Purposeful designs: Best Catholic websites of 2021

RICE Memorial High School

What we love: Unique content placement

RICE’s website has a unique take on content layout, based entirely on their community’s needs. Their navigation bar sits off to the side in a collapsible display to create a larger feature image that is followed by news, event, and fast facts sections. Even while offering the most utilized information first, sections further down are still beautifully styled with custom buttons and a ribbon displaying rotating logos of higher education institutions. These details allow the website to serve more efficiently with clarity and ease.

Frassati Catholic High School

What we love: Attention to details

What’s on the inside counts, and Frassati Catholic High School knows it. Website interior pages are polished off with well-placed photography, quick links, helpful tabs sections, forms and more. Diversity in page function allows the site’s inside to be as strong as its homepage. They have information so well prioritized that even their news section spotlights leading headlines. And just when you think you’ve seen it all, their site footer will surprise you with both style and excitement.

Loyola College Prep

What we love: Homepage excellence

The variety of design elements used by Loyola College Prep, really created a most functional and welcoming homepage experience. The variations in button shape and sizes help distinguish the role in what they achieve. The blue overlay on images and backgrounds soften page colors yet increase branding. And popular quick links are unmistakable with their contrast and large scale. A well-thought out homepage from top to bottom!

St. Michael Catholic Church

What we love: Simple vibrancy

St. Michael Catholic Church’s website achieves liveliness without content and imagery saturation. A clean homepage easily directs visitors with the help of clear custom buttons and a site navigation organized into a single, well thought out, mega menu. The Mass, Confession, and Adoration schedules are cleverly displayed using a Tabs Section to save more space. All these, along with festive colors and stylish backgrounds, tops off a website that welcomes without overwhelming.

Church of the Assumption

What we love: Distinctive branding

Church of the Assumption’s refreshing color palette and logo draw the mind to water - symbolic in both Scripture and the church’s historic village near the shore of Ireland. Cool tones and circular shapes sprinkle the site while logo art rests in the background and button designs to keep all elements mission-focused. Even as the header’s logo disappears upon scrolling the strong branding cannot be washed away.

St. John Vianney

What we love: Intentional imagery

Imagery is powerful - which is why throughout the ages churches have been adorned with stunning works of sacred art. St. John Vianney’s clear and vibrant website photography is just that - beautiful. The photos, along with mountain silhouettes and earthy color tones, work together as if to bring site visitors into the Arizona desert and right to the parish’s front doors. And to make it twice as exciting, the design is one shared with Holy Cross Chapel.

Diocese of Austin

What we love: Navigation innovation

Thinking differently about something as common as site navigation can be challenging; however, the Diocese of Austin did an amazing job. The main navigation is tucked to the left side of the screen with popular quick links located directly across. However, the most notable feature is the content hubs which contain the most sought-after information by select groups. This incredible concept came about after the diocese surveyed 1000's of site users to learn how they used the site. How do you find your hub? Simply look under the homepage’s main image.

Office of Catholic Schools

What we love: Mission-focused first impression

The Archdiocese of Indianapolis wastes no time in sharing the importance of Catholic education to site visitors. Their homepage is incredibly mission-focused with a welcome message encouraging the Catholic school choice. That beautifully crafted note is followed by quick facts, real testimonials, and news headlines from their schools. They also found a clever way of placing photography into their logo art as these images deepen the roots of their brand and story.

LA Catholic Schools

What we love: Space and style variations

The first thing upon visiting this site is how vibrant and festive it is. Notice frame-to-frame sections and images filling every inch with color and flair. Contrasting font styles work together to frame the incredibly clean photography. A navigation bar with a hidden background, and the use of tabs section on the homepage, offer content with less visiual focus on countless amounts of text.  The site has so much energy without overwhelming guests.

Aquinas Wealth Advisors

What we love: Visitor experience focused

Aquinas Wealth Advisors created an exceptionally well-guided introduction to first time visitors on its homepage. The selection and layout of material literally walks guests through upfront questions about services. Below a stunning featured image, they share their message with a well-crafted video (no buttons to redirect guests) followed by a self-assessment invitation and  benefits. This formula, accented with faith-inspired imagery and messages, is all about their guests. It's truly a site of faith and service.

Saint Pio Foundation

What we love: A story-telling design

Words and imagery on a website are no doubt powerful, but how they are presented in a space can have a lasting effect. Saint Pio Foundation uses a variety of shapes and styles for buttons, links, and images. Those elements are positioned in a staggered fashion that offers a fun path to travel while scrolling by. The earthy color tones and traditional font types also offer a sense of elegance amongst bold imagery. So many pieces that work so well together!

St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church

What we love: Perfect simplicity

Websites don’t require a lot of information or towers of pages. It’s all based on community needs, and St. John the Evangelist knows it. Their site uses the free-theme Damascus and has just the right amount of content. The stunning images in custom buttons, section backgrounds, and their homepage feature region are picture-perfect. Even the use of a tabs section to share their Christmas season liturgy right on the homepage is creative and incredibly functional.

St. Thomas Becket Catholic Church

What we love: Timeless appearance

St. Thomas Becket parish chose the free-theme Lucca known for its more contemporary style with geometric background patterns, bold colors, and partially-open button designs. The parish selected a red color tone and changed the site’s main font type to perfectly match their branding. These changes in this particularly selected theme creates a timeless elegance that works seamlessly together.