The end of the year is not only a moment for looking back, but also for looking ahead. What will 2022 bring us? Will it be a better year? We do not know that. However, there are things that we can tell you confidently. For example, we already know the most important web design trends for 2022.
How Will Web Design Change in the Coming Year?
Looking over the trends we analysed, we notice that one of the biggest influences in web design is mobile internet. There is no doubt that the internet is constantly reshaped by mobile phones. They are bigger and more powerful than ever, and they have become the primary device people use to go online.
Thus, many web design trends for 2022 have to do with optimising the user experience and user interface for mobile browsing. And this demonstrates the need for all websites to be mobile friendly. The era of desktop first website interfaces has gone and every webmaster needs to acknowledge it.
These Are the Main Web Design Trends for 2022 You Should Know Of
Without further introduction, these are some of the biggest design trends that will change the way websites look and work in 2022:
1. App-Like Websites
Why do people love mobile apps? They offer unique, focused interactions and micro-moments. So, why shouldn’t websites offer the same experiences? First of all, consumers are more circumspect when it comes to installing a new app. They think of the storage space it takes, the push notifications it keeps sending and whether the app will drain their phone battery.
Thus, one of the main web design trends for 2022 is giving users app-like experiences on a websites. These sites will offer users a great browsing experience on all devices plus the interaction they are used to when they open an app.
2. Smart Content Load
Mobile phones have smaller screens that a desktop. Thus, it is not necessary to load the entire content of a long page from the start. The smart content load is actually one of the web design trends for 2022 inspired by social media platforms.
You know how it works: as you scroll down Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, posts appear one by one. They do not fully load when you first open your timeline, but progressively. This makes social media platforms load faster, even if they are rich in audio and video media.
3. Art Deco Graphics
Trends come and go. Some of them are so good that they make a comeback every once in a while. This is the case of the Art Deco style. This was the design and architectural style used in the ‘20s – the 1920s. It combines elements of the natural world with the modern feel of the machine age.
To understand this web design trend, consider one of the iconic buildings of the Art Deco period – the Chrysler Building in New York, USA. Its architecture is a blend of precise engineering, shown in the geometric lines, and natural elements – the famous steel eagle heads.
4. Customisation
Apps started this trend – allowing people to set their preferred font and size for writing. Recently, the most popular customisation is the dark mode. It is available for the most popular social media apps and even for Google (both the desktop and mobile versions).
Letting people customise your website to suit their needs is one of the web design trends that will endure way past 2022. Everyone is different – some people are sensitive to strong contrasts, others have poor eyesight. And everyone has the right to be able to use websites to solve their needs. Thus, you must make your website accessible for all your potential customers.
5. Large Buttons
Among the web design trends for 2022, we believe this to be the most useful for user experience. Website menus have reached a high level of complexity and creativity during the boom of the desktop era. Using a mouse and pointing a small cursor offer everyone high precision in selecting a button and clicking on it.
However, things are very different when you use a finger instead of a computer mouse. Thus, the navigation of your website must change. Make your buttons big and easy to tap by everyone – including people with large fingers.
6. Minimalist Heroes
The hero of a website is the oversized banner at its top. It usually covers the entire screen and writing starts appearing on it as the user scrolls down. So far, web designers have been extremely creative with heroes – from lavish landscapes to complex graphics, we’ve seen them all.
However, we also noted a certain shift in web design trends for 2022 when it comes to hero images. They are increasingly simple and minimalistic – sometimes black and white or sepia. And – guess what? They are very comfortable for the eye. Plus, with fewer distractions in the background, website visitors can focus better on the written content.
7. Thoughtful Motion Design
Motion sickness is a painful reality for many people. Unfortunately, websites can trigger motion sickness with all the interactions they contain: animated images, parallax, and mouse-triggered scaling.
In 2022, websites must be friendly and inclusive. When planning a redesign, consider reducing the motion that happens on your web page so that all your visitors can browse it safely.