The empty, unmarked space in a design layout — the area intentionally left free of text, images, or other elements.
Why it matters
Whitespace isn't wasted space; it's what gives a design breathing room, directs the eye to what matters, and signals confidence and clarity rather than clutter. Designs that fill every available pixel often read as busy or low-quality, even if each individual element is well-made.
In a sentence
"The redesigned landing page uses a lot more whitespace around the CTA, which makes it the obvious next action instead of one option among many."
Related terms
- Antonyms: Clutter, visual noise.
- Often confused with: Negative space (in design contexts, these terms are largely synonymous — "negative space" is the more formal design term, "whitespace" the more commonly used one in marketing).
- Synonyms: Negative space, breathing room (informal).