11 Web Development Trends to Expect in 2024, According to Experts & Data

When I’m surfing the web, I look at hundreds of pages a day. While I often remember interesting tidbits from my browsing, the websites themselves don’t really stick. However, there are exceptions. If there are pages with strong design and smooth UX, I definitely remember those sites.

Keeping in touch with web development trends is becoming increasingly important to ensure a secure, functionally competitive, and user-friendly website. Failing to keep up with recent trends can seriously affect your website performance and user experience. As a result, your traffic will dip.

In this post, I take a closer look at the top website development trends you can expect to dominate in 2023.

Web Development Trends in 2024

1. Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)
2. AI Chatbots
3. Accelerated Mobile Pages
4. Single-Page Application
5. Optimized Voice Search
6. WordPress Development
7. Motion UI
8. Serverless Architecture
9. Responsive Site Design
10. Dark Mode Standardization
11. Improved Native Cybersecurity

You might be surprised to notice that many web development trends already exist. They‘ll become more prevalent in the coming years, so adapting these best practices is more critical than ever. Let’s take a look at the web development trends 2024 you should keep an eye out for.

1. Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)

While progressive web apps (PWAs) aren't new, their latest iteration will replace web apps for good. PWAs help websites load in no time and work offline in apps like Google Maps. Companies including Starbucks, Uber, Pinterest, and Twitter use PWAs for an improved user experience — and in 2024, many more organizations have already caught on.

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In the last quarter of 2023, over 58% of International web traffic was from mobile — not including tablets. With the increased usage of smartphones and tablets to perform various online tasks, it has never been more essential to revamp web applications into PWAs.

In addition to providing unmatched user experience, PWAs offer additional benefits such as reduced website development costs and seamless maintenance for the provider. Plus, they visually look and act like a regular web page.

In 2024, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React, WebAssembly, or Angular will be used to write PWAs. Web developers are embracing PWA principles to provide dependable and engaging user experiences.

Moreover, most contemporary frameworks already include basic PWA configurations or additional packages that convert an application into a PWA. These can make it easier to start a new PWA project and introduce new files into an already-existing project.

My take: I love PWAs because of their quick load times. If I’m using a website and it takes forever to load, I’ll often find a different option. That’s especially true when I’m on the go, trying to cross tasks quickly when I’m on the go.

2. AI Chatbots & More

According to our AI trends report, 62% of business leaders have already invested in AI solutions for their staff. In fact, of those executives, 71% are expecting a positive return on investment.

In 2024, AI chatbots will become even more sophisticated to meet users' needs. To achieve this, bots will more efficiently match user behavior by leveraging machine learning, natural language processing, and information retrieval techniques.

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Besides assisting companies in performing faster operations using voice or text chats, AI-enabled chatbots also help improve customer experience. You can use an AI chatbot to collect data, answer frequently asked questions, and solve other issues. The result is a seamless digital experience for customers to enjoy.

So, you can see why AI will be more integrated into businesses in 2024. Alternatively, you can use AI tools like GitHub Copilot to write and review your website's code. StackOverflow's 2023 survey revealed that 70% of respondents are utilizing or intend to employ AI tools in their development process.

There’s also a rise in using AI and machine learning models to predict user behavior. This is usually done to develop preventive measures against future errors.

My take: If your site involves a customer service element, I highly recommend including a chatbot on your site — even if that chatbot just directs customers to a human representative. Why? Having instant communication reduces customer frustration when they’re faced with a challenge.

I booked a ticket with United and had to make a change to my travel plans. I wanted to take care of the change straight away and was unable to make the shift on a webpage. A chatbot helped me get routed to the right person and told me how long I would need to wait to connect with a rep. Knowing my wait time instead of waiting on hold via the phone made a huge difference for me.

3. Accelerated Mobile Pages

Almost 70% of consumers indicated that page speed impacts their decision to purchase from an online seller, according to Unbounce. In other words, you should not ignore your site‘s speed. That’s where accelerated mobile pages come into the picture.

First launched by Google in 2015, the accelerated mobile page (AMP) provides mobile users with lightning-fast digital experiences. In addition to offering seamless user experiences and decreasing bounce rates, Google's AMP may improve core business metrics. These metrics could even be as important as the number of conversions on web pages.

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While AMP usage has been trending slightly down since 2020, it still remains the most popular mobile technology used worldwide, used on over 45% of websites that implement mobile technologies and over half of the most popular 10,000 websites.

With AMP Playground, you can copy and paste your AMP HTML code to preview how your pages appear on different mobile devices before integrating them into your website. Remember to put in your specific AMP canonical tag as well to ensure you are differentiating your AMP and non-AMP versions for Google.

