> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.synclify.cloud/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create a connection

> The four-step wizard: destination, source, mapping, settings.

A connection binds one Airtable table to one Webflow CMS collection. Building one takes four steps, and then [guided setup](/connections/guided-setup) reconciles whatever already exists on both sides.

Start at **Connections** → **New connection**.

<Note>
  Nothing is written to Webflow during the wizard. The connection is created as a **draft** and stays inert until you approve the first preview.
</Note>

## Step 1 — Destination

Pick the Webflow site, then the CMS collection to sync into.

<Frame caption="Each collection shows its field count, so you can tell them apart at a glance.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/synclifycloud/tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ/images/wizard-destination.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ&q=85&s=7fc88ff59384b2831b2f99408e87707e" alt="Wizard step 1: choosing a Webflow CMS collection from a dropdown of available collections" width="1622" height="775" data-path="images/wizard-destination.png" />
</Frame>

<Warning>
  **Webflow collection already connected.** A collection can back only one live connection. If it is already taken, delete the existing connection for that collection before creating another.
</Warning>

Choose the destination first because it determines the field list you'll map into — including which fields Webflow marks required.

## Step 2 — Source

Pick the provider, then the specific resource.

* **Airtable** — choose a base, then a table.
* **Google Sheets** — visible but disabled, marked **Coming soon**.

<Frame caption="Select Airtable, then pick the table to sync from.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/synclifycloud/tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ/images/wizard-source.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ&q=85&s=1beedfebdabd5ddce11e03a4cf4e2471" alt="Wizard step 2: Airtable selected as the source with a table dropdown; Google Sheets shown as Coming soon" width="1622" height="659" data-path="images/wizard-source.png" />
</Frame>

If your Airtable account isn't listed, connect it first from [Data Sources](/data-sources/connect-airtable).

## Step 3 — Map fields

Synclify auto-maps on entry, matching source column names to Webflow field names and known aliases. It takes a moment.

<Frame caption="Each Webflow field shows its type (PlainText, Switch, Reference…). Unmatched fields read '— not mapped —'; the row marked ID field is the record identifier.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/synclifycloud/tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ/images/field-mapping.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=tX4bFMw-67S-cAOQ&q=85&s=3283dece7d6e33475547f1e4b77c7c7d" alt="Wizard step 3: Airtable source columns mapped to Webflow CMS fields, with the Slug row marked as the ID field" width="1623" height="946" data-path="images/field-mapping.png" />
</Frame>

Then you:

* Review each mapped pair and correct the wrong ones.
* Set the **ID field** — required.
* Add mappings for columns auto-mapping missed, and remove ones you don't want synced.

Type mismatches across families (text, number, boolean, date/time) block **Continue**. Required Webflow fields cannot be removed.

This step has enough depth to deserve its own page: [Field mapping](/connections/field-mapping).

## Step 4 — Settings

<Frame caption="Name the connection, set direction and cadence, then Create connection. Realtime is included regardless of cadence.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/synclifycloud/IPXGLB1Dua46kjLv/images/wizard-settings.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=IPXGLB1Dua46kjLv&q=85&s=d95762277095462b074ae362b8a526fc" alt="Wizard step 4: connection settings with sync direction, polling cadence, auto-publish on, and delete orphaned records off" width="1623" height="1036" data-path="images/wizard-settings.png" />
</Frame>

<ParamField path="Connection name" type="required">
  How the connection appears in lists, history, and the delete confirmation. Use something you'd recognize under pressure — `Blog posts → Webflow`, not `Connection 3`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="Sync direction" type="one-way | two-way" default="one-way">
  **One-way** (`Source updates Webflow`) — Airtable is the source of truth; Webflow edits to mapped fields are overwritten.

  **Two-way** (`Shared fields can update both sides`) — edits flow both ways, and you get [per-field ownership](/how-synclify-works#per-field-ownership).
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="Sync cadence" type="manual | polling" default="manual">
  **Manual** — syncs only when you click **Sync now**.

  **Polling** — a fallback scan every N minutes, hours, or days.

  Realtime sync runs regardless of this setting. Polling exists to catch what webhooks miss.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="Auto-publish after sync" type="toggle" default="on">
  On: synced items are published live. Off: they land in Webflow as staged changes for someone to publish by hand.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="Delete orphaned records" type="toggle" default="off">
  Off: a Webflow item whose source row disappeared is left alone.

  On: it is **permanently deleted** from Webflow.
</ParamField>

<Warning>
  **Minimum poll interval is 5 minutes.** Anything shorter is rejected: *"Minimum poll interval is 5 minutes to avoid rate-limit issues."* Tighter polling gets you rate-limited by Airtable and Webflow, which makes syncs slower, not faster. Realtime already covers the sub-minute case.
</Warning>

<Warning>
  **Delete orphaned records is destructive and permanent.** A source row deleted by accident — or an identity value someone renamed — will delete the matching Webflow item on the next sync. Leave this off unless deletions in the source genuinely mean "unpublish from the site."
</Warning>

## Leaving mid-wizard

Your progress is saved as you go, and reloading the page resumes where you were. But navigating away deliberately prompts:

> **Leave connection setup?** Your setup will be discarded and you'll have to start over.

## After the wizard

Synclify creates the draft and immediately starts [guided setup](/connections/guided-setup) — pairing existing records, collecting your decisions about unmatched ones, resolving conflicts, and previewing the first sync before anything is written.