Review of Templates in Webflow

Utilizing Webflow templates is an excellent method to kickstart your website design process if you’re lacking time or need some additional design stimulation.

To maximize templates, it’s crucial to acquaint yourself with Webflow essentials through our introductory Webflow 101 Crash Course. This course offers an overview of the Webflow UI, fundamental building elements of the web, and positioning and layout essentials — all of which are necessary for you to kickstart with your template.

Important: To access all template features, certain templates might necessitate a paid site plan post-purchase or importing the template into your Workspace. Find out more about page constraints for templates.

In this session, you’ll get insights into Webflow templates with the following:

1. Comprehend how Webflow templates operate
2. Grasp template usage and licenses
3. Trial templates before buying
4. Select complimentary templates
5. Acquire premium templates
6. Apply a template promotion code
7. Move a template-based website
8. Activate and deactivate sites as templates in your Workspace
9. Export template-based websites
10. Vend your own templates

Comprehend how Webflow templates operate

Webflow provides a vast array of free and premium responsive website templates for designers, businesses, and personal use to help expedite your engagement with the design aspect.

Once you opt for either a free or premium paid template, that template will be included in your Dashboard as a brand new site with all its template pages integrated. Subsequently, you can tailor your template to your liking.

Handy tip: If you need to access your template’s original, unaltered design in the future, you can achieve this via the site’s backups. However, bear in mind that this action will reset everything in your site to the chosen backup.

Commence using your template

If you’ve previously worked with WordPress, you may be acquainted with its utilization of themes to stylize designs. WordPress themes can be implemented on content and data already existing in a WordPress design.

Webflow’s templates function in a distinct manner compared to WordPress themes. The design and layout of a Webflow template won’t automatically substitute the design and layout of an existing site in your Workspace. Templates are as-is and may necessitate customization.

To expedite this customization, you can migrate CMS Collection data or copy and paste elements from other sites in your Workspace to your new template-based site.

Import limits for collection items

You might need to enhance or upgrade your site plan to import a CSV of Collection items into your template-based site. Depending on the type of site plan you possess, there are limits for Collection items. Discover more about site plans.

Page allocations 

In case the template-based site contains more than 2 pages, you’ll need to augment a paid site plan to the template-based site or procure a paid Workspace plan. If your template-based site comprises only 2 pages, you can maintain it on an unpaid site plan/unpaid Workspace plan if desired. You can still access and modify all the pages included in the paid template (unless you’ve erased them). However, you won’t be able to replicate a page or append a new one to the template-based site without initially upgrading your Workspace plan, adding a site plan to the site, or erasing pages in the template until the total page count is reduced to below 2 pages.

Even if you’re not prepared to insert a site plan to your template-based site or buy a paid Workspace plan, you can still tweak the existing pages within the template.

In case you encounter a page limitation error post-augmenting a site plan to your template-based site (or after buying a Workspace plan) or if you have any further inquiries regarding page constraints, please reach out to us.

Assistance for templates 

For newcomers to Webflow, templates with complex interactions, custom menus, or popup modals might pose a challenge during early editing attempts. Nevertheless, if you seek assistance for your template, you can contact the template originator for guidance (many template creators provide support documentation within their templates).

For support from the template creator: 

1. Navigate to the template’s page on Webflow’s Template marketplace
2. Scroll down till you view the template Overview (specific support instructions from the template creator might be present in this area)
3. Select the Support tab (if specific support instructions weren’t provided by the template creator in the Overview section)
4. Press the Contact button to communicate with the template originator

Be mindful of template usage and licenses

All paid templates arrive with a single utilization license, implying you can apply your bought template for one site. Find out more about Webflow Templates and the Single Utilization License.

Should you aim to employ your purchased template for a dissimilar client or site, you’ll have to purchase an additional license (by acquiring the template again).

This can be executed by duplicating your template:

1. Proceed to the Site settings for your template-based site
2. Click the “Duplicate” icon
3. Select whether the template is for the same client or site (eliminating the need to repurchase the license) or a new client or site (mandating repurchasing the license)

All templates are customizable (you can append, modify, or eradicate text, images, graphics, layout, design, etc.) to align with your site’s requisites.