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My take: Making sure your site plays well on mobile makes a huge difference to your customers. If they have to zoom in to read content or if a desktop version of the site decreases load time, your customers will disappear.

4. Single-Page Applications

Considered one of the most significant recent trends in web development, single-page applications (SPAs) are JavaScript-based web applications that load a single HTML page in a visitor's browser and dynamically update content as needed without refreshing the page.

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The development community and Google, Facebook, and Twitter have widely adopted SPAs. Because users can use a website without loading an entirely new page from the server, the overall performance is much better. While more effort is involved in maintaining SPAs, it could be well worth the tradeoff.

Besides being cost-effective and relatively easy to create thanks to the popular AngularJS framework, SPAs consume less server space and efficiently provide users' information on a single page without needing to navigate around. These benefits make SPAs a win-win for developers and site visitors alike.

As online consumers expect faster and simpler app experiences, we can expect the SPA trend to continue in the coming year.

It’s important to remember that SPAs have a single, distinct, uniform resource locator (URL) and use JavaScript, so it can be harder to rank in terms of SEO ranks. As a result, they are a good architecture choice if you’re considering using them for social networks like Facebook, SaaS applications, and closed communities.

My take: I hate reloading web pages. That might be from my time updating HTML on blog posts and having to refresh to see the change. Regardless, if there’s a way I can refresh less, I’m much happier, which is why I love SPAs.

5. Optimized Voice Search

First introduced by Google in 2011, voice search is rapidly rising in popularity. Intelligent virtual assistants like Alexa and Siri have shown unprecedented market growth over the past few years and are forecasted to continue to grow rapidly, according to an analysis by Grand View Research.

According to Google, 27% of individuals use voice search on mobile devices. GlobeNewswire reports that over 50% of Americans use voice searches at least once daily, and over 1 billion voice searches occur monthly.

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More tech giants are entering the market or creating new products, like Google Home and Apple HomePod, to meet consumer demand. More than half of adults in the United States have a smart home device, too. As a result, voice search is poised to become more relevant than ever.

Consumers are not only using smart speakers to conduct voice searches; they're also using their smartphones and IoT devices. In other words, voice search results will start ranking higher and more frequently on search engine results pages. So, companies will be working on optimizing their products and their content strategy for voice search in 2024.

In this case, Natural Language Processing (NLP) is improving at helping voice search assistants comprehend and reply to increasingly complicated requests.

So, if you're already using other keyword tools to optimize voice search, NLP should also be in your toolbox. This means voice search assistants can interpret complex queries and then present personalized ads based on their understanding.

My take: I use voice search all the time, especially when I’m looking up YouTube videos on my TV. Voice search helps me find information faster and hands-free, making it one of my favorite trends on this list.

6. WordPress Development

The WordPress CMS powers over 43% of all websites, and a significant presence demands attention. An open-source platform, WordPress continually adds more features to meet users‘ needs. There are plenty of WordPress-specific web development trends, and it’s worth diving into them.

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2024 will also see a major uptick in using Headless WordPress, a decoupled architecture separating the front and back end. With this architecture, you can have unparalleled freedom to use different front-end technologies while utilizing WordPress's robust content management features. The React JavaScript or Angular library can be useful when setting up your headless CMS.

My take: Changes to WordPress have a huge impact on the site because so much of the internet uses the CMS. If you’re looking to stay on the cutting edge, pay attention to what WordPress is doing to see what changes you may want to mirror on your site.

7. Motion UI

Today‘s consumers don’t only expect faster and mobile-friendly digital experiences — they also want richer and more interactive ones.

That's one reason Motion UI has become so popular. Motion UI is a front-end framework that enables developers to build fully responsive websites and mobile applications and to use predefined motions within a native app setting. Using this framework, you can make an element slide, spin, bounce, transition, and more.

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Motion UI also scores points because it‘s compatible with all web technologies and can be added anywhere on a website. Some popular places to implement Motion UI include the header, footer, and menus. Though this framework gained momentum in 2018, it has become more accessible thanks to the SASS libraries’ technology, making it one of the leading web development trends in 2024.

Try using UI frameworks like Material Design, JavaScript libraries like Anime.js, and CSS animations to design dynamic and responsive interfaces. Motion UI elevates the user experience by providing data that is aesthetically pleasing.

My take: A little bit of extra motion on a website keeps me engaged. In fact, not many folks are adding these transitions to your site, making it a great way to stand out.

