How to Make/Create an Essay Outline [Templates + Examples] 2023

Essay outlines are referred to as the basic blueprints of essay writing, and learning how to write an essay outline increases your chances of delivering a compelling essay. From setting the essay’s structure, and counting the required number of paragraphs, down to deciding what topics to discuss, you can definitely benefit from an essay outline for your next writing piece.

Build an Essay Outline Template – Step-by-Step Instructions

Outlines for essays make it easier to arrange and organize your ideas while writing. And the writing process could not get any easier when you apply these steps on how to create an essay outline using printable sample templates:

Step 1: Look for an Essay Outline Template (Option 1)

Open your browser and log on to Template.net. View the landing page for essay outlines and you’ll receive plenty of downloadable options such as a research paper essay outline template, an 8th-grade essay outline template, and many more.

Step 2: Search for an Essay Outline Template (Option 2)

You can also use the search box found on the top center of the site to access any template you want pronto. Just type “essay outline” and you’ll receive recommendations of different essay outline templates as well as related templates in various file formats.

Step 3: Choose an Essay Outline Template and Its Format

Pick a template you want to use by clicking it. Then, set the file format under “Select a File Format” to your preferred version, such as Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or PDF.

Step 4: Download the Template in Your Preferred Format

After choosing a file format, click “Download Now” and you’ll eventually have a zip file downloaded to your computer. Open that specific file once the download process is complete.

Step 5: Extract the Zip File

To use the content of your zip file moving forward, extract it to a specific folder or location first. Open the file in MS Word if you picked the Word format, access Google Docs if you selected Google Docs format, and so forth.

Step 6: Enable Editing

If you’re using MS Word, the zip file’s version would be locked for editing by default. Hence, click “Enable Editing” found on the top of your screen to cancel the document’s protected view.

Step 7: Alter the Text and Overall Content

Begin editing the essay outline document by clicking on any part of the text and typing the new words you want to add. Be sure to plan on how to build the three parts of an essay (introduction, body, and conclusion) as well as set the essay outline’s purpose whether it is made for a 6th-grade thesis essay, high school essay in MLA format, middle school essay in APA format, descriptive English essay, narrative history essay, college analysis essay, or a general persuasive essay.

Step 8: Save and Print the Edited Essay Outline Document

You can still add a graphic organizer and more informative data to the essay outline as long as you save your document by pressing Ctrl + S on your keyboard when you’re finished editing. Then, you can print it by clicking “File,” “Print,” and finalizing the printing options to have a hard copy of the essay outline.

Essay Outline Templates & Examples

Writing essays would run a smooth sail with a premade layout to guide you; hence, essay outlines exist to achieve that very purpose. Whether you need to accomplish a long five-paragraph essay or a short one-page essay, there are always many essay outline examples available such as:

General Essay Outline Template

A general essay outline marks your go-to template for writing any type of essay. This is the very outline used so you won’t go wrong in making standard essays; thus, it is multi-functional compared to only making one type of essay.

Argumentative Essay Outline Template

An argumentative essay outline is where you make a detailed map of what to write in an essay that aims to investigate a particular subject. Being argumentative means your writing assignment should be well-researched and evidence-based to make your arguments valid.

College Essay Outline Template

A college essay outline is basically made for college students. College students won’t have a hard time organizing their thoughts and notions through writing with a college essay outline for reference.

Character Analysis Writing Essay Outline Template

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• Google Docs
• PDF

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Literary Analysis Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Problem Solution Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Reflective Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
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• PDF

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General Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs
• PDF

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Argumentative Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs
• PDF

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DBQ Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs
• PDF

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College Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs
• PDF

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Descriptive Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Essay Prewriting Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Community Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Historical Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Simple Essay Outline Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Essay Outline For Research Paper Template

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• MS Word
• Google Docs

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Biography Essay Outline Format Template

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• MS Word
• Pages
• Editable PDF

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Sample Essay Outline Template Word Format

fc.deltasd.bc.ca

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• DOC

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Essay writing is fun, but it can also be challenging. People who write essays know that the best thing to do to get then best results is to have an outline. Use this outline to write your essay. You may also see Business Plan Outline Template

Free Expository Essay Outline Template Word Doc

teacherweb.com

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• DOC

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Writing an essay doesn’t happen in the spur of a moment. It requires idea and careful forethought. The best place to write down all your ideas is on a essay outline template. This template is one example that you can download, print, and work on for your essay-writing assignment. You may also see Research Paper Outline Template.

Free Argumentative Essay Outline Template PDF Sample

depts.washington.edu

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• PDF

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Did you know that an outline can help you pre determine what will go into your essay? You can download this outline for free and use it to plan your essay before you start writing. You may also see General Essay Outline Templates in Word.

Narrative Essay Outline Template Free PDF Example

thewritersalley.com

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• PDF

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If you reckon yourself as not very-well equipped to write a good essay, an essay outline would be a good place for you to give your topical ideas a shape and a flow. This particular essay outline template would be serviceable to you. You can download and use this simple template to jot down your ideas and other relevant information in a systematic manner. You may also see Paragraph Essay Outline.

Sample Compare and Contrast Essay Outline PDF Download

kibin.com

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• PDF

Size: 172.6 KB

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Sample Research Essay Outline Template Download

butte.edu

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• PDF

Size: 173.3 KB

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Blank Informative Essay Outline Template Sample

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• PDF

Size: 7 KB

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Blank Sentence Outline for Literary Analysis Essay

napavalley.edu

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• PDF

Size: 71.7 KB

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Essay Paper Outline Template

dmitchell77.weebly.com

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• PDF

Size: 65.9 KB

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Outline Structure for Literary Analysis Essay Template

udc.edu

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• PDF

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Example of a Argument Essay Outline

fsusd.org

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• PDF

Size: 31 KB

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Free Five Paragraph Essay Outline

cwcboe.org

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• PDF

Size: 55.7 KB

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Free Printable Essay Plan Outline

share.nanjing-school.com

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• PDF

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Example of free Narrative Essay Outline Worksheet in PDF

ela8devonmiddle.wikispaces.com

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• PDF

Size: 5.3 MB

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Business School Essay Exam Outline

business.unsw.edu.au

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• PDF

Size: 38.4 KB

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Free Compare and Contrast Essay Outline Examples

kibin.com

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• PDF

Size: 172.6 KB

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Basic Proper Essay Outline Format

tacoma.uw.edu

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• PDF

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Topical Outlines Essay Format

staffwww.fullcoll.edu

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• PDF

Size: 80.5 KB

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Short Essay Outline Template

alexandercollege.ca

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• PDF

Size: 625.1 KB

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Group Explanatory Essay Outline Format

chino.k12.ca.us

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• PDF

Size: 58.5 KB

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Standard Detailed Essay Outline

awsstudentacademy.hbicambodia.com

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• PDF

Size: 51.7 KB

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Sample College Research Paper Outline Download

gcsny.org

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• PDF

Size: 53.2 KB

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Free College Essay Outline Template Example

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• DOC

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