Comparison of different tab solutions in Confluence Cloud

Confluence Cloud is a widely used collaboration tool that offers many content formatting options. A functionality that Confluence Cloud doesn’t offer is creating tabs within a Confluence page. However, different apps/plugins allow you to create tabs and even include existing Confluence pages, Iframes, and content from 3rd-party apps in your tabs.
This article compares popular tab plugins, highlighting their features and benefits: Composition Tabs, Tabs+ Pro, Tabs for Confluence and Navitabs.

Why Use Tabs in Confluence?

Adding tabs in Confluence pages helps you organize content efficiently – they allow easy navigation, collaboration of different teams on the same Confluence page and compatibility with 3rd party apps. In our blog, you can find more about the use cases of Confluence tabs.

In the following, we will look at different tab plugins for Confluence. We tried them out ourselves and will tell you about our experience.

Composition Tabs for Confluence

Like with most other Confluence tab solutions, you can create your own tabs and write a text or include an image or file. Here, you can find a list of the macros that are supported. It worked well and was easy to understand when we tried it out.

Their editor also offers the possibility to choose a parent page, which, once published, will create a page with all child pages of the respective parent page displayed as individual tabs. You can also choose specific Confluence pages by searching for their titles and include them as tabs. However, you can’t combine different kinds of tabs on the same Confluence page (so, for example, a tab with your own content and a tab including a Confluence page).

The “Composition Tabs for Confluence” plugin is a good solution if you want to include other Confluence pages or structure your own content (text, images or files) with tabs. If you want to include 3rd party plugins, the next plugin may be better for you.

Tabs+ Pro for Confluence

The advantage of this solution is that it comes with many integrations. You can seamlessly integrate Notion pages, Excel sheets, Google Analytics and more. It is also possible to create a tab with your own notes, images or PDFs. Also, different types of tabs can be combined as desired. Once published, there is a full-screen option that feels nice to navigate. The design is highly customizable.

The downside to this solution is that there is no option to include existing Confluence pages and it is relatively costly.

Tabs for Confluence

In contrast to the examples before, this plugin has no integrated editor, as it works within the Confluence editor. This comes with some advantages and disadvantages. On the upside, this makes it possible to include Iframes, pictures, and other Confluence pages (using the macro /include), as all of this is possible within the Confluence editor. On the downside, creating pages with tabs looks a bit less sleek:

Yet the result looks very similar to the other tab solutions:

Navitabs – Tabs for Confluence

Disclaimer: This is our own (bitvoodoo’s) tab solution.

Navitabs has its own editor (the macro “Tab Wizard“) that offers 4 options.

• “Select existing pages” will make tabs out of existing Confluence pages that you choose.

• There is the option “Define labels”, which generates tabs from one or more defined labels. This is useful when you want to, for example, create an overview page for onboarding. You can then automatically generate tabs with all the Confluence pages you previously labeled with “onboarding”.

• There is also the option to create tabs with child pages by defining a parent page – this works like the feature from the first tab solution we discussed (“Composition Tabs for Confluence”).

• Last, there is the option “Create your own tabs”. This feature allows you to combine all kinds of tabs: Tabs where you create the content yourself (text, images, files,…), tabs that include existing Confluence pages, Iframes, embedded content and HTML code.

With Navitabs plugin, it is also possible to use the Confluence editor (like with the app “Tabs for Confluence” from above). For this, you use the macro Tab Group and the macro Tab (used within a Tab Group macro).

Additionally, you can create your own tab design and manage it in one central place if the corporate identity changes. The tabs can also adapt to dark mode and in combination with Viewtracker, you can count views of Confluence pages integrated as tabs. Like all the other apps, you can try out Navitabs for free for one month. At the bottom of the page, you can compare the prices after the free trial.

Comparison table for different tab solutions in Confluence

Feature/Tab Solution	Composition Tabs for Confluence	Tabs+ Pro for Confluence	Tabs for Confluence	Navitabs – Tabs for Confluence
Create Own Tabs	✅	✅	✅	✅
Include Images/Files	✅	✅	✅	✅
Parent Page Tabs	✅	❌	❌	✅
Include Existing Confluence Pages	✅	❌	✅(with macro /include)	✅
Iframes	❌	✅	✅(with Iframe macro)	✅
Combining Different Tab Types	❌	✅	✅ (using macros)	✅
Full-screen Option	❌	✅	❌	❌
change the orientation of tabs	✅	✅	✅	✅
Editor Type	Dedicated Editor	Dedicated Editor	Confluence Editor	Dedicated Editor & Confluence Editor
Design Customization	❌	✅ (highly customizable)	✅ (with icons & emojis)	✅ (with company colors)
Dark Mode Adaptation	❌	❌	✅	✅
Free trial	✅	✅	✅	✅
Price for 100 Users/Month	USD 82.00	USD 280.00	USD 35.00	USD 21.00

Prices

Note: The prices you see above can change. These were the prices when checked on the 17th of January 2024. For the current prices, go to Atlassian Marketplace.

Conclusion

In conclusion, each tab solution for Confluence Cloud offers a unique set of features to enhance the user experience within Confluence pages, catering to different needs and preferences.

• Composition Tabs for Confluence: A straightforward choice for creating tabs with its own content or Confluence pages. It offers simplicity but lacks integration with third-party apps and the ability to combine different tab types.
• Tabs+ Pro for Confluence: Ideal for those looking for a wide range of integrations and a highly customizable design. It allows for combining different types of tabs and offers a full-screen option. However, it does not support including existing Confluence pages and is the most expensive option.
• Tabs for Confluence: This solution operates within the Confluence editor, making it flexible in terms of content inclusion, like iFrames and pictures. While user-friendly, the creation process might be less sleek than the others.
• Navitabs – Tabs for Confluence: This solution is versatile, allowing for a mix of content types and integration with existing Confluence pages and is the most affordable. While the Tab Wizard macro has the most functionalities and is easy to use, the old Tab group Macro using the Confluence editor is less user-friendly.

When choosing a tab plugin, consider your team’s specific needs, your budget, and the desired level of integration and customization. It’s advisable to take advantage of the free trials offered by these solutions to find the best fit for your Confluence environment.