Is Webflow SEO Friendly? All Your Questions Answered
If you're thinking about building a new website on Webflow, or migrating your current WordPress site, one of the most important things to consider is how well it will perform in search engines.
After all, having a visually attractive website doesn't matter much if no one can find it!
If Webflow is the platform you're thinking of using, you're probably wondering, “Is Webflow SEO friendly?” Well, the short answer is Yes!
But in this blog post, we’ll see exactly why that’s the case, how Webflow supports SEO, and what steps you need to take to make the most of its SEO features. Let’s get started!
About Webflow
Webflow is a website builder that requires no extensive coding expertise. Designers, developers, and marketers use it to build their portfolios or business websites.
Webflow comes with hosting options, an easy-to-use content management system (CMS), and a flexible e-commerce system. It’s a space where you can build, manage, and improve your website, all at one platform.
And you don’t need to be a tech expert to get started, Webflow its user-friendly and simple for anyone to use.
Is Webflow SEO Friendly?
The answer is yes.
While SEO is something you’ll have to work on no matter which platform you use, Webflow has a few built-in features that make the process simple.
Let’s break down some of these core features:
1. Customizable Meta Titles and Descriptions
Meta titles and descriptions are a key part of on-page SEO. They tell search engines (and users) what your page is about.
In other words, when someone searches for something on Google, these titles and descriptions are what appear in the search results.
On Webflow you can easily create optimized meta tags that improve your click-through rates (CTR) from search engine results pages (SERPs).
2. Clean and Semantic HTML5 Code
Search engines like Google scan your site to understand its content. One of the factors that helps that is having clean code.
Webflow writes clean, semantic HTML5 codes for you, which is super important for SEO. The cleaner your code, the easier it is for search engines to "read" your site and rank it for relevant searches.
3. Automatic Sitemaps
One of the best ways Google and other search engines can easily index all your pages is by having a sitemap. A sitemap is a file that lists all the pages on your website and how they are connected.
Webflow automatically generates an XML sitemap for your website. Here’s how: Whenever you add new content to your site, Webflow updates the sitemap for you. This is how search engines are always “aware” of the latest pages and content you’ve published.
4. SSL Certificates
Security matters not only to users but also to search engines. Google prefers websites with SSL certificates (it adds an extra layer of security by using HTTPS instead of HTTP). This protects data on your site and makes users trust your site.
With Webflow, SSL certificates are provided for free. This not only protects your site but also improves its ranking on search engines, so it’s a win-win for both security and SEO.
5. Responsive, Mobile-Friendly Design
Mobile devices account for 63.38% of all website traffic in 2024. This is why having a responsive design is non-negotiable for your website.
At Webflow is easy to create websites that look great on all devices. This means your site is more likely to perform well in mobile search results.
Here’s a step-by-step tutorial you might find helpful for building a responsive website on Webflow.
6. Performance Optimizations for Faster Load Times
As a user, when you land on a website, you want it to be as fast as possible, otherwise, you’ll probably never visit it again.
Webflow has built-in optimizations that can improve your site’s performance, like minification and lazy loading images.
Minification is the process of reducing the size of your website’s files (like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript) by removing unnecessary characters, such as spaces, line breaks, and comments.
You can easily enable minification for the set files to speed up your load times.
You also have the option to lazy load images on Webflow. This means images will only load as you scroll down the page rather than all at once when the page first opens. It reduces initial load times, which is great for image-heavy sites, and makes the site faster.
Programmatic SEO is a Game Changer for Marketers
If you’re managing a lot of blog posts and landing pages, or if you have an e-commerce store, programmatic SEO is a lifesaver.
But what is it exactly?
Programmatic SEO is the process of generating multiple pages using a single template.
Let’s say you’re running a site that needs to generate hundreds of pages for different locations or products. Instead of manually creating each page (which would take forever), you can use Webflow’s CMS Collections feature to create a template and automatically generate pages.
You can also make sure that each page is SEO-friendly, with customizable meta titles, descriptions, and URL structures.
