Are You Using White Space to Boost Ux in Website Design?

Are You Using White Space to Boost Ux in Website Design?

Your commitment to UX (user experience) in website design doesn’t mean you have to fill every pixel on every page with information. Sometimes, a difference exists between the efficient use of website space and the effective use of that space. Some UX proponents suggest that white space can prevent a page from achieving its full potential. Although describing empty space as wasted space might at first seem right, you shouldn’t forget that you need white space to boost UX in website design.

Understand the Problem

Get an idea of how white space works by thinking about shopping in a store with piles of merchandise everywhere, even in the aisles. Next, think about a well-organized store with wide aisles and fewer items. In most cases, you probably would feel more at ease in the second store where you can quickly and easily see the merchandise and make a decision about it.

Now think about your website. When you fill your site with too many positive design elements, they produce visual clutter that confuses visitors, making them less likely to stay long enough to understand your message. Those who try to stay must struggle to learn about your message and what you have to offer. Instead, you should provide a design that provides easy access to the information users need to make informed decisions.

Improve the User Experience

Website visitors that feel good stay longer and buy more. Improve the user experience on your site through a simple design trick: whitespace. Resist the impulse to squeeze more graphics and text into your web pages. Instead, use negative space to highlight positive elements of your site and create a clear path that leads your visitors all the way from introduction to conversion. The following reasons help explain how white space can boost UX in website design.

Make Your Pages Readable

You quickly need to communicate to site visitors what you can do for them. When they see pages packed with flashy graphics, wild colors and loads of text, they have difficulty understanding how they can benefit from the site.

White space improves the readability of a page by creating a natural flow for readers to follow. When properly used, white space can also give a website a luxurious, sophisticated feel that minimizes clutter and emphasizes a clear message. White space should frame your graphic and interactive elements into distinct, discernible blocks. Use different amounts of white space and variable element sizes to communicate the relative importance of page elements.

You should also use white space to create clearly defined text elements and associations between elements. For example, use white space on pages to associate images with their captions. White space between text elements can also separate different ideas on a page. White space also improves the legibility of text, contributing to the readability of a page. Your choice of leading, kerning, and padding can make words easy for the eye to recognize.

Communicate Importance

Boost UX in website design by using white space to create a hierarchy of elements on your pages. This will help your audience decide to stay and read your supporting information, instead of moving on to view other pages.

Provide Guidance

Use white space to create a path for people to follow that leads them to the action you want them to take. For example, if you wish to sell a particular item, make sure your white space provides a clear path from your title or header to the product image. When users click the picture, the subsequent product detail page should lead them through the key features of the product and then to the checkout process.

Add Balance

Getting the most out of your website design requires the effective use of all the space you have available. Although you do well to include images, text, graphics, and interactive elements in your designs, those elements can lose their effectiveness without the balance white space affords.

Build Trust

Cluttered websites with full layouts, small print, too much text, and inadequate white space make users uneasy. Use credibility to boost UX in website design by using white space. This will create a safe, comfortable, engaging environment for your users.


Have you been filling every nook and cranny of your website? Make sure you aren’t making one of these other common website design mistakes!

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