How can I keep the same URL for my documents on Webflow consistently, without the platform automatically changing it and without including "Webflow" in the PDF URLs?
TL;DR
- Host PDFs on external storage (e.g., Amazon S3) and serve via a custom subdomain like docs.yourdomain.com for consistent, branded URLs.
- Link to these externally hosted files in Webflow using external URLs, and optionally redirect old links if needed.
You're trying to maintain consistent, custom PDF/document URLs on Webflow without them being renamed or hosted on a Webflow-branded domain (e.g., assets.website-files.com). Webflow’s native file hosting has limitations in this regard.
1. Understand the Limitations of Webflow File Hosting
- Files uploaded to the Webflow CMS or asset manager are hosted on Webflow’s CDN domain (e.g.,
https://assets.website-files.com/...). - Webflow may rename files, remove spaces, or append random strings to avoid conflicts.
- These URLs cannot be manually customized and are not hosted under your domain (like
yourdomain.com/docs/).
2. Use an External File Hosting Service for Stable URLs
To maintain consistent document URLs and remove the “Webflow” domain from the link:
- Upload your PDFs to an external hosting service with domain control, such as:
- Amazon S3 (with CloudFront) – Set up custom URLs, e.g.,
documents.yourdomain.com/file.pdf - Google Cloud Storage or Microsoft Azure Blob
- Dropbox or Google Drive (less professional, harder to customize but doable)
- Set files to public access or use signed URLs if you need limited access.
3. Connect a Subdomain for Better Branding
- Purchase or use an existing subdomain like
docs.yourdomain.com. - Point this subdomain to your file host using CNAME records or custom configurations depending on your storage provider.
- Upload files and structure URLs as needed (e.g.,
docs.yourdomain.com/2024/report.pdf).
4. Link to External Documents from Webflow
- In Webflow, use a link block, button, or text link and set the link type to "External URL".
- Paste the custom URL from your external hosting setup.
- Set the link to open in a new tab (optional, but recommended for documents).
5. Optional: Redirect Old URLs
- If your old PDF was already linked under a Webflow-hosted URL, consider:
- Replacing it everywhere it's linked
- If using custom domains for PDFs, use domain-level redirects (on your host or via a Cloudflare Page Rule) to point old paths to new ones
Summary
To keep consistent, non-Webflow-branded URLs for PDFs, host documents on an external file storage service like Amazon S3 and link to them via custom subdomains. Webflow does not natively support branded or consistent file URLs, so external hosting is the best approach for full control.