Web design trends 2022
- The new minimalism
It seems that in 2021 web designers have played with maximalism – and now return to a large amount of “air”, concise layout and restrained color scheme. However, the minimalism of the 2022 sample differs from its predecessors. The monochrome palette has changed to a more colorful palette, and the navigation includes special effects. The goal of the new minimalism is to make the site more interesting without distracting from the essence of the page.
- Symmetrical layout.
Last year’s web design trends passed under the auspices of organized chaos – which was entirely in keeping with the mood in 2021. This year begins with the search for harmony: the balance between text and images and symmetrical grid design.
The advantage of this layout is that the web designer can control the reader’s visual path through the page, and grab their attention to the important elements of the site.
- Serifs and lightness in typography
Serif fonts are hard to call modern: they are mainly associated with the printed press, official documents and stiff websites of government agencies. But in 2022 designers are finding a way to give the old aesthetic a new look and are using sophisticated versions of fonts such as Times New Roman, Garamond and Georgia for websites.
- Earthy and basic shades (and some neon)
Remember the “nature heals” meme from the beginning of the pandemic? Now a return to the roots has come to web design trends as well. In 2022, natural and basic hues are in vogue, giving the site a more organic look. However, amidst all this muted color palette can be seen and the opposite trend: bright neon accents that are used for menu icons and all kinds of dividing lines.
- Photographs of ordinary people.
Over the past few decades, we’ve gotten pretty tired of models with perfect bodies and photoshopped faces. Throughout the marketing industry, there’s a demand for ordinary people that customers can identify with.
Of course, this cultural trend has come to web design as well. More and more companies are using photos of people with different skin colors, body types, ages and gender identities on their website. In addition, we are seeing more and more people with disabilities acting as brand ambassadors for fashion brands. We advise to pay attention to this trend if you are going to create a business website: photos of real people will help you establish a closer emotional connection with the client.
- 3D elements.
Remember the crazy 3D gifs from the early 2000s? Last year they came back to web design – only in a much more sophisticated form. Now they’re slowly shifting from maximalism to a new minimalism to add spice and originality to concise and calibrated designs.
- the blur effect.
In 2022 we’re noticing more and more elements with a blur effect – they make the composition more dynamic and add an element of surprise. Blurring is a very useful technique when you want to draw the reader’s attention to a particular element of the site. For greater effectiveness, use contrasting colors so that the blurred element really stands out from the rest of the site.
- Smooth gradients.
Gradient web design has its origins in the aesthetics of the ’90s – and since the ’90s are back in vogue, smooth gradients are returning to the trends with them.
Gradient backgrounds allow you to enrich your site’s background with a spectrum of colors without distracting from the page content. Wix users can easily add such a background to their site using a handy visual editor.
- Unusual interface interactions
How do you create a site that stands out from the rest? For example, fill it with elements of unusual visual storytelling. One of the most extravagant web design trends in 2022 is the “game of hide-and-seek” with the user: a certain element of the site is hidden until the reader hovering over it. This adds dynamics to the page and keeps the visitor from getting bored – which has a positive effect on conversion.