Programmatic SEO is very helpful if you run a business and need to create large amounts of content. Webflow’s CMS makes this process super simple and efficient.
Top SEO Plugins for Webflow
While Webflow is great on its own, sometimes you need extra tools to get better results. Here are some SEO plugins that integrate well with Webflow:
1. Semflow
Semflow is a super helpful tool for your marketing strategies, even if you know nothing about SEO. It scans your website and shows you exactly what to improve to help you rank better on Google.
Super simple, super useful. It’ll monitor all SEO data for you, including meta tags, alt texts, and keyword usage, so you can optimize pages as you build them.
Key Features
- Real-time SEO analysis within Webflow
- Meta tag, keyword, and alt-text optimization
- Simple interface for both beginners and pros
Pricing
Monthly pricing plan starts at $15 per month after a 7-day free trial, and the annual plan at $96 per year after the same trial period.
Rating
G2: 5.0/5.0
2. FluidSEO
FluidSEO is another helpful plugin for Webflow that takes care of everything SEO for you. It helps you create image alt texts, optimize page descriptions, and fix any SEO issues on your site without needing to deal with complex coding.
Key Features
- Easy SEO issue identification and fixes
- Generates alt text for images, including CMS images
- Creates optimized metadata
- Helps build structured data without coding
Pricing
You can either use the Free Plan with basic features or pay for the Business Plan at $24/month for advanced features.
Review
“Highly recommend it! FluidSEO is a great example of bright people identifying a gap in a CMS and coming up with an affordable and easy-to-use solution.” - Christian Billing, SEO Specialist at Qred (Source)
3. Jetboost
Jetboost is a no-code tool you can use to add features like real-time search, filters, and favoriting items to your website. Everything is set up quickly and works right away. Jetboost helps your visitors find what they need faster, and makes your content easier to browse. Best for a smooth and interactive experience on your website.
Key Features
- Real-time search for fast content browsing
- Filters for better content organization
- Easy item favoriting and saving
- Custom CMS sorting options
- Automatic pagination to break up long lists
Pricing
Jetboost pricing plans start from $0/month for sites hosted on webflow.io. Paid plans range from $19/month for basic features to $149/month for high-traffic business sites.
Review
“We love Jetboost, it’s definitely what Webflow sites need right now. We see a constant need for filters. Really like how easy and powerful it is.” - Ivanska Carrillo (Source)
4. DataGoat
DataGoat was developed specifically to help Webflow users. It integrates Google Analytics directly into your Webflow Designer, tracks site visitors and other important metrics. You can monitor your SEO progress directly from Webflow. It’ll also generate detailed reports to give insights into your site's performance.
Key Features
- Direct integration with Google Analytics
- Access to detailed visitor data and SEO metrics
- Customizable reports and real-time tracking
Pricing
The Starter plan is free, while for startups and businesses, it costs $12 and $24 per month.
5. Storipress
Storipress makes content creation easy for you. It’s built-in SEO tools help optimize your content as you go. With Storipress, you can create, edit, and publish posts faster while keeping everything organized and on track. It integrates with platforms like Webflow and even CRMs like HubSpot, so your content is always synced and ready to be published.
Key Features:
- Easy-to-use content workflow system
- AI-powered editing for consistency and brand voice
- Works with platforms like Webflow and WordPress
- Automatically shares content to social media and integrates with CRMs like HubSpot
- SEO tools built into the workflow for optimization
Pricing
Storipress offers a 2-week trial for just $3. After that, pricing starts at $42 per admin per month. For the Storipress Prophet plan, you need to contact sales for pricing.
Review
"Storipress is hands down the best content workflow system I've ever used. We wouldn't have been able to grow Missing Perspectives to where it is today without the work of Alex and the team." - Phoebe Saintilan, Founder & CEO of Missing Pespectives (Source)
6. LinkNavigator
Internal links are a simple but powerful SEO strategy, and LinkNavigator makes this process effortless. It’s a Webflow-specific tool that automates internal linking, so you easily add and manage links across your site.
