With a new year comes a new collection of emerging web design trends for 2025.
While it’s essential not to lose sight of your website’s core purpose, staying on top of the latest ideas can provide some inspiration to create a truly unique, engaging experience for your users.
From surreal animations to Japanese-style structures, we explore eight of the top website trends to keep an eye on in 2025.
But before we dive in, it's important to ask why you should pay attention to web design trends.
Web design is constantly evolving.
Improvements in technology and changes to user preference bring about different creative ideas and the emergence new web design trends.
As with any industry, trends don’t stick around forever so you shouldn’t live and die by them.
The foundation of any successful website is getting the essentials right.
This includes top-notch technical performance, optimising for SEO, and ensuring you offer users all the information they need about your business.
That being said, incorporating some of the latest web design trends can give your website the wow factor and help you stand out from the crowd.
You don’t want to be left behind with a dated design that doesn’t attract or engage your audience, but you also don’t want to create something that’s the same as any other modern design.
So how do you find the sweet spot?
Well, there’s such a wealth of new web design ideas that you shouldn’t have a problem creating something interesting and unique that also utilises the latest modern methods.
With that in mind, here are eight of the top web design trends to look out for in 2025.
The latest web design trends for 2025.
2025 sees a mix of exciting new web design trends. From vibrant colours to massive typography, here are the trends that are making the most impact.
1. Dimensionality and layers
Utilising different levels of depth has long been a crucial aspect of web design.
Including elements on different dimensions is key to showing the user what is most important on the page.
Typically, elements in the foreground, ‘closer’ to the user are what you want them to be focusing on.
Surreal animation takes this idea to the next level, enabling elements to move in dynamic ways, such as transforming from one thing to another, or moving between layers as the user interacts with the page.
Unusual types of movement help to make your website visually engaging, making it feel alive and more interactive, enhancing the user’s experience.
And while the foreground is reserved for the your key content, the background also plays an important role in establishing the look and feel of your website, so it shouldn’t be overlooked.
One way you can enhance the background of a webpage is by making it dynamic.
Adding particle effects or a looped video to your background provides constant movement to your page and giving the impression that it’s always changing.
There are so many effects to choose from allowing you to easily find one which not only looks great, but also accurately represents your organisation and brand.
Real-world example: NQCC
The National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) is driving innovation and stimulating growth through the power of quantum computers. Contra created a suitable web design for a science & research organisation, incorporating futuristic, galaxy-like particles and waves to provide subtle but impactful movement across various sections of the website.
2. Interactive 3D elements
In addition to utilising the foreground and background, there are several other creative web design techniques to effectively achieve depth.
One of those is using 3D elements.
Rather than having flat, segregated elements, a single 3D element can appear to sit over multiple layers at once, even when completely motionless.
Naturally, 3D elements are more true to what we see in real life, providing a greater overall sense of realism to the design.
This experience is enhanced if the 3D elements are interactive, allowing the user to click and move them in a variety of ways such as rotating or zooming in on a particular section.
The use of interactive 3D elements has been made possible thanks to web browser improvements, primarily the introduction of WebGL (Web Graphics Library) which enables the rendering of high-performance 3D graphics without the use of plug-ins.
WebGL opens the possibility to roll out 3D elements across various sections of your site, even if they’re only used to achieve a certain look and feel.
However, there are a handful of scenarios where utilising 3D elements can be particularly useful, such as showcasing a product or artistic project.
Apple regularly uses interactive models of their latest iPhones, allowing the user to rotate the device and view it from all angles.
Not only does this interactivity keep users engaged, helping to reduce bounce rates and improve SEO ranking, but it also lets the user see all the key details they need before making a purchase without having to view it in person.
Real-world example: The Royal Society
After COVID caused live event cancellations globally, The Royal Society needed a quick digital solution for its Summer Science Exhibition. Contra was tasked with creating an immersive 3D environment within just three months. We created a 3D immersive and interactive environment where users could learn about various topics and engage with video. The site experienced a 182% increase in new users year on year and the Summer Science Exhibition won a Digital Impact Award.
