SSL hosting

Note: We’re transitioning to Workspaces, and are in the process of updating our content. Visit the Workspaces blog post to read more about these updates and changes, or visit our updated lesson on SSL hosting. You can also learn how to check if your account is on Workspaces.

SSL ("secure socket layer") is the standard method for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and a browser. It ensures that all data passed between the web server and browsers remain private and integral, so you and your website's visitors can rest assured that your information is safe.

Sites that don't use SSL will be labeled "not secure" by some browsers, strongly discouraging people from visiting your site. Your site may be loaded on HTTPS and still show not secure warnings, read troubleshoot website security issues.

To set up SSL hosting, turn the SSL switch on in the Hosting tab of your Project Settings before connecting your domain to Webflow.

What are the benefits of Webflow SSL?

• Earn Google’s trust and improve your SEO
• Enjoy complete end-to-end encryption between your website and your users
• Safely run an ecommerce store on Webflow with Dynamic Embeds

Some other features

• End-to-end SSL security between Webflow servers and your websites
• Automatic SSL delivery for HTML/CSS/JS and all images
• Optimized SSL certificates for maximum compatibility
• Instant-on with no setup required

Need to know

• You do not need to generate a CSR. We handle all of that for you. To set up SSL, all you need to do is turn it on in the Webflow dashboard.
• Webflow doesn't support named certificates at this moment.
• At the moment, you cannot use a certificate you've purchased from another SSL certificate provider.

Upload a custom SSL certificate

To provide an extra level of flexibility when setting up your hosting, you can upload your own custom SSL certificates to your project. (Custom SSL certificates need to be obtained from a third-party service, as Webflow does not issue custom SSL certificates.) 

Note: Custom SSL certificate uploads are only available for Enterprise customers. Contact our sales team for more information.

Add a custom SSL certificate

To upload your custom SSL certificate, first make sure you’re adjusting the settings for the correct project in your account: 

1. Go to your Dashboard
2. Locate the project to which you want to add the custom SSL certificate
3. Click the 3 disclosure dots to open the options for that project
4. Click Settings
5. Check the name and subdomain of the project in the General tab to make sure you’re in the correct project
   

Add your custom SSL certificate to your project: 

1. Click the Hosting tab 
2. Scroll down to the Custom SSL Certificates section at the bottom of the page
3. Press the Add Certificate button
4. Add your domain name to the Domain field (e.g., “yourdomain.com”) 
5. Copy and paste your full certificate chain into the SSL certificate chain field (e.g., place your domain or leaf certificate first, and include any intermediate or root certificates after your domain or leaf certificate)
6. Copy and paste your private key into the Private key field (it must be an unencrypted PKCS#8 private key with the header "BEGIN PRIVATE KEY")
7. Press Add Custom SSL Certificate to enable the custom certificate on your project
   

Note: 1 certificate may have multiple domains on it. If you need to apply multiple domains to your certificate, you will need to upload the certificate multiple times, once for each domain. For example, you may have 1 certificate and need to apply it to example.com and www.example.com. In this case you will need to add the certificate 2 times — once for example.com and once again for www.example.com. 

Update a custom SSL certificate

If you choose to add a custom SSL certificate to your project, you are required to manually update your certificate before it expires. 

To update your custom SSL certificate, first make sure you’re updating the certificate for the correct project in your account::

1. Go to your Dashboard
2. Locate the project to which you want to add the custom SSL certificate
3. Click the 3 disclosure dots to open the options for that project
4. Click Settings
5. Check the name and subdomain of the project in the General tab to make sure you’re in the correct project
   

Delete your original custom SSL certificate and replace it with your updated version: 

1. Click the Hosting tab 
2. Scroll down to the Custom SSL Certificates section at the bottom of the page
3. Press the Delete button next to the certificate that’s outdated
4. Add your updated custom SSL certificate to your project following the steps for Add a custom SSL certificate