What elevates a website to excellence? Is it the overall aesthetic, usability, or topic coverage? Perhaps it involves intricate details within the design elements, such as font choices or color schemes?
Truthfully, it’s a complex question with no single answer. It could be one factor, a mix of many, or a successful challenge to conventional design norms. Ensuring the visual harmony aligns with the content is critical, yet invoking an element of surprise can be equally effective.
Throughout the previous year, we showcased over two hundred websites that distinguished themselves in various ways. They range from commercial sites selling goods or services to experimental pages, informative educational platforms, politically charged sites, and simply delightful online experiences.
Now, we’ve curated a list of the crème de la crème, a selection of 40 websites that stand as a testament to what web design looked like in 2023. They’re a source of inspiration, a look into current trends, or simply a digital memento of the year. Dive in and enjoy!
Innovative Millor Creative Office
Embark on a journey with Millor Creative Office’s website that starts in stark black and white simplicity. As you delve deeper, a visual spectacle unfolds with color bursts that blend and twist into ever-evolving gradients—a dream come true for gradient aficionados.
Delightful Summer Afternoon
A web experiment that captures the essence of a Summer Afternoon in gorgeous 3D. The site’s pleasant illustrations, harmonious soundtrack, and nature’s whispers, like bird chirps, come together for an entrancing experience.
Chic Monokel Eyewear
Striking photography paired with a chic editorial-style layout endows Monokel Eyewear with an effortlessly cool indie fashion vibe. The straightforward navigation seals the deal for a top-tier user experience.
Eco-friendly Kora Living
Kora Living delivers an invitation to sustainable co-living spaces with both short-term and long-term stays. The site’s curved imagery and delightful ‘arched window’ aesthetic leave a lasting impression.
Artistic Studio Kleiner
Studio Kleiner’s website is a testament to their creative prowess, boasting stunning visuals and a unique navigation experience. Visitors can explore their work through an array of filter tags that include project types, mediums, and skills.
Empowering Give a Hand
The Give a Hand initiative by the American Society for Deaf Children features a design project aimed at compiling an open-source hand image library. This resource aids in training AI to recognize sign language, presented through a beautifully simplistic site.
Inventive Saint Urbain
Designers often grapple with ensuring legibility of text over changing images. Creative agency Saint Urbain masterfully solves this by casting text as striking color negative image masks.
Enchanting Plantica
Plantica greets visitors with mesmerizing floral photography, but a closer examination reveals a meticulous attention to detail. Note the complementary color image placeholders and the delightful cursor effects that blossom as you navigate.
Contemporary CoLabs
CoLabs boasts a cohesive design theme, employing curved image masks with a unique inverted corner to create a modern yet approachable atmosphere.
Vibrant United Sodas of America
This effervescent site eschews traditional branding colors, instead celebrating the unique hues of each soda flavor. Apart from the vivid product shots, the site’s design is an exquisite showcase in black and white, both strong and unforgettable.
Inspiring Sculpting Harmony
This immersive portal by Getty delves into the tale of the Walt Disney Concert Hall’s architecture in LA. Educational yet digestible—it’s a true work of art and a delightful escape from the daily grind.
