8 Useless Websites and What We Can Learn from Them

Web Design
8 Useless Websites and What We Can Learn from Them
Article by Clara Autor
Last Updated: August 29, 2024

Websites come in many forms, each with its own purpose — some exist to sell products or services, while others educate users on various topics. But what about those seemingly pointless websites? Often created for entertainment, these useless websites are pages that have no clear purpose and seem to have no use at all.

In this list of “useless” websites, we explore eight intriguing examples and uncover what we can learn from them — do they offer hidden value, or are they just quirks of the digital world? Let’s find out!

8 of the Most Useless Websites (or Are They?)

The web is as weird as it is magnificent. While most websites have clear purposes — like promoting businesses, selling products, educating visitors, or inspiring audiences — there are many oddball sites that seem to serve no purpose at all.

Delve into these eight examples of seemingly totally useless websites and decide for yourself:

1. It’s in the Name: Useless Web

The Useless Web
[Source: The Useless Web]

 

The Useless Web can be defined as the mother of all useless websites. It’s essentially a curated roundup of the web's most pointless sites, featuring a giant CTA button that will take you to some of the most absurd pages online.

You might recognize some of the sites, while others could be completely new to you. What’s better than a useless website that lets you kill some time and de-stress? A compilation of random sites that do the same.

Moreover, the website’s performance is truly astonishing:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 185,100
  • Keywords: 3,498
  • Backlinks: 90,933

Lesson: Expand your backlink portfolio. Many of the sites linked are creative and absurd, demonstrating that your work doesn’t always have to fit into conventional molds. Creating something purely whimsical can stand out and be appreciated.

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2. The World’s Most Useless Website: Cat Bounce

Cat Bounce
[Source: Cat Bounce]

Cat Bounce shows cats jumping up and down, and that is all it does. Visitors can make the cats bounce lower or higher: a simple engagement that can feel oddly satisfying. If you click the “Make it rain” button in the top right corner, you’ll see dozens of cats falling from the sky. Additionally, each time you resize or refresh the page, its background color changes.

This pointless website’s performance metrics are as follows:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 4,801
  • Keywords: 1,706
  • Backlinks: 180,214

Lesson: Interactive content is highly engaging. As such, it increases time on site and click-through rates, both of which drive high SEO value and could help your site rank higher, reaping more organic traffic.

3. Random Website To Visit When Bored: Ffffidget

Random Website To Visit When Bored: Ffffidget
[Source: Ffffidget]

Ffffidget is an online fidget spinner — nothing more, nothing less.

Users can interact with the fidget spinner by moving it around the web page, spinning it slower or faster, and observing the color change. A single CTA button, “Buy a spinner,” directs users to Amazon, where they can browse a range of fidget spinners and purchase one for themselves.

The performance metrics for this site are:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 626
  • Keywords: 166
  • Backlinks: 1,370

Lesson: Use interactive content to showcase a product and generate interest, warming up leads before directing them to a checkout page.

4. Have Nothing To Do? Enter Staggering Beauty

pointless websites: Staggering Beauty
[Source: Staggering Beauty]

Staggering Beauty is a website where users can wiggle a white-eyed worm. They can control the wiggle speed; once it reaches a certain pace, the background erupts with flashing lights and loud music. Due to this, the website provides a warning for flash-sensitive audiences.

Staggering Beauty’s web performance is excellent, given its simplicity:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 3,614
  • Keywords: 2,487
  • Backlinks: 38,895

Lesson: Feature an element of surprise — surprising or unexpected features tend to be memorable and shareable, increasing their virality.

5. Escape From Boredom: Eel Slap!

Escape From Boredom: Eel Slap!
[Source: Eel Slap]

Eel Slap prompts visitors to slap a man with a fish. That’s the only goal users need to fulfill. Despite how purposeless this website looks and feels, it has impressive metrics:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 8,979
  • Keywords: 1,437
  • Backlinks: 4,865

Lesson: Singular focus is powerful, prompting users to take specific actions.

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6. Random, Random: Pointer Pointer

useless websites: Pointer Pointer
[Source: Pointer Pointer]

Pointer Pointer prompts users to move their mouse pointers across a black surface. The site then displays directions like “Please move your pointer” and “Finding pointer...please hold still.”

Pointer Pointer
[Source: Pointer Pointer]

When the website detects the visitor’s pointer, it reveals funny images of people pointing at various objects. These random, grainy photos are relics from a distant time.

Despite its seemingly pointless web design, the following numbers speak volumes about its effectiveness:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 65,443
  • Keywords: 1,173
  • Backlinks: 34,480

Pointer Pointer makes users stick around and explore more images to stay entertained.

Lesson: Compelling CTAs and interactive elements encourage clicks from visitors and increase dwell time.

7. Bored? Press the Bored Button

Bored
[Source: Bored Button]

The Bored Button entices users to press a big red button. Once they take the desired action, the site loads another webpage, with the button remaining at the top right corner.

