Navigation
Navigation is the interface people use to move between pages and sections of a website.
It exposes part of the website's underlying information architecture through menus, links, breadcrumbs, and other pathways.
Common Types of Navigation
Website navigation can include:
- Primary navigation
- Secondary navigation
- Footer navigation
- Breadcrumbs
- Contextual internal links
- Related-content links
- Search
- Pagination
- Previous and next controls
Different forms of navigation solve different problems.
How It Relates to Architecture
Navigation is not the same as information architecture.
The architecture defines how information is organized.
Navigation gives users practical ways to move through that structure.
A website can have good-looking navigation while still having weak architecture underneath it.
Likewise, a sensible architecture can become difficult to use if navigation does not expose it clearly.
Why It Matters
Navigation helps people answer three basic questions:
- Where am I?
- What is available here?
- Where can I go next?
Predictable navigation reduces the amount of effort required to explore a site.
It is also closely related to Website Accessibility, particularly keyboard navigation, clear labels, and understandable structure.
Common Problems
Common navigation problems include:
- Too many top-level choices
- Labels that could mean almost anything
- Important areas hidden behind unclear menus
- Different navigation structures on similar pages
- Menus that work with a pointer but not keyboard navigation
- Repeating links without adding useful pathways
- Navigation mirroring internal departments rather than user goals
How to Improve
Prioritize the most useful destinations instead of trying to expose every page at once.
Use clear labels, maintain consistent behaviour, and use contextual internal links for relationships that do not belong in the main navigation.
Test navigation with people who do not already know how the website is organized.