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Getting Microsoft's Access templates

Several demos here are rebuilds of Microsoft's own templates. Get the originals from inside Access.

Microsoft's Featured Access templates page still lists them, but its download links no longer work.

Heads up: as far as we know, the download buttons on Microsoft's page don't work at the moment. Use the File > New steps below instead.

Get Microsoft's sample databases from inside Access:

  1. Open Access.
  2. Choose File > New.
  3. Type the template name in the search box. For example Issues, Tasks, Students or Bugs.
  4. Pick it.
  5. Click Create.

Creating Databases Using Templates - uCertify, 1 min 22 s, no sound. Older Access 2013 screens, same steps.

For the Northwind 2.0 samples, Access MVP Daniel Pineault (devhut.net) has a post showing how to download them direct from Microsoft: Access Northwind 2.0 Direct Downloads. Credit to him for working that out.

Get Northwind Database for Microsoft Access - Crystal (LearnAccessByCrystal), 5 min, narrated.

Nifty Access does not host Microsoft's files. The templates are Microsoft's.

Learn Access

Heads up

Microsoft's download links don't seem to work right now (checked October 2026). You can still read the page, but to get the templates use File > New inside Access.