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Block types reference

Every structure and content block available in the Email Studio editor, what each does, and when to reach for it. Plus the per-block properties that work across all blocks.

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Block types reference

A template is built from blocks. There are two categories — structure blocks (layout) and content blocks (the actual text and visuals). Every block supports per-block styling.

Structure blocks

Define the layout — they don’t carry content of their own.

  • Logo Left — Header row with the logo positioned to the left
  • Logo Right — Header row with the logo positioned to the right
  • Section — A content container — wraps the rest of the row’s content for consistent padding and background
  • Columns (1–4) — Multi-column layouts inside a row. Pick 1 for full-width, 2 for split, 3 or 4 for grid layouts
  • Divider — Horizontal line separator between sections
  • Spacer — Vertical whitespace between blocks

Use structure blocks to give the email visual rhythm — section, divider, section, footer. Without them, the content blocks just stack edge-to-edge and the email feels cramped.

Content blocks

Hold the actual text, images, and interactive elements.

  • Text — Rich-text content with inline formatting (bold, italic, links). The workhorse of every template
  • Heading — Section-level headers with size and weight presets
  • Image — Upload from your computer or paste a URL; supports alt text and click-through links
  • Button — Call-to-action button with link configuration, color, border radius, alignment, padding
  • Merge Tags — Dynamic placeholders that get replaced with real values at send time — see Use merge tags
  • Dynamic Blocks — Conditional content that shows or hides based on contact / conversation properties

Per-block properties

Every block exposes the same set of styling controls (when relevant for that block type):

  • Colors — background color, text color, link color
  • Typography — font family, size, weight, line height
  • Spacing — padding (inside the block), margin (between blocks)
  • Alignment — left / center / right
  • Link configuration — for blocks with clickable elements (buttons, images, text with embedded links)
  • Image handling — for image blocks, options for upload vs. URL, alt text, click-through

Setting a property at the block level overrides the template’s default for that block only. Setting it at the template level applies to every block that hasn’t overridden it.

Patterns that work

  • Confirmation email — Logo Left → Section (Heading + Text) → Section (Button “View status”) → Divider → Section (small Text “If you have questions, just reply”)
  • CSAT survey email — Logo Left → Section (Heading “How did we do?”) → Section (Columns of 1-5 star buttons) → Divider → Section (Text “Thanks!”)
  • Internal notification — Logo Right → Section (Heading + Text with merge tags) → Section (Button to deep-link into the app)

Anti-patterns

  • Fifteen separate Text blocks. Each Text block can hold rich-text with paragraphs, headings inline, and links. Splitting into many blocks doesn’t help layout — it makes the editor harder to navigate.
  • Columns inside columns. Email clients render nested column layouts unpredictably. Stick to one level of column nesting.
  • Heading blocks for body text. Heading blocks have specific size and weight defaults that don’t read like body content. Use Text blocks with rich-text headings for body context.

See also

Tags

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