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Building pages that work for your team with SharePoint web parts
SharePoint web parts are the building blocks of your intranet pages. They’re how you surface information and functionality across pages. From news feeds and document libraries to calendars, quick links, and embedded media
Understanding what web parts are available and how to use them well makes a real difference to your intranet. The right combination creates pages that are genuinely useful. The wrong approach creates clutter.
What you’ll learn:
- What SharePoint web parts are and why they matter
- The main types of web parts and what they do
- How to add and customize web parts on your pages
- Best practices for creating pages that perform well and look good
What are web parts in SharePoint?
Web parts are modular components you add to SharePoint pages to display content or provide functionality. Think of them as widgets or blocks that you arrange to create your page layout.
SharePoint comes with dozens of built-in web parts covering common needs: displaying news, showing documents, embedding videos, creating navigation, highlighting people, and much more. You add them to a page, configure their settings, and arrange them to create the layout you want.
For communicators, web parts are your primary tool for building intranet pages. Understanding what’s available and how to use each web part effectively helps you create pages that serve employees well.
Why SharePoint web parts matter
Web parts determine what your pages can do and how they feel to use.
A well-designed page with thoughtfully chosen web parts helps employees find information quickly, stay up to date, and complete tasks efficiently. A cluttered page with too many web parts (or the wrong ones) creates confusion and slows people down.
The good news: SharePoint’s modern web parts are designed to work well together, look professional, and perform reliably. The skill is in choosing the right ones for each purpose and arranging them in a way that makes sense.
Types of SharePoint web parts
SharePoint offers a wide range of web parts. Here are the categories most relevant for intranet pages.
Content Web Parts
These display text, media, and information.
Text: The fundamental web part for adding written content to pages. Supports formatting, links, and basic styling.
Image: Displays single images with optional captions and links. Good for hero images, illustrations, and visual content.
Hero: Creates large, visually prominent sections with images and calls to action. Often used at the top of pages to highlight important content.
Editorial Card: Manually highlights important content or messages in a visually distinct, card-style container on pages and news posts. Great for drawing attention to key announcements or featured resources.
News: Displays news posts from your site or across your organization. Highly configurable — you can filter by source, choose layouts, and feature specific stories.
Quick Links: Creates navigation tiles or lists linking to important resources. One of the most useful web parts for helping employees find what they need.
Document Library: Embeds a view of documents from a library, allowing users to browse and access files directly from the page.
File and Media: Displays a single document (e.g., Word, Excel, PDF, PowerPoint) directly on the page without requiring users to download it.
Communication and Engagement Web Parts
These help connect people and encourage interaction.
Events: Shows upcoming events from a calendar, helping employees stay aware of what’s happening.
People: Displays team members or key contacts with photos and contact details.
Conversations: Embeds conversations from your enterprise social network, bringing community discussions onto intranet pages.
Forms: Embeds Microsoft Forms for surveys, polls, and feedback collection.
Video: Displays single videos or multiple videos from folders and playlists in OneDrive or SharePoint. Useful for training content, executive messages, and visual communications.
Navigation and Organization Web Parts
These help structure your pages and guide users.
Page Title: The header area at the top of modern pages, including the title and optional image.
Divider: Creates visual separation between sections.
Spacer: Adds vertical space to improve layout and readability.
Call to Action: Creates prominent buttons linking to important destinations.
Data and Business Web Parts
These connect to business information and systems.
List: Displays data from SharePoint lists.
Chart: Visualizes data from SharePoint lists as charts.
Power BI: Embeds Power BI reports and dashboards for data visualization.
Embed: Displays content from other websites using embed codes or iframes.
How to add web parts to a SharePoint page
Adding web parts is straightforward.
Follow these steps to add a web part to a page:
- Open the page you want to edit and click “Edit” in the top right corner.
- Hover over an existing section or the space where you want to add content. You’ll see a “+” icon appear.
- Click the “+” icon to open the web part picker. Browse categories or search for specific web parts.
- Select the web part you want to add to your page.
- Configure the web part using its settings panel. Options vary by web part type. You might choose a data source, select a layout, or add specific content.
- Arrange web parts by dragging them to different positions. Use section layouts to create columns and structure, or use a flexible layout section to position the web part freely on a page section.
- When you’re finished, click “Republish” to make your changes live.
Customizing web parts for your needs
Most web parts offer configuration options that let you tailor their behavior and appearance.
Data sources: Many web parts let you choose what content to display — which document library, which news source, which list.
Layouts: Several web parts offer multiple layout options. The News web part, for example, can display as a carousel, grid, or list.
Filtering: Some web parts let you filter content by metadata, date, or other criteria.
Display options: Control details like how many items to show, whether to display metadata, and how to handle truncation.
Take time to explore the settings for each web part you use. Small configuration choices can significantly improve how the web part serves your audience.
Best SharePoint web parts for intranets
Some web parts are particularly valuable for internal communications.
News: Essential for any intranet. Configure it to pull from the right sources and feature important stories prominently.
Quick Links: Helps employees find key resources without hunting through navigation. Great for “I need to…” sections.
Hero: Creates visual impact and highlights priority content. Use sparingly for maximum effect.
