Website design trends for 2026

Intro

Nostalgia, playfulness, motion, graphic design and art are all motivating people who are creating websites in 2026. They’re playing with text, scale, size, typography, colour and animation and are showing off new techniques and technology. In 2026, users want something exciting, interesting and intriguing to look at on the internet, often with contemporary animation and visual effects. Creating these are helped by using no-code tools, so it’s easier and faster. We’re also seeing more nostalgic references to the 90s, early 00s and the beginning of web design. Website styling is no longer just photo layouts, and designers are leaning towards grids, lines, minimalism, simple navigation and textures.

We’ve rounded up the 11 most common trends in website design that we’ll be seeing this year.

Hero sections

1. Typographic hero sections

Rather than choosing photography for the top section of a website, web designers are opting for typography. Photos and illustrations can sometimes detract from a brand’s message and using text can communicate a strong brand identity and allows the key message to really come through. It’s also a great opportunity to show off a designer’s fancy lettering skills if they have the ability.

Linework

2. Visible linework & grids

In 2026, it’s common for a website to reveal the grids, frames and borders that hold the site together. The lines that separate paragraphs, products and different sections of text are being emphasised and made into a design feature. After all, it’s the lines that frame the content and key messages. This trend is a combination of nostalgia and modernism, reminding us of early web design. Designers are also playing with the weight of the lines – ultrafine lines are sharp and minimalist and bold lines can be very graphic, lending themselves to a newspaper or magazine-style layout.

Typography

3. Large, statement typography

Oversized typography is all about turning words into graphics, rather than just being part of your website copy. Bold typography can make a lasting impression and can be very effective. Text can be overlaid onto images and two colours can be used to create contrast.

Retro colours

4. 90s retro colours

As with a lot of current trends, web design is looking back to a time gone by and in 2022 we’re looking to the late 1990s and Web 1.0. Remember the bright backgrounds, robotic typefaces, obvious tables? They’re back. Designers are looking to the past for inspiration and some are rejecting the polished modernism of many websites. See our article on the basics of colour theory for more inspiration.

80’s

5. 80s aesthetic

It’s not just the 1990s that web designers are looking to for inspiration. In another example of web designers rejecting modernism, many are choosing the Memphis design of the 1980s. Think geometric shapes, abstract lines and lots of bright clashing colours.

Single pages sites

6. One-page websites

Less is certainly more with the minimalist trend. One-page websites are ideal for brands or campaigns that have a smaller amount of content, such as portfolios or presentations. They can often resemble posters and flyers and are a lot easier to read when you have less information. With no menus or navigation bar, they often rely on a simple scrolling navigation as you can read everything on the single page.

Fonts

7. Moving fonts

These days, web designers are able to be incredibly creative with their fonts. They can move with the mouse, change weight and alter when you hover over them. It’s a lot easier for designers to be more playful with text with the introduction of no-code platforms as they don’t have to write the interactions by hand. Changing the text on a website can often make it more readable and can sometimes feel more immersive for the user.

Graphics

8. Hand-drawn graphics

We’re also seeing a lot of freestyle designs made up of hand-drawn shapes and patterns. In today’s modern world we can often miss the opportunity to really communicate a brand’s personality, favouring super modern and often impersonal designs. DIY graphics that are sometimes a little imperfect reflect the all-important human touch. Expect scribbles, doodles, signatures, cut-outs and organic shapes.

Inclusion

9. Inclusive design & copy

It’s incredibly important for brands to ensure everyone, those of all genders, abilities, ages and languages, can use your website without judgement or aspersions. Many websites now have gender neutral design with accessible language. Thankfully we’re moving away from gendered website design with colours and illustrations that uphold archaic gender stereotypes and are seeing more inclusive and welcoming content and design. Most website forms and drop-downs now offer a variety of gender options and pronouns and some are taking them out completely. This is particularly prevalent with ecommerce sites that are moving away from sorting products by gender. When it comes to copy and headlines, pronouns are increasingly becoming they instead of he or she.

Glassmorphism

10. Glassmorphism

Glassmorphism is an extension on Neumorphism, when elements imitate a plastic surface, can make your page elements look transparent and multi-layered, with a frosted glass effect. By using blur, reflection, shadow and movement, the page can start to resemble glass and create an optical illusion and almost feel 3D.

Animation

11. Subtle movement

More and more web designers are considering animation and moving text. Interactivity is becoming more and more popular because of its ability to engage with the user, but it must be used with caution. It can often cause motion sickness and can sometimes overshadow a website’s typography. Avoid parallax scrolling, scrolljacking and mouse-triggered scaling, and you can create a stylish, playful and interactive website.

We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled throughout the year to ensure our websites are on trend and up to date with the most effective and interesting design features, whilst performing for our client’s brand and ensuring it fits with their values.