Isotope

How to integrate Isotope with Webflow

Isotope adds real-time search, multi-criteria filtering, and custom sorting with animated transitions that Webflow's native filtering doesn't support. Use it when you need complex product catalogs with faceted search, portfolio sites with multiple taxonomy filters, or content libraries where users filter and sort through hundreds of items.

You can add Isotope through custom Code Embeds or build with the Webflow API for dynamic content updates.

Add Isotope through custom Code Embed

Add the Isotope library to your Webflow project and initialize it on CMS collection lists. Content teams manage items through Webflow's CMS interface while you control filtering logic through JavaScript.

Follow the five steps below to set up this integration:

1. Include the Isotope library in your project through CDN or npm installation
2. Structure your CMS collection with filter categories and sortable fields as custom fields in Webflow
3. Add filter buttons to your page that target specific categories using CSS selectors or data attributes
4. Initialize Isotope on your collection list wrapper with your chosen layout mode
5. Configure filtering logic using category-based filtering or custom filter functions

Common implementation patterns include:

• Category filtering with CSS selector patterns for simple taxonomy-based navigation
• Search functionality using filter functions that test element content against user input
• Combination filters that apply multiple criteria simultaneously for faceted navigation
• Dynamic sorting through sortBy configuration based on data attributes or element properties.

Isotope supports modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) and mobile platforms. And performs well with collections up to several hundred items.

For larger datasets, consider pagination or lazy loading to maintain responsive filtering. The library handles layout calculations efficiently, but extremely large grids may benefit from layout optimization through appropriate layout modes.

Implement category-based portfolio filtering

Portfolio sites use Isotope's category filtering to organize work samples by multiple taxonomies. Create CMS items for each portfolio piece with category fields, then implement filter buttons that show relevant work.

Add category data to your CMS items as multi-reference fields or option fields in Webflow. Reference these categories in your collection list items using data attributes that Isotope can target.

Build product catalogs with multi-criteria filtering

E-commerce implementations simultaneously filter by multiple attributes like category, price range, availability, and custom product features. Isotope handles this through filter functions that evaluate multiple conditions.

Create CMS fields for each filterable attribute and expose them as data attributes on collection items. Implement filter controls that update the active criteria, then write a filter function that tests elements against all active filters, like so:

var filterFns = {
  priceRange: function() {
    var price = $(this).attr('data-price');
    return price >= minPrice && price <= maxPrice;
  },
  category: function() {
    var category = $(this).attr('data-category');
    return activeCategories.includes(category);
  }
};

$grid.isotope({
  filter: function() {
    return filterFns.priceRange.call(this) && filterFns.category.call(this);
  }
});

Build with Webflow and Isotope through API integration

Connect Isotope to the Webflow CMS Collections API for programmatic content management and Webflow webhooks for automatic updates when content changes. Content teams manage filterable items through Webflow's CMS while you control complex filtering logic.

Authenticate using the Webflow Data API to fetch collection items programmatically and render them with Isotope layout and filtering.

API implementation patterns include:

• Fetching collection items using the GET /collections/{collection_id}/items endpoint to retrieve content with custom fields
• Setting up real-time content updates through webhook triggers for collection_item_created, collection_item_changed, and collection_item_deleted events
• Generating HTML from API responses and initializing Isotope on the rendered content for dynamic rendering
• Deriving filter configuration from collection field schemas to maintain consistency between CMS structure and filtering interface

API access requires OAuth 2.0 or token authentication with appropriate scopes. Request cms:read for fetching collection data and cms:write if your implementation updates content programmatically.

Create webhooks using the POST /sites/{site_id}/webhooks endpoint to receive notifications when CMS content changes. When your endpoint receives a webhook, fetch updated collection data and refresh the Isotope layout.

Implement real-time content filtering with CMS updates

Build catalogs that update automatically when content teams publish new items or modify existing ones. This pattern combines API-fetched content with Isotope's filtering while content teams use Webflow's CMS.

Fetch collection items on page load using the Collections Items API endpoint, render them as HTML, then initialize Isotope on the container. Set up webhooks to detect content changes and refresh specific items without full page reloads.

What you can build

Isotope adds dynamic filtering and animated layout transitions to Webflow sites.

• E-commerce product catalogs: Filterable product grids where customers narrow results by category, price range, and availability with instant visual feedback—like filtering shoes by size, color, and brand simultaneously.
• Portfolio websites with project galleries: Case study showcases where visitors filter work samples by industry, service type, and project scale—useful for design agencies organizing hundreds of projects across multiple categories.
• Content libraries and resource centers: Searchable knowledge bases where users filter articles, documentation, and tutorials by topic, format, and difficulty level with real-time search.
• Real estate property listings: Property browsers with multi-criteria filtering by location, price, bedrooms, and amenities, showing available properties with smooth layout transitions as users adjust search parameters.