Types of Websites: 13 Most Popular & Examples

A blog is a website that’s regularly updated, run by one person or a small group, and is normally written in a laid-back style.

In terms of the content, when it comes to blogging, the world really is your oyster. Hell, there’s even a blog about oysters!

Even if your site won’t be a blog, it’s still a handy extra feature to add interest and authority to your site. Just make sure you’re committed to keeping it fresh and updated – like Kiki, the Californian traveler behind the award-winning blog The Blonde Abroad (pictured).

Not only does she regularly add new content – Kiki organizes her blog into different locations (Africa, Europe, Central America and more) and categories (including solo travel, female travel, and budget travel) – to appeal to different segments of her audience.

Find out more:

• The Best Blogging Platforms – Which is the best blogger?
• How to Start a Blog –  The complete beginner’s guide.
• How to Start a WordPress Blog – WordPress knows best, but how does it work?

A business website is any kind of website that represents your business. Even small local businesses need a simple online presence (see ‘Brochure’ below) to be taken seriously in today’s digitally-minded world.

One business website we love is award-winning creative agency Ogilvy (pictured). The website uses broad splashes of colour, bold text, and imagery that hogs the limelight – exuding authority, and accurately reflecting the clout and weight the huge agency has amongst its target market.

A website is one of the easiest ways to show what your business is all about, and find those all-important new customers. Your website should have an about page, and details of how people can find you. After that, the sky’s the limit. Check out our ‘Ecommerce’ section below for businesses that plan to sell directly through their website.

Find out more:

• How to Build a Business Website – 8 easy steps to online success
• Best Small Business Website Builders – Which one is right for you?
• How to Make a Booking Website – A beginner-friendly guide to help you set up bookings and appointments

When categorizing websites by functionality, a ‘brochure’ website is the simplest type. Brochure websites typically only have a few pages, and are used by small businesses that need a simple online presence. They effectively act as an online brochure, giving an overview of what the business is, and how you can get in touch. The content on these websites is generally pretty ‘static’ – that’s to say it’s rarely updated.

For inspiration, check out impressive brochure website Space Carpenter, LLC (pictured) – a Manhattan-based general contracting company which uses images of its work, set against a background of vivid color, to draw attention to its portfolio.

Find out more:

• Get inspiration from this shortlist of One Page Website Examples which prove you don’t need tons of pages for great web design!
• Compare the Best Business Website Builders
• Check out our pick of the best Informational Website Examples for inspiration!

Crowdfunding is the modern way to fund your idea. From the sublime to the ridiculous, crowdfunding was the secret to bringing everything from fidget cubes to meat soap to market.

Crowdfunding websites work by taking ‘pledges’ of different amounts from lots of people, in order to hit the target amount needed to produce the product. Popular crowdfunding websites include Kickstarter (pictured) and Crowdcube.

An ecommerce website is any website that directly sells a product or service. Not to be confused with a business website, with an ecommerce website you can add products or services into your cart, and pay for them through the site.

Ecommerce makes up an ever-increasing portion of sales in the US. And, for some good inspiration, look no further than one of the leading ecommerce brands in the world – Nike (pictured). Nike harnesses its bold, instantly recognizable typography – set against a background overflowing with aesthetically-pleasing white space – to build a strong brand, and encourage its site’s visitors to buy, buy, buy.

Find out more:

• Best Ecommerce Website Builders –  Which platform should you sell with?
• Best Ecommerce Website Builders for Small Business – Sell today and start growing.
• Best Free Ecommerce Platforms – Save while selling online.
• Types of Ecommerce Businesses – Learn more about the industry trends.

The term ‘educational’ covers a broad range of websites.

Educational websites use any combination of games, articles, videos and images to educate their audience. These might be geared towards fun learning for children, or offer courses to adults, such as Coursera (pictured) and EdX.

We particularly love Coursera’s educational website. It uses bold CTA buttons to encourage conversations. And harnesses social proof – through featuring logos of its most prominent and relevant clients, including Google, Duke, and Imperial College London – to build trust and convey its expertise in the field.

Forum websites are characterized by user-generated content – and serve as an online platform for discussion and information sharing.

Users can create new threads or topics – then start conversations by posting messages within those threads. Forum websites typically split their content out into different categories or sections, making it easier for users to navigate and find discussions relevant to them: and promoting a structured, organized environment.

The most famous example of a forum website is Reddit. The site aggregates social news and content – and provides its users with a place to submit content such as text posts, images, links, and videos, which other users can vote on. With its iconic logo and orange/white color scheme, Reddit’s immediately recognizable as both a forum website – and a powerful brand.

Media websites contain regularly updated content on current affairs, weather, sports and entertainment. News sites like CNN (pictured) and entertainment sites like ELLE both fall into this category. CNN is an especially excellent example of how to structure and organize the content of a media website: its layout and navigation makes it simple to locate the articles and galleries its users are most interested in.

The content on media sites is dynamic, meaning it’s updated regularly. Big media sites will publish multiple articles and videos every single day.

Nonprofits may not be classed as businesses in the same way, but they still need a website. These will generally be quite simple, outlining what the nonprofit is about and showing visitors how they can get involved, donate, or support in some other way.

