Where should I put my website navigation?
By CleverSage | January 26, 2008
When designing the structure of your website, a critical factor is positioning your website’s navigation. Numerous studies have shown that the placement (the top of the page, left, or right) is statistically insignificant. However, there are several considerations when deciding on where you are going to display your navigation:
Left-Side Navigation
Commonly used:
- Authoritative/Established/Trusted sites
- Older demographics
- Adheres to mainstream navigation placement
Right-Side Navigation
Commonly used:
- Many blogs are now using right-side navigation
- Sites that display ads (can increase CTR)
- Younger and more computer-savvy demographics
Top Navigation
Commonly used:
- Flexible for most demographics
- Can be use in conjunction with both left and right-hand navigation
Top-Left Navigation
Commonly used:
- Good for sites with multiple areas of interest
Top-Right Navigation
Commonly used:
- For more tech-savvy visitors
- Good for sites with multiple areas of interest
Top / Right / Left Navigation
Commonly used:
- Sites that need to display a lot of information
- Good for sites with multiple areas of interest
Related Articles & Links
- Best navigation for SEO
- Where is the best spot to put site navigation?
- Website usability, breadcrumbs and left-side navigation
- Navigation placement on news home pages
- Should Nav be on the left or on the right?
- UnFundaMental: Left, Right, Top, Bottom? Consider the context for navigation
- Navigation: Left is best
Topics: Usability, Website Design |