Information Architecture
Navigation
Also known as: Site navigation
Plain English
It is how people move around the product and get to what they need.
Definition
Navigation is the glossarySystemA system is a collection of interconnected components that work together to achieve a specific function or outcome.Open glossary term of menus, links, and cues that lets people move through a product and reach what they need. It exposes the underlying structure, and is how most users experience that structure.
In practice
Used to guide users to content and actions.
In context
It gets argued about in terms of what goes in the top bar, when the real question is what job each item is doing and for whom.
The reality
If it’s confusing, users won’t explore.
Compared with
Navigation vs Wayfinding
Navigation is the mechanism you provide: menus, links, breadcrumbs. glossaryWayfindingWayfinding is how users understand where they are, where they can go, and how to get there within a product or system. It relies on clear navigation cues, structure, and feedback to help users move confidently through an experience.Open glossary term is whether the user actually knows where they are. Good navigation that leaves people disoriented has failed at the thing that matters.
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