How to embed an HTML page in Confluence, on Cloud or Data Center

A test run, a build, or an AI chat gave you an HTML report, and the team reads Confluence. Pasting the code into the editor doesn't run it, and an attached .html file doesn't open as a page. This guide shows what Atlassian's docs say Confluence Cloud and Confluence Data Center each do with HTML: the iFrame macro, Smart Links, attachments, the HTML import, and the HTML macro. Then it shows how to give the file an https:// address and add it to a page.

Atlassian's pages here were read on November 14, 2026. No Confluence site was used and nothing was tested in Confluence, so buttons are named as Atlassian's help names them.

Confluence Cloud and Data Center handle HTML differently

The HTML macro, which takes raw HTML code, is a Data Center macro. Atlassian's page for it, in the Confluence Data Center 11.0 docs, says: "The HTML macro is disabled by default." Atlassian's list of Confluence Cloud macros, from the anchor link macro to the widget connector macro, has no HTML macro. For a page that lives somewhere else, Cloud has the iFrame macro and Smart Links.

Embed a page by its link: the iFrame macro and Smart Links

Both take a page at an https:// address. Neither takes an .html file from your computer.

The iFrame macro (Cloud). Atlassian says it "lets you embed a webpage inside a Confluence page or live doc." To add it, while editing, type / and the macro's name, select it, and configure it. Its settings are Height, Width, Align, frameborder, and scrolling. Under "Known issues", Atlassian warns: "Some websites may show up as blank when you try to include them as part of an iFrame." The first cause it gives: "The website administrators have invoked the x-frame-options response header to prevent browsers from rendering it in an iFrame." Its fix, when a site stays blank: "Removing the iFrame macro and adding a link to the website instead."

Smart Links (Cloud). Atlassian says "Most links … will automatically unfurl or convert into a Smart Link when you paste them in a Confluence page." Select the link, then pick a view from the Smart Link toolbar:

• Inline view "shows only the title of the link."
• Card view shows "metadata like project details and summary", and readers can select Open preview.
• Embed view "allows you to view pages, boards, lists, timelines, or calendars in other apps without having to leave the page." For a site that can't be shown that way, Atlassian says "your link will default to inline."

For a link to a site Smart Links don't support, Atlassian calls a service named iFramely, which "will take your link, search the web for metadata that's publicly available, and display it in the Smart Link."

A published Convika page shows as a link or a card, not inside the page. Every Convika page sends the x-frame-options header that Atlassian names, so the iFrame macro shows it blank, and an embed view falls back to inline. Paste the page's address and choose Inline or Card: readers click it and the page opens in their browser, with its scripts running.

Attach the HTML file

You can attach an .html file to a page, but don't expect it to open as a page.

• On Cloud, Atlassian's help on uploading says: "Most file types can be attached." It adds: "Not all file types can be displayed on or embedded in a page or doc." The default size limit is 100 MB, set by the site's admin. Atlassian doesn't say how Confluence Cloud opens an attached .html file.
• On Data Center, an Atlassian knowledge base article says that since Confluence 5.1, "attachments files no longer open in the browser itself and users are being prompted for download." The cause: "As attachments can be 'active content', the behavior in Confluence will not be reverted." An administrator can choose Insecure: Display all attachments inline under Security Configuration, a setting Atlassian names insecure.

Attach the file for whoever edits the report, and put the page's link above it for everyone who only reads it.

Import HTML as Confluence pages

Confluence Cloud can turn HTML into Confluence pages, in a new space. Atlassian's steps: "In Confluence, select Spaces from the top navigation, then Import from other tools." Select HTML, upload the file, and set up the space. It takes a .zip: "You can only upload a .zip file containing a folder … containing .html files." You need permission to create a space.

The import keeps text, not the page's working parts. Atlassian lists what it keeps (headings, bold text, links, images, tables, lists, and more) and what it doesn't. "iframe", "Button", "Nav", and "Figure" are "Unsupported"; a code block becomes "Plain text". Atlassian's list doesn't mention scripts. Use it for a document that's mostly text. For a chart, a filter, or a form, publish the HTML and link to it.

The HTML macro on Data Center, and apps on Cloud

On Data Center, the HTML macro shows HTML code you paste into it. Atlassian calls it "a legacy macro" that "is often disabled by Confluence administrators for security reasons." Turning it on takes Confluence Administrator or System Administrator permissions. Atlassian's steps: "Go to Administration menu, then Manage apps. Select System from the drop down and search for the Confluence HTML Macros system app. Expand the listing and enable the html (html-xhtml) module." It warns: "Enabling these macros can make your Confluence site vulnerable to cross-site scripting attacks," and recommends "leaving this macro disabled if you allow self-signed up or anonymous users to create content." The HTML Include macro, which takes a URL, is switched on in the same app's html-include module, and "Administrators can define an allowlist of trusted URLs."

On Cloud, Atlassian Marketplace lists apps from other companies that add HTML or iframe macros. Atlassian says apps "may have been created by Atlassian or by a third party developer", and "You need to be an Atlassian cloud site admin to access Connected Apps," where apps are managed. Ask your site admin. Each app's price and rules come from its own listing.

Publish the HTML at a link and add it to Confluence in 4 steps

The link these steps make opens a page on Convika, on the internet, outside your Confluence site. Check your company's rules before you publish anything internal (who can see it).

1. Put the report in one file

Convika takes one .html or .htm file, up to 2 MB, or the same code pasted into the box. If the report's CSS and images sit in a folder next to it, drop that folder, or a zip of it, into the upload box instead, and the box puts them inside the file. A script's requests to other websites are blocked on a Free page, so a report that loads its numbers from an internal API or another site shows none of them: have the tool or the AI write the numbers into the file. HTML file missing images or styles covers the rest.

