What Are Iframes and What are They Used for? Comments Off on What Are Iframes and What are They Used for?

Table of Contents

What Exactly is the an iframe?
Key Attributes and Functions
Iframe Pros and Cons
Why Would You Use an Iframe?
Security Implications of Using an iframe
Iframe Performance and SEO Considerations
Iframe Myth
Tips for iframe Performance Optimization

If you have ever seen a YouTube video, Google Map or even a social media feed within a web page, an iframe is likely the HTML element used to make this possible.

What Exactly is the an iframe?

Simply put, an iframe is an HTML tag that is used to embed one web page within another web page. Think of it as a frame within a frame, where the inner frame shows content from a different source (web page). As mentioned earlier, an example of this would be an embedded YouTube video, Google Map or a social media feed, such as one from Facebook or Instagram.

That said, the basic iframe setup uses the <iframe> tag with a src attribute. For example: <iframe src=”https://prominentweb.com”></iframe>.

This pulls in the whole page from that URL. Web browsers treat this embedded area as its own mini-browser, which keeps things contained within the boundaries of the iframe.You can adjust the size and position of an iframe with relative ease. This makes iframes handy for adding videos, forms, or maps without rebuilding your site.

Key Attributes and Functions

Src

There are a number of attributes that control how an iframe works. The “src” references the URL of web page or HTML document of the content source, such as a video link.

Width and Height

The width and height attributes set the size in pixels. For example, <iframe src=”https://prominentweb.com” width=”500″ height=”300″></iframe>. This stops the page from jumping around as it loads.

Name

The name attribute lets you target the iframe from links or forms. This can be useful for navigation inside the frame.

Sandbox

For security, sandbox limits what the embedded content within an iframe can do, which includes blocking scripts and/or pop-ups.

Allowfullscreen

The allowfullscreen attribute of an iframe permits content to such as videos, to go full-screen.

Iframe Pros and Cons

Iframes offer isolation in that there is no direct access to your website’s code. This enhances security. The downside? Iframes can slow things down since they load full web pages. As such, it is a good idea to utilize iframes for simple, separate embeds.

Why Would You Use an Iframe?

Secure Integration of Third-Party Content

A popular reason why iframes are used is to add content from external sources. In this regard, iframes are implemented when you are unable to control the content, such as those for ads, videos, maps, online forms or social media posts. An iframe can also keep the external code from affecting your website’s CSS.

Security Implications of Using an iframe

Unfortunately, using iframes does open the door to some security risks.

Clickjacking and Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)

Cybercriminals can use iframes to facilitate clickjacking to hide a malicious iframe on a web page, tricking users into clicking on what they believe to be a legitimate (and safe) element. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) is another potential security concern. If the iframe loads unsafe content, scripts might inject code into your website. This could steal data or spread malware.

Iframe Performance and SEO Considerations

The Impact of Iframes on Page Load Speed

Iframes request and load external files, which adds to web page load time. As such, your web page may initially show an empty space until the iframe loads, causing layout shifts that can annoy users and negatively impact the user experience.

Iframe Myth

A common misconception about iframes is that it hides content from search engines. The truth is, bots like Googlebot, can read the content inside them, but the source web page gets the SEO benefit, not the web page containing the embedded iframe.

Tips for iframe Performance Optimization

It is a good idea to lazy load iframes this defers loading the source content until the user scrolls down to it, which speeds up initial page load times. This can be done by adding loading=”lazy” for browsers that support it: <iframe src=”https://prominentweb.com” loading=”lazy”>. Additionally, set fixed width and height in your iframe to prevent layout shifts.

If you would like to learn what an iframe is and what they are used for, contact our experienced web design team at Prominent Web Design today.