Each year, we see a number of new web trends arise, while others dissipate or carry on to the next year. Many of the trends that emerge are heavily influenced by new web technology, and web designers are testing the capabilities of the technology. Some of the popular trends are continuations of successful design trends, in which web designers are finding new and interesting ways to innovate within a particular design style. We’ve compiled a list of some of the major web design trends that we predict to see in the coming year, which relate to trends in design, user experience, and technology.
Bold colors against a white background draw attention and create contrast
Bold Type
We’ve seen this trend in past years, but our prediction is that the trend of oversized text will continue. Large, bold text adds a dramatic look to a layout and brings attention to important statements. Its big size compared to other text on a web page adds contrast and depth, creating a more visually exciting layout. We will most likely see an increase in creative ways of using typography on the web as well, as layering and dramatically scaling text becomes more popular. Check out this article for great examples of bold typography in websites.
Growing Use of Scalable Vector Graphics
Scalable vector graphics, or SVGs, are a type of image format that can scale or shrink to any size without losing any quality, which is why they are growing in popularity on the web. Web designers have to consider the great range of screen sizes that websites are viewed on, so SVGs are the perfect solution to images that fit any screen size. SVGs can also be animated, which provides a whole new motion graphics technology for designers and developers to incorporate into websites. Hongkiat has an article with great examples of SVG animations.
Bold colors against a white background draw attention and create contrast
Bold Colors
The use of bold colors in web design emerged before 2017, but we predict that the trend will continue. Bright, bold colors, used tastefully and in digestible amounts, can add a lot of visual excitement and contrast to a stagnant layout. To see bold color schemes in action, check out Web Design Ledger’s examples of bold colors in web design.
More Focus on Microinteractions
When a person visits a website and interacts with a single item on a web page, such as performing a website search or filling out a form, they are partaking in a microinteraction. Microinteractions have become a greater focus for web designers recently, and they’ve been finding ways to improve the overall experience of microinteractions. These improvements may involve visual cues, animations, and instant responses from interactions that make the experience of microinteractions more intuitive and enjoyable. If you want to learn more about microinteractions, take a look at Creative Market’s video explanation.
Interesting Layouts
As web technology improves and grows with capabilities, web designers have more control over elements on a web page, and are able to create more interesting and unique layouts than ever before. Rotating, layering, adding transparency, and animating objects are among just a few of the ways that web designers can manipulate web page elements to create unique and exciting layouts. Vandelay Design has some great examples of websites that utilize web capabilities to create interesting and unique layouts.
We expect to see illustrations and hand-drawn typography continue as a web design trend
Hand-Drawn Typography and Illustrations
If you’re looking for a way to add a unique and authentic quality to a website, hand-drawn elements can do just that. Hand-drawn typography, graphics, and icons can add a human-made, organic quality to a website that might otherwise be very clean and precise. If you want to view some great examples, check out Awwwards’ article with creative website illustrations.
Continued Innovation in Scrolling
Parallax scrolling, a web page scrolling technique in which background and foreground objects scroll at different rates, has becoming widely popular in recent years. Parallax scrolling started out pretty simple, with background images scrolling slower than the content areas that sit in front of them, but now we are seeing scroll rates vary between many singular elements on web pages. This scrolling trend creates more depth and movement on a web page, and can be used to guide viewers through a website in a unique and exciting way. Creative Bloq has an article with some incredible examples of parallax scrolling.
Conclusion
The web design trends we’ve listed only skim the surface of those that will flourish this year, but the ones we’ve mentioned cover some of the most important trends to keep an eye out for. We look forward to seeing how the web changes and improves this year, and we’re excited to be a part of that change. If you are interested in seeing how you can incorporate these trends into your own website, feel free to contact us to discuss your ideas.