seasonal sets (holiday, winter, sale) |
| Drag-and-drop editor | Build without HTML; mobile-friendly by default |
| Template types | Drag-and-drop, text-only, HTML, and hybrid |
| Universal content | Save blocks or sections; edit once to update everywhere |
| Global brand styles | Fonts, colours and buttons set once for the account |
| Product blocks | Static (up to 9 hand-picked products) or dynamic feeds |
| Image Remix | AI image editing inside the editor |
| Email AI | Generates sections or full drafts (paid plans) |
| Inbox testing | Previews across clients, including dark mode (paid plans; 100 tests per user per month) |
Drag-and-drop vs HTML vs hybrid templates
Drag-and-drop is the default and the right choice for most brands. You get product blocks, universal content, dynamic blocks and easy editing by non-developers.
Text-only templates are plain emails. Useful for founder notes and some win-back or re-engagement emails where a plain look reads as personal.
HTML templates give full control but lose the drag-and-drop product blocks. Only use them if you have a developer maintaining them.
Hybrid templates are custom HTML that keeps drag-and-drop features such as product blocks and universal blocks. This is the best route if your brand needs a very bespoke design but you still want dynamic content.
Our rule: if a marketer, not a developer, will edit the emails every week, build in drag-and-drop.
Klaviyo email templates for Shopify
This is where Klaviyo pulls away from simpler tools. With Shopify connected:
- Product blocks pull items from your synced catalogue. Static blocks take up to nine hand-picked products; dynamic feeds choose products automatically. Out-of-stock Shopify items are hidden from feeds.
- Localise for recipient adapts product details for Shopify Markets.
- Abandoned cart and checkout emails use dynamic table blocks that loop over the event’s line items, so each email shows exactly what that person left. Klaviyo notes Shopify users don’t need to build these manually: the flow library includes pre-built emails.
- Personalised product recommendations can fill a block with items each customer is most likely to buy, excluding what they already own.
If your Shopify integration isn’t capturing the right data, templates can’t use it. Check the setup in how to connect Klaviyo to Shopify.
Moving templates over from Shopify Email
There is no one-click import of Shopify Email templates into Klaviyo. You have two options: rebuild the designs in Klaviyo’s drag-and-drop editor (recommended, because you gain dynamic product blocks and universal content), or bring custom HTML into an HTML or hybrid template. We cover the full move in our Shopify Email to Klaviyo migration service and the decision itself in Klaviyo vs Shopify Email.
The ecommerce template set every store needs
Rather than designing each email from scratch, build a small system. This is the set we start with:
Foundation (build once, reuse everywhere)
- Master template: header, footer, USP bar, social links, legal text as universal content.
- Brand styles: fonts, colours, button style and spacing set globally.
Flow templates 3. Welcome: delivers the sign-up offer, then introduces the brand and bestsellers. 4. Abandoned cart / checkout: dynamic cart block, reassurance (shipping, returns, reviews), clear CTA. 5. Browse abandonment: the viewed product plus alternatives. 6. Post-purchase: order confirmation style, how-to-use content, cross-sell block. 7. Replenishment: reorder timing based on product usage. 8. Win-back: plain-text option plus a product-led option to test. 9. Back-in-stock: the product, the price, one button.
Campaign templates 10. Product launch, sale / promotion, content / newsletter, and founder note (text-only).
Each flow template should link to the logic behind it. See our guides to abandoned cart emails, browse abandonment, post-purchase flows and win-back flows.
What makes a Klaviyo template convert
A template is a delivery mechanism for a message and a product. Design matters, but these matter more:
- One job per email. One primary CTA, repeated if the email is long.
- The offer or product above the fold on a phone screen.
- Live text over images for key messages, so the email still works when images are blocked and in dark mode.
- Dynamic blocks over static screenshots. Real products, real prices, real stock.
- Alt text on every image.
- Dark mode checks. Klaviyo notes it can’t control how each device renders dark mode, so test transparent logos and dark text on paid plans with inbox testing.
- Reasonable file size. Heavy image-only emails load slowly and can hurt deliverability. See how to avoid the spam folder in Klaviyo.
Free and third-party Klaviyo templates
Beyond Klaviyo’s own library, there are paid template packs on marketplaces and design communities. They can be a good starting point for layout ideas, but check two things before buying: that they’re built for Klaviyo’s drag-and-drop or hybrid editor (not flat HTML that loses product blocks), and that you can swap in your brand styles easily. A template that looks great with stock photography often falls apart with your real product shots.
Using AI for Klaviyo templates
On paid plans, Klaviyo’s Email AI can generate sections (text, images, layouts, buttons, product blocks) or draft a full campaign email from a drag-and-drop reference template, returning three drafts per prompt. Image Remix edits images inside the editor. Both are useful for speed and variants. Neither replaces a template system designed around your brand. We test them in Klaviyo AI features, tested.
Free plan limits
Klaviyo’s free plan includes basic templates and the drag-and-drop editor, but free-plan emails carry a Klaviyo branding footer, and Email AI and inbox testing are paid features. See what is Klaviyo for the rest of the free plan.
The bottom line
Klaviyo’s template tools are more capable than most accounts use. The winning setup is a small system: universal header and footer, global styles, and flow templates built around dynamic product data rather than static images. Build it once, and every campaign after is faster and more consistent.
If you’d rather have that system designed and built for you, our email design and copywriting team does exactly this, and the free Klaviyo audit will show which of your current templates are costing you revenue.
Sources
Checked September 2026:
/ Frequently Asked Questions
Q.01 Does Klaviyo have free email templates? +
/ Answer
Yes. Klaviyo's template library has more than 160 customisable email templates, free to use once you sign up, including on the free plan. They are built in the drag-and-drop editor and are mobile-friendly by default. Free-plan emails carry a Klaviyo branding footer, which is removed on paid plans.
Q.02 What types of templates can you use in Klaviyo? +
/ Answer
Klaviyo supports drag-and-drop templates, text-only templates and custom HTML templates. A hybrid approach lets custom HTML keep drag-and-drop features such as product blocks and universal content. Most ecommerce brands should build in drag-and-drop or hybrid, because dynamic product blocks don't work in plain HTML templates.
Q.03 How do Klaviyo email templates work with Shopify? +
/ Answer
Once Shopify is connected, product blocks pull items from your synced catalogue, either chosen manually (up to nine) or dynamically from a feed, and out-of-stock items are hidden from feeds. Abandoned cart and checkout emails use dynamic blocks that loop over the cart's line items, and the flow library includes pre-built emails for Shopify stores.
Q.04 Can I import my Shopify Email templates into Klaviyo? +
/ Answer
Not with a one-click import. In practice brands either rebuild the designs in Klaviyo's drag-and-drop editor using their brand styles, or bring custom HTML into an HTML or hybrid template. Rebuilding is usually the better choice, because it gives you dynamic product blocks, universal content and easier editing going forward.
Q.05 Can AI create a Klaviyo email template? +
/ Answer
On paid plans, Klaviyo's Email AI can generate email sections or draft a full campaign email from a drag-and-drop reference template, returning three drafts per prompt. Treat the output as a first draft: you still add product feeds, images, alt text and links, and edit for brand voice and accuracy.
Q.06 How do I create my own template in Klaviyo? +
/ Answer
Build an email in the drag-and-drop editor, then save it as a template so it appears under Content, Templates, Email: saved. For elements you repeat across every email, such as header, footer and USP bar, save them as universal content blocks, so a single edit updates every template that uses them.
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