Workflow Email Alerts (and the email-alert nodes in Process Builder, Flow, and approval steps that use Classic email-alert actions) can use four types of email templates. The list is from Salesforce Classic — Lightning Email Templates aren’t supported in workflow email alerts.
The four types
| Type | What it is | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Plain text only, no markup | Simple notifications, mobile-friendly, accessibility |
| HTML (with Letterhead) | Branded HTML built on a Letterhead component for header/footer | Corporate branded emails |
| Custom HTML (without Letterhead) | Free-form HTML you write yourself | Full control over layout, no Letterhead constraints |
| Visualforce | A Visualforce page used as the template | Dynamic content driven by Apex — e.g. multi-language, complex tables |
Quick decision flow
- Need branded design with consistent header/footer? → HTML with Letterhead
- Need full HTML control? → Custom HTML
- Need to render data with Apex logic (loops over child records, complex formatting)? → Visualforce
- Need plain text only (mobile, SMS-style)? → Text
Why Lightning Email Templates aren’t here
Lightning Email Templates were introduced for the Email Composer in Lightning Experience. They use a different storage model and reference the Lightning UI. Workflow email alerts pre-date Lightning and use the Classic template engine. You can’t pick a Lightning Email Template from a workflow email alert’s template selector.
Template merge fields
All four types support merge fields — references to fields on the triggering record:
Hi {!Contact.FirstName},
Your case {!Case.CaseNumber} has been escalated.
— {!Case.Owner.Name}You can reach into related records, but cross-object references must be set up correctly.
Limits worth knowing
- One template per email alert — you can’t send a mix
- Up to 5 recipients per alert from the Recipient picker (plus you can add additional emails to the CC field)
- Daily limit on email alerts depends on org type — usually 5,000/day per user
What interviewers want
- The count: four (don’t forget Custom HTML as a separate type from HTML-with-Letterhead)
- The names of all four
- Bonus: note that Lightning Email Templates aren’t supported in workflow alerts — a common follow-up
Verified against: Salesforce Help — Email Templates. Last reviewed 2026-05-17 for Spring ‘26 release.