When working with video content on Webflow, you may encounter limitations in file size and quality, especially when embedding large, high-quality videos. While Webflow allows video uploads, the file size is capped at 10MB (30MB for background videos), and the maximum video resolution is limited to 720p. For businesses, educators, or content creators who need to host and display high-resolution videos from external sources like Azure, a scalable solution is essential.
In this guide, we'll walk through a step-by-step process to integrate large, externally hosted videos into Webflow CMS. By leveraging Webflow’s dynamic CMS collections, custom fields, and conditional visibility, you can manage and scale video content efficiently without compromising site performance or design.
Why Use External Video Hosting in Webflow CMS?
External video hosting services such as Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud offer robust storage solutions for large video files, enabling you to stream high-quality videos without restrictions. Embedding videos from these services through Webflow CMS brings several advantages:
File Size Freedom: Avoid Webflow’s file upload limits by using external storage.
High-Quality Video Playback: Stream full HD or 4K videos without compression limits.
Scalability: Manage hundreds of videos in your CMS without impacting website speed.
Dynamic Embedding: Utilize Webflow’s CMS capabilities for embedding video URLs dynamically, allowing for easy content management.
We already wrote a guide on how to use external video hosting in Webflow, and you can read more about it here.
Setting Up Your CMS Collection for External Video Hosting
The first step in embedding externally hosted videos is to configure your CMS to dynamically pull video URLs stored as custom fields. This approach is ideal for scaling your website’s video content.
Step 1: Create a CMS Collection
Log in to Webflow and open your project.
Go to the CMS Collections tab and create a new collection. Name it according to your project needs, such as "Lessons," "Videos," or "Projects."
Add the necessary fields to the collection. In addition to the usual fields (e.g., Title, Description), create a Custom Link Field for the video URL. This field will store the external link to your Azure-hosted video.
Step 2: Add Video URLs to CMS Items
Once your CMS collection is set up, it's time to populate it with content:
For each item in the collection (e.g., a specific lesson or project), paste the Azure video URL into the custom link field.
This URL will dynamically link to your video in the embed code, making the process seamless as you manage videos over time.
Embedding Videos Dynamically with Custom Code
Now that your CMS is set up with video URLs, let’s embed the videos onto your Webflow site using an Embed Element and dynamic fields.
Step 1: Add the Embed Element to Your Page
Navigate to the page or collection template where you want the video to appear.
Drag and drop an Embed Element from the Webflow sidebar onto the canvas.
Step 2: Insert Dynamic Video Embed Code
Next, input the HTML code to reference the video URL from the CMS:
<video autoplay muted loop width="100%" height="100%">
<source src="{VIDEO_URL}" type="video/mp4">
</video>Here, the placeholder {VIDEO_URL} will automatically be replaced by the video URL stored in the CMS link field for each respective item once properly configured.
Step 3: Enable Conditional Visibility
To ensure the video embed block only displays when there is a valid video URL present, use Webflow’s Conditional Visibility feature:
Select the Embed Element.
In the Settings Panel, enable Conditional Visibility.
Set the condition to show this element only when the Video URL field is set in the CMS collection.
By applying this logic, the video will only display on pages where a video URL exists, keeping your layout clean and error-free when there’s no video content.
Publishing and Testing Your Videos
Once your video embed is configured, test your page to ensure everything works as expected. Here's a checklist:
Preview Your Page: Ensure that the video dynamically loads in the correct CMS item.
Test Across Devices: Verify that the video works across various devices and browsers.
Adjust Video Settings: If needed, modify video attributes such as autoplay, looping, or muted options directly in the embed code.
Finally, publish your site to make the changes live.
Why Use Conditional Visibility for Video Embeds?
Using conditional visibility ensures that video elements only display when relevant. This avoids empty video containers on pages without a video URL and simplifies content management.
Benefits of Conditional Visibility in Webflow:
Dynamic Content Display: Only show videos when a URL is available, improving the site’s user experience.
Easier Management: CMS editors can simply remove or leave the video URL field empty, and the video embed will disappear automatically.
Improved Scalability: With CMS and conditional visibility, scaling to hundreds or thousands of videos becomes simple without overloading the website design or performance.
Scaling Your Webflow Site with CMS and External Video Hosting
By integrating external video hosting into your Webflow CMS setup, you unlock new possibilities for dynamic, scalable video content. This solution works particularly well for large projects like corporate learning management systems (LMS), portfolios, or any content-heavy websites that need to host high-quality video content without file size restrictions.
Webflow’s CMS offers a flexible framework for managing large media libraries, and by incorporating external video hosting, you can offer high-performance, visually appealing content without compromising on quality or load times.
Conclusion
With the right configuration, embedding videos hosted on external platforms like Azure into your Webflow CMS is not only possible but also highly efficient. By utilizing custom fields, dynamic embedding, and conditional visibility, you can scale your content effortlessly while maintaining an optimal user experience. For enterprise companies and content-heavy websites, this approach solves the problem of file size and quality limits in Webflow, providing a seamless, scalable video management solution.
If you're using Webflow and need expert guidance on integrating Azure or other external hosting solutions, reach out to us. As a Microsoft Azure AI Cloud Certified Partner, we have the expertise to help you build scalable, high-performance websites.
Key Takeaways
Use Webflow CMS to dynamically manage externally hosted videos, enabling easy scaling and streamlined updates.
Leverage external video hosting services like Azure to bypass Webflow’s file size and quality limits.
Set conditional visibility to ensure videos only appear when a valid URL is present, keeping your design neat and functional.
By following this guide, your Webflow site will be ready to handle large, high-quality videos hosted on Azure, offering a professional and scalable solution to video management.
