The Best Tech Websites That Engaged Customers In 2021

73% of companies invest in web design to differentiate their businesses from the rest in their industry.

In the increasingly saturated B2B and B2C tech spaces, this differentiation in design can help companies increase their visibility, directly impacting their brand awareness, retention and customer journeys.

Add the fact that 90% of website bounce rates are design-related and you get the picture of how important it is to learn from the best web design examples and apply the knowledge to your brand.

It's impressive to see how the industry has evolved. Sectors like custom web development have become easy, accessible and possible as well as elite web design.

Before we look into the best tech websites of 2021, let’s go over the most sought-after design practices you NEED to apply this year.

These practices served as our selection criteria for the B2B and B2C tech websites you’ll find below.

The Best Tech Websites Of 2021

1. Sonos

A tech website that understands its product, understands its audience and is ready to connect the two. It’s smart, intuitive and captivating. It simplifies its product offer and effortlessly shows users its advantages.

Producer of wireless sound systems, Sonos is one of the most respected B2C brands in its industry and this reputation naturally shifts to the website which is all about strong, impactful CTAs, large images and smart use of hidden menu.

Visually driven and clean, Sonos’ website steers attention to the product-focused imagery and buyer journey. The first fold has two CTAs, “Watch the Video” and “Learn more”.

A selection of products categorized according to rooms and environment follows. Further down, the company’s auditive expertise and value propositions educate and convince the prospect of the product’s worth.

In the top left corner, a minimal menu opens across the whole screen with a click to unveil product categories, learning and support center and a listable choice of featured speakers.

Sonos website is a mixture of high-value messaging, direct CTAs and a clean layout that lets products take the center stage with their imagery. It speaks, through design as well as the tone of voice, that it understands its products as well as its audience.

2. Tesla

Tesla is an automotive corporation that specializes in electric cars. It’s a brand known for cutting-edge technologies, innovative techniques and forward-thinking features.

And to further propel these beliefs and motivations, the Tesla website is a bold, intuitive and highly engaging design that informs, excites and radiates innovation.

The focus of this design is entirely on the products and the features consumers are most anxious to learn about.

It doesn’t go to great lengths to promote its innovative, technical excellence right on the man page. No, instead it offers consumers all the bells and whistles they want to hear about.

This website was created with car buyers in mind. Bold imagery, interactive movement and clear CTAs all point users down the right path — where they can learn more about the cars, what goes into them and what features appeal to them.

This isn’t a website touting its own excellence — although the brand is at the top of its game. There’s no denying that — but it is aspect users are too familiar with. They know about the forward-thinking nature of the brand and its strive towards success.

But they don’t know how many seats come in a certain version or what safety features are included. So, the website clearly showcases this information for consumers to see, absorb and let sway.

The Tesla website is definitely ingenious— there are dynamic movement, fluid navigation and breathtaking visuals. But it was created with its customers in mind and that’s the key.

3. Apple

We all know Apple — the leading tech brand in smartphones, smartwatches, tablets computers and more. It’s a brand that rose from nothing to become a brand that most people across the globe can’t live without. Apple is an icon. Its products are unmistakable. Its designs are revolutionary.

The website is no different.

Apple’s website is clean, product-focused and avant-garde. Product images make up most of the design. Apple relies heavily on stunning product images to engage with users and showcases its excellence.

Words are unnecessary — especially when the proof of excellence is so evident just by looking at these sleek and sophisticated products.

This organized and efficient website outlines various features in a clean, crisp way in its minimal menu bar. But that’s mainly because when users land on the web page, they already know what they’re looking for, so Apple is trying to make the process easy for them going forward.

Apple doesn’t rely on extensive details so the company eliminates unnecessary copy in its website design. Images are the focus, as they are what drive sales.

This approach keeps the website clean and decluttered, easy to use and pleasing to navigate. The Apple website organizes content in a reverse pyramid, keeping this consistent throughout when you do see the copy. But even this is simple, streamlined and minimal.

4. Amazon

Amazon is a powerhouse retailer that has taken the world by storm. It’s an online distributor that connects consumers with the products they want — these products range from books, movies, children's toys and more.

Considering the brand’s comprehensive offering, it makes sense that their website is equally comprehensive — but that doesn’t mean it’s cluttered, disorganized or complicated.

In fact, Amazon is one of the easiest eCommerce sites to navigate thanks to its open-nature layout, grid structure and thorough categorical breakdown.

Amazon’s clear organizational structure — with products and categories clearly lined along the page, in blocks on the screen and in drop-down menus — lends itself to an intuitive and streamlined design. It’s easy to navigate, fun to explore and exciting to search through.

