Clones, Copies and Editing Renders in the Embedded Editor

When your users edit a template in the Templated embedded editor, they can work on the original template, on a copy, or on a clone. This article explains the difference and how to get the result back into your app.

Original, copy and clone

How each one is created:

• Original: open https://app.templated.io/editor/TEMPLATE_ID?embed=EMBED_ID, or choose Edit Original in the Account Templates launch mode.
• Copy: choose Create Copy in the Account Templates launch mode (template picker). The default Template Gallery launch mode also creates a copy.
• Clone: add &clone=true to the URL, or choose Create Clone in the Account Templates launch mode. Opening a render with &render=RENDER_ID also creates a clone.

What you should know about clones

• Your original template is never changed.
• A new clone is created every time the editor opens with clone=true. To reopen the same user design later, store the clone ID and open https://app.templated.io/editor/CLONE_ID?embed=EMBED_ID without clone=true.
• Clones are permanent. They stay in your account until you delete them via the API.
• Clones do not appear in the dashboard. List them with the API: GET /v1/templates/clones (filter by sourceTemplateId or externalId). Docs: https://templated.io/docs/templates/clones/
• Each clone keeps a link to its original through the sourceTemplateId field.
• Clones do not count toward your plan's template limit.
• If a user duplicates the design inside a clone, the result is also a clone.
• Clones may not have an up-to-date thumbnail. To show a preview of a clone in your app, render it (see below) and use the render URL.

Save vs Download

• Save stores the design in the template (the clone, copy or original). Saving does not create an image and does not use credits.
• Download creates a render (an image, PDF or video) and uses credits from your account, like an API render. The editor saves the template before downloading.

So if your user only clicks Save, there is no image yet. To get the image you can:

1. Let the user click Download in the editor. You receive the render URL in the download webhook and frontend event (renderId and renderUrl).
2. Or render the saved template from your backend with the API, using the clone ID as template and no layers:

POST https://api.templated.io/v1/render
{
  "template": "CLONE_ID",
  "format": "png"
}

Docs: https://templated.io/docs/renders/create/

How to get the clone ID

You need the clone ID to render it, reopen it or list it later. There are three ways:

1. Frontend event TEMPLATE_LOADED: sent to your page when the template finishes loading. It contains template.id (the clone ID), template.name, template.width and template.height.
2. Webhook or frontend create action: when a clone is created with clone=true, Templated sends {"action": "create", "templateId": "CLONE_ID", "metadata": {...}} to your webhook URL and to your page.
3. Webhook or frontend save action: every save sends {"action": "save", "templateId": "CLONE_ID", "metadata": {...}}.

Note: the EDITOR_READY event does not contain a template ID. Use TEMPLATE_LOADED instead.

Tip: add your own IDs to the metadata parameter (for example your user ID or order ID) so you can match each clone to the right record in your system. See "Embedded Editor Events" for code examples.

Editing a previous render

Users can reopen a render they already generated and change it:

https://app.templated.io/editor?embed=EMBED_ID&render=RENDER_ID

What happens:

1. Templated creates a clone of the template that was used for the render.
2. The values from that render (texts, images, colors, pages) are applied to the clone.
3. The user edits the clone. The original template and the original render are not changed.

Saving only saves the clone. It does not update or replace the old render. To get a new image, the user clicks Download, or you render the clone ID with the API.

The clone ID is sent in the TEMPLATE_LOADED event and in every save event.

To do the same without the editor, use the API endpoint POST /v1/template/from-render/{renderId}, which creates a clone from a render. Docs: https://templated.io/docs/templates/create-from-render/

FAQ

Q: What is the difference between clone and copy?
A: Both are new templates based on yours. A copy appears in your dashboard and counts toward your template limit. A clone does not appear in the dashboard (API only) and does not count toward the limit.

Q: I used clone=true but my original template changed. Why?
A: The clone=true parameter was not read. Check that the URL uses &clone=true and not &clone=true, and that it is in the URL of the page your users open.

Q: Do clones count toward my template limit?
A: No.

Q: Where can I see the clones my users created?
A: Not in the dashboard. Use the API: GET /v1/templates/clones.

Q: My user saved the design but I don't see an image. Why?
A: Saving does not render. Ask the user to click Download, or render the clone ID with the API.

Q: How do I get the ID of the clone my user is editing?
A: Listen for the TEMPLATE_LOADED event, or the create and save actions (webhook or frontend). They all include the template ID.

Q: Does saving cost credits?
A: No. Only downloads and renders use credits.

Q: If a user edits a render, is the old render replaced?
A: No. The old render stays as it is. A new render is created only when the user downloads or you render the clone.

Q: Can the same user keep editing the same design later?
A: Yes. Store the clone ID and open the editor with that ID in the URL, without clone=true.

Updated on: 01/10/2026