Web Trends 2025
The Complete Year in Review

When we looked at the new year at the beginning of 2025, we already suspected that major changes were coming. But the extent of the transformation surprised even experienced developers. From ubiquitous AI integration to React 19 and Next.js 15 to the enforcement of the European Accessibility Act - this year in review analyzes the most important developments and their impact on the future of the web.

The AI Revolution in Web Development

2025 was the first year where practically every significant development team used AI tools daily. According to the Strapi Web Development Report 2025, AI assistants have become firmly integrated into development workflows - not as a gimmick, but as a productivity-enhancing tool.

GitHub Copilot and the Dominance of React

Perhaps the most surprising trend of 2025 was the realization that AI-assisted coding has an inherent tendency towards React and Next.js. Why? Large Language Models (LLMs) were trained with enormous amounts of React code since React dominates the frontend ecosystem. This means: when you ask Copilot for a solution, you will most likely receive a React-based answer.

Local LLMs on the Rise

While cloud-based assistants like GitHub Copilot are widely used, we observe growing interest in local Large Language Models that run directly on developer hardware. These offer advantages in terms of privacy, offline availability, and reduced latency - particularly relevant for European companies with strict compliance requirements.

The most important lesson from 2025: AI does not replace developers but amplifies their abilities. Teams report dramatically increased productivity and faster shipping cycles. However, human review, understanding of architecture, and critical thinking remain irreplaceable.

Framework Landscape 2025: React, Astro, Svelte & More

The JavaScript framework ecosystem has undergone an interesting development in 2025. While React maintains its dominance, alternative frameworks have captured important niches and sustainably influenced how we think about web performance and developer experience.

React 19: The Server Components Era Begins

React 19 brought fundamental changes that fundamentally change how we build React applications. React Server Components (RSC) are no longer experimental but the recommended approach for new projects. The key innovations:

• useActionState replaces the old useFormState for Server Actions
• ref as Prop instead of forwardRef - significantly simpler API
• use() Hook for resolving Promises in components
• useOptimistic for optimistic UI updates
• Improved Hydration with less client-side JavaScript

// React 19: ref as Prop (forwardRef is deprecated)
function Input({ ref, ...props }: { ref?: React.Ref<HTMLInputElement> }) {
  return <input ref={ref} {...props} />
}

// React 19: useActionState for Server Actions
import { useActionState } from "react"
const [state, action, pending] = useActionState(serverAction, initialState)

// React 19: use() Hook for Promises
import { use } from "react"
function Component({ dataPromise }: { dataPromise: Promise<Data> }) {
  const data = use(dataPromise)
  return <div>{data.name}</div>
}

Next.js 15: Async Everything

Next.js 15 introduced several breaking changes that affect existing projects. The most important change: params and searchParams are now async. This means fundamental changes to how dynamic routes work:

// Next.js 15: params is now async (BREAKING CHANGE)
async function Page({ params }: { params: Promise<{ id: string }> }) {
  const { id } = await params  // MUST await
  return <div>{id}</div>
}

// WRONG in Next.js 15 - this no longer works:
function Page({ params }: { params: { id: string } }) {
  return <div>{params.id}</div>  // TypeError!
}

Astro: The Performance Champion

Astro continued its triumphant march in 2025 and established itself as the preferred framework for content-heavy websites. With the "Islands Architecture" approach, Astro delivers zero JavaScript to the client by default and only hydrates interactive components when needed. The results speak for themselves: websites with perfect Lighthouse scores are becoming the norm rather than the exception.

Svelte: Performance Without Virtual DOM

Svelte established itself as a serious alternative in 2025. By foregoing a Virtual DOM and compiling at build time, Svelte achieves exceptional runtime performance. For projects where every millisecond counts, Svelte is a compelling choice.

Qwik: Instant Loading

Qwik represents the new frontier of web performance. With "Resumability" instead of hydration, web applications become instantly interactive - in milliseconds rather than seconds. Especially for e-commerce platforms and high-traffic applications, Qwik is interesting, although adoption is still in its early stages.

Core Web Vitals 2025: INP Replaces FID

Core Web Vitals received a significant update in 2025. The most important change: Interaction to Next Paint (INP) has replaced First Input Delay (FID) as the responsiveness metric. This has far-reaching consequences for optimization.

What Does INP Mean?

While FID only measured the first interaction, INP captures the latency of all user interactions throughout the entire page visit. This means: even if your page loads quickly, a sluggish response to button clicks or form inputs can worsen your INP score.

Optimization Strategies for 2025/2026

• Scroll-driven Animations in CSS instead of JavaScript for performant scroll effects
• Lazy Loading for images and non-critical components
• Edge Computing for globally fast loading times
• Server-Side Rendering or Static Generation where possible
• Bundle-Splitting and Tree Shaking for minimal JavaScript bundles

The good news: Frameworks like Astro, Next.js 15, and Qwik are optimized to deliver excellent Core Web Vitals out-of-the-box. The bad news: Existing applications often need extensive optimization.

Design Trends 2025: Bento, Glass and 3D

2025 solidified some design trends that emerged in 2024 and brought new innovations. The focus is on clarity, modularity, and subtle depth.

Bento Grid: Inspired by Apple, Adapted Everywhere

Bento Grids - named after Japanese lunch boxes with different compartments - have become the dominant layout pattern in 2025. Companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Pinterest rely on this modular approach that organizes information in clear, differently sized cards.

Glassmorphism 2025: Subtler and More Accessible

Glassmorphism - the frosted glass effect with blurred background - has undergone an evolution in 2025. Unlike early, often unreadable iterations, modern glassmorphism is subtler and focuses on accessibility. The effect is primarily used for UI elements like floating navigation, modals, and cards.