There is plenty of clean space that excites, bright colors that captivate, vivid images that draw attention and CTAs that encourage action.

This seamless user experience makes it simple for consumers to get lost on the site and find the products they're looking for, and get inspiration for even more options.

This site is clearly laid out, color-coded and easy to peruse. It’s a fun and satisfying website design that puts the shopper experience front and center, while still offering up its own products and services to grab users’ attention.

Though Amazon’s user interface is without a doubt impressive, a critical role is played by the Amazon Affiliate Websites to capture users’ imagination.

Websites like Reviewscrush.com work in partnership with Amazon to promote top-notch, quality products, thus making it convenient for buyers to shop online.

5. BMW

BMW is another major car dealer with a drive towards the future. And its website design speaks volumes to that effect.

The BMW website is organized, clean and dynamic. Videos autoplay, images glide and navigation is seamless thanks to the overall layout.

Web structure is organized and fun to explore, and the typography is clear. The text is boldly overlaid over images and video making it easier for users to get the aspect of the website they are searching for.

Products are put on a clean and clear display in this design, but so is innovation and news feed.

The BMW website makes a point to share with consumers their successes, innovations and projects to spark interest and keep the brand alive in the minds of consumers across the globe.

It’s a brand that wants its accomplishments tracked — partially for its reputation, but also to let consumers know that the brand isn’t giving up or stopping its forward motion anytime soon.

The BMW website is cleverly organized, dynamic and fun. It puts an emphasis on automotive innovation to keep consumers, and possible investors interested engaged and ready to interact.

6. Sony

Sony is one of the longest-standing producers of electronic equipment that has successfully diversified its product offering and the dark, cutting-edge website shows it.

The minimal menu navigation makes way for a grid of photos, videos and brand’s social media posts in different sizes. This uneven layout adds an air of dynamism and creativity while letting certain items be emphasized over others, giving them a sense of priority.

The drop-down menu opens up a full array of product categories on hover, while even certain menu items are presented as images rather than text.

The home page relies on photography of items with a discreet yet effective copy. Same as all entries on this list, the website is fully responsive and adjustable to any screen size or device.

Sony’s lesson makes a case for striving to present as much as possible to the audience on a single page, without feeling cluttered.

7. Netflix

We all know Netflix as our free time is probably largely dependent on it. It’s the popular video streaming service that, for a monthly subscription, allows us to watch our favorite shows and movies at length.

And in part, that’s due to its web design.

This dark, moody and seductive website design lulls you into submission. It sets the tone for movie night — even if the sun is out and it’s three in the afternoon. The dark color instantly puts you at ease and gets you into the mindset of watching a movie.

And the navigation is flawless. A handy drop-down menu sits at the top, letting users choose what video category they want. Similarly, the organization of content is a breeze. A horizontal grid lists titles and genres which are condensed into handy and vivid blocks.

There’s a personal and intuitive quality to this site as well. It recommends titles based on past watch history and offers them to you front and center.

This makes the overall experience even simpler, with the website telling you what to watch instead of making you spend hours searching.

This personalized, intuitive and engaging website just can’t be beaten.

8. Paypal

PayPal is a simple, modern and efficient website design that helps users send and receive money across the globe. This service aims to simplify money transfers, and does so with a comprehensive online presence and simple navigation.

The website opens up with interactive and engaging imagery, overlaid with simple text. People can choose to use the service for personal or business needs and the service diverges from there.

But the main theme of the PayPal website is simplicity, with a focus on simple, minimal copy and semi-transparent images.

Clever illustrations add context to the service and its usage, and clear CTAs make it easy for users to navigate the site and get to the money transfer portal or the account page to send and receive money.

PayPal wants to make the process simple. It wants to eliminate the guesswork that goes into figuring out how to get money where and what conversion rates might be involved. Finances are tough enough as it is.

Pair this simple navigation with a blue color scheme and users are immediately put at ease to enjoy the service without any stress or anxiety.

This website is clean, seamless and straight to the point — exactly what a money transfer service should be.

9. Fitbit

Fitbit is a fitness tracker — it tracks calorie intake and expenditure, steps, heart rate, progress and more. It’s an innovative software product that connects with an app on your phone so you can track your progress wherever you go.

Fitbit is a brand that encourages users to live their best life and to achieve this, Fitbit created a website that makes fitness fun — at least online.

The website is bright, clean and visually stunning. Bold product shots set against colorful backgrounds, with simple, clear CTAs leading users to products, informational pages and more.

