Our Favourite Minimal Websites (and Why They Work)

Most minimal websites fail because they confuse empty with intentional. Strip away too much and you’re left with nothing to work with. Keep too much and you’ve just built another cluttered site.

The best minimal websites sit in that sweet spot where every element earns its place. They guide visitors effortlessly toward action. They load instantly. They convert.

Here are seven websites that nail minimal design, and exactly what makes them work.

What Makes a Website Minimal (Not Just Empty)

Before we look at examples, let’s clarify what minimal actually means.

Minimal isn’t about removing everything until there’s nothing left. It’s about removing everything that doesn’t serve a clear purpose. Every element that remains should either inform, guide or convert.

Empty sites feel bare and confusing. Minimal sites feel focused and intentional.

Here’s the difference:

Empty: No clear message, sparse content with no direction, navigation that’s hidden for the sake of “clean” aesthetics, whitespace used randomly rather than purposefully.

Minimal: Crystal clear value proposition, focused content that guides toward one or two actions, intentional use of whitespace to create hierarchy, every design choice serves usability and conversion.

The websites we’re about to explore understand this distinction perfectly.

1. Stripe: Clarity Through Simplicity

Stripe processes billions in payments, but their homepage doesn’t overwhelm you with feature lists or technical jargon. Instead, they lead with a clear headline, a single CTA, and beautiful product visualisation.

Why it works:

The hero section tells you exactly what Stripe does in six words: “Financial infrastructure for the internet.” One primary CTA (“Start now”) and one secondary option (“Contact sales”) guide different user types without friction.

The homepage uses generous whitespace to separate each section. Your eye moves naturally down the page, discovering features without feeling sold to. Typography does the heavy lifting, with clear hierarchy between headlines, body text and CTAs.

Product screenshots show the platform in action rather than describing it. Interactive elements demonstrate functionality without requiring you to read lengthy explanations.

Takeaway: Lead with your core value proposition. Let visuals demonstrate features while copy clarifies benefits. Guide visitors toward action without overwhelming them with options.

2. Linear: Function Meets Beauty

Linear builds issue tracking software for developers. Their site proves that B2B doesn’t have to mean boring, and technical products don’t need technical-looking websites.

Why it works:

The animation on their homepage isn’t gratuitous. It demonstrates how fast and fluid their product feels. This is minimal design with purpose, showing rather than telling.

Dark mode dominates the design, which appeals to their developer audience while creating dramatic contrast for important elements. The call-to-action buttons glow subtly, drawing your eye without screaming for attention.

Navigation stays minimal with just five options. Everything else tucks away cleanly, preventing decision paralysis. Each page focuses on one core message with supporting details available for those who want to dig deeper.

The typography is precise and technical, matching the product’s positioning. Code snippets and product screenshots integrate seamlessly into the design rather than feeling tacked on.

Takeaway: Use animation purposefully to demonstrate product benefits. Create visual interest through contrast and subtle motion rather than adding more elements. Match your design aesthetic to your audience’s preferences.

3. Calm: Design That Reflects Purpose

Calm sells meditation and sleep content. Their website embodies the exact feeling they want users to experience: calm, uncluttered, peaceful.

Why it works:

Soft gradients and muted colours create a soothing atmosphere immediately. You feel calmer just landing on the site, which is precisely the point. This is brand alignment executed perfectly.

The homepage follows a simple scroll narrative. Each section focuses on one benefit: better sleep, reduced anxiety, improved focus. No competing messages, no visual chaos.

Testimonials appear as clean quote cards with minimal styling. They don’t interrupt the flow or demand attention, they simply reinforce trust as you scroll naturally through the page.

CTAs use soft colours that stand out without jarring. “Start your free trial” appears multiple times but never feels pushy because the surrounding design maintains that calm atmosphere.

Takeaway: Your design should embody your brand promise. Use colour psychology to create the right emotional response. Let content breathe with ample spacing between sections.

4. Superhuman: Confidence Through Restraint

Superhuman built the fastest email client and their website matches that promise. It loads instantly, animates smoothly, and guides you toward one clear action: join the waitlist.

Why it works:

Their hero section is just a headline, one line of body text, and a single input field. Nothing else competes for attention. This confidence in simplicity converts because there’s zero friction to taking action.

The dark background makes the product screenshot pop. White text creates dramatic contrast. The glowing purple CTA button becomes impossible to miss without being obnoxious.

As you scroll, features reveal through smooth animations. Each animation serves a purpose: demonstrating speed, showing keyboard shortcuts, revealing the interface. It’s not decoration, it’s demonstration.

Social proof appears subtly. “Join 500,000+ professionals” sits quietly above the CTA, reinforcing popularity without breaking the minimal aesthetic with logos or lengthy testimonials.

Takeaway: Reduce friction by focusing on one primary action. Use contrast strategically to guide attention. Animate purposefully to demonstrate product benefits rather than just looking fancy.

5. Notion: Organised Complexity

Notion offers an incredibly complex product, tools for notes, wikis, projects, databases and more. Yet their homepage feels simple and inviting.

Why it works:

They solve the minimal design challenge for complex products: show use cases, not features. Instead of listing everything Notion can do, they show different teams using it successfully.

