How-ToAdministration

How to Use Report Themes and Word Layouts in Business Central

Design document reports with the Business Central Word add-in, then apply reusable themes and header/footer layouts across reports and companies from one place.

Stein Sæstad
11 min read

Business Central 2026 release wave 2 (version 29) reworked how document reports are designed. The Word add-in lets you add report fields, build tables, and hide empty content without touching the XML Mapping Pane. Report themes and header/footer layouts let you define fonts, colors, logos, and footer text once and reuse them on every invoice, quote, and order.

This guide covers the add-in first, then the reusable parts. If your company has five Word layouts with the same logo pasted into each one, the second half is the part that saves you work at the next rebrand.

When to Use This

  • Your sales documents need a consistent look, and today each layout is maintained separately.
  • You run several companies and want different branding per company without copying every layout.
  • Users ask for small layout changes, such as hiding a discount column when no line has a discount, and you don’t want to send each request to a developer.

How Composite Layouts Work

A document report built with the new experience is a composite layout with up to three parts:

Part What it holds File type
Body The report-specific content: lines, totals, tables .docx Word layout with the Body subtype
Theme Fonts, colors, and styles .dotx
Header and footer Logo, company details, page footer text .docx

When the report runs, Business Central combines the three. Change the theme, and every body layout that uses it picks up the change. Only Word layouts with the Body subtype can use themes and header/footer parts. A layout with the Default subtype stays a standalone layout.

Step 1: Turn On the New Document Report Experience

The new experience is an optional feature in version 29, and it is off by default.

  1. Search for Feature Management using Alt + Q.
  2. Find Feature: New Document Report Experience.
  3. Set Enabled for to All Users.

Test it in a sandbox first. Users who print documents every day will notice if a layout changes.

Step 2: Install the Word Add-in

  1. Open Word and go to the Home tab.
  2. Select Get Add-ins.
  3. Search for Dynamics 365 Business Central Word add-in.
  4. Select the add-in, then select Add.

A Business Central tab appears on the Word ribbon.

Step 3: Export a Layout with Report Metadata

The add-in reads report metadata from inside the Word file. A layout file without that metadata shows no fields in the add-in.

  1. Search for Report Layouts using Alt + Q.
  2. Select the Word layout you want to change. For a new design, select New, set the Report ID, set Format Options to Word, and turn on Create a blank layout from the report object.
  3. Select Layout > Update and Export Layout.
  4. Open the downloaded .docx file in Word.

Always use Update and Export Layout rather than a plain export. It refreshes the dataset in the file, so new fields added by extensions show up in the add-in.

Step 4: Add Fields and Tables

  1. On the Business Central tab, select Add Data. A task pane opens with three groups: Data, Labels, and Report Information.
  2. Place the cursor where a value should appear, select the field in the task pane, and select Add field.
  3. For a line table, place the cursor where the table goes and select Insert table.
  4. In the Create Data Table dialog, set the Data source (for example, the sales line data item), add the fields you want as columns, and arrange them.
  5. Turn on Include header row and Auto-select headline to use field captions as column headings.
  6. Select Create table.

You can format the table with normal Word tools afterward. Don’t delete the repeating row control or the field bindings inside it, because they connect the table to the report data.

Step 5: Hide Content That Has No Value

The Hide if empty group on the Business Central tab controls what disappears when there is nothing to show.

Control Select this first Example
Hide Field if Zero The field Hide a zero freight amount
Hide Empty Table The whole table Remove a prepayment table when there are no prepayments
Hide Empty Table Row The field in the repeating row that decides visibility Skip comment lines with no text
Hide Empty Table Column The field in the table header Remove a column when no row has a value

To drop the discount column from invoices without discounts, apply Hide Field if Zero to the discount field in the repeating row, then apply Hide Empty Table Column to the matching field in the header row.

Step 6: Add a Layout Comment

Use Insert layout comment for notes that should stay in the design file but never print. A version history table works well:

Layout description Version Date of change
Invoice, NO, with bank details in footer 1.2 2026-10-14

Select the table, then select Business Central > Insert layout comment. The table stays visible in Word with a Hidden Comment border and doesn’t appear in the printed report.

Step 7: Upload and Test the Layout

  1. Save the document in Word.
  2. On the Report Layouts page, select the user-defined layout.
  3. Select Replace Layout, confirm, and select the edited .docx file.
  4. Select Run Report to preview the result.

Extension-provided layouts can’t be replaced. Create a user-defined copy first, then replace the file on the copy.

Step 8: Upload a Theme and a Header/Footer Layout

Prepare the files in Word first. The theme is a Word template (.dotx) with the fonts, colors, and styles you want. The header/footer is a .docx with the logo, company details, and footer text in the page header and footer.

  1. Search for Manage themes and header-footer layouts using Alt + Q.
  2. Select New theme or New header/footer.
  3. Enter a name and an optional description, then select OK.
  4. Select the file to upload.
  5. Select the new part, then select Part Status > Set Approved.

New parts start as Draft and can’t be assigned until they are Approved. The other statuses, Pending Approval and Retired, are useful when someone in marketing reviews branding before it goes live.

Step 9: Assign Defaults

Themes and header/footers resolve from the most specific assignment to the least specific. Set the broad default first, then override where needed.

Global default (all reports, all companies):

  1. Search for Report defaults for theme and header-footer.
  2. Select Add global default.
  3. Set the Header/Footer Part and Theme Part fields to approved parts.

Company default:

  1. Open Company Information.
  2. Expand the Reporting FastTab.
  3. Set Default Theme and Default Header/Footer.

Report default (all layouts of one report):

  1. On Report defaults for theme and header-footer, select Set for one report.
  2. Select a body layout for the report, then set the parts. Leave Company Name empty to apply it in all companies.

One layout:

  1. On Report Layouts, select a Word layout with the Body subtype.
  2. Select Composite layout > Set report theme and header-footer.
  3. Select the parts and select OK.

The order Business Central checks, from first to last:

Order Scope Shown as
1 This body layout, current company This layout
2 This body layout, all companies This layout
3 All layouts for the report, current company Report default
4 All layouts for the report, all companies Report default
5 All reports, current company Company
6 All reports, all companies Global default

Theme and header/footer resolve independently. A layout can have its own header/footer and still inherit the company theme.

Step 10: Check What Each Layout Uses

  1. On Report Layouts, select a body layout.
  2. Look at the Details FactBox. It shows the theme and header/footer and where each one comes from.
  3. To compare all layouts for one report, select Composite layout > Set all report theme and header-footer.

The FactBox only shows administrator assignments. A part declared inside an extension can still apply when the FactBox shows None, so run the report to confirm.

Example Configuration

A group with two companies, one in Norway and one in Sweden:

Scope Theme Header/Footer
Global default GROUP-THEME GROUP-HF
Company: Sweden AB (inherit) SE-HF with Swedish bank details
Report: Sales Quote QUOTE-THEME with a lighter color scheme (inherit)

Swedish invoices get the group theme with Swedish bank details. Quotes in both companies use the lighter theme, and the header/footer still follows the company.

FAQ

Can I replace a theme file without redoing the assignments? Yes. On Manage themes and header-footer layouts, select the part and use Replace. Every assignment keeps pointing to it.

What happens if I retire a part that is assigned? The assignment stays and the part keeps applying. Clear the field on the assignment if you want reports to stop using it.

Do RDLC layouts support themes? No. Themes and header/footer parts work with Word layouts that have the Body subtype.

If you need a new report rather than a new layout, see How to Build Custom Reports in Business Central.