Events: Keeps people aware of upcoming activities. Valuable for organizations with regular meetings, deadlines, or occasions.
People: Humanizes pages and helps employees connect with the right contacts.
Document Library: Provides easy access to important files. More useful than linking to a separate library page.
Optimizing web part performance
More web parts means more loading time. A few practices keep your pages performing well.
Use only what you need. Every web part adds weight to your page. Resist the temptation to include everything. Focus on what actually serves the page’s purpose.
Be mindful with custom web parts. Microsoft’s built-in web parts are optimized and stress-tested at scale. Third-party or self-developed custm web parts can add valuable functionality, but ensure they’ve been performance-tested with realistic data loads, respect accessibility standards, multi-lingual, and your other enterprise needs. For example, poorly optimized custom web parts may impact loading speed, so test thoroughly before deploying them widely.
Limit items displayed. If a web part shows a list of items, configure it to display a reasonable number rather than loading everything. Users can click through to see more if needed.
Test on mobile. Some web part combinations work beautifully on desktop but create problems on smaller screens. Check how your pages render on phones.
Review periodically. Pages accumulate web parts over time. Regular reviews help identify web parts that are no longer useful and can be removed.
Creating accessible pages with web parts
Accessibility ensures your pages work for everyone.
Add alt text to images. When using Image or Hero web parts, always include descriptive alt text for screen reader users. Tip: Using stock images from SharePoint’s built-in Stock images library automatically populates the alt text field, saving you time and ensuring consistency.
Use headings properly. The Text web part supports heading styles. Use them to create logical structure, not just visual emphasis.
Ensure sufficient contrast. When customizing colors, make sure text remains readable for people with visual impairments.
Test keyboard navigation. Users should be able to navigate your page using only a keyboard. Avoid web part configurations that trap focus or require mouse interaction.
Keep it simple. Simpler pages with clear structure are inherently more accessible than complex layouts with many competing elements.
Custom web parts for SharePoint
Beyond the built-in options, organizations can create or purchase custom web parts for specific needs.
SharePoint Framework (SPFx): Microsoft’s development framework for creating custom web parts. Requires development expertise but offers full flexibility.
Third-party web parts: Various vendors offer pre-built web parts that extend SharePoint’s capabilities. These can add functionality that isn’t available out of the box.
PnP Modern Search: A community-driven initiative offering a highly customizable search web part focused on search scenarios. You can configure layouts and data sources to provide a bespoke search experience tailored to your intranet.
Fresh web parts: Fresh includes custom web parts designed specifically for internal communications, enhanced news displays, engagement features, and layouts optimized for communicator needs.
SharePoint’s native web parts are solid and reliable for core intranet needs. However, for organizations requiring advanced customization, brand alignment, and sophisticated audience targeting, Fresh web parts offer enhanced capabilities.
Fresh provides rich configuration options, targeting based on user profile properties and audiences (by role, department, location, and more), and design flexibility that complement SharePoint’s foundation. For intranet teams needing personalized, branded experiences with advanced targeting, Fresh delivers capabilities that extend what SharePoint’s native web parts alone can provide.
FAQ
What are SharePoint web parts used for?
Web parts are the building blocks of SharePoint pages. You use them to add content (text, images, documents), display information (news, events, lists), embed functionality (forms, videos, external content), and create navigation (quick links, calls to action).
How do I add web parts to a SharePoint page?
Edit the page, click the “+” icon where you want to add content, select a web part from the picker, and configure its settings. Arrange web parts by dragging them and republish the page when you’re done.
What are some popular third-party web parts for SharePoint?
Fresh offers web parts designed for internal communications. The SharePoint store includes various options.
How can I troubleshoot web part errors in SharePoint?
First, try refreshing the page. If the error persists, check that the web part’s data source still exists and that permissions are correct. For custom web parts, verify they’re still deployed properly. Microsoft’s support documentation covers common error scenarios.
Are there any limitations to using web parts in SharePoint?
Pages perform best with a reasonable number of web parts, overloading a page slows load times. Some web parts work better on desktop than mobile. And not all content types can be embedded without custom development.
SharePoint’s native web parts also have constraints around customization, targeting, and configuration. It’s difficult to align them with your brand, and advanced audience targeting requires workarounds. Fresh web parts, by contrast, provide rich configuration options and sophisticated targeting based on user profile properties and audiences. Allowing you to target content to specific roles, departments, locations, and more without custom development.
Within these bounds, web parts offer tremendous flexibility. Understanding these limitations helps you choose the right tools for your intranet needs.
How do I ensure that my SharePoint web parts are accessible to all users?
Add alt text to images, use proper heading structure, ensure color contrast meets accessibility standards, and test keyboard navigation. Keep layouts simple and logical. Microsoft’s accessibility checker can help identify issues.
Build pages that actually help
SharePoint web parts give you the flexibility to create pages that genuinely serve your employees. The key is choosing the right components for each purpose and arranging them thoughtfully.
If you want web parts designed specifically for internal communications with layouts, features, and options built for communicator needs, Fresh might be worth exploring. A SharePoint-native intranet that makes building great pages easier.
Because the right web parts turn pages into tools.