The website overall is simple and fun. Blocks of images and text provide users with valuable information about their Fitbits as well as the multiple services the brand provides.

It offers insights, innovations and news about the brand as well.

This is a very approachable and friendly website. It doesn’t get too technical or in-depth, instead, walking users fluidly throughout its design in a determined, creative and orderly fashion.

Using color, clever illustrations and an approachable tone, the Fitbit website makes it easy for users to start taking fitness more seriously.

10. Achievers

Achievers is the employee engagement platform whose website is cutting-edge in terms of multimedia it uses and the way it leads prospects down the home page to the conversion “Request a demo” button.

Prospective buyers get to learn their value by simply scrolling down and finding learning material presented in a clean and sleek way. On the Achievers’ Services page, the brand addresses the question of translating work into a tangible ROI and provide proof that they have the solution for your every need.

The main menu is sticky and stays on the screen as you scroll down. A red “Demo” menu item pops out effectively. Using a simple color scheme and a lot of white space makes videos, CTAs and content elements pop out in a compelling fashion.

Without a lot of unnecessary experimentation, Achievers proves that a fairly typical B2B site structure and design are often the best course of action. They use several trendy elements, such as big photography, white space and strong CTAs in just the right doses to create a well-balanced user experience.

11. Batterii

By using striking pastels palette, Batterii makes the submission form on the first screen of the home page stand out. Adding to this frankness and immediacy is a very streamlined navigation menu pointing to pages that provide more value proposition.

Scrolling down, colorful scheme divides block of content that gives insight into consumer communities, a simple three-step “How it works” piece and a list of B2B partners using this product.

Prospective buyers are able to identify the brand’s purpose and the way it delivers solutions in a matter of seconds. Their entire copy is focused around the solutions Batterii provides — and the web design serves that purpose very effectively.

The unrestrained color scheme works two-fold: as the brand’s aesthetical statement and as a means of steering attention to content segments such as submission form and different value propositions.

12. Rocka

Rocka’s job is to help businesses and startups launch their digital enterprises - and what better way to convince prospects of the effectiveness of digital than with a beautifully designed website.

The site uses no white space whatsoever and instead focuses on huge elements that cover entire screens. It combines photography with bold colors and minimalistic animation of geometric shapes.

Each solution and value proposition are accompanied by a specific image, color and feel as the user scrolls down to subscription and contact form conversion points.

Rocka’s website design is recognized for its creativity, innovation and use of language to explain the services in the most direct and memorable way.

13. Defy the Current

Defy the Current, or D.FY, uses captivating videography to emphasize the quality of their digital products that include video production.

The visually engaging home page uses videos to help drive home the point of who they are as a brand. This use of videos against the entire background of a site is a trend that is taking over and which is replacing the written content at this site section.

Animated portfolio samples await when a user scrolls down, surrounded by white space that focuses the viewer’s attention and interest.

To make room for this eye-grabbing content, the website uses streamlined navigation in the form of a hidden menu on the right-hand side that unfolds key links across the entire screen.

CTAs can be found in more than one place on a home page, not just the footer. Businesses can put them at the first fold for prospects already familiar with the product and just want to use it as a shortcut to get to the product’s purchase page or any other conversion point.

14. Asana

Asana’s website is an exercise in minimalism and white space put to great use - for better placement of CTAs and educational content.

The first fold on the home page explains what Asana is and invites prospects to try it for free. An engaging animation follows that showcases the product in action, a demo video and client testimonials.

This website is doing great at leading their prospects through the conversion funnel and optimizing their learning process for the conversion to take place.

Websites for products that have a lot of functionalities and features like Asana should have as little visual distractions as possible. This brand uses white space to emphasize the most advantageous parts of a product and the quick educational material.

15. Fugoo

Fugoo produces, advertises and sells a very particular product: waterproof Bluetooth speakers for outdoors.

Fugoo’s captivating eCommerce site is using the power of high-quality photography to capture the essence of its brand: the high-end speaker which is set in diverse locations around the world. This helps convey more than just a message about a good product — it communicates a lifestyle.

The brand’s website is experiential and conversion-friendly. Photography, mixed with negative space to emphasize the qualities and primary traits of a product, as well as the use of video of it in action, create a content-packed home page that doesn’t overwhelm.

Fugoo’s brand-first approach and prominent use of blogging on their decidedly visual website has been the source of great credibility for the company and a major driver of their success, according to the CEO Gary Elsasser.

16. Skullcandy

Amazing photography, delicate use of colors and very compact use of space is what makes Skullcandy’s mobile-first website.

