How can I handle long text strings for responsive sizing in Webflow? Would custom code be necessary?
TL;DR
- Use Webflow's Typography settings to set Word Break to break-word to ensure long strings wrap properly.
- Adjust Overflow settings on parent containers to control content spillover.
- Use Flexbox/Grid with dynamic sizing (Shrink: 1 or Fractional Units) for responsive layouts.
- For truncation, combine No Wrap, Hidden Overflow, and Ellipsis settings under Typography.
- Resort to custom code only for advanced text-breaking needs like hyphenation or special character handling.
Long text strings can break layout responsiveness if they don't naturally wrap. Webflow provides tools to manage this without requiring custom code in most cases.
1. Use CSS Word-Break Properties in Webflow
- In Webflow, select the text element (e.g., Paragraph, Heading, or Text Block).
- Go to the Style Panel, scroll down to Typography Settings.
- Open More Type Options (click the "three dots").
- Set Word Break to break-word. This forces very long words or URLs to wrap rather than overflow.
2. Set Overflow Settings
- Select the parent container of the text.
- In the Style Panel, under Layout, set Overflow to Hidden, Scroll, or Auto depending on the result you want.
- This prevents long strings from visually escaping container bounds.
3. Use Flexbox or Grid Layout Wisely
- If you're using Flexbox, make sure the container and text element have Shrink: 1 enabled (look under the Flex Child settings).
- For Grid, ensure text-containing cells aren’t set to fixed widths—use Fractional Units (FR) for dynamic resizing.
4. Optional: Truncate with Ellipsis
- If you want long strings to be trimmed rather than wrapped, set the following under Typography in the Style Panel:
- Display: Block or Flex as needed
- Overflow: Hidden
- White Space: No Wrap
- Text Overflow: Ellipsis
This visually shortens the string and adds … at the end.
5. When Custom Code Might Be Necessary
- If you need to hyphenate words dynamically based on language or need nuanced breaking behavior beyond break-word, you might resort to custom CSS using
hyphens: auto;or JavaScript—but that’s rare. - For example, to force breaking on specific symbols (like slashes or hyphens), custom CSS might be required.
Summary
In most cases, no custom code is necessary—you can control responsive behavior of long text strings in Webflow using the Word Break setting, Overflow controls, and layout properties. Custom code is only needed for highly specific text-breaking behavior.