14 Dynamic Websites with Vertical Split-Screen Layouts

Split-screen designs look great for any type of website with less content. They create a modern look and give room for creativity. Naturally, we can see vertical split-screen websites all over the web as the trend is rising as one of the biggest UI/UX design trends of 2023. This is why in this blog post we’ll look at 14 live examples of websites with split-screen layouts.

At the end of this post, we also answered the 3 most common questions about vertical split-screen design.

Update Oct 2023: The UI/UX Design Trends of 2023 are out to replace minimalism with bolder, more diverse, and more experimental digital experiences. Check them out.

Examples of Websites with Split-Screen Design

In short, a vertical split-screen refers to a layout that divides your screen into two halves. Depending on how you go about it, there are a couple of ways to create a split-screen design:

• Classic split-screen: the layout has two symmetrical panels making it easy to organize content within the blocks.
• Uneven splits: the layout has been split asymmetrically, in order to give extra weight to one of the sides, which ultimately brings attention to that side.
• Faux splits:  a fake split screen layout specially designed for aesthetic purposes.
• Layering splits: When you combine the split screen trend with layering, meaning some elements of one of the screens can overlap with elements from the other screen.

Now let’s see some live examples of trendy websites that incorporate the split-screen layout into the design.

1. Educated Guess: Fixed Navigation Screen and Scrollable Project Section

Educated Guess is a branding research lab with a classic split-screen layout website. The left half stacks the navigation options with info about the agency and opens each option on the same screen without affecting the other. The right screen, on the other hand, allows users to scroll through the different cases and projects.

Live Website: Educated Guess | Designed by: Ryan Sheehan (USA)

 

2. Corporate Data: Split-Screen for Visual Weight

This website serves as a corporate slogan generator app that generates headlines not tailored to your needs. Still works surprisingly well. The left side is occupied by the logo giving weight and bringing the visitor’s attention to the right where they can generate and copy corporate slogans for inspiration.

Live Website:  Corporate Data App | Designed by: Dominik Sigrist & Kevin Bloch (Switzerland)

 

3. Biospring: Uneven Split with Attention to the Right Screen

This website is for an up-and-coming life sciences growth fund and uses a split screen layout with uneven columns to drive the attention to the right half where users can scroll through the content. The left column accommodates the visuals and transitions to give some nice dynamics to the overall design.

Live Website:  Biospring | Designed by:  Wunderdogs (USA)

 

4. Stout Collective: Three-Column Split with Independent Scrolling Function

A collaboration between Stout Collective and Zimmer-Design for the revamp of the Stout website. We can see the Golden Ratio principles in action to create a simple, 3-column, independent scrolling function. The left column holds the website description and a clue to look on your right where you can scroll through a section that accommodates the other two columns. The entire right part of the screen is very dynamic with individual scrolling functions and a mixed grid.

Live Website:  Stout Collective | Designed by: Zimmer Design (USA)

 

5. Hyumankind Agency: Uneven Split with Different Functionalities

This portfolio website showcases Hyam’s skills as a web designer with a trendy vertical split-screen layout that not only divides the screen into two uneven columns with different designs but also with different functionalities. The left screen accommodates a moving typography animation that drives attention to the right side of the screen, where the column has an individual scrolling functionality with all the remaining content.

Live Website: Hyumankind | Designed by:  Hyam (USA)

 

6. Oblio Virtual Reality: Faux Split Screen with Two Choices

Oblio presents a new portfolio site that highlights their recent work and capabilities. Upon landing, we see a faux split screen that welcomes visitors with two options: to learn about the agency’s capabilities or to view their curated projects. The split screen serves to create two equally important columns with an equal emphasis on two different choices.

Live Website: Oblio | Designed by: Oblio (USA)

 

7. Hardins Creek: Splitting the Screen as Part of  the Scrolling Animation

Hardins Creek presents some of the brand’s ongoing series of limited releases featuring some of their rarest liquids, each with a story inspired by the Beam Legacy. The website has a strong presence with dramatic liqueur visuals and a very dynamic design thanks to the scrolling animation experience. The split-screen is part of that animation and the screens change depending on your scrolling.

Live Website: Hardins Creek | Designed by:  Vaan (USA)

 

8. Pinpoint CGI: Visible Grid, Split-Screen, Independent Scrolling, and More

PinPoint is a team of designers and developers who showcase their skills with a dynamic trendy portfolio website with visible grids and mixed functionality. You can see each section changing arrangement from an asymmetric grid to a split screen with independent scrolling in two different directions.

