Everything you need to know about hosting your Webflow site

How to host your Webflow site?

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To host your Webflow site, you have two main options:

• Directly use the native hosting offered by Webflow, which includes fast and secure servers.
• Export your HTML/CSS/JS code and upload it to a third party host, although this method does not allow you to maintain the dynamic features of Webflow.

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How do I host my Webflow site on my domain name?

To connect your Webflow site to a custom domain name:

1. Buy your domain name through a provider (O2switch, OVH, etc.).

2. Add your custom domain in the Webflow interface.

A paid plan is required to add a custom domain name in Webflow, the 1st plan starts at $14 per month with the annual plan. Here is an article to know everything about different Webflow subscriptions

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3. Configure your domain's DNS by following Webflow's instructions, including pointing to their servers (A and CNAME records).

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4.Review and publish your site from Webflow.

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5. Disable staging indexing

Be sure to deactivate the indexing of the webflow.io subdomain (staging) to avoid having two sites indexed

Why host my site on my own domain name?

A custom domain name is essential for:

• Improve the credibility and professionalism of your brand.
• Reinforce branding with a memorable URL.
• Optimize natural referencing (SEO) with a URL optimized for your business.

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Where are Webflow sites hosted?

Webflow sites are hosted on fast and secure servers provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) and use the CDN (Content Delivery Network) of Fastly. This ensures fast load times and reliable availability globally.

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Can I host my Webflow site for free?

Yes, but with limitations:

• Webflow offers a free plan that allows you to host your site on a Webflow sub-domain (e.g.: my-site.webflow.io).
• However, to connect a personalized domain name or access advanced features, a paid plan is required (we did an article dedicated to Webflow price)

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What is the price of hosting on Webflow?

The prices depend on the type of plan chosen:

• Basic: $18/month for simple sites without a CMS.
• CMS: $29/month for dynamic sites with content management.
• Business: $49/month for high-traffic sites.

These rates are for annual payment.

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Hosting and loading time of your Webflow site

Webflow hosting is optimized for speed thanks to:

• Using AWS servers and the Fastly CDN for fast delivery in The whole world.
• Automatic compression of images and CSS/JS files for better loading time.

These elements promote a better user experience and optimized SEO.

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Example of a host for your Webflow site

If you want to use a third party hosting provider, Netlify or Vercel are suitable for hosting exported Webflow sites, although you will lose dynamic functionalities like the CMS.

However, Webflow's native hosting remains the recommended choice to fully exploit the platform's capabilities.