The Truth about Exporting Code from Webflow

We’ve all heard about how with Webflow, you can simply export the code and host it wherever you want.

Sounds great, right? You get all the benefits of Webflow without having to pay the high hosting fees.

While it is completely possible and isn’t necessarily wrong, it’s not that simple - and today, we’re going to talk about why.

First of all - What is Webflow?

You’re probably well aware of what Webflow is, but for the sake of context, I want to reiterate.

Webflow is, according to their marketing team, a ‘Website Experience Platform’.

According to me, Webflow is an all-in-one solution for building a website - you have the builder (or, designer), a CMS, hosting, security, and other tools such as forms - all under one roof.

That’s what everyone loves about Webflow - it’s one tool, that can do everything you need it to do.

Can you export code from Webflow?

Absolutely - with a simple click, you can export the HTML, CSS, and JS of your site to a ZIP file which can be hosted anywhere you choose, often for as low as $2 a month - far below the $18 minimum which you’d have to pay hosting with Webflow. Sounds great, right?

Why you shouldn’t export your Webflow code

Webflow generates relatively clean code - so, why wouldn’t you export it?

The answer to this question lies in the service which Webflow provides, and the reason why everyone uses Webflow - it’s everything you need under one reliable, cohesive roof.

Paying for Webflow gives you far more than just a page builder - you get access to;

• Fast hosting
• Uptime guarantees
• Security
• Forms
• CMS
• • much, much more

When you export your code, you lose ALL of this - not because Webflow is a bunch of greedy gatekeepers, but because you are leaving the platform - and thus, leaving all of it’s features. The only thing that comes with you is the static code for the site which you built.

Even if you don’t need any of these things - you won’t be able to continue editing your website in Webflow. Since your code has been removed from the platform, you will now have to edit your website in code.

You can keep the site in Webflow, edit it, then export all the code every time you make an edit - but this would defeat the purpose of using Webflow anyways as it is a time consuming process.

Is there any reason to export Webflow code?

If you ask me, very rarely - but, there are some projects which you will just make once and then rarely, if ever, have to make any updates to - if that’s the kind of project you’re working on, it certainly might make sense to build in Webflow, export, and host the code elsewhere. In doing so, you’ll save a bunch of money!

That being said, I’ve been a web developer for almost 10 years now, and there have been very few times in my career where I’ve seen projects like this. Typically, websites are made to be dynamic, and made to be updated - in which case, you get what you pay for with Webflow hosting.

If you are looking for a cheaper way to build your website but you still want to be able to make easy updates, my recommendation would be to check out Bricks Builder and WordPress - I’m a huge fan of both Webflow and Bricks Builder (I even made a video comparing the 2), and at the end of the day, the choice is yours!