How many columns, and why?

[ink slinger]

I'm just curious as to how many columns most people think is ideal for a blog to have.

I assume the answer will be either 2 or 3. I once saw a blog with 4 columns, and it was ridiculously cluttered and difficult to navigate. Single column blogs are okay, but personally, I prefer having a sidebar.

My own answer is that I generally prefer blogs to only have 2 columns--a body column, and a sidebar. Unless you have advertising, 3 columns seems unnecessary to me, and just adds to the clutter of your site.

Of course, it ultimately comes down to design and usability, and I would always pick a well designed 3 column blog over a poorly designed 2 column one (assuming that content was identical).

Anyway, I'm just wondering what people here think.

[BlogEx]

In terms of reading, I like 2 columns. i like the content to have a lot of room since it's usually the focus of the blog. In terms of my blogs though, I'm finding two columns too small. I think I might end up widening my design a bit to give myself more room above the fold but we'll see...

[derek]

I too fall into the group that prefers the 2-column layout and use that for both of my blogs. While I have seen very nice 3-column layouts, I usually feel that they look too busy and I either avoid the sidebar or the site altogether.

In addition to the number of columns, I generally prefer layouts that have the sidebar on the right. That just feels more balanced to me for some reason and from an SEO perspective, it is typically recommended to get your content out first before all of the extras (granted this can be done with a left sidebar and proper CSS).

[ink slinger]

I generally prefer layouts that have the sidebar on the right. That just feels more balanced to me for some reason and from an SEO perspective, it is typically recommended to get your content out first before all of the extras (granted this can be done with a left sidebar and proper CSS).

I agree. It's also good from a usability point of view, since people scan from right to left. You want their eyes to hit the content before the sidebar, generally.

If the first thing they notice is a cluttered sidebar, they might not stick around too long. (I'm not sure how accurate this is, I'm just making an educated guess, here.)

I like the content to have a lot of room since it's usually the focus of the blog.

This is one of the big reasons that I prefer 2 columns, rather than 3.

[BlogEx]

I agree. It's also good from a usability point of view, since people scan from right to left. You want their eyes to hit the content before the sidebar, generally.

Actually, I usually prefer to have the sidebar on the left (although I'll occasionally go right as you can see on my current project). Over the years, we've been trained to look for navigation on the top and left side of the page. Since the sidebar is usually the navigation for the blog, I prefer to have it on the left.

From the SEO perspective, style sheets etc can be used to have your content read first and I'm not sure how much help it is anyway. There are much larger factors for SEO.

[ink slinger]

Over the years, we've been trained to look for navigation on the top and left side of the page.

Good point.

From the SEO perspective, style sheets etc can be used to have your content read first and I'm not sure how much help it is anyway. There are much larger factors for SEO.

This is true. I don't know how much it helps, either. I don't think it's a particularly large factor in SEO. But, I'm hardly an expert on SEO.

I dabble in it, because it's necessary evil for anyone who does any kind of business or marketing online, but I'll probably never be a real expert at it.

[Rich Minx]

I've found the best number to be 3 - one sidebar on each side of the main content. Then I can have both my RSS button and the site search at the top.

[rodaniel]

I adopted a 1 column design that looks, I think (hope) very clean and content-focused and uncluttered. There are navigation tabs at the top and a small 3-column section at the bottom with archives & such.

And maybe part of the appeal to the single column theme I'm using lies in its rarity...

[brvce]

Ink Slinger,

What's an ink slinger in a digital age, byte bowler (I tried)..

My take on your question is simply: depends on the purpose of the blog. If it's strictly opinion type blog then 2 columns, or even 1 would be fine. Our latest effort is more resource based so we need a lot of room for links,ads, search etc.- or will need once content gets to where we want it (just started it last week).
BookshopBlog

[ses5909]

I personally prefer 2 but it seems it's more a personal preference issue. As more and more browser resolutions are getting bigger (800 x 600 is the minority now adays) people are going with wider designs in general it seems. So the 3 column can still allow for the wide main content width if its designed for 1024x768 resolutions.