Responsive web design

A screenshot of Wikipedia on a computer screen
A screenshot of Wikipedia on a mobile phone screen
A screenshot of Wikipedia with the responsive skin Vector 2022, on a computer screen (left) and on a mobile phone screen (right). The elements rearrange themselves into a more mobile friendly layout.
Content is like water, a saying that illustrates the principles of RWD

Responsive web design (RWD) or responsive design is an approach to web design that aims to make web pages render well on a variety of devices and window or screen sizes from minimum to maximum display size to ensure usability and satisfaction.[1][2]

A responsive design adapts the web-page layout to the viewing environment[1] by using techniques such as fluid proportion-based grids,[3][4] flexible images,[5][6] and CSS3 media queries,[7][8][9] an extension of the @media rule,[10] in the following ways:

  • The fluid grid concept calls for page element sizing to be in relative units like percentages, rather than absolute units like pixels or points.[4]
  • Flexible images are also sized in relative units, so as to prevent them from displaying outside their containing element.[5]
  • Media queries allow the page to use different CSS style rules based on characteristics of the device the site is being displayed on, e.g. width of the rendering surface (browser window width or physical display size).
  • Responsive layouts automatically adjust and adapt to any device screen size, whether it is a desktop, a laptop, a tablet, or a mobile phone.

Responsive web design became more important as users of mobile devices came to account for the majority of website visitors.[11][12] In 2015, for instance, Google announced Mobilegeddon and started to boost the page ranking of mobile-friendly sites when searching from a mobile device.[13]

Responsive web design is an example of user interface plasticity.[14]

  1. ^ a b Marcotte, Ethan (May 25, 2010). "Responsive Web design". A List Apart.
  2. ^ Schade, Amy (May 4, 2014). "Responsive Web Design (RWD) and User Experience". Nielsen Norman Group. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  3. ^ "Core concepts of Responsive Web design". September 8, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Marcotte, Ethan (March 3, 2009). "Fluid Grids". A List Apart.
  5. ^ a b Marcotte, Ethan (June 7, 2011). "Fluid images". A List Apart.
  6. ^ Hannemann, Anselm (September 7, 2012). "The road to responsive images". net Magazine.
  7. ^ Gillenwater, Zoe Mickley (December 15, 2010). Examples of flexible layouts with CSS3 media queries. Stunning CSS3. p. 320. ISBN 978-0-321-722133.
  8. ^ Gillenwater, Zoe Mickley (October 21, 2011). "Crafting quality media queries".
  9. ^ "Responsive design—harnessing the power of media queries". Google Webmaster Central. April 30, 2012.
  10. ^ "@media rule". w3.org. W3C.
  11. ^ "Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update 2014–2019 White Paper". Cisco. January 30, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  12. ^ "Mobile share of U.S. organic search engine visits 2021". Statista. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  13. ^ "Official Google Webmaster Central Blog: Rolling out the mobile-friendly update". Official Google Webmaster Central Blog. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  14. ^ Thevenin, D.; Coutaz, J. (2002). "Plasticity of User Interfaces: Framework and Research Agenda". Proc. Interact'99, A. Sasse & C. Johnson Eds, IFIP IOS Press. Edinburgh. pp. 110–117.