3. Complex animation
Long gone are the days of simply scrolling a page from top to bottom.
Now, there’s a wealth of ways you can navigate a single page thanks to the emergence of complex animation as a web design trend.
Complex animations allow for interesting transitions from one section to the next while remaining as seamless as if the user were simply scrolling down.
In fact, these animations may even make the page feel more fluid, allowing you to take the user on a journey by gradually showing them more content rather than risking key content being missed if it’s quickly scrolled past.
One of the animations which is becoming increasingly popular is parallax scrolling, whereby different layers of the page scroll at different speeds.
Typically, the background scrolls slower than your key content in the foreground.
While only subtle, the movement created on both layers enhances the level of immersion without distracting from the primary content, enhancing user experience.
Real-world example: MetFilm School
MetFilm School came to Contra needing a fresh, dynamic website that represented the vibrant nature of the school. We implemented parallax scrolling, where background images move more slowly than foreground content, creating a dynamic, layered visual effect. This technique enhances the cinematic experience for visitors by evoking a sense of depth, which mirrors the immersive nature of film. The scrolling effect draws attention to the school’s vibrant imagery and reinforces its identity as a creative, film-focused institution, making the site visually engaging and interactive.
As well as scrolling and transitions, other interactions can be animated in creative ways to generate more visual interest.
One of those is cursor animation.
Cursors can transition in several ways, such as changing colour or shape when the user hovers over or clicks a button, for example.
Again, this is a relatively minor implementation but does make using your website that bit more enjoyable, as well as enhancing usability by making it clear what elements can be interacted with.
4. Vibrant colours and gradient
Organisations with the best-designed websites will have carefully considered their choice of colour.
This is not only to stay in line with their branding but can also evoke a certain emotional response in their website visitors.
Colour psychology is well-documented, with it being widely accepted that different colours can impact someone’s mood.
So, your choice of colour may significantly impact the way someone feels when interacting with your site and their impression of your brand, potentially influencing how likely they are to convert.
With that in mind, it’s no wonder we’re seeing a trend towards more vibrant, eye-catching colour choices which tend to feel more upbeat, energetic, and positive.
That being said, darker shades shouldn’t be overlooked by any means.
While vibrant colours might be becoming more popular, it’s still crucial you understand your business and target market.
Darker, more muted shades may be more suitable for a law firm web design, for example, helping to create a sense of calm and trustworthiness. However, some law firms such as Hudgell Solicitors go against the grain with bright, contrasting colours to reflect their down-to-earth, friendly brand.
Another aspect of selecting your colour palette is selecting colours which complement each other.
While this is still an important consideration, it’s perhaps becoming less crucial thanks to the gradients.
Gradients are becoming more popular in web design because they allow for the smooth transition from one colour to another, rather than having two abrupt blocks of colour which might clash.
Utilising gradients opens the door to endless unique colour combinations which would usually be overlooked because they typically don’t work when placed side by side.
This helps your organisation stand out and bring its own personality.
Real-world example: Everyone's Energy
Everyone’s Energy is a solar panel installation company with ambitious growth. They came to Contra needing a modern, professional but energetic website that reflected their brand values. We utilised bright contrasting colours and colour gradients, even transitioning colours from light to dark to reflect the sunset on their service pages. The website won Gold at the Digital Impact Awards 2024 for 'Best use of digital in the energy & utilities sector'.
5. AI imagery
AI is becoming a trend across just about every sector in one way or another, and web design is no exception.
One area where it’s having a significant impact on design is through imagery.
Images are crucial to making a website visually appealing and making your organisation more relatable to your audience.
And yet, so many organisations are still having to compromise on their website imagery by using generic stock images.