/* Glassmorphism 2025: Subtle and accessible */
.glass-card {
  background: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.05);
  backdrop-filter: blur(12px);
  border: 1px solid rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.1);
  border-radius: 16px;
}

/* Important: Sufficient contrast for text */
.glass-card p {
  color: #ffffff;
  text-shadow: 0 1px 2px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1);
}

3D and Immersive Experiences

With WebGL, Three.js, and new CSS features like rotate-x, rotate-y, and perspective, 3D elements have reached the mainstream in 2025. From product-presenting 3D models to immersive scroll experiences - the third dimension has arrived.

Motion Design: Scroll-driven Animations

CSS Scroll-Driven Animations reached broad browser support in 2025. This enables performant, GPU-accelerated animations that respond directly to scroll behavior - without JavaScript and with minimal performance impact.

EAA 2025: Accessibility Becomes Mandatory

2025 marks a turning point for digital accessibility in Europe. With the enforcement of the European Accessibility Act (EAA) on June 28, 2025, accessibility requirements become reality across the EU.

Who Is Affected?

The requirements affect almost all companies that offer digital products or services to consumers:

• E-Commerce - Online shops and booking platforms
• Banking Services - Online banking, payment systems
• Telecommunications - Websites, apps, messengers
• Transport - Booking systems, timetable information
• E-Books - Digital books and reading devices

WCAG 2.2 as Standard

The technical foundation is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at Level AA. This means concretely:

• All images need meaningful alt texts
• At least 4.5:1 color contrast for normal text
• Complete keyboard navigation
• Click targets at least 24x24 pixels
• No keyboard traps
• Semantic HTML and correct ARIA attributes

For a detailed implementation guide, we recommend our Web Accessibility 2025 Guide.

Native Web Features: Browsers Catch Up

2025 was a year in which native web features remarkably caught up. Many functions that previously required JavaScript libraries are now available directly in the browser.

View Transition API: Native Page Transitions

The View Transition API became part of the Baseline index for cross-browser support in 2025. This means: smooth, animated transitions between pages are possible without a JavaScript framework. Single-Page App feeling with Multi-Page Architecture.

/* View Transition CSS */
::view-transition-old(root),
::view-transition-new(root) {
  animation-duration: 0.3s;
}

/* Individual element transition */
.hero-image {
  view-transition-name: hero;
}

::view-transition-old(hero) {
  animation: fade-out 0.3s ease-out;
}

::view-transition-new(hero) {
  animation: fade-in 0.3s ease-in;
}

Web AI: AI in the Browser

Google advanced "Web AI" in 2025 - the ability to run LLM inference directly in the browser on the user's device. This enables AI features without server round-trips and with improved privacy. Particularly interesting for European companies with GDPR concerns.

Container Queries: Responsive by Size

Container Queries enable responsive components that react to their own size - not just the viewport size. This revolutionizes the development of reusable components:

/* Container Query */
.card-container {
  container-type: inline-size;
}

@container (min-width: 400px) {
  .card {
    display: grid;
    grid-template-columns: 200px 1fr;
  }
}

E-Commerce Innovations 2025

The e-commerce sector made significant technological advances in 2025, driven by performance requirements and the upcoming EAA.

Headless Commerce Becomes Standard

The separation of frontend and backend commerce systems has become the standard in 2025. Platforms like Shopify with Hydrogen, commercetools, and Medusa enable maximum frontend flexibility with robust backend infrastructure.

Edge-First E-Commerce

With Vercel, Cloudflare Workers, and similar platforms, e-commerce pages are rendered at the edge - geographically close to the user. The result: loading times under one second worldwide, which directly translates into higher conversion rates.

AR/VR Product Experiences

Augmented Reality made the leap from gimmick to real conversion tool in 2025. Furniture retailers, fashion brands, and cosmetics companies rely on AR try-on and 3D product visualization with measurable success.

Outlook for 2026: What's Coming Next?

Based on the developments of 2025, some clear trends emerge for 2026:

1. Even Deeper AI Integration

AI will mature in 2026 from code completion to holistic development support. Expect AI-powered debugging, automatic accessibility checks, intelligent performance optimization, and even AI-generated tests.

2. WCAG 2.2 Gets Integrated into EN 301 549

The publication of the updated harmonized standard is scheduled for May 2026. EN 301 549 will then officially reference WCAG 2.2, further solidifying the legal basis for accessibility.

3. Performance Metrics Become Stricter

Google has indicated that Core Web Vitals thresholds could become stricter in 2026. Websites that are "good" today could be "needs improvement" tomorrow. Proactive optimization is advisable.

4. Server Components Everywhere

The server-first paradigm will continue to prevail in 2026. Frameworks will make it easier to send less JavaScript to the client while enabling richer interactions.

5. Design System Maturity

Companies will increasingly invest in mature design systems in 2026 that offer accessibility, performance, and consistency out-of-the-box. Open-source solutions like Radix, Ariakit, and shadcn/ui set the standard.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Conclusion: 2025 - The Year of Transformation

2025 will go down in web development history as one of the most transformative years. The combination of AI integration, modern framework updates, stricter performance standards, and the enforcement of the Accessibility Act has fundamentally changed the landscape.

The good news: The tools and frameworks are better than ever. React 19, Next.js 15, Astro, and modern CSS features make it easier to build fast, accessible, and beautiful websites. The challenge lies in migrating existing projects and rethinking in established teams.

For 2026, the following applies: Those who have internalized the trends of 2025 are well positioned. Server-first thinking, performance focus, accessibility as a basic principle, and the smart use of AI tools will distinguish successful web projects from average ones.

Here's to a successful 2026!