Single vs Multi Page site, which one is right for you?

Have you ever thought about making a website? Odds are if you’re a business owner the answer to that question is yes. But if you aren’t someone with great knowledge of how they are built or how many types of websites exist, you probably feel pretty lost.

A great starting point is to know how big the sitemap needs to be. A sitemap is basically a list of pages that the site needs to have. If the content required on each of these pages is a lot, then they need to have dedicated pages. If the content is not much, you can go for a single page with sections that cover the key points that are relevant to your visitors.

Single Page

Pros

• It’s easier to make a responsive design that will look good on all devices (web, mobile, tablets).
• Load speed and simplicity in terms of navigation are easily achievable while building single page sites.
• Single page sites offer an intuitive and linear experience. It is easier to create a comprehensive content offering which allows potential users to get a quick understanding of the company, it’s offerings and the team behind the services.

Cons

• Content must be absolutely relevant and therefore requires more effort to create and edit. Remember that only limited content is possible as you can’t overwhelm the user with too much in each section of one page.
• If a single page site has been constructed to be so, where this is no backend or content management system running it, it is difficult to scale it and add more content as the company grows.
• Making single page sites SEO friendly is very difficult due to lack of content that search engines can crawl and therefore index higher based on various factors, the content and its relevance is one of the most important.

Examples —

https://farmkart.ng/

Multiple Pages

Pros

• Greater possibility of interaction. Essentially you will be able to say more about the company, the team, the work and the clients through dedicated pages.
• It is more Search Engine Optimized as there is more content on the site to be indexed.
• A multiple page site is easier for users that are used to and familiar with a more traditional web experience and navigation. For example, referring to the header of the page for menu vs looking for a hamburger menu icon.

Cons

• A greater effort will need to be put into the creation of content for all pages. Each page will need to have a healthy mix of images, data and text to convey the message.
• A backend / CMS will need to be created, resulting in more time and complexities for the development.
• Users have more options than potentially needed to grasp the offering of a company.

Example —

https://www.accenture.com

Make sure to give me some claps if you liked this piece, and follow my medium account for more. Please share if you think this piece will help anyone at the start of their website journey. Feel free to drop in any comments and questions, I’d love to hear from you.