{"id":11583,"date":"2023-04-11T13:52:25","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:52:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breadstack.com\/?p=11583"},"modified":"2023-06-30T17:04:46","modified_gmt":"2023-06-30T17:04:46","slug":"iframe-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breadstack.com\/insights\/marketing\/iframe-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"What is an iFrame?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
If you’ve ever set up an interactive element on your website, chances are you’ve used an iFrame, but what is an iFrame?\u00a0<\/p>
In this article, we’ll give you all the information you need to know about iFrames.<\/p>
Let’s get started.\u00a0<\/p>
IFrame, which stands for the inline frame, is an HTML element<\/a> that allows you to embed another HTML element.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> IFrame’s are more commonly used with embedding content<\/strong> such as videos, tags, shop menus or any other interactive element.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> They also make it easy for web designers to put elements within the web pages.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p> Google Maps and Youtube are examples of companies that both employ iFrames for other parties to use their content. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Many developers have varying thoughts on iFrames. Here are the pros and cons of iFrames. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t IFrames make it easy to share external media files<\/strong>. Without using an iFrame, developers have to download the file and upload it to be used in the backend.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t IFrames work as an isolated element in the webpage<\/strong>, meaning they won’t interact with other elements on the webpage. <\/span><\/p> I<\/span>f your website has various CSS or javascript base codes, the iFrame won\u2019t interfere with these ensuring a seamless experience. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t IFrames let you add store menus or navigation bars easier on the webpage and other elements<\/strong>. <\/span><\/p> It gives you flexibility and eases to add new elements to give your website visitors a better experience. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t IFrames are embedded from third-party sources<\/strong>, meaning you have no control over the data your website interacts with. <\/span><\/p> This can pose a vulnerability threat. Ensure your iFrame is from a trustworthy source to avoid any issues of potential threats. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Using an iFrame on your site means you’re essentially loading two pages<\/strong>. The webpage has to load your page and embed the iFrame. <\/span><\/p> This can cause site speed issues, if you\u2019re webpage isn\u2019t able to handle the bandwidth. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Knowing your website metrics is essential for business owners, however, with an integrated iFrame it can be hard to track metrics<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p> Since your iFrame content isn\u2019t from your own site it can be hard to gain the metrics with your analytics. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t IFrames for SEO were at one point a terrible decision. The search engine robots couldn’t access the content causing these issues and then couldn’t exit the iFrame to crawl the rest of your site.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> Indexing was also a problem as iFrames are part of another site, and Google didn\u2019t know if it should be indexed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> Of course, not having your web page crawled or indexed would cause major SEO issues, but now Google has changed the way they do iFrames<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> Google can render an iFrame and inject its content as part of the hosting page, so the iFrame content is seen as one page within the page it\u2019s embedded on.<\/span><\/p> However, it may not be perfect. John Mueller Google\u2019s Search Advocate mentioned if you want something indexed, work on including it directly than relying on iFrames<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> With this being said, Google still recommends not using iFrames when possible, especially with important content<\/strong>. <\/span><\/p> It\u2019s better to use other embedding techniques to ensure the best SEO results for your webpage. Consider this limitation with your own website.<\/span><\/p>Pros and cons of iFrames<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Pros<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Easily share external media<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Low risk of affecting code <\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Quickly add interactive elements\n<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Cons <\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Security risk for iFrames<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Site speed can hinder<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Missed analytics with iFrames<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Do iFrames affect SEO ranking?<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t