Inspiring Graphic Design Trends

Two boxes with eco-friendly design as a representation of graphic design trends

Our list of inspiring graphic design trends will help you direct your thoughts to certain popular directions. Choose what best fits your brand.

Do you follow the trends?

We are very fond of the saying “You do you”.

Your design should always reflect your brand. No exceptions. Attract the right kind of customer with a design that clearly speaks about you. This includes both your company and your products.

But, with that said, there is nothing wrong with checking the graphic design trends. This will give you an idea of what’s especially popular these days. After getting to know the trends, you can incorporate what fits into your designs. This way you will have a design that is both great representative of your brand and also trending. It is a win-win situation.

The graphic design trends our designers are most fond of are:

Maximalism
Experimental typography
Eco
Candy colors
Art deco
Simplified logos
Minimalist retro
Dreamy muted gradients
Modular geo
Achromatic design

Examples of graphic design trends

Maximalism

We often hear that less is more. But, sometimes it is just the opposite - more is more. :) The wait is over. You can go overboard with your design, says the prediction for the graphic design trends.

Example of graphic design trends – colorful stamps on the flat surface — Designed by Angélica Cruz

Example of graphic design trends – magazine spread with building roofs spelling words “city life” — Designed by Brett Kessinger

Add colors, objects, and patterns that reflect your busy mind. Focus on single elements. Don’t think about the overall picture, elements don’t even have to fit together. When the design is done this way, your potential customers will be able to find something new and exciting every time they look. Don’t be modest, make it bold and adventurous.

Example of graphic design trends – magazine spread with stylized word “happy” — Designed by Brett Kessinger

Example of graphic design trends – orange magazine spread with words more is more writen many times — Designed by Brett Kessinger

Experimental typography

Make your letters a work of art. Although, we don’t recommend using them for longer text. But it is perfect eye candy for catchy headlines. Using vivid colors and contrasting shapes can help emphasize the emotions you want to promote. And it is always good to affect your customers on an emotional level.

Example of graphic design trends – black girls in white dress wearing the canister over her head with word “determination” writen behind her — Designed by Benedicto Cernal III

Example of graphic design trends – image of subway, with word subway incorporated into the image — Designed by Benedicto Cernal III

Eco

The popularity of eco-friendly products is growing each day. Having sustainable packaging makes your brand even more attractive for aware customers. Every day there are more options that are both sustainable and visually appealing. And your design should reflect your effort. In this case, there’s nothing wrong with bragging. Let everybody know that you are trying to make this world a better place. Like-minded people are sure to appreciate it. And who knows, you may even inspire someone new.

Example of graphic design trends – different printed materials with nattural design on them — Designed by Larissa Graboski

Example of graphic design trends – cover of the eco magazine with rhyno on the cover in green tones — Designed by Tadashi Matayoshi, Bianca Medrano and Claudia Gamarra Horna

Candy colors

Pastel colors will never be out of fashion. But, if you want your design to stand out, use vibrant candy colors. They are very visually appealing and demand attention. You could even say they are eye candy for your customers. And eye candy is as important as the quality of your product or content. Some people may fight me on this. But, you need to make people look at what you have to offer before they can recognize the quality. These colors can seem a bit psychedelic sometimes. But they are always friendly and mesmerizing.

Example of graphic design trends –two packagings on top of each other with candy colored design — Designed by Ali -

Example of graphic design trends –three packagin boxes that have candy colors in the design — Designed by Andressa Vieira

Example of graphic design trends – framed candy colored poster with two ball shaped candies — Designed by Arthur Sena

Example of graphic design trends –candy colored packaging label with plastic soda glass that has bunny ears on the lid — Designed by Daryl Pung

Example of graphic design trends –both sides of the candy colored business card — Designed by Daryl Pung

Art deco

For those who do not enjoy crowded designs with a lot of details, there is Art deco. This style promotes clean design and sleek geometry. It is all about sturdiness, resilience, dignity, and modernism. The world is waiting to part ways with what has been happening for the past couple of years. That is why we can all relate to these values to at least some degree.

Example of graphic design trends –art deco style dark green packaging box with golden details — Designed by Tim Kaun

To imagine what the art deco style in design should look like, think of The Great Gatsby style. It is bold, unapologetic, and aesthetically pleasing. The best part of this trend is that it is usually easy to incorporate into the design of anything. From small items like business cards to large format posters.

Example of graphic design trends – very elegant art deco style midnight blue invitation with gold details and matching envelope — Designed by Molly Suber Thorpe

Example of graphic design trends – black and gold art deco style packaging label on the bottle — Designed by Simone Bessa

Simplified logos

Another one of the graphic design trends that is not heavily packed with details is the simplification of logos. In the age of the internet, our attention span is decreasing. Removing the unnecessary details and keeping the essence of the logo design, makes it easier for your customers to remember. They will retain the viewer’s attention more easily than complex logos. We don’t have time to waste on trying to understand complicated designs. We want something easily recognizable that stands out from the crowd. Make it easy to remember, and unique, so everyone can quickly connect it to your brand.

Minimalist retro

As it is inspired by record covers and 70s magazine layouts, it translates very well to editorial features. But, using old-school fonts, natural textures, and warm tones can also look very good on product packaging.

Example of graphic design trends – three different chocolate bars with minimalistic design on the flat surface — Designed by Elise Galbraith

Example of graphic design trends – three packaging boxes with minimalistic design on the flat surface — Designed by Mohamed Moustapha Akshn

In combination with sustainable materials, this graphic design trend will be a very good choice for eco-friendly, natural, and healthy products.

Example of graphic design trends – three fairtrade chocolate bars with minimalistic design on the flat surface — Designed by Gabrielle Rogers

Dreamy muted gradients

This aesthetic doesn’t strain the eye and it is very pleasing to look at. This is just the reason it is often used for branding. You will see it as the background design for a large number of social media posts. Pastel colors are used to create an ethereal look. It promotes calming effects of multicolor blends and grainy textures.

Example of graphic design trends –different examples of muted gradients layed out on a flat surface — Designed by Lorenzo Ballarini and Elena Caricasole

Example of graphic design trends –cover design that uses muted gradients — Designed by Pedro Ramos

Example of graphic design trends –hang tag with muted gradients in the center, with other hang tags partialy vissible around it — Designed by SGDesigns

Modular geo

Geometric shapes are replacing abstract forms. There are basically no limits in the way you can use geometric shapes. This gives you the freedom to be trendy and create unique designs. Combine them with images and text to present information in a readable and visually appealing way. They can help you draw your customers or business partners’ attention to certain details you want to make sure are noticed.

Example of graphic design trends - modular geo design on a packaging — Designed by Plácida :)

Example of graphic design trends - modular geo design on a packaging boxes — Designed by Plácida :)

Example of graphic design trends - modular geo design on a packaging, close up — Designed by Plácida :)

Achromatic design

Achromatic design means using neutral colors in your design. These are black, white and gray. Although it might sound too simple and plain to you, it doesn’t have to be. A good designer will skillfully use transitions from dark to light and create a balanced composition. This can be very effective when done right.

Example of graphic design trends – two futuristic black and white images with achromatic design — Designed by Daria Ishchenko

We hope these graphic design trends will help your designs be as trendy and appealing as possible. And remember, there is no need to force it. There should be something among what’s trending that will fit into your design seamlessly. We wish you an inspiring.

If you are interested to see the evolution of the trends, also read our Inspiring Graphic Design Trends blog post.

Are there any trends you have seen that are especially interesting to you? Let us know.