A format template is a picture of how you want the data to look when it is displayed or entered in a single‑line field.

For numeric and string data types, a format template consists of character set definitions and special characters. These represent the type and order of the characters that are displayed, or the valid characters that the user can enter in that field. To the system, each character set definition in the template represents one or more characters to be displayed or validated, depending on whether the field is a display‑only or data entry field. To the user, the template provides visual clues about the type and format of the data that must be entered in a data entry field.

For date data types, a format template provides an actual date in a variety of formats. In data entry fields, the user follows the form of the example date in the field to enter the actual date that he or she wants to enter.