[Question] How to control cache (Cache-Control) for files uploaded to the Files tool

Develop, Build & Integrate CMS Development
1

Hello,

I am currently using JSON files uploaded to HubSpot’s Files tool, reading them from our own app, and using them to control the display of the “New Arrivals” popup within the app.

■ The Issue
Upon checking the response headers for the file, I found that it is cached with max-age=1209600 (2 weeks).

As a result, even when I update the file’s content, the changes are not reflected immediately on users’ devices, making it impossible to trigger the new arrivals popup at the intended time.

■ Desired State
• I would like to shorten Cache-Control to no-cache or approximately max-age=86400 (1 day).
• Alternatively, I am interested in any workarounds that could achieve a similar effect.

■ Support Inquiry Results
I contacted HubSpot Support, but they stated that “there is currently no feature to individually configure Cache-Control for files uploaded to Files,” so I did not receive a clear solution.

■ Question
Has anyone else used Files as a data source for external apps and faced issues with immediate reflection of updates?

I am currently considering the following two workarounds, but I would appreciate any advice if there is a better approach.

  1. Re-upload the file each time with a versioned filename (e.g., data_20260721.json)
  2. Append a query parameter to the reference URL on the app side (e.g., data.json?v=20260721)

If you have experience with similar use cases, I would greatly appreciate your insights.

Thank you.

2

Hi @muramasa and welcome, it’s a pleasure to have you here!

Thanks for reaching out to the HubSpot Community!

I can confirm that, at the moment, the files tool serves files via CDN with automatic browser and server caching, and there’s no way to configure Cache-Control per file.

I’ve noticed a similar idea already present in our Ideas Forum: Website/landing pages should link to latest file version . To contribute, you can upvote the existing idea and share more details about your specific use case in the comments.

As an alternative, instead of a static JSON file, you could be storing your “New Arrivals” config data in a HubDB table. You can query it externally via the HubDB API, and since it’s an API response (not a CDN-cached static file), updates are reflected immediately after publishing the table.

I’d love to hear from our Top Experts: Hi @Makoto, @marykashima and @skimura can you think of other workarounds to help @muramasa, please?

Thanks so much and have a lovely day!
Bérangère

This post was created with the assistance of AI tools

4

Since Support already confirmed the file headers are not configurable, I wouldn’t try to use Files as the live control plane for this popup.

If you keep the JSON in Files, the safer workaround is to make the app request a versioned config URL and change that URL whenever the popup content changes, for example new-arrivals.v2026-07-21.json or a ?v=2026-07-21-1 query string if your consuming path respects query strings. That works with the two-week cache instead of fighting it: old requests may keep the old config, but new requests point at a fresh object.

For same-day campaign timing, HubDB or a small API endpoint is the cleaner fit. I’d only use Files when some staleness is acceptable.

Disclosure: drafted with AI assistance.

5

I’ve run into the same caching issue. Using versioned filenames or appending query parameters has worked well for me to force refreshes, since HubSpot doesn’t let us change Cache-Control directly. Both approaches are simple and reliable.

6

Thank you! It seems that specifying query parameters can solve the issue!

7

Thank you! It looks like I can resolve it by specifying query parameters!!!

8

Thank you! It looks like specifying query parameters can solve it!!!

9

I learned something new from this post. Caching improves performance, but having more control over cache duration would be very helpful for external app integrations.