The Design Evolution of Popular Websites
It seems like only yesterday I was designing my first website. The year was 1997 and apparently I had an affinity to blue lightning bolts and animated gifs of my initials. When the project was complete, I had created the most beautiful design I’d ever seen. At least that’s what I believed at the time. Looking back at that design now is quite embarrassing. I’m sure most of us have been there, but what about popular websites today? Do you ever wonder how they looked in the early days?
In this article, we’re going to travel back in time and see how some of the most popular websites today looked in their beginning, and how their design has evolved through the years.
Click on the images for a larger view.
CNN
2000
2003
2008
2009
Apple
1998
2003
2008
2009
Digg
2004
2009
Nike
1996
2000
2009
Adobe
1996
2003
2009
Yahoo
2000
2004
2008
2009
ESPN
1999
2009
Amazon
2000
2009
Microsoft
2002
2009
Dell
1999
2003
2009
Starbucks
2001
2009
Related Posts
Here's some other articles that you will definitely find useful.
Usability Design for Online Web Forms
Arranging and Designing Synchronized User Interfaces
20 Design Blogs Worth Reading
10 Free Online Books for Web Designers
The Principle of Contrast in Web Design
31 comments
Peach
November 9, 2009Very nice list. Bring back some great memories. Thanks for sharing
Cady
November 9, 2009I LOVE THIS POST! I always think about what these sites used to look like, and it’s nice to see them archived like this. I specifically remember Apple’s sites. They were pretty awkward! (How about Google? What did Google used to look like?)
mark
November 10, 2009Apple is superb even before.
Jennifer Schiffer
November 10, 2009Hahaha Yahoo! was a hot mess (still is)!
Chris
November 10, 2009Apple and Amazon seemed to be on the ball even in the early days. Nike wasn’t too much of a slouch either.
Eric Hamby
November 10, 2009Great post. Amazing how design will grow in just a few years. I remember my first design being just a simple text/image. Back then we thought it was so cool now it looks like a 8bit nightmare.
Nate
November 10, 2009Definitely noticing how sites look more “Web 2.0″-ish, with gradients, integrated video, bigger navigation aids, less underlined links, more whitespace and attention to typography. Do you think there are sites which lead the pack in terms of design and usability? Who should we be watching?
Davor
November 10, 2009Interesting how Apple always had excellent design even on the first screen. And it’s funny how Yahoo! always looked and still today – as a spam storage.
It’s just my opinion of course.
Ovi Dogar
November 10, 2009Wow…great post!
Thanks for sharing!
Ovi Dogar
AbsoluteCovers.com
Syed Balkhi
November 10, 2009Apple Design has been outstanding through out.
Tom Ross
November 10, 2009Great post. Apple’s design has been consistent, but I really like the new CNN design too!
New Hiker
November 10, 2009CNN’s website has been on bookmarks for years. I’ve had to remove it since they launched the redesign of their page this month.
More obtrusive and annoying ads and less usable/harder to find content.
designium
November 10, 2009Nice search
the most evolution came from image usage and from grid structure !! nice post
Design Informer
November 10, 2009Cool! Apple is awesome!
Melody
November 11, 2009Very cool to see the evolutions of these sites..
I wish yahoo would stop changing their main page though, I use them for email and for my webhosting so I hate having to keep looking around for my most commonly used links..
Tutorial Lounge
November 11, 2009memorable history in this beautiful post. thanks
Chris Spada
November 11, 2009Great list, I would love to see these site switch back to their original version for a day, similar to how the NFL teams wear the vintage uniforms…. could be interesting
Nathan
November 12, 2009This has been rewarding… thank you
p.s.rich content
Jason
November 12, 2009Thanks for the great post! I’ve had a couple projects that I got to redesign over the years. You’re right, at the time they seemed like the best thing I’d ever done. And again, I felt the same on the redesign. It’s great to see the evolution of your work.
TysonR.
November 12, 2009The year was 2000, The world was suppose to end, My GF and I had been together 2 years, I only owned one mac, AND WEBSITES LOOKED HORRIBLE !
Can you imagine if Yahoo looked like this now ?
Matt
November 13, 2009Apple has always had a really distinct style. I think some other tech companies (i.e. Microsoft) has taken a page from the Apple design book. You can see that in some of their evolutions.
Some Guy
November 16, 2009I miss the old days when websites were easy. Too much information these days. It’s a sad sight.
Deana Goldasich
November 17, 2009Wow! A great ride through history. I have several evolutions I share in my keynotes, as well. These are fantastic, as well!
Ary Mega
December 2, 2009Amazon, still rockin’ the same look with subtle new changes. Diggin’ it. But Craigslist is still ahead of the game with their Web 6.0 look — it’s just so handsome.
The Technology Blogger
December 8, 2009An awesome list showing how some of the websites changed over the time, it would be great if you include google also..
Natalie Caro
December 8, 2009Great to watch, makes me want to start capturing screen shots of our website. So we don’t forget our humble beginnings! It’s like looking back at old baby pics of your children and watching them grow up. Thanks for the idea!
tyler
December 8, 2009looks like the way back machine from archive.org
vijay
December 9, 2009Really I miss the old days when websites were easy. but now these days such kind of article hepls to give some efforts to make it easilly.
thanks
Jannis Gerlinger
December 9, 2009so damn great!
vijay
December 12, 2009impressive, such a great article…..
No.1 Web Design
December 13, 2009Great wonderful collection,thanks for share