Bored Button
[Source: Bored Button]

With each click of the button, users receive a new task to ease their boredom. Activities include holding down a button to set a new high score, doing crazy card tricks, and playing various games.

For an ostensibly useless website, Bored Button has excellent metrics:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 171,834
  • Keyword Rankings: 2,299
  • Backlinks: 63,786

Pointer Pointer is a prime example of a useless website that ranks exceptionally well in search engine result pages (SERPs), holding the first position for the following keywords:

  • I’m bored
  • Bored button
  • Bored games
  • Google I am bored
  • I’m bored games

Lesson: Interactive content with elements of surprise provokes curiosity and keeps users engaged longer.

8. Have Time To Kill? Patience Is a Virtue

Have Time To Kill? Patience Is a Virtue
[Source: Patience Is A virtue]

Patience Is A Virtue is designed to test your patience. With a loading animation and a few notes that say “Loading, please wait,” “This is taking longer than planned, please wait,” and “Thank you for your patience,” the website seems sarcastic at first but very quickly loses its charm as nothing ever loads no matter how long you wait.

This website has generated over 250,000 social shares on Facebook and Twitter, along with the following metrics:

  • Monthly Traffic Volume: 101
  • Keywords: 136
  • Backlinks: 1,176

Lesson: Shared experiences, especially frustrating ones, are great conversation starters — something brands can use to connect with their audiences while building highly shareable content.

What Makes a Website Useless?

Pointless websites won’t help you find an answer, a solution, or meaningful information on any topic. Most consist of a single page with just one or very few interactive components. Imagine landing on a page where you watch a guy fall, a ninja staying still and doing absolutely nothing, or a horse with endless legs.

So, what’s the point of visiting these websites when they have no purpose? While these web designs may be bizarre and don’t contribute to anything productive, they are silly and fun and can serve as a small form of entertainment and a fantastic way to beat boredom.

Besides watching funny cat videos on YouTube or endlessly scrolling on social media, these pointless websites can also be a fun way to kill some time online or share a laugh with friends.

5 Ways Useless Sites Make Business Sense

With their monthly traffic, media buzz, and keyword rankings, these seemingly ridiculous websites can surprisingly make money via:

  • Running paid ads: Pointless websites can display various advertisements and get paid each time a user clicks on them. They can earn between $0.50 and $5 per click; the more traffic they get, the more money they can make.
  • Selling sponsored posts: These websites can partner with brands to feature sponsored posts, which include both visual and written content. They often use no-follow tags, and with high-quality content, they can generate a lot of money.
  • Generating leads: For long-term sustainability, businesses must find new and creative ways to generate new leads. This is where most random websites come in quite handy. They connect brands with potential customers and earn money whether or not these prospects convert.
  • Being an Amazon affiliate: There are plenty of pointless websites that promote relevant Amazon products in exchange for commissions. For instance, Ffffidget links to Amazon pages where users can buy their own fidget spinners, earning a commission per sale.
  • Selling ad space: Useless websites can also sell ad space to brands. They get paid depending on the number of impressions and visitors generated.

Key Lessons To Learn From These Pointless Websites

While many of the world’s useless websites may not have any real purpose and exist only to entertain, some can be very powerful marketing machines. Here are the top three lessons they teach us:

1. Backlinks Are Precious

These unusual sites draw a lot of attention. And if there is anything we can learn from this useless web design, it is that authenticity wins the internet. This is why these sites have a good number of backlinks from across the web, generating thousands of monthly visitors.

2. Clear and Singular Goals Enhance User Experience

What makes these pointless websites effective is their focus on a single goal. Visitors can instantly engage with the content without being distracted by too many elements or cluttered designs. This delivers the best user experience and increases the time spent on the site. User experience is a key ranking factor for Google's algorithms.

3. Word Count Doesn’t Always Matter

In general, long-form content generates more backlinks and ranks better in SERPs. However, these examples show the opposite.

For instance, how does Bored Button succeed in ranking well for so many phrases with so little content? The key to its success is its ability to keep users entertained, increasing their time spent on the site. Higher dwell time and lower bounce rates signal Google that the site offers value to its visitors. This results in higher rankings and increases organic traffic.

Takeaways on Pointless Websites

Pointless websites are created to entertain visitors. However, they are a powerful marketing tool that can generate money for businesses. They are linked to and shared all over the internet, so they rank well on SERPs and receive tons of monthly traffic.

If there’s something we can learn from the most useless websites, it’s that there is tremendous value in creativity and the unconventional. Partner with the top web development companies to apply these lessons and create your own top-ranking site.

Useless Websites FAQs

1. What are the best random websites to go to when bored?

You can visit all the websites listed above if you’re bored. But if you want to maximize your spare time, The Useless Web may be the best option, as it’s the “greatest hits” of useless websites.

2. How many websites are inactive?

There are around 1.1 billion websites worldwide, 82% of which are inactive. That’s over 902 million inactive websites.

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