What could be causing my homepage to appear wider than the screen size on the published Webflow site, resulting in a horizontal scrollbar, even though all elements are set to 100vw?
TL;DR
- Avoid using 100vw and instead use width: 100% to prevent scrollbar-related overflow.
- Inspect for overflowing elements, negative margins, and wide content like images or embeds using Chrome DevTools.
- Use overflow: hidden on the body or main wrapper to test for hidden overflow issues and isolate problem elements.
Your homepage showing a horizontal scrollbar despite elements being set to 100vw typically means there’s an element or style causing content to overflow the viewport.
1. Check for Overflowing Elements
- Go through your layout and inspect any element that might be exceeding the viewport.
- Common culprits include elements with fixed widths (e.g., 100vw) combined with margins or padding, which can push the total width beyond 100vw.
- Nested elements like sliders, images, or CMS content might have widths or styles that break containment.
2. Avoid Using 100vw for Full Width
- 100vw includes the vertical scrollbar width in many browsers, which can cause horizontal overflow.
- Instead, use width: 100% on sections or wrappers to avoid triggering a scrollbar.
3. Audit for Negative Margins or Transforms
- Elements with negative left/right margins, or CSS transforms (e.g.,
translateX) can extend content outside the visible viewport. - Use Webflow's Navigator and Styles panel to find and adjust these.
4. Use Overflow Hidden on the Body or Wrapper
- Select the Body (or a main wrapper div) and set Overflow: hidden to temporarily suppress horizontal scroll.
- This is a patch, not a fix—use it to detect if overflow is being caused by a specific child.
5. Check for Unintended Content Widths
- Recheck images, embeds, or custom code blocks that might be wider than their containers.
- Set max-width: 100% and display: block to images inside rich text or CMS content.
6. Use Chrome DevTools to Debug
- In Chrome DevTools, select Inspect > hover over Elements to see which component sticks out beyond the viewport.
- Look for a bounding box extending past the right edge, which often flags the issue.
Summary
A horizontal scroll is almost always caused by a child element overflowing the body—often due to using 100vw with padding/margin, fixed-width elements, or negative transforms. Use width: 100%, audit your layout for rogue elements, and inspect in DevTools to isolate and fix the issue.