Your website is the pillar of your brand’s online presence. To stay competitive, it must keep up with the latest web design trends, such as dynamic scrolling, virtual reality videos, and voice user interfaces — along with other emerging technologies in 2024 that are shaping the future of intuitive and responsive websites.
In this blog, we’ve compiled a list of the most popular web design trends for 2024, along with insights on how you can incorporate each one to enhance your online presence. Let’s begin!
Key Points
- Keeping up with evolving web design trends is essential for businesses and designers to create engaging, modern, and effective websites.
- Accessibility, the leading web design trend of 2024, focuses on features like screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, and high-contrast visuals.
- Other popular web design trends include expressive typography, illustrations, gradients, and the use of white space.
Table of Contents
- Accessibility Stays a Top Priority
- Expressive Typography Will Soar
- Speaking of Art… Illustrations Galore!
- Gradients, Gradients, Gradients
- Increased Use of Negative (White) Space
- Improved Chatbots With a Focus on Conversational Design
- Bright Colors and Small Fonts
- Virtual Reality Video Will Go Everywhere
- Voice User Interfaces Will Improve Accessibility
- More Humanizing Digital Experiences
- Mobile-First Design Is More Important Than Ever
- Dynamic Scrolling
- Enriched Interactive Storytelling
- Minimalism and Simplicity Will Rule Web Design
- Modern Geometric Shape Aesthetic
- Web Design Trends: Final Thoughts
- Web Design Trends FAQs
Accessibility Stays a Top Priority
Accessibility is the top web design trend of 2024. It ensures websites are usable by individuals with disabilities and promotes the use of features such as screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, and high-contrast visuals to create inclusive online experiences that cater to all users.
Gabriel Shaoolian, CEO of Digital Silk, points out that "Fully accessible websites — which empower disabled communities to utilize the Internet with ease — bring some of the highest value to websites that are aiming to improve their time on site and conversions."
Poppr’s web design combines enhanced navigation and striking visuals, making it a great example of an accessible website.
The changes in regulation regarding web design and the release of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 are set to make the Internet more accessible for people with disabilities and change the world of website design.
The aim is to “expand accessibility for a wider variety of people with disabilities, such as people with low vision, learning disabilities, speech disabilities and multiple disabilities, all of whom potentially have more opportunities online than ever, thanks to advanced technology,” according to the WCAG 2.1 guidelines.
The guidelines are also intended to enhance accessibility on small screens, touch screens, and other features common to mobile devices and tablets. Moreover, with the anticipated increase in the use of web-connected technologies, such as driverless cars and cashless payments, WCAG 2.1 ensures that these technologies are designed with accessibility for people with disabilities in mind.
Expressive Typography Will Soar
Expressive typography is another website and graphic design trend in 2024. It’s an excellent example of the visual value that text can provide, similar to what Humbleteam did here.
Expressive typography communicates messages more compellingly and memorably while conveying emotions, moods, or ideas beyond their literal meaning. It makes a statement, grabs attention, and adds personality to a website's visual identity.
This trend is characterized by using bold, striking typography that dominates the page and draws the user's attention. It often involves combining different typefaces, font sizes, weights, and colors to create contrast and visual interest.
Expressive typography makes a website more engaging and effective at conveying its purpose or promoting a product or service. It's a trend that reflects the increasing importance of visual storytelling and the role of design in enhancing user experience.
Speaking of Art… Illustrations Galore!
Illustrations, graphic design, and visual representations of a concept or idea have become an increasingly popular trend in recent years. These are often used to create a unique visual language that reflects a brand's personality, values, and tone of voice.
An ideal example is Agilant Solutions’ website, which uses illustrations to showcase its technical expertise. Additionally, Casper is an excellent example of smart and sparing custom illustrations that maintain a trendy, friendly brand identity.
An illustrated website design adds a touch of playfulness to your brand, making your content easily digestible, more memorable, and engaging for users. Illustrations can also help to simplify complex information and make it more understandable and accessible to the user. For example, a financial website might use an illustration to explain complex financial concepts simply and visually appealingly.
Gradients, Gradients, Gradients
Gradients have been a popular trend in web design for several years now and remain important in 2024. A gradient is a gradual blend of two or more colors, usually in a linear or radial direction. It adds depth, dimensions, and visual interest to a website's background, buttons, or text just like Be The Buzz.
Gradients create a sense of movement or energy. They are versatile and can be used in a variety of ways. They can be subtle or bold, bright or muted, and combined with other design elements, such as typography or illustrations to create a unique visual language.
For example, a website might use a gradient background to create the illusion of a sunrise or sunset, or a button might use a gradient to make it appear more three-dimensional and interactive.
