Tips for designing prettier websites

I’m not a professional designer, but here are a few things I focus on to make my websites look a bit more polished and visually appealing.

Visual Hierarchy

Make sure important elements like headlines and buttons are easy for users to see. You can achieve this by changing the font size, weight or by using colors so key elements stand out.

White Space

Don’t cram everything together, give the elements room to breathe. Add just enough space to keep the design clear and easy to follow.

I usually start by adding more space than needed and then reduce it until it feels just right. For some reason, it’s easier for me to work this way than starting with too little space.

Color & Contrast

Stick to a palette of 2-4 colors, and make sure the text contrasts well with the background for readability. Use accent colors to highlight key elements like links, buttons, or other important information.

Consistency

Keep the website consistent. Use the same font, colors, and styles for similar elements to make your design look professional and polished.

The simplest way to maintain consistency is by creating components for everything. This ensures that whenever you use a component, it will always look and behave the same.

Alignment

Proper alignment gives your design balance. Use grids and ensure elements and text are visually aligned, nothing should feel off-center.

An easy way to do this is by placing rulers on the left and right sides and aligning everything with them.

Typography

Choose fonts that are easy to read and complement your design. Stick to 1 or 2 font families to keep things consistent.

Pay attention to font sizes and spacing to ensure your text is clear and legible, especially on smaller screens. The right typography can make your content more engaging and improve the user experience.

Let’s see if these tips work

Imagine we’re creating a shopping cart for an e-commerce site selling candy.

First, let's highlight the important parts to draw attention. We can start by making the font bolder on key text.

Order details

My Cart

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

$1.50

15

Order info

Subtotal

$22.50

Shipping cost

+$5.00

Total

$27.50

Checkout ($27.50)

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