2. Publish it

Drop the file into the upload box at the top of this page, and click Get my preview link. The preview turns scripts off, so charts and filters wait for the next step. Click Keep this page — free, no card and sign up. The page moves into your account, where its scripts run. Click Publish page. Under Who can open this page?, choose Public and click Next. The first time, click Publish free. A Public page can show up in search results and in Convika's gallery, so for internal numbers choose Private link or Only people with the password (Pro, $12 a month).

3. Copy the address under Live URL

The page's address, such as yourpage.convika.page, stays the same until you unpublish it. Open it once in your browser and check the charts and buttons.

4. Paste it into the Confluence page

Edit the Confluence page and paste the address. On Cloud, it turns into a Smart Link: select it and choose Inline or Card from the Smart Link toolbar. On Data Center, add it as a link. Publish the Confluence page and click the link once.

To update the report without touching Confluence, upload the new file to the same page on its screen in Convika, under Update from an HTML file, and publish the new version. The link opens the new version. See how to update an AI-made page at the same address.

Who can see it

Confluence's page permissions cover the Confluence page, not the Convika page it links to. Whoever has the link opens the report, in your company or not.

• Public is the free choice. Anyone with the link can open the page, and it may show up in search results and in Convika's gallery.
• A private link needs Pro. Choose Private link under Who can open this page?. Convika keeps the page out of the sitemap and tells search engines to keep it out of their results. Anyone with the link still opens it without a password or account.
• A password needs Pro ($12 a month). Choose Only people with the password. Visitors see a password screen first. It's one shared password, with no Atlassian sign-in. See How to password protect an HTML page.
• The card reads what's public. For a site Smart Links don't support, Atlassian says iFramely searches "for metadata that's publicly available" and shows it in the card.
• You see how many opened it, not who. The dashboard shows visits by day, country, device, and the site they came from, over the last 90 days. It records no names and no email addresses.

If the report must not leave your company's systems, don't publish it on Convika: use the HTML import on Cloud, or ask your Confluence admin about the HTML macro on Data Center.

Frequently asked questions

Can you embed HTML in Confluence?

On Data Center, yes, with the HTML macro, once an administrator turns it on: Atlassian says it "is disabled by default". On Cloud, Atlassian's list of Cloud macros has no HTML macro. Cloud shows a page that lives elsewhere through the iFrame macro or a Smart Link's embed view, if that site allows framing, or through Marketplace apps a site admin adds.

How do I embed an HTML page in Confluence Cloud?

Put the page at an https:// address, then add the iFrame macro with that address, or paste it and choose the Smart Link's embed view. Atlassian says sites that send the x-frame-options header show up blank in an iFrame, and that a link that can't be embedded "will default to inline." A Convika page is one of those, so show it as an inline link or a card.

Why is my iFrame macro blank in Confluence?

Atlassian names 2 causes: the site's administrators "invoked the x-frame-options response header to prevent browsers from rendering it in an iFrame", or "The browser you're using has blocked the website from loading as a security precaution." Its fixes: change http:// to https://, or remove the macro and add a link to the site instead.

How do I publish an HTML page to Confluence?

On Cloud, select Spaces > Import from other tools > HTML and upload a .zip of a folder of .html files: each file becomes a Confluence page in a new space. Atlassian lists iframes and buttons as unsupported, so the import keeps the text and loses the working parts. To keep the page working, publish it at a link and add the link to a Confluence page.

How do I enable the HTML macro in Confluence?

On Data Center, a Confluence Administrator or System Administrator goes to Administration > Manage apps, selects System, finds Confluence HTML Macros, and enables the html (html-xhtml) module. Atlassian warns this "can make your Confluence site vulnerable to cross-site scripting attacks." Atlassian's list of Cloud macros has no HTML macro to enable.

Can I attach an HTML file and have it open as a page?

Not by default. On Data Center, attachments download instead of opening, since Confluence 5.1, unless an administrator picks the setting Atlassian calls Insecure: Display all attachments inline. On Cloud, Atlassian says "Not all file types can be displayed on or embedded in a page or doc," and doesn't say how an .html file opens.

Do people need a Convika account to open the link?

No. The page opens in any browser, without an account. On Pro, a password page asks for its password first.

Sources

• Insert the iFrame macro (Atlassian, Confluence Cloud) (read on November 14, 2026)
• Smart Link view options (Atlassian) (read on November 14, 2026)
• Insert links and anchors (Atlassian, Confluence Cloud) (read on November 14, 2026)
• What data is sent and received when pasting a Smart Link? (Atlassian) (read on November 14, 2026)
• Upload a file (Atlassian, Confluence Cloud) (read on November 14, 2026)
• Attachments no longer open in browser and users are instead prompted to download the files (Atlassian knowledge base, Data Center) (updated October 1, 2026; read on November 14, 2026)
• Import data from HTML to Confluence (Atlassian, Confluence Cloud) and its FAQ (read on November 14, 2026)
• HTML Macro (Atlassian, Confluence Data Center 11.0) (last modified August 21, 2024; read on November 14, 2026)
• HTML Include Macro (Atlassian, Confluence Data Center 11.0) (last modified October 5, 2020; read on November 14, 2026)
• Macros that are unavailable or have limited availability in the Cloud editor (Atlassian) (read on November 14, 2026)
• Manage your apps (Atlassian, Confluence Cloud) (read on November 14, 2026)