How to Link Two CMS Collections in Webflow

In this tutorial, Sandro, cofounder of Gemeos Webflow agency, shows you how to connect two CMS collections in Webflow to create relationships between your content.

1. Create the Reference field in your CMS

In your source collection (for example, Articles), add a Reference field. Select the target collection (for example, Authors). To link multiple items, use Multi-Reference. Fill in the values for each CMS item.

2. Display data from the linked collection

In your Collection Template page or your Collection List, add a text or image element. In the Settings panel, connect it via Get data from > your Reference field > the field from the linked collection (for example, Author > Name).

3. Display all items from a linked collection

To display multiple linked items (via Multi-Reference), add a Collection List to your template. In the list settings, select the source [Your Multi-Reference field]. You can then access every field for each linked item.

4. Nested reference limitations

Webflow doesn't support nested references beyond one level: you can't access a reference inside another reference (for example, Article → Author → Agency). To work around this limit, denormalize your data by duplicating the fields you need in the main collection.

Conclusion

Collection relationships let you structure complex data. Use cases:

• Articles linked to authors and categories
• Products linked to brands and collections
• Job listings linked to companies and cities