The navigation adapts intelligently. On mobile, it collapses to essentials. On desktop, it expands to show more options without overwhelming. This is responsive design done right.

Product screenshots show real content, not lorem ipsum. You see actual project boards, real wiki pages, genuine use cases. This makes the product feel tangible and achievable rather than abstract.

Colour coding differentiates sections without adding visual clutter. Team pages use different accent colours, helping visitors quickly identify relevant content while maintaining consistent design.

Takeaway: For complex products, show specific use cases rather than listing features. Use responsive navigation that adapts to context. Make product demonstrations feel real and relatable.

6. Basecamp: Copy-Led Minimalism

Basecamp takes a different approach to minimal design. While others use visuals to communicate, Basecamp leads with copy. Bold headlines, clear explanations, zero jargon.

Why it works:

The homepage is essentially a long-form sales letter broken into digestible sections. Each headline makes a clear claim. Each paragraph expands on that claim. Each section ends with a reason to keep reading.

Visual elements support the copy rather than competing with it. Simple icons clarify points. Product screenshots demonstrate specific features mentioned in surrounding text. Everything serves the narrative.

Pricing sits on a separate page, but they link to it prominently. This approach works because they’ve built trust through clear communication before asking for commitment.

The voice throughout is conversational and confident. They’re not trying to impress you with design tricks, they’re having a straightforward conversation about solving your problems.

Takeaway: Strong copy can carry minimal design. Use visuals to support your message, not replace it. Build trust through clear communication before pushing for conversion.

7. Apple: The Original Minimal Master

Apple wrote the playbook on minimal web design decades ago and continues to execute it flawlessly. Every product page is a masterclass in focused communication.

Why it works:

Product photography dominates, showing products in stunning detail against pure white backgrounds. No distractions, no competing elements, just beautiful products that speak for themselves.

Copy is sparse but powerful. “Supercharged by M3” tells you everything about performance in three words. They trust their audience to understand without over-explaining.

Each section focuses on one feature. Scroll past it, discover the next. This linear narrative guides you through benefits without overwhelming you with information architecture.

Navigation appears minimal but provides access to everything. Mega menus deploy when needed, hiding complexity until the moment you need it. This balance between simplicity and functionality is extremely difficult to achieve.

Takeaway: Trust your product to speak for itself. Use exceptional photography to showcase quality. Write headlines that communicate benefits in as few words as possible.

The Principles These Sites Share

Looking across these examples, several patterns emerge:

Generous whitespace creates breathing room and visual hierarchy. No successful minimal site crams elements together. Space is used as deliberately as any design element.

Clear hierarchy guides attention. You always know what to look at first, second, third. Typography, sizing and positioning work together to create obvious flow.

Purposeful animation demonstrates rather than decorates. Movement shows how products work or emphasises important transitions. It never exists just to look fancy.

Single primary action reduces decision paralysis. While secondary options exist, there’s always one clear next step visitors should take.

Brand-aligned aesthetics reinforce core promises. Calm feels calm. Superhuman feels fast. Linear feels precise. Design choices echo brand positioning.

Strategic colour use creates contrast and guides attention. Limited colour palettes prevent chaos while making important elements stand out.

Real content in demonstrations and screenshots. People connect with genuine use cases, not generic placeholder content.

How to Apply These Principles

You don’t need to redesign from scratch to make your site more minimal and effective. Start with these practical changes:

Audit every element on your key pages. Ask “does this help visitors make a decision?” If not, remove it or replace it with something that does.

Increase whitespace systematically. Double the margins between sections. Add more padding around important elements. Give your content room to breathe.

Reduce colour palette to 2-3 colours plus neutrals. Use your primary colour sparingly to draw attention where it matters most.

Limit navigation options. If you have more than seven main navigation items, you’re forcing visitors to think too hard. Group related pages or move less important links to your footer.

Focus each page on one primary action. People can sign up, or contact you, or read more. Not all three equally. Pick one winner per page.

Replace generic stock photos with simple, purposeful visuals or remove images entirely if they don’t add meaning.

Tighten your copy. Remove introductory fluff. Cut jargon. Lead with benefits. Say more with fewer words.

Test on mobile first. Minimal design often works better on small screens naturally. If something feels cluttered on mobile, it’s probably cluttered on desktop too.

The Conversion Advantage

These sites don’t just look good, they convert better. Research consistently shows that simpler pages reduce cognitive load and increase completion rates.

When visitors face fewer decisions, they make better ones. When pages load faster, more people stick around. When messaging is crystal clear, conversion rates improve.

The websites we’ve examined understand this. They’ve stripped away everything that doesn’t serve their core goal: moving visitors toward action.

Your site doesn’t need to match their aesthetic exactly. But adopting their principles, focus, clarity, purposeful design, can dramatically improve your results.

Start With What Matters

Minimal web design isn’t about following trends or copying Apple’s aesthetic. It’s about respect, respecting your visitors’ time, attention and intelligence.

Every element on your site should justify its existence. If it’s not helping visitors understand your value or take action, it’s creating friction.

The examples we’ve explored prove that minimal design works across industries, products and audiences. Whether you’re selling software, meditation or consumer electronics, the principles remain consistent: focus, clarity, purpose.

Got a website that could use some thoughtful simplification? Let’s chat about building something that looks great and actually converts.