8. Serverless Architecture

There has been an ongoing search for technology that helps to reduce system overloading, data loss, and development costs. Enter: Serverless technology.

Serverless architecture runs on cloud technology, which allows users to run code for virtually any type of application or backend service with no administration. No provisioning, managing, or upgrading servers is necessary. Amazon, Google, and Microsoft are the leading examples of companies using and providing serverless architecture.

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The serverless architecture market is valued at $36.84 billion in 2022. That means we can expect more companies to enter this market in 2024 and beyond.

We'll also see more products — including chatbots, IoT apps, and APIs — using serverless functions to perform tasks like downloading file backups, delivering notifications, and exporting objects.

My take: If you have security concerns, I suggest splitting each of your environments and linking them to separate AWS accounts. This makes it easier to retain data, especially if any environment gets accidentally deleted, and ensures there are no premature rollouts.

9. No-Code/Low-Code Development

According to recent research, the low-code industry is expected to generate over 65 billion US dollars worldwide by 2027. And by 2030, it's predicted to reach $187 billion, which translates to a CAGR of 31.1%.

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We're seeing a rise in low-code and no-code development in 2024 due to enterprises' need to swiftly and effectively create responsive and distinctive websites without depending on developers.

Nontechnical team members can try it out since it has a minimal learning curve. Also, developers use these platforms to build the first stage and then scale it up. So, it's simple to use and can help your team become more productive.

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Thinking of trying out no-code or low-code solutions? Here are some popular options; you can take a look at HubSpot's Content Hub, WordPress, Wix, etc.

My take: I love no-code development tools! They allow anyone to make a site and develop an internet presence, regardless of how well they code. These tools can help non-developers make professional looking sites with ease.

10. Dark Mode Standardization

In recent years, dark and low-light websites have gained popularity. One of the top trends has been websites and apps continuing to offer dark mode user interfaces (UIs), as studies have found that at least 8 in 10 users prefer to use dark mode whenever possible.

Facebook and Twitter have already implemented this feature. These apps provide an easy option to toggle between the two modes, depending on the reader's preference or system settings. Mastering website personalization is essential, as visitors expect a completely customized experience, so be sure you deliver on that promise.

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As more web developers provide a similar built-in feature to switch between light and dark modes, this will become the standard in 2024 and beyond. It may even become the de facto default for applications.

Not sure if you’ve designed your Dark Mode properly, especially for disabled visitors? Look at the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) contrast ratio checker. The compliance ratio chart will allow you to ensure that your user experience for Dark Mode isn’t hampered.

My take: I’m a Dark Mode user. That’s the setting on my phone and laptop, as well as my preferred look for most sites. If your site offers Dark Mode, I’m switching to that. There are enough users like me where you should make Dark Mode an option.

11. Improved Native Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity — which refers to the practice of securing data, networks, and computers from misuse — is one of the most critical concerns of 2024. Every company, no matter its size, is vulnerable. For example, this year, streaming provider Roku suffered a huge data breach in April, which affected approximately 576,000 accounts.

According to CDN provider Cloudflare, the number of network-layer distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks they mitigated increased by 85% in 2023 compared to 2022. Hours of downtime, significant loss of revenue, and a damaged reputation are just a few effects of this form of attack.

With such an alarming increase in cybercrimes, website development has adapted to make it easier to safeguard company and customer data. There's already been a shift toward application-based multi-factor authentication, like Google Authenticator, patch management, and Security Operation Centers (SOC).

We'll see a continuing rise in non-traditional methods to improve cybersecurity beyond monitoring tools and analytics checkpoints.

Danny Wajcman, co-founder and COO of the heat mapping and live chat software company Lucky Orange, notes the importance of human monitoring in addition to automation: “We firmly believe session recordings can help identify security issues like a DDoS attack or extreme bot traffic…Having a feel for your daily traffic trends and regularly following visitor journeys builds your ability to recognize when something isn't quite right.”

The best way to stay up-to-date on new threats is to look at the current OWASP list. Once you can identify common problems that can happen, you can use vulnerability scanning tools to remain alert.

My take: Frankly, most users aren’t thinking about cybersecurity every second they’re online. However, they’ll definitely care if there’s ever a breach and their information is at risk. Leveling up your cybersecurity is, in my opinion, one of the biggest ways to maintain your users’ trust.

Trending in Web Development

Web development is constantly evolving to meet the needs and expectations of online consumers. Many of these trends are focused on optimizing the user experience on mobile — others in the future might be focused on optimizing UX for smart wearables or devices we haven't seen yet. By staying on top of the web development trends, you can ensure your website consistently attracts and delights users.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in November 2021 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.