Live Website:  Pinpoint CGI | Designed by: Báchoo (USA)

 

9. Public Records: Horizontal and Vertical Splits

Public Records is a music-driven restaurant, performance, and community space built within the historic former ASPCA Headquarters on the tip of Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal. The website takes splitting screens further by dividing the layout into 4 individual screens, each presenting different content and having its own scrolling or hovering.

Live Website:  Public Records| Designed by: Alright Studio (USA)

 

10. Readymag: Fresh Brutalism Split into Two

The website stores the award and spotlights innovative web projects you can review and get some more inspiration from. It has a classic vertical split-screen layout with the left side reserved for the navigation options, while the right side allows you to scroll through the site’s content.

Live Website: Readymag Websites of the Year | Designed by: Readymag (USA)

 

11. Vacao Travel: Split Screen Hero and Mixed Scrolling

The landing page for a travel agency in Dominicana welcomes users with a beautiful hero screen with a vertical split layout. There’s no individual scrolling for each column as the split screen is purely for visual purposes and moves to the left when you start scrolling.

Live Website: Vacao Travel| Designed by: Maria Pavlova (Georgia)

 

12. Reinert Bau: Vertical Split-Screen Sections from Different Types

Reinert Bau’s website isn’t split into two columns, but rather uses this type of layout to arrange different sections. We can see a diversity of examples of how vertical split screen works. Starting from the first section below the fold, the design splits the section into three columns with different content options for visitors to choose from. The following section has 2 equal height and width columns traditionally designed with the written content on one side and an image on the other. The grid instantly changes into an unequal split-screen with different column widths and goes back to equal columns with individual scrolling.

Live Website: Reinert Bau | Designed by:  Stereobrand (Germany)

 

13. Ebow x MoLI:

To celebrate Bloomsday and James Joyce’s centenary Ebow sponsored the Museum of Literature in Ireland. The website serves to celebrate the occasion and show appreciation for immersive design and literature. It gives users a dynamic design to explore with faux split-screen sections as part of the experience.

Live Website: Ebow x MoLI| Designed by:  Ebow The Digital Agency (Ireland)

 

14. Wie Geht’s?: Split-Screen Hero Section

This website explains the importance of the German healthcare system and starts off with a split-screen hero section that accommodates the website’s main topic and lovely simple animation.

Live Website: Wie geht’s? | Designed by: Goldener Westen (Germany)

 

FAQ About Vertical Split-Screen Layouts

In web design, a split screen refers to a full-screen layout where you divide your elements into two or more vertical parts. This allows designers to present diverse content on the same screen or present users with the option to follow different user flows in the form of a left or right choice.

CPM Agency

Split screen layouts have become a rising trend for a reason. Let’s have a look at the benefits of incorporating them into your design.

• The vertical columns of the split-screen layout increase the amount of space which allows designers to list more content at once.
• Using two or more columns creates more screen space which can be used to draw the user’s attention to a specific piece of content, such as a CTA button. (example below)
• Using vertical columns to put different content in each can be used to give users the option to make a choice. Encouraging users to make their own decision rather than visually leading them toward them, creates a better experience.
• Helps designers create a common experience on desktop and mobile devices.

Mubasic

Although making your design visually appealing and different, split screens can also distract your visitors if done incorrectly. Not all projects are appropriate for this type of layout, so make sure to use a vertical split-screen when:

• You want to promote two or more different services: each column is dedicated to each of those services.
• In a minimal website with light content: The less content you have, the better it will look on split-screen. Using this type of layout for content-heavy projects can backfire with a cluttered design that will confuse your visitors.

Engine Themes

To Sum Up

Vertical split-screen layouts can be very effective when you wish to present your users with two different bits of content. On one hand, they help designers establish a distinct visual flow to a particular CTA as well as a trendy design pattern. On the other, it encourages users to make a choice that ultimately turns their user experience into a memorable one. We hope these 14 live website examples of vertical split-screen layouts inspired you to try out the trend in 2023 and create some outstanding designs.

In the meantime, why not continue getting inspiration by checking out some more UI/UX design-related articles:

• 8 eCommerce Homepage Best Practices for Peak User Experience [with Examples]
• 18 Examples of Trendy Websites with Typographic Hero Images
• 14 Rebellious Websites With Broken Grid Layouts