Dear Hamburger Menu: It’s Not the ’90s Anymore

Oh, Hamburger Menu. You mysterious little stack of lines. Once hailed as a sleek solution to messy navigation, you now feel like the flip phone of UX—retro, cryptic, and slightly passive-aggressive.

Sure, you were cool back when screens were smaller, expectations were lower, and users still clicked around like digital archaeologists.

But now? Users have options. Attention spans are shorter than your reveal animation. And guess what—they don’t know what’s behind you. They never did. Most think you’re just a weird logo. Or worse: a hotdog.

You hide things people need, like navigation, account settings, or “how do I get out of this mess?” You’re a magician’s hat that forgets to pull out the rabbit.

Meanwhile, tab bars are thriving. Sticky navs are everywhere. Mega menus are flexing their information architecture like it’s fashion week. You, though? You’re still hiding in the top right corner like a shy ghost.

And don’t even get me started on accessibility. You’ve single-handedly caused more rage clicks than a CAPTCHA on 2% battery.

Look, we had a good run. But it’s time you stopped ghosting the user and started giving answers instead of ellipses.

Maybe keep the three lines—just don’t keep the mystery.

Regretfully yours,
A designer tired of watching users get lost in a sandwich

Simon Sterne

Simon Sterne is a staff writer at WebdesignerDepot. He’s interested in technology, WordPress, and all things UX. In his spare time he enjoys photography.