The website footer: a small but mighty design element of your website. Sure, it lives at the bottom of the page, but a well-crafted footer can do some heavy lifting—organizing important links, reinforcing your branding, and even driving conversions. It’s the closer in your website’s design lineup, and its consistency is relied upon by those seeking specific info.
You don’t want to disappoint with a poor footer design. That’s why best practices are here to help.
In this post, we’ll explore what makes a footer great, why it’s so important, and the best practices for designing one that wows your audience. Plus, we’ll share tools and examples to help you craft a footer that doesn’t just exist—it shines. Let’s get started!
What is the footer of a website?
The footer of a website is the section located at the very bottom of a webpage. While it might seem like a small design element, it plays a big role in wrapping up your website’s content and providing users with important information. Footers are typically consistent across all pages of a site, acting as a catch-all for links, contact details, branding, and other resources.
Think of it as a digital safety net—it’s the spot users scroll to when they can’t find what they’re looking for elsewhere. Whether they’re hunting for your contact info, legal disclaimers, or social media links, the footer ensures they don’t leave your site empty-handed.
Why are website footers so important?
Website footers might sit quietly at the bottom of a page, but their importance is anything but small. They act as a utility belt for your site, providing a final opportunity to engage users and guide them where they need to go. Here’s why footers are so crucial:
- Improved user experience: A clear, organized footer allows visitors to find essential information without frustration. If someone scrolls to the bottom of your page, they’re likely looking for something specific.
- Increased engagement opportunities: Footers are prime real estate for engagement tools. You can encourage users to subscribe to your newsletter, follow your social media accounts, or explore additional content.
- Reinforces branding: Including your logo, tagline, or a branded design element in the footer gives your site a cohesive look.
- Provides essential legal information: The footer is where visitors expect to find legal details like your Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and cookie consent.
- Enhances SEO: By including links to key pages and strategically incorporating keywords, your footer can contribute to your site’s overall SEO strategy. It helps search engines crawl your site more effectively, giving you an edge in search rankings.
- Encourages navigation: For larger websites, footers can act as a secondary navigation tool. A condensed menu or sitemap in the footer lets users quickly jump to important sections, especially if they didn’t find what they were looking for at the top.
- Supports global audiences: If your site caters to an international audience, your footer can offer language or region selectors, making it accessible to people from around the world.
Best practices for website footer design
Designing a website footer might seem like a small detail, but it’s one of those hidden gems that can elevate your website’s functionality and user experience. Below, we’ve rounded up some tried-and-true best practices and footer design basics to help you design a footer that’s both effective and visually appealing.
Keep it simple and organized
Footer basics: keep it simple. A cluttered footer can confuse users, so keep things neat and organized. Group related elements together, like navigation links, social icons, and contact information. When in doubt, think minimalism—it’s not just trendy, it’s practical.
Use hierarchical design
Not every link or piece of information in your footer needs equal attention. Use font size, bold text, or placement to create a clear hierarchy. For instance, make key pages like “Contact” or “Privacy Policy” more prominent, while placing less critical links toward the bottom.
Incorporate key navigation links
Your footer acts as a secondary navigation menu, so it’s the perfect place to feature essential links. Consider including links to your About page, FAQs, Terms of Service, and anything else users might look for when scrolling to the bottom of your site.
Add contact information
Make it easy for users to connect with you by including your email address, phone number, and physical address (if applicable). Whether you’re a local business or an online store, accessible contact information builds trust with your audience.
Showcase your branding
Don’t let your branding stop at the header. Add your logo, tagline, or a subtle design touch that reflects your brand’s identity. A consistent brand presence from top to bottom makes your website feel cohesive and polished.
Leverage social media
Your footer is prime real estate for social media icons or posts. Add links to your active profiles so users can follow you with ease. Pro tip: Keep the icons clean and uniform in style—they should feel like part of your site’s overall design.
Utilize WordPress plugins and widgets (if applicable)
If you are using WordPress there are plenty of plugins and widgets to simplify the process. And tools to help edit your WordPress footer as well.
Include a search function (if applicable)
If your website has a lot of content (like a blog or an e-commerce store), adding a search bar to the footer can be a game-changer. This way, users can quickly find what they’re looking for without navigating back to the top.
Display a call to action
Your footer is an often-overlooked spot for conversions. Consider adding a newsletter sign-up form, a link to your latest product, or a simple CTA like “Start Your Free Trial.” Make it stand out with a splash of color or a bold button.
Highlight legal and copyright information
Don’t forget to keep your site legally sound. Include copyright information, disclaimers, and links to your Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. It’s not the most exciting part of your footer, but it’s definitely one of the most important.
Make it responsive
Your footer needs to look great on every device, from desktop monitors to mobile screens. Test your footer on different screen sizes to ensure it’s clean, functional, and easy to navigate no matter where users view it.
Use visual dividers
To avoid overwhelming visitors, use visual dividers like subtle lines, background colors, or distinct sections to separate different parts of your footer. This small design touch can do wonders for readability and organization.
Test accessibility
An accessible footer ensures everyone, including users with disabilities, can navigate your website with ease. Choose readable fonts, maintain proper color contrast, and add alt text to any images or icons.