Increased Use of Negative (White) Space
Another trending website style today is the use of white space (negative space) — which refers to the unoccupied areas of a page or design. You can think of it as breathing room for the fundamental components of a site. Explicit Promotions is a good example of a website that leverages white space.
Negative space is not a new innovation in web design that designers are expected to start using; rather, it is a user-driven requirement. Users' reading and usage habits on websites, mainly caused by increased mobile browsing, have prompted designers to increase the amount of space on pages.
The result is a more open-page layout than what was previously considered optimal. The scanning approach to browsing websites, now commonly used by website visitors, means that without an increase in negative space, users often feel overwhelmed.
Improved Chatbots With a Focus on Conversational Design
The use of chatbots has been growing in popularity as one of the leading web design trends in 2024. These bots are changing how we interact with websites and web designers must be aware of best practices when designing chatbots, as demand is expected to increase in 2024.
In short, the emphasis on conversational design is the touchpoint where UX and web designers will be the most important in 2024. Chatbots are getting better by the day, and it all comes down to how they interact with humans — through more relevant, engaging conversations.
Shaoolian also states that “Conversation-based chatbots that mindfully answer key questions and usher users along the journey with a personal touch are key in improving the user experience and, naturally, result in higher conversion rates.”
Conversational design, however, entails more than a personal touch, and as chatbots evolve, they're expected to inform web design innovation and development choices to a great extent. The Un Known is a great example of a website that uses chatbot functionality.
Bright Colors and Small Fonts
More and more websites today are using bright colors and small fonts, making it a top web design trend in 2024. This approach captures attention quickly and creates a vibrant, modern aesthetic, much like what JCCQ did here.
Bright colors help websites stand out in a crowded digital landscape, while small fonts convey a minimalist, clean look. Carefully balancing these elements allows designers to achieve an eye-catching yet sophisticated style that enhances user experience and engagement.
Besides that, bright colors help evoke specific emotions in users. This makes content more memorable and helps put it in front of the mind. Small fonts, on the other hand, encourage designers to prioritize essential information, which leads to more concise and effective communication.
Virtual Reality Video Will Go Everywhere
Much like chatbots, virtual reality (VR) has been a buzzword over the last two years, which is also why it’s one of the most popular web design trends today. With the increase in the uptake of VR equipment and compatibility, we can say that VR video is set to take center stage in the coming years.
There are some industries where you’ll probably notice the use of VR video more prominently than others. One that springs to mind is real estate, property, or restaurant bookings. Giving VR video tours of houses or flats online can save time, and costs and ultimately make the entire rental market process much smoother.
Use the video file converter to provide VR video in the best format. Matterport is largely considered the industry leader in delivering high-quality VR video solutions for the housing industry. The results are impressive!
Voice User Interfaces Will Improve Accessibility
The use of voice is one of the leading web design trends recently, especially with the innovations behind Alexa, Siri, Cortado, and Google Assistant. Voice technology will expand in 2024 since it has become an essential medium for users to access online content.
For example, the implications of not integrating voice-activated navigation could soon infringe on the ADA regulations, so keep an eye out for how VUI develops in 2024.
Not only are VUIs extremely good at saving time, but they’re also a great interface for drivers, as well as the visually impaired. The future of excellent UX may be in the strategically placed and well-thought-out VUI elements.
More Humanizing Digital Experiences
Humanizing digital experiences continues to be a top web design trend in 2024 and beyond. Users now expect to interact with their digital products in the same way they would with another person. In 2024, designers will face the challenge of meeting these expectations and must prepare digital products to deliver more human-like interactions.
There’s a direct link between the trend of humanizing digital experiences and human emotions. How users choose to interact with a product heavily influences whether they’ll use it in the future or long term. A good example of a website leveraging personalization is Vitera.
By focusing on the emotional impact of interaction, designers can influence users to choose their products over others.
Mobile-First Design Is More Important Than Ever
Mobile-first design is another popular web design trend in 2024. This approach ensures that websites are optimized for smaller screens and touch navigation. The Rollink website is an excellent example of a mobile-friendly design.
In mobile-first design, the design and development process begin with the mobile device in mind first, then expands to desktop and other larger screens. This approach prioritizes the mobile UX by designing interfaces optimized for small screens and touch-based interactions.
Mobile-first design started to matter as mobile usage overtook desktop usage and has only continued to grow since then. As more and more people access the internet on their mobile devices, it has become essential for web designers and developers to prioritize mobile design to ensure that websites are accessible and usable across all devices.
In 2024, the mobile-first design will be even more important as the number of mobile users continues to increase. It reached 5.44 billion in January 2023, as mobile devices become more powerful and capable of handling more complex tasks. The mobile-first design ensures that websites are responsive and easy to use on small screens, which is critical for providing a good user experience and retaining users.
