The new year is here! And it’s bringing some exciting new web design trends with it.
If your New Year’s resolution is to add more motion and pizzazz to your website, there are some great new trends for you. If it’s to scale it back and simplify it down to the essentials, there’s that too.
What to know more about what’s coming? The website design team at Webspec has researched a half dozen design trends we’re expecting to rise in popularity as 2024 begins. Just like we did for the top trends of 2023, we’re breaking them down to give you some inspiration for your website design this year.
Kinetic Typography
One eye-catching trend this year is kinetic typography, or the animated text that brings motion, color, and liveliness to your webpage.
There are many creative ways to swap out your plain old static website text with dynamic movement, such as incorporating it atop your page to highlight important text (check out the Webspec homepage for an example) or using it within the body of the page to guide the visitor’s eyes to specific elements. Using it in the right spaces will help captivate your web audience and keep them engaged.
Parallax Scrolling: It’s Here to Stay
Parallax scrolling is an effect that makes it appear as if an image in the background of your webpage is moving slowly as you scroll down. At the same time, items closer to your viewpoint are moving more quickly over the top of it.
Parallax can be mesmerizing, adding depth and character to your website design. While it’s been in use for years, the effect is continuing to mature and be used in exciting ways. Expect it to be a prominent design staple in the years to come.
[Image of parallax scrolling from the design glossary blog]
Maximalism
You’ve heard the saying “less is more,” right? In 2024, the opposite is also true.
While minimalistic websites have been trending in recent years (we named minimalism one of the top web design trends of 2021), the pendulum is also swinging in the other direction.
“Maximalism” is the name for web designs that seize the viewer’s attention with many elements. Expect to see web designs this year with lots of bold colors, vivid patterns, and playful animations (like some of that kinetic typography we talked about earlier).
While you don’t want to overdo it to the point that you hurt your user experience, a maximalist web design can set you apart and make your site a very unique, engaging experience.
Pixels
Remember those little squares that made up Pac-Man, Mario, and Donkey Kong? The aesthetic of all of those retro video games could be coming to a website near you.
Websites are using pixels in new and creative ways to give their design a modern yet nostalgic vibe. Many sites exaggerate their size to incorporate them in fresh ways. Opportunities to use pixels could be in illustrations, animations, photos, fonts, and more.
Utilitarian Design
Maximalism may be a top trend of 2024, but minimalism isn’t completely going away, either.
Similar to minimalist designs, utilitarian designs use clean, uncluttered pages to make navigating a website simple and easy. If you’re looking to boost user experience on your website, a utilitarian design approach could be a great choice.
Just because it’s utilitarian doesn’t mean it needs to be boring, though! There are still plenty of creative ways to make a utilitarian design pop.
Surrealism Created With AI
Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing the world of art and web design, and 2024 will be a year where we continue to learn new, exciting ways to use it.
One of those trends is likely going to be using AI to create surrealist designs. Surrealism is the term for imaginative, reality-bending images that turn reality on its head – think Salvador Dali and the art movement that sparked in the first part of the 20th Century.
Some websites looking to get creative and set themselves apart are creating images and designs that employ this style, and AI is making it easier and easier to do.
Work With a Des Moines Web Design Company That Loves to Get Creative
Having a standout and professional website is essential to engaging and connecting with your customers. If you’re inspired by these trends and ready to create an attention-grabbing experience on your website, let Webspec’s team of expert designers, developers, and content writers bring your vision to life. We love to get creative! See our work and contact us today to get started!