Trial templates prior to acquisition

Prior to committing to a purchase, you can preview a template in the Designer. It’s highly recommended to do so to ensure the template aligns with your design necessities.

1. Head to Webflow’s Template marketplace
2. Spot the template you wish to evaluate
3. Click Preview in Designer to launch the template in the Designer in a new window
4. You can deactivate Preview mode by selecting the “eye” icon.
5. Subsequently, you can delve into the template’s Pages panel and Navigator to grasp the template’s incorporated components and design framework

To procure the template, return to the template’s page in Webflow’s Template marketplace and click Buy.

Select complimentary templates

Webflow provides a plethora of free templates to initiate your journey, ranging from single-page sites to intricate multi-page business websites. Explore our complimentary templates.

To opt for a free template: 

1. Navigate to the Free templates page on Webflow’s Template marketplace
2. Click the free templateyou might want to utilize
3. Tap Use for Free, which unlocks your Dashboard
4. Assign a title to your site or stick with the default name provided
5. Select Create site, which initiates the site in the Designer

Subsequently, you will be able to find your template-centered site within your Dashboard.

Buy top-notch templates

You can also procure premium paid templates to use for only a sole individual, business, or site.

To opt for and purchase a premium template:

1. Navigate to Webflow’s Template marketplace
2. Click the premium template you prefer for your site
3. Hit Buy on the template’s main page (you’ll need to register for a complimentary Webflow account if you don’t have one yet, or you can log into your existing account if logged out)
4. Insert your payment details into the checkout modal (or tap “Edit credit card” to modify your payment details if previously added)
5. Tap Pay now to finish your purchase 
6. Click Continue after reviewing your payment confirmation
7. Give your new site a title
8. Select Create site to access your newly acquired template in the Webflow Designer

Note: Template purchase invoices can be located in Workspace settings > Templates tab > Purchased templates. Tap Download invoice to download the invoice for a specific template you’ve bought.

Apply a template promotion code

If you have a template promotion code, you can utilize the promotion code during your template purchase confirmation:

1. Visit Webflow’s Template marketplace
2. Click the premium template you wish to utilize for your site
3. Hit Buy on the template’s main page (you’ll need to sign up for a free Webflow account if you don’t have one yet, or you can log into your existing account if logged out)
4. Click Add promo code in the checkout modal
5. Enter the promo code in the input area and click Apply
6. Tap Pay now to finalize your purchase
7. Click Continue after reviewing your payment confirmation
8. Give your new site a title
9. Select Create site to access your newly acquired template in the Webflow Designer

Transfer a template-focused site

You can transfer your template-focused site to another user or Workspace. Discover more about transferring a site.

Activate and deactivate sites as templates within your Workspace

You can activate a site as a template so you and others in your Workspace can implement it in the future. This can be beneficial if you aim to fashion a new, similar site, or use the same initial layout and improve upon it. You can enable shared Workspace templates, for sites that you create from scratch, as well as other template sites you have appended to your Workspace (like those from the Webflow template marketplace). 

Note: When creating a shared Workspace template from a template you bought, remember to be mindful of template usage and licenses.

To activate a site as a template:

1. Access Site settings > General tab > Shared Workspace template
2. Tap Make template
3. Label your template
4. Select Confirm

To deactivate a site as a template:

1. Access Site settings > General tab > Shared Workspace template
2. Hit Disable template
3. Select Remove

You can observe a list of your shared Workspace templates and their descriptions in Workspace settings > Templates tab > Shared Workspace templates.

Note: Once a site is activated as a template, you won’t be able to delete it unless you first deactivate it as a template.

Learn more about shared Workspace templates.

Export template-based sites

If you wish to export a template-based site, you first need to buy a paid Workspace plan to activate the export feature. Read more about exporting code. 

Promote your own templates

If designing templates brings you joy, you can request to vend your template designs on Webflow’s Template marketplace. Before commencing template submission, make sure to check our Template Submission Guidelines.

Further reading: How Medium Rare has expanded its business selling templates