The brand creates audio devices, most notably headphones, that are sonic experiences rather than a product. What makes this brand’s website different is that their home page showcases fewer items and focuses on several key offers only - before a newsletter sign-up proposal appears at the footer.

A site makes a compelling value proposition to all who sign up: exclusive access to athlete stories, performances and limited-edition products.

The main menu is so minimal it points to only two other pages: the wildly colorful 12 Moods with types of products listed according to their corresponding months and the contrastingly clean eShop.

The site’s 12 Moods section is a great example of brand and product blending together to - helped by the stunning design and sharp use of color - create an experience that is greater than the sum of its parts.

17. Native Union

Native Union makes and sells hi-tech accessories and the most noticeable thing about their website is the carousel/sliding banner that rotates images as well as videos that have respective CTAs.

This adds a dose of interactivity and greater accessibility because users can navigate to these pages very easily. Since this is another B2C tech brand that relies on visual aspect of its products, the imagery is much more present and more engaging than the copy.

Elements such as sticky back-to-top and go-down buttons and interactive hotspots on images that explain products boost the user experience. The hidden menu contains categories and subcategories that are revealed without skipping to another page.

An additional benefit is that icons are used for users to easily identify what they will be clicking on.

The economic use of space makes it possible for several types of media to coexist in the same position of the site. Images can provide more than just eye candy with hotspot elements that reveal product info.

7 Web Design Trends That Made Waves In 2021

Web design trends may come and go - but these are here to stay all throughout 2021 and, quite possibly, beyond. And all the best tech websites listed above use them!

1. Dark/Night Mode

More and more apps and email services have implemented the “dark” or “night” mode over the past year. Best tech websites are jumping on this dark aesthetics bandwagon in increasing numbers as well.

The reason why dark interfaces are gaining popularity is that they complement the other big trend in web design that we will talk about: bright colors and luminous accents. They also make for a readable design when paired with easy-to-read typography that pops.

2. Immersive 3D Elements

As 3D technology makes leaps and bounds and its price tags drop, immersive 3D that draws users in is going to feature much more prominently on websites from 2021 onwards.

It’s now much easier to create 3D technology that immerses all senses into the experience. The hyper-realistic 3D will be taking up the websites’ entire screens not only for the visual and aesthetic effect.

This also improves the user experience as it encourages users to stay longer on the website and prolong their page dwell times.

3. Minimalism And White Spaces

Minimalism has been very trendy in web design for some time and it’s not going away any time soon.

This classic aesthetics keeps evolving, so in 2021 it will be complemented with big quantities of white space.

The reason why this trend in web design will work beautifully with the best tech websites is that it lends elegance and high usability, making them very easy to navigate and keep the focus on. 

4. Photography And Graphics Collage

To create memorable visual experiences, web design trendsetters use amazing photography and combine it with custom graphics.

This collage technique opens up many creative possibilities and adds a touch of personality to a brand using it.

It can lend a special charm to photography that may otherwise be bland on its own. It can also enhance the imagery and improve the communication of tech concepts by providing information and other attributes of value.

It is important to stay on course with your brand consistency when using this trend and match the style of these custom visuals with your brand’s visuals.

5. Vivid Color Schemes

The best tech websites in 2021 use bold, bright, vibrant and luminous color scheme!

Highly-saturated hues are all the rage, and they will combine to create futuristic color schemes that glow and make content elements pop. Web designers will use these color pairings strategically to mix neon and electrifying shades with muted and more conservative backgrounds for an eye-catching effect.

In 2021, websites will be using the duotone web design that relies on neon colors against contrasting, stark backgrounds. Quirky color schemes can be very effective for websites opting for this, especially when they’re swimming in a sea of competition using minimalism and white space.

6. Liquid Animation

Animation is already an unmissable part of every stand-out web design. To take this to the next level in 2021, there are water-like movement effects.

Liquid animation can work on its own to immerse users in the design, as a way to transition videos or as a hover mouse effect over clickable elements.

Some websites use it to bring a motion to static pages, others use it on specific elements such as headlines and pieces of text. Web designers need to execute this technique perfectly so that it runs smoothly and as realistically as possible. 

7. Minimal Navigation

Streamlined, minimal navigation is a trend that’s replacing the robust navigational elements such as main menus

The reasoning for using this type of navigation is that less navigation creates more space in which users can engage with the design. It also makes more room for content and messaging. 

The most common type of minimal navigation is hiding the menu items inside the icon which opens the navigation menu into a list of options only when users click on it. 

Web Design Practices Tech Brands Should Adopt In 2022

Some of these best web design practices are conditioned by SEO, user behavior and the latest advances in technology. Others are “evergreen” and are becoming more important than ever for the same reasons.

