How do I use a reference field in Webflow?

Add the field on the Collection that needs the link

A reference field connects one Collection item to a single item in another Collection. A blog post can point at one author. A lesson can point at one course. An option field only stores a label from a list you typed in advance. A reference field stores a real item, so the template can read that item's fields. Webflow's article says that when you later update the author, the Collection page shows the updated author information because of this connection.

The Authors Collection has to exist before a post can point at it. Create that Collection first if the site does not have one yet.

Open Blog posts, hover the Collection, and click the settings cog. Click Add new field. Choose Reference. Label it Author. Help text is optional. In the Collection dropdown, select Authors. Turn on This field is required if every post must have an author.

Pick one related item on each entry

Open a Blog posts item. The Author field lists items from Authors. Choose one, such as Jane Cole, and save. Do the same on the other posts. The post stores the link. It does not store a pasted copy of the author's bio, portrait, or job title.

Enterprise plans can add up to 20 reference fields on one Collection. Other plans can add up to 10, depending on the site plan. To see how many reference fields this site can still add, open Site settings, Plans, All site features.

Show the related fields on the template

On the Blog posts template, or inside a Collection list of posts, bind elements to fields from the referenced Collection. The post title can stay on a heading. A text element under it can bind to the author name. If the author item has an image field or a color field, those can drive a background image, background color, border color, or text color on an element in the design.

Example: the post Spring menu references Jane Cole. The template heading reads the post name. The byline reads the name field on the Author reference, so it shows Jane Cole. You are not retyping that name into every post.

The reference field cannot be used for sorting. A list that should be alphabetical by author needs a sort on some other field.

Use multi-reference or a filter when one link is not enough

A reference holds one item. Webflow's article says to use a multi-reference field when you need more than one, such as two authors on the same post or a set of tags.

A related-posts block is a filter on a dynamic Collection list, not another reference field. On the post template, that list can keep other posts whose Author reference equals the author of the current post. The filter article covers how those rules are saved. The reference field is only the relationship the rule reads.

You can also show or hide a block from the reference itself, on the Collection page or inside a list connected to the Collection that holds the field. Select the byline wrapper, open Element settings, Visibility, and add a condition. Choose the Author reference, use Is set, show the wrapper when it is set, and hide it otherwise. A post with no author then skips the empty byline. Fields on the referenced item, such as a city name on a location, can drive a condition too. The rules you get depend on that field's type.