Add multi-language or region options
If your website caters to a global audience, including a language switcher or region selector in the footer can improve user experience. It’s a thoughtful touch that makes your site more inclusive for international visitors.
Track user behavior
Want to know if your footer design is working? Use analytics tools to track how visitors interact with it. Are they clicking on the links? Signing up for your newsletter? With the right data, you can tweak your footer for even better performance.
Optimize load time
Avoid loading your footer with large images, unnecessary widgets, or slow-loading scripts. A lightweight, fast-loading footer keeps your site’s overall performance in top shape—an often overlooked but crucial factor for user satisfaction.
14 Tools to simplify and support your footer design process
A well-designed website footer can do so much more than tie your page together—it can improve usability, drive engagement, and even support conversions. The right tools can make designing and managing your footer a breeze. Below, we’ve grouped some essential tool categories, explained their use, and suggested where you can find them.
1. Social plugins and widgets
Social plugins make it easy to embed social media elements in your footer, whether it’s a live feed, follow buttons, or simple icons that link to your profiles. These tools help you seamlessly integrate social media into your site, encouraging users to engage with your brand on multiple platforms.
Where to get it: Curator, AddThis, Elfsight Social Widgets
2. Design and layout builders
Footer layout tools allow you to customize and design your footer without diving into complicated code. Whether you’re looking for drag-and-drop functionality or pre-built templates, these tools streamline the process and make your footer look professional.
Where to get it: Elementor, Beaver Builder, Divi Builder
3. Newsletter subscription tools
Adding a newsletter subscription form to your footer is a smart way to grow your email list and keep visitors engaged. These tools simplify form creation, manage sign-ups, and integrate with email marketing platforms.
Where to get it: Mailchimp, Kit, OptinMonster
4. Analytics and tracking tools
Understanding how users interact with your footer can help you optimize it for better performance. These tools track link clicks, engagement, and other valuable metrics so you can tweak your footer design based on real data.
Where to get it: Google Analytics, Hotjar, Crazy Egg
5. Icon libraries
Social icons, CTAs, and other visual elements in your footer can benefit from clean, professional-looking icons. These tools provide ready-to-use icon sets or the ability to customize them to match your site’s style.
Where to get it: Font Awesome, IcoMoon, Flaticon
6. Accessibility tools
Creating an accessible footer is critical for inclusivity. These tools help ensure your footer design meets accessibility standards, including color contrast, readable fonts, and screen-reader compatibility.
Where to get it: Wave, Color Contrast Checker by WebAIM, Axe Accessibility
7. Language switchers and region selectors
If your website caters to a global audience, these tools enable you to add language or region selection features to your footer, making it user-friendly for visitors worldwide.
Where to get it: Weglot, TranslatePress, GTranslate
8. Legal policy generators
Your footer is the perfect place to include links to Privacy Policies, Terms of Service, and other legal documents. These tools help you quickly generate the policies you need to stay compliant.
Where to get it: Termly, PrivacyPolicies, Iubenda
9. Call-to-action (CTA) creators
Whether you’re promoting a new product, encouraging newsletter sign-ups, or showcasing a sale, these tools make it easy to design CTAs that grab attention and drive clicks.
Where to get it: Canva, HubSpot, Snappa
10. Content aggregation tools
If you want your footer to stay dynamic and engaging, consider embedding live content, like a social media feed or curated updates. These tools simplify content aggregation and let you embed it directly into your footer.
Where to get it: Curator, Taggbox, Juicer
11. Font and typography tools
Your footer text needs to be readable and visually aligned with your brand. These tools offer great typography options to give your footer the finishing touch it deserves.
Where to get it: Google Fonts, Adobe Fonts, Font Squirrel
3 great website footer design examples
Talking about best practices can only take you so far. Examples really help seal the deal. So here are a few to check out. And if you want more, check out these footer examples.
1. Petco
Petco’s footer excels in functionality and organization. It features clear navigation sections, a strong call-to-action for newsletter sign-ups, and dedicated buttons for mobile app downloads. Social media links are prominently displayed, and legal and accessibility details are easy to locate.
Best practices used in this footer:
- Organized categories
- Strong CTA
- Prominent social media links
- Mobile app download buttons
- Legal and accessibility information
2. MidwayUSA
If your objective is practical and user-focused, MidwayUSA’s footer is a good example. It features well-structured categories for navigation, a helpful "Help Center" button, and prominent links to key pages like shipping and returns policies. Legal and accessibility links are displayed at the bottom, while certifications and awards add credibility.
Best practices used in this footer:
- Organized categories
- Help Center button for easy access to support
- Prominent links to policies (e.g., shipping, returns)
- Legal and accessibility information
- Certifications and awards for added trustworthiness
3. Calvary Presbyterian Church
Calvary Presbyterian Church’s footer blends community focus with practicality. It includes clear contact details, office hours, and mission-focused branding. A strong call-to-action invites users to subscribe to the newsletter, while social media icons and key links keep navigation simple and accessible.
Best practices used in this footer:
- Clear contact information
- Church office hours prominently displayed
- Mission-focused branding for consistency
- Strong CTA (newsletter subscription)
- Social media links for engagement
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