In any case - the best tech websites abide by them because they guarantee more success.

Consistent Website Branding

Consistent presentation of a brand increases revenue by 33%. (Source: LucidPress)

Websites that do not have consistency in visual branding are all over the place and may even frustrate visitors resulting in massive bounce rate ballooning.

The user will have a hard time focusing on the website’s purpose and services while trying to navigate through too many colors and images.

A rule of thumb that will never go away, for both B2B and B2C websites, is to use only a few predetermined brand colors, logos and fonts across the entire website.

This applies to images, videos and other forms of content. A good way to instate branding consistency in web design is to create and follow the brand book.

Strong CTAs

Once a website is successful in attracting qualified leads, an important goal steps in: telling prospective customers what you offer and enticing them to complete an action.

This action can be anything from signing up for the newsletter, downloading an e-book, to purchasing the product. That’s what strong calls-to-action (CTAs) do.

The most effective CTAs should be an integral part of web design. Best CTA practices say they should be striking and bold in design and positioned at a place in the overall layout that makes sense depending on the action.

For example, the “Learn More” button can be higher up on the web page, while the “Contact Us” button should be near the bottom of the page after the user has gone through the educational content first.

Fast Page Load Times

Website loading times must be kept minimal, which can be challenging as websites grow and get more complex. There are certain things website designers can do to keep loading times fast:

• Enabling compression: Compressing images and code can reduce the size of files a website is sending over the network.
• Reducing plugins use: The more plugins a website uses, the more it takes time to load. Despite the features they can bring, plugins should be kept at a minimum.
• Using browser caching: This stores cached versions of the site’s resources which improves the page load speed significantly.
• Implementing a content delivery network (CDN): This sends static files such as images to servers that are close to the user’s location, making the website load quicker.
• Reduce image size: Images contribute to over 60% of the website’s weight. Optimizing images for a website can reduce their weight up to 70%.

Mobile-First Design

Mobile-friendly, responsive design has been a standard requirement for websites across industries, especially in recent years, but it’s never been more important than now when 50% of all internet traffic happens on mobile devices.

Responsive design keeps the best tech websites from appearing unorganized, cluttered and difficult to navigate on mobile devices.

It automatically adjusts your website to the device, screen size and browser. Responsive web design improves the UX and UI, making it possible for users to easily find the information they need on smartphones and tablets.

User-Friendly Navigation And Positioning Of Elements

When it comes to navigation, users expect websites to be clear, intuitive and simple so that they can find what they are looking for as quickly as possible.

One of the best web design practices of 2021 will be optimizing the navigating experience for your users and making the most important content more prominent and accessible. Here are some major steps you can take to make this happen:

• Keep your menu concise, sticky and located at a header: The majority of quality websites have their main menu located at the top of the page because it is most visible at that position. Also, there shouldn’t be more than 4-6 menu items, so that visitors don’t feel overwhelmed.
• Use breadcrumbs: Let your users know where they are on your site. Clear navigation is essential for eCommerce and other sites with lots of pages, categories and subcategories.
  Make your value proposition stand out: Explain your value to the visitors right from the start.
• Use your site’s footer according to people’s expectations: Site footers are a common place for a sitemap, legal, privacy and copyright info in the footer, as well as sign-up and email subscription forms.
• Add sticky “back to top” buttons: They allow users to scroll down or back up your site’s page very quickly.

Great Photography

Most users prefer to look at appealing visuals rather than read blocks of text and high-quality photos can help your audience digest your content much more easily.

Amazing photography can:

• Generate more visits and views to your site
• Increase user engagement
• Boost site’s page dwell rates
• Decrease bounce rates, which improves ranking
• Create a bond between your brand and your customers

This way, great photography directly contributes to the most important objective of the best tech websites, - converting leads into customers.

Takeaways On Best Tech Websites

Best tech websites of 2021 do more than just follow and apply the latest web design trends successfully. They also use the best design practices, both current and evergreen, to create the user experience and brand consistency to match the visuals.

If your business belongs in the B2B technology vertical, your website should

• Use text and copy resourcefully and strategically
• Have impactful, clear and bold CTAs
• Use colors to enhance the messaging and underline certain segments
• Act as an educational stage of a conversion funnel to convince prospects, with videos, animations and value propositions

On the other hand, B2C tech websites should strive to

• Make way for content by keeping navigational elements minimal
• Have the best photography of products as possible
• Avoid clutter by using sliding banners and similar features to showcase multiple items
• Use white space to emphasize certain sections and hottest offers