The mobile-first design has many benefits, such as improved website performance, better search engine optimization, and easier maintenance and updates. Overall, mobile-first design is an essential trend in web design in 2024 and is expected to continue to shape the future of web design for years to come.
Dynamic Scrolling
Dynamic scrolling, also known as infinite scrolling, is a design technique that allows website content to be loaded and displayed as users scroll down the page instead of loading the entire page at once. It improves user engagement and provides a more fluid and intuitive user experience.
Dynamic scrolling continues to be a big hit in 2024. Arte Surfside is a prime example of a website that uses dynamic scrolling.
There are two ways to approach dynamic scrolling:
Lazy loading delays loading images and non-critical content until the user scrolls down to that page section. It can significantly improve page load times and reduce the amount of data that needs to be loaded initially.
Animation and interaction: These enhance the scrolling experience. This trend can include parallax scrolling, where different elements of the page move at different speeds as the user scrolls or scrolling triggers reveal hidden content or trigger animations.
Enriched Interactive Storytelling
Combining storytelling with interactive elements to create engaging and immersive user experiences is a trend that has been gaining popularity in web design over the past few years. In 2024, we expect to see even more advancements in interactive storytelling.
Here are some of the ways designers can enhance this trend:
- Virtual and augmented reality: These technologies help create more immersive and interactive experiences that allow users to feel like they’re a part of the story.
- Gamification: By adding game-like elements to storytelling experiences, designers can increase their engagement and encourage users to spend more time on the site.
- Data and machine learning: Through this technology, we can also expect to see more personalized and adaptive storytelling experiences. Designers can create experiences tailored to each user, providing a more engaging and relevant experience.
An ideal website that uses storytelling to improve engagement is Desires Tram.
Minimalism and Simplicity Will Rule Web Design
Minimalism and simplicity are timeless trends in web design that prioritize clear, clean layouts and a focus on essential elements.
Besides the abovementioned whitespace and bold typography, one aspect of minimalism is a minimalist navigation menu, which we expect to see more in 2024 as designers focus on user experience and mobile-first design. By simplifying navigation menus and using clear, concise labels, users can easily find what they're looking for and navigate the site.
Squaredot is a great example of a website that uses minimalism effectively.
Modern Geometric Shape Aesthetic
Geometric shapes and patterns provide a clean, modern aesthetic and create visually exciting and dynamic websites. In Touch is an ideal website that uses modern geometric shapes for its design.
In 2024, designers use isometric design, which involves three-dimensional shapes and patterns formed using a series of parallel lines to create the illusion of depth and movement. You can use this technique to create dynamic and engaging graphics and animations that draw the user's attention.
Another web design trend in geometric shapes and patterns that will rule 2024 is asymmetrical and abstract shapes. Designers can create visually attractive and unique layouts by experimenting with more abstract and unconventional designs.
You can also combine geometric shapes and patterns with other design trends, such as minimalism, to emphasize clean and modern designs and create cohesive and aesthetically pleasing websites that stand out from the competition.
Web Design Trends: Final Thoughts
In 2024, the most important web design trends will focus on UX, mobile-friendliness, accessibility, and personalization. Websites will become more interactive and dynamic, with more VR elements, illustrations, storytelling, and immersive experiences.
As a constantly evolving industry, web designers and developers need to keep an eye on new trends and technologies. Staying current with the latest trends and best practices can help ensure that your websites are visually appealing, and functional.
If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact some of our best design professionals and develop the website of your dreams!
Web Design Trends FAQs
1. What is the importance of UX and UI in the mobile app?
UX (user experience) and UI (user interface) ensure that the app is easy to use, visually appealing, and provides a satisfying experience.
UX and UI are the main factors influencing users' decision to use or abandon the app. Good UX and UI design can lead to higher user engagement, retention, and satisfaction, ultimately resulting in a more successful app, while poor UX and UI lead to abandoning the app.
2. How do you design a mobile app?
The mobile app design process depends on app complexity and requirements, but here are some general steps considered best practices in mobile app design:
- Develop app ideas.
- Conduct market research — define the desired audience and identify competition.
- Compile a list of features you want in your mobile app.
- Develop prototypes to visualize the design and functionality of your app.
- Create the graphical elements of your app - user interface and visual design.
- Build the app.
- Consider a marketing strategy to promote your app.
- Submit your finished app to the app store.
3. How do companies benefit from great design?
Compelling and functional web design enhances user experience, leads to higher engagement and better communication, increases brand recognition, and provides a competitive advantage. Overall, great design can help a company build a strong brand that provides satisfying UX and gain a competitive advantage, ultimately leading to increased success and growth.
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