While you can usually find something relevant and reasonable quality by scouring stock images, they’re never truly your own and lack personality.
AI has the power to resolve this issues, providing on-demand creativity to create something truly unique and highly personalised for your business.
And the process of AI image generation is quick and simple, giving more freedom to experiment and try something different if you find your previous idea wasn’t quite what you were looking for.
Creating and implementing AI images should only become more efficient too as companies continue to improve their software.
This is great for websites which are constantly growing, adding more pages and content which require unique visuals of their own.
6. Morphism
As the name suggests, morphism is a growing web design trend which blends two styles by combining physical and digital elements.
It gives elements on your website effects you come across in everyday life, such as reflections and textures to add depth and enhance the sense of realism.
There’s countless times you come across these effects in the real world, so much so that you often don’t register that you’re seeing them.
Therefore, it’s no surprise there are several ways they can be replicated within web design, including:
- Glass
- Emulates the way glass behaves by incorporating reflections, giving your website a glossy, high-quality, polished finish.
- Frosted glass
- Makes elements appear semi-transparent by using background blurring to create additional depth and enhance the visual hierarchy.
- Bordering
- Elements can be bordered using soft gradients or glows rather than harsh edges. Again, increases depth and helps key elements like CTA buttons stand out on the page.
- Neumorphism
- Gives elements like buttons an embossing or debossing effect to make them look like they’re pressed into or popping out of the page.
- Shadows
- A subtle way to add depth, giving the impression that certain elements are closer to the user to give them greater prominence.
Real-world example: Milkrite
Here, we can see the use of frosted glass in a megamenu design as part of a pitch we did for Milkrite, a company that provides milking point solutions to farmers across the globe.
7. Massive typography
You don’t need to work for a web design agency to know that making something huge will help it stand out.
Titles and headers are almost always larger than the rest of the copy for a reason.
They immediately grab the user’s attention before introducing the rest of the content.
The same applies when using massive typography on your website’s landing pages.
It ensures the user can’t miss important pieces of content such as key statements or CTA sections.
Not only that, utilising massive typography in your chosen font and style helps to showcase your brand and personality, all while improving usability by making your content clearly visible.
Real-world example: MBL Seminars
MBL Seminars came to us with the goal of becoming the “Apple of Learning & Development”. With over 3,360 courses, they are a leader in CPD for professional service companies. We used the big impact statement ‘Stay ahead of the learning curve’ on the home page to emphasise it has the latest CPD courses.
8. Bento grid
If you’re a fan of Japanese cuisine, then you’ve probably come across a bento box before.
As well as being a handy lunch container, it’s also the inspiration for our final web design trend, the bento grid
A bento box contains several square and rectangular compartments used for holding and separating different parts of a meal.
The bento grid is a website structure that follows this modular style, organising content into similarly shaped blocks.
This simple and minimalist structure provides a range of benefits including a clear visual hierarchy with a professional, polished look.
Its simplicity makes it highly scalable and responsive, allowing internal team members to easily build on existing content even if they’re not particularly technical.
Likewise, external users shouldn’t have an issue accessing and viewing your website content across multiple devices because the structure allows for seamless adjustment depending on the screen size.
And, finally, the bento grid’s consistent style helps to establish and reinforce your branding and personality, making you more recognisable to your audience.
Real-world example: Everyone's Energy.
We implemented a bento grid layout on the Everyone’s Energy web design. It effectively displays the company’s services and benefits clearly and efficiently. Each section focuses on a single key point, such as energy savings, installation time, or environmental impact, and uses engaging visuals and brief text to guide the user. When users click the cards, they flip to reveal more information. The layout creates a simple, clean, and visually engaging experience that helps users quickly grasp the value of solar panels.
Got a project in mind?
Contra stays on top of all the latest web design trends and, more importantly, knows how to get the basics rights. With years of experience providing design and marketing services for leading businesses in various industries, we can help transform your website to drive sales and profitability.
