SharePoint is the leading digital workplace platform that lets you create, manage, and share content with your team and your audience (among many other abilities). One of the best features for everyday users when creating content in SharePoint is the ability to easily add web parts to your pages and news. Web parts are like building blocks that let you add different features and functions in a single context alongside other building blocks – for example, Documents next to instructional text or policy reminders for using the library.
But how do you choose the right web parts for your pages and news? Well, it depends on what you want to do and who you want to reach. You should pick web parts that help you achieve your goals and communicate your message clearly and effectively. You should also keep your page design simple and neat, using only the web parts that you really need.
Here are some of the best web parts to use when creating SharePoint pages and news:
| Web Part | What it does |
|---|---|
 Highlighted content | Shows content that matches certain criteria or attributes, such as content type, location, custom metdata, or search term. I like this web part a lot because it gives me plenty of flexibility and helps me surface the right content when I need it. |
 News | Displays the latest news on your SharePoint page, and can include news from multiple sites as well. |
 Hero | Shows up to five items with images, text, and links to make them stand out. You can use it to add some flair and visual interest to your SharePoint page. |
 Events | Creates and shows events on your page. You can use it to share important dates, deadlines, meetings, or celebrations with your audience. |
 Quick links | Adds links to your page for easy access. You can use it to direct your audience to other pages, sites, or external resources that are relevant to your content. |
 People | Shows information about people on your page. You can use it to introduce your team members, collaborators, or contacts to your audience. You can also display their profile pictures, names, roles, and contact information. |
 Document library | Shows documents on your page. You can use it to upload or link to files that you want to share with your audience. You can set it to only show a specific view of a library to manage your space better (perhaps a view with minimal columns shown). |
 List | Displays a list from your site. This surfaces a view of a particular list as a web part. Consider using views that filter a person field to [Me] (the signed in user). This is a great way to personalize pages (your requests, your tasks, etc.) and surface relevant information alongside related resources (countdowns, calendars, files, policies, etc.). |
 File viewer | Shows files on your page. You can use it to display files such as videos, images, PDFs, or Microsoft 365 app files like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files. You can also adjust the size and position of the file viewer on the page. |
 Embed | Shows content from other sites that allow embedding. You can use it to add content from sites like YouTube, Twitter, or Spotify to your page. You can also customize the appearance and behavior of the embedded content on the page. |
These are just some of the many web parts that you can use in SharePoint. Want a fuller list? Check out my other post: SharePoint team vs communication site web part options.
Each web part can be customized to suit your needs and preferences. Ready to start building better pages? Check out this video, Create pages in SharePoint Online sites, to see the process:
