dec • ades

/ 'deˌkād, də'kād /

Exploring website design trends across four decades

Ebay

1999

The 90s

Nintendo

1998

Characterized by:

  • Welcome text
  • Bevel and emboss effects
  • Seemingly random use of color
  • Animated GIFs
  • Custom cursor
  • Multi-colored icons
  • Aggressive shadows, often to extent of "glowing"
  • Bulleted lists
  • Underlined hyperlinks

Characterized by:

  • Selective use of color
  • Mix of sharp and slightly rounded corners, often asymmetric borders
  • Multi-colored icons
  • Acute gradients, often glossy
  • Underlined hyperlinks
  • Liberal use of textures and/or images

Netflix

2005

Apple Store in 2001

The 2000s

Apple Store

2001

The Apple Store in 2001

Apple Store

2015

Apple Store in 2015

The 2010s

McDonald's

2012

McDonald's in 2012

Characterized by:

  • Hero images
  • Minimalism
  • Flat design
  • Parallax effects
  • Oversized headers and footers
  • Sticky navbars
  • Content that alternates sides per vertical scroll

Characterized by:

  • Elements animating into view
  • Alternating background color
  • Subtle gradients

McDonald's

2024

McDonald's in 2024

The 2020s

Amazon

2024

Amazon in 2024