Strong internal linking helps search engines understand your site's structure and improves SEO by fixing orphan pages (pages without links). This is great for your site’s authority and makes it easier for search engines to scan your website.
Key Features
- Automated internal linking
- Monitors link health and structure
- Fixes orphan pages (pages with no inbound links)
Pricing
The pricing plans are flexible for websites of different sizes. Their Lite plan starts at $30 per month. You can also try the tool with a free trial before paying for it.
Step-by-Step Guide: SEO Webflow Optimization
Now that we’ve covered Webflow’s SEO features and tools, let’s walk you through a simple process for optimizing your Webflow site.
1. Set Up Meta Titles and Descriptions
Start by going to the settings of each page and adding unique meta titles and descriptions. Your meta title should include your main keyword, around 50-60 characters.
Meta description should be around 150-160 characters and inspire readers to click through to your site.
Check out how to add meta titles and descriptions on your blog.
2. Enable Auto-Generated Sitemaps
In your Webflow project settings, head over to the SEO tab and make sure the ‘Auto-generate sitemap’ option is enabled. This will create a sitemap that search engines can use to scan and index your site more efficiently.
3. Minify CSS, HTML, and JavaScript in Webflow Settings
As mentioned in this blog, one of the easiest ways to improve your site’s speed is by minifying your code. In Webflow’s hosting settings, you can toggle on the options to minify CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. Follow these simple steps:
- Go to your Project Settings.
- Navigate to the Hosting tab.
- Scroll down to the Advanced Publishing Options section.
- You’ll see the options to enable minification for CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. Toggle each one on.
- Save your changes, and Webflow will automatically minify these files the next time you publish your site.
4. Set Up Google Search Console and Analytics to Analyze Performance
To make sure your website is performing well on Google, it’s important to set up Google Search Console and Google Analytics. Google Search Console shows how Google sees your site, and tells you if there are any issues.
You can also see which search terms are bringing visitors to your site.
With Google Analytics, you can see how many people are visiting your site, what pages they’re looking at, and how long they’re staying.
5. Optimize Your Webflow Website for Speed
A fast-loading site is key to keeping visitors happy. One simple way to speed up your Webflow site is by enabling lazy loading for images and videos.
You should also compress your images before uploading them to reduce their file size without losing quality.
Webflow’s built-in hosting already uses fast servers to deliver your site quickly, but I suggest tools like Google Lighthouse to check your site's speed and get suggestions on how to make it even faster.
6. Backlink Strategy
Backlinks (links from other websites to yours) are a major factor in how well your site ranks on Google. Getting links from trusted, related websites makes your site look more reliable. You can get backlinks by writing guest posts for blogs, submitting your site to online directories, or getting mentioned in industry publications.
Now, while building up backlinks takes time, it’s a great strategy to attract more visitors to your website.
Final Thoughts: Is Webflow the Right Choice for SEO?
Webflow is a great platform if you’re a marketer or own a business, and are looking to build an SEO-friendly website. Thanks to all of the features it comes with, optimizing your site for search engines is a simple and self-explanatory process.
If you need to create many pages (like for e-commerce or blogs), programmatic SEO lets you generate SEO-optimized pages quickly. And if you want even more features, plugins that integrate into Webflow mentioned in this blog post, will help your SEO strategies without extra effort.
You have a WordPress site but are considering migrating it to Webflow? Download our step-by-step guide, based on insights from over 100 successful migrations we’ve worked on.
FAQs
1. Is Webflow SEO friendly?
Yes! Webflow has several built-in SEO features like customizable meta tags, automatic sitemaps, clean HTML5 code, and SSL certificates, all of which make it SEO-friendly.
2. Can I improve my website speed with Webflow?
Yes. Two main methods to do so are lazy loading and file minification for CSS, HTML, and JavaScript to help your site load faster.
3. How do I track my SEO performance on Webflow?
You can connect Google Search Console and Google Analytics to your Webflow site to monitor indexing, site traffic, and SEO performance.
