Even among well-established websites, there are still bad web design examples worth learning from. Instead of supporting user needs, these sites often highlight key design pitfalls. According to Ramotion, key issues include visual flaws, cluttered design, usability mistakes, and security susceptibility that can significantly reduce user engagement and overall traffic.
Key Takeaways:
Want to know exactly what poor websites look like so you can stay clear? Check out the list below!
Arngren’s web design (Source: Arngren)
The site overwhelms users with excessive images. Moreover, it lacks mobile responsiveness and sufficient white space, which makes users struggle to follow the content without visual breaks.
Gates N Fences’ web design (Source: Gatesnfences)
As you can see, the visual style of Gates N Fences appears outdated and unappealing to users, which makes them less inclined to explore. It also struggles with difficult navigation and a cluttered layout, making users distrustful of the website.
Exmouth View’s web design (Source: Exmouth View)
Exmouth View is too basic. The website is well-organized, but it lacks visual appeal, clear information, and a poor call to action (CTA), so visitors may struggle to understand the site’s purpose.
Ash End’s web design (Source: Ash End House Children’s Farm)
While it’s informative, Ash End House Children’s Farm is too boring. This is one of the bad web design examples because of its poor color choice and long-form text that leads to eye strain and fatigue.
Pacific’s web design (Source: Pacific Northwest X-Ray Inc.)
At first glance, Pacific Northwest X-Ray Inc. appears to be an outdated online directory due to its vintage-looking logo and bad color scheme. The homepage primarily focuses on text direction without an image and appears barren.
Also Read : How to Redesign a Website? 6 Steps to Boost Online Presence
Craigslist’s web design (Source: Craigslist)
Craiglist is only made up of links with no images or logos available, which makes it look plain. This is one of the bad web page design examples that also present a disorganized content hierarchy and a confusing navigation menu, leading to a lack of a clear path for users.
Blinkee’s web design (Source: Blinkee)
Blinkee looks tacky with too colorful fonts and bad-quality images. This website has a slow load time and a poorly designed layout, making it lose opportunities for design appreciation.
Egg Shed’s web design (Source: The Egg Shed)
Out of all features, the Egg Shed presents disorganized text blocks, making the website appear dense. The minimal interactive elements also contribute to a lack of clear guidance.
Cloud 9 Walkers’ web design (Source: Cloud 9 Walkers)
This website design is too monotone with its inconsistent font style and bad visual hierarchy. You’ll experience poor navigation with no sidebar menu at all.
Paradise Water’s web design (Source: Paradise Water)
Visitors will likely see an unclear layout structure at once. The bad typography hierarchy, as well as low-quality images and logos, contributes to preventing them from engaging with the content.
Also Read : Reasons Why Responsive Design Matters in 2025
The Clove Club’s web design (Source: The Clove Club)
This website is indeed pretty, with its appealing imagery. However, a lack of clear visual order and a call to action may potentially deter them from staying or returning.
Yale School of Art’s web design (Source: Yale School of Art)
This design suffers from excessive clutter, with a complex layout and text jammed on the whole page. This is one of the bad web design examples that also suffers from poorly placed navigation menus.
Berkshire’s web design (Source: Berkshire Hathaway Inc.)
Without background hue and website image styling, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. is a very basic version, resulting in a less engaging experience. Plus, the complex link text in the whole website increases the cognitive burden.
Irish Wreck’s web design (Source: Irish Wreck Online)
It’s visible, but it is visually overwhelming since it has highly contrasting bright colors. In addition, the inconsistent letter case disrupts the page’s flow.
Chester Tourist’s web design (Source: Chester Tourist)
Combined with bad-quality images and poor server performance, Chester Tourist is terrible for both the desktop and mobile versions. Plus, the excessive ads and messy menu layout make users feel annoyed.
Also Read : Top 10 Mistakes in Web Design to Avoid for an Engaging Website
Toronto Cupcake’s web design (Source: Toronto Cupcake)
It’s a cupcake server, but the visuals are far from appetizing. The full-width layout combined with irregular text alignment makes the content hard to digest and tiring to read.
Vortex’s web design (Source: Vortex)
This website feels bare and lacking any background styling or a navigation bar. Plus, the absence of content hierarchy makes important information feel buried and hard to find.
MGBD’s web design (Source: MGBD Parts and Services)
Among the bad web design examples, this one presents a poor contrasting background, leading to an unprofessional look. The excessive images and illegible font style also don’t contribute to the site any better.
James Bond Museum’s web design (Source: James Bond Museum)
With vague messages set against a black background, the James Bond Museum’s homepage is confusing. This website is also adorned with poor photography placement and a convoluted layout, which can create a visually chaotic effect.
Liberty Games’s web design (Source: Liberty Games)
From a crowded interface to an inconsistent typeface, this website isn’t working. Plus, the content structure and the image are arguably poor, making for an overwhelming surfing experience.
Also Read : Why Bad Web Design Websites Drive Visitors Away
Don’t make the same common pitfalls like those web design examples. Instead, let’s build a well-constructed website. By examining the bad web design examples above, you can pinpoint exactly where improvements are needed.To establish a recognizable style of website, incorporate an exclusive font collection from Lettersiro into your project. Our fonts’ complete kit, accompanied by versatile licenses and convenient installation, will truly make your project stand out at a glance!
