Jakob's Law
Users spend most of their time on other sites and expect yours to work the same way.
What it means on a web page
When navigation, logo placement, search bars, or core interactions deviate from established web conventions, people may need extra effort to find their way.
People may take longer to find navigation or other familiar elements when they are not where convention puts them.
This describes a general tendency. How much it matters on a particular page depends on the page and the people using it.
Does theuxbites check this?
Yes. Every audit runs a fixed check for it on the page as a browser renders it. When the check fails, the report names this principle, shows what was counted on your page and links the source below.
Suggestions
Follow established web conventions: logo top-left, primary nav in header, search visible, footer with contact info.
- Place the logo in the top-left or top-center of the page
- Put primary navigation in the <header> element
- Make the search bar immediately visible, especially on content-heavy sites
- Follow familiar checkout and form patterns users know from major e-commerce sites
- Only deviate from conventions when there is a clear, tested UX benefit
These are common ways to apply the principle, not rules. Whether one fits depends on your page.
See how your page does
An audit checks this principle and eight others on your page, together with speed, accessibility, SEO and AI visibility.