How can I preview draft blogs in Webflow Designer mode?
TL;DR
- Open the CMS Collection Page in Webflow Designer and use the item selector to preview any draft blog post.
- Drafts are only viewable within Designer and can't be shared externally unless temporarily published.
To preview draft blog posts in Webflow, you must access them through the Designer’s CMS Collection Page template, since drafts aren’t visible on the published site.
1. Understand Webflow Draft Behavior
- Draft CMS items are not accessible via the live or staged site (they don't publish).
- However, you can preview draft content inside the Webflow Designer, as long as the content is associated with a CMS Collection.
2. Locate the CMS Collection Page
- Go to Webflow Designer.
- In the left panel, open the Pages panel.
- Scroll to the CMS Collection Pages section (e.g., “Blog Posts Template”).
- Click on the Collection Page (e.g., “Blog Posts”).
3. Switch Between Draft Blog Posts
- Once on the Collection Page template, you'll see a dropdown menu labeled "Current [Collection Item]" in the top bar.
- Click the dropdown to select any item, even unpublished draft blog posts.
- Designer will render the page as if that draft blog post were published.
4. Verify Collection Item Has Required Content
- If selecting the draft returns a blank-looking preview, check whether:
- Required fields are filled in (like title, slug, post body).
- Conditional visibility is hiding elements based on published status or date.
5. You Cannot Share a Preview Link
- Draft items are visible only inside the Designer.
- You can’t generate a Preview URL or share a staging link that shows them.
- If external reviewers need to see the post, you'll need to temporarily publish it (set status to Published) and then use the staging domain.
Summary
To preview a draft blog post, open the relevant CMS Collection Page in the Designer, then use the item selector to load the draft content. Drafts cannot be shared publicly without publishing.