Nonprofit websites like Greenpeace often also have a function to collect email addresses, and to create a database of people interested in keeping in touch with the organization through newsletters.

For more info about our top nonprofit website template picks, check out our top 10. We’ve also compiled the best nonprofit website examples in our handy article.

You might have heard the phrase ‘personal brand’ bandied around, and having a website can form a huge part of this. Personal websites allow you to post pictures, share thoughts, or treat your site like a digital CV. You can even launch a personal blog if you have updates to share. The choice is yours!

In the case of Emma Gannon‘s personal website (pictured) – a Sunday Times bestselling non-fiction author, award-winning novelist, podcaster & creator – it’s a case of ‘all of the above’.

Plus, her personal website is beautiful. Contained stylized imagery of her and utilizing parallax scrolling to create an immersive, engaging experience, Emma’s website draws you in – and encourages you to explore her life’s work contained within.

Plus, you don’t need to be a creative (see ‘Portfolio’ below) or a blogger (see ‘Blog’ above) to benefit from having your own website – and you don’t even need to spend any money making one.

Find out more:

• How to Make an Online Resume – Build your reputation online today.
• Best Resume Builder Websites – Create a killer resume online.

Portal websites, like Yahoo! (pictured), bring together information from lots of different sites and present them in one place. In Yahoo’s case, we’re big fans, in particular, of its top menu bar. It allows its users to search for the content they’re most interested in, sign in, view their latest notifications – and even access their email inbox in a click.

Web portals can be internal websites for organizations like schools, or for big businesses. It’s a centralized place to share news, training and updates, and for students or employees to access their emails and files. Users will need their own specific login to access these portals.

If you’re a writer, artist or designer, you’ll want to go one step further than a personal website – this is where a portfolio website can help.

These are a way for creatives to showcase their work to future employees, market themselves as freelancers, and generally get their name (and work) out into the big wide world.

I’ve actually made one of these types of websites myself! My website, Rob Binns’s Contently portfolio, showcases my range of copywriting and articles in a vertical view that makes it easy for the visitor to view an image and a brief description of each project – then click through to see it live.

Find out more: Best Portfolio Website Builders

The ‘static’ style of website is characterized by its fixed and unchanging content, providing information that remains constant over time.

Unlike dynamic websites – which allow for interactive features and real-time updates – static websites typically present predetermined content that doesn’t change based on user actions or inputs.

Static websites are often typically used for displaying basic information: such as business contact details, company profiles, or product descriptions.

One example of a static website (if a somewhat useless one!) is Staggering Beauty (pictured). It features nothing more than a large worm, set against a background of hallucinogenic color, that wiggles and shimmies in time with the movement of your cursor. (Warning: site contains flashing imagery, and isn’t suitable for anyone with epilepsy.)

We’ve taken you on a whistle-stop tour of 13 of the most popular types of websites around today.

In the time it’s taken you to read this article, around 1,997 new websites have been created. If you’re yet to create yours, why wait? You can draw some inspiration from our picks:

The 13 most popular types of websites

1. Blog. A regularly updated, casual stream of content.
2. Business. A place for customers or clients to find more information about a business online.
3. Brochure. A simple, informational site that’s particularly apt for small businesses.
4. Crowdfunding. A fundraising site to help bring your ideas to life.
5. Ecommerce. A site that sells a product or service directly. 
6. Educational. A website that’s made to help people learn things!
7. Forum. A place for discussion, debate, and sharing user-generated content.
8. Media or Entertainment. A site featuring regularly updated content on current events.
9. Nonprofit. A site that makes it easier for visitors to support the organization.
10. Personal. A site that functions as a portfolio, a CV, or just a space for your thoughts.
11. Portal. An organized presentation of information from across the web.
12. Portfolio. More in-depth than a personal website!
13. Static. An unchanging website for evergreen information.

Is there a type of website you wish we’d covered? Let us know in the comments!

Find out more:

• How to Build a Website: the Step-by-Step Guide to Easy Setup
• Tips for Working with a Web Designer

Now you have an idea of the different types of websites available, let’s take a quick look at how they’re built.

When it comes to building a website, there are two different routes:

1. CMS

The first option is to build a website using a Content Management System (CMS), such as WordPress. You can do this yourself by downloading WordPress or another CMS system, buying a template, and building your site using code. You’ll need to pay for a domain name, and to host your website too.

There are advantages to building a site this way, but you’ll need some technical know-how to get you there. If you choose to enlist a web designer to build your site, this is the route they’ll probably choose.

2. Website Builder

Website builders are online platforms that let users create their own website based on a selection of templates. You don’t need to know how to code to use a website builder – they’re generally really easy to use, and you’ll pay a monthly fee to keep them going. They’re perfect for business websites, ecommerce websites, blogs and portfolios. More complex websites – think portals and media sites – will most likely need to be built with a CMS system.

Not all website builders were created equal, though. And if you’re going to commit to using one for your website, you’ll want to know it’s the best one for the job.

That’s where we can help.

We’ve carried out extensive research into website builders over the last few years. We paid for plans with all the biggest website builders, and got everyday people to use them and give us their feedback. We’ve compared features, and compared prices too. Read our guide to the best website builders to see what we found.