App website design examples: 12 app marketing sites and what each one does well

The short answer

An app website has one job: get the right visitor onto the right platform. We read 12 app marketing sites on 12 November 2026: Things, Flighty, Halide, Bear, Opal, Strava, Headspace, Raycast, Dia, Granola, Craft and Partiful. The strongest do four things. They state the app's job in one line, show the app working rather than describing it, name the platforms next to the main button, and give each device its own path: store badges or a Smart App Banner on a phone, a Mac or Windows download on a desktop.

This isn't a ranking, and the sites change often; each one shows a pattern clearly. Quotes are from the sites as we read them.

The 12 at a glance

Twelve app sites, one pattern each

Things: let the video do the demo

Things puts its name, one sentence ("the award-winning personal task manager that helps you plan your day, manage your projects, and make real progress toward your goals") and a "Watch Introduction Video" button at the top. Further down it quotes its press and its Apple Design Award. Each device gets its own App Store link, so an iPad visitor isn't sent to the Mac app.

Flighty: a promise, then proof

"Get the truth when you travel" is a promise, and the subline backs it: real-time updates, "the fastest alerts" and delay predictions. The page names its platforms ("Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch"), cites its 2023 Apple Design Award and App of the Year finalist status, and shows the app in motion, with seven video elements on the home page.

Halide: say what you don't do

Halide's subline sets it apart from every phone camera's default: "film-like shots with minimal processing and zero AI". It names its awards, keeps one action, "Get it on the App Store", and speaks to a narrow audience: people who care how their iPhone photos are processed.

Bear: platforms in the headline, price on the page

"Markdown notes you'll love on Mac, iPhone & iPad" answers "what" and "where" in one line. Under it sit its awards (Editor's Choice 2020, Design Award 2017, App of the Year 2016), and further down a price section that lists what the free version includes and what Bear Pro adds, with its price (USD 2.99 a month when we read it).

Opal: one button per platform

"Attention on autopilot." is followed by separate buttons: Download for iOS, Download for Mac, Download for Android, plus "Try for free". The page also carries Apple's Smart App Banner tag, so iPhone visitors in Safari get a native banner that opens the App Store, and it shows its App Store rating count near the top.

Strava: start on the web, then the app

Strava leads with sign-up, not a download: "Join over 100 million active people on Strava for free", with buttons for Google, Apple and email, and "Get the App" alongside. A visitor can be in before they've installed anything, and the page then sells the subscription in its own section.

Headspace: let visitors choose their reason

Headspace's first question is "What kind of headspace are you looking for?", then it routes people by need (anxiety, stress, sleep, mental health). The offer is in a bar at the very top ("Feel your best for 50% off") and the trial in the buttons ("Try 14-days free"). Employers and health plans get their own section, so the B2B buyer isn't lost in the consumer page.

Raycast: state the requirements under the button

"Your shortcut to everything." comes with a Download for Mac button and, right under it, "macOS Tahoe and Apple Silicon required" and "Install via Homebrew". The visitor knows before downloading whether it will run, and developers get the install route they prefer.

Dia: numbered reasons

"More than a browser. A better workday." is followed by "Download Dia for free" and "Available for macOS and Windows". The features are numbered (01 "Start your day two steps ahead", 02 "Synthesis you'll actually use"), each with a concrete example from a workday, and privacy has its own section: "Privacy first with you in control".

Granola: the differentiator in five words

"The AI notepad for back-to-back meetings" says what it is; "Without a meeting bot." says why it's different. The hero shows a sample meeting note, the platforms are listed under the button (macOS, Windows, iOS, Android) and the free path is explicit: "Unlimited meeting notes for free".

Craft: show who uses it

Craft opens with "Your space for notes, tasks, and big ideas" and "Try Craft Free", then shows how different people use it: a podcaster's meeting notes, a producer's shoot plans, a product manager's tasks. Its store links cover the App Store and Google Play, and it carries the Smart App Banner tag.

Partiful: the first action works without the app

"Parties are back. Create invites & discover events." The main button, "Create event", opens a web flow, and "Get the app" sits next to it with App Store and Google Play links. For a product people try because a friend sent them a link, the web is the front door and the app comes later.

Patterns across the 12

• Platforms next to the action. All 12 show where the app runs on the home page, in text, store links or both; the best put it in the headline (Bear) or right under the button (Raycast, Dia, Granola).
• One path per device. Separate buttons (Opal), separate App Store links per device (Things), a Smart App Banner for iPhone visitors (Opal, Raycast, Granola, Craft).
• The product, shown. Video (Things, Flighty, Dia), the real interface (Granola's sample note) or a visual of the main gesture (Raycast's keyboard).
• A differentiator in the subline. "Zero AI" (Halide), "without a meeting bot" (Granola), "the fastest alerts" (Flighty).
• Specific proof. Named awards with years (Flighty, Bear, Things, Halide), user counts (Strava) and ratings (Opal), instead of generic logos.
• The price or the free path, visible. Bear's price section, Granola's free notes, Headspace's trial, Dia's free download.

Store badges and Smart App Banners: what the rules say

• App Store badges. Apple asks developers to use App Store badges "as a clear call to action to get your app", to use the preferred black badge, and to "place the App Store badge first in the lineup of badges" when several stores appear. Badges come in 50 localizations, and Apple's marketing tools also generate a QR code for desktop visitors.
• Smart App Banners. A meta tag (apple-itunes-app) makes Safari on iOS show a banner that opens the app if it's installed or its App Store page if not; it doesn't appear on devices the app doesn't support. It replaces the full-screen "get our app" pop-ups that cover the page.
• Google Play badges. Google publishes its own badge generator and usage rules for "Get it on Google Play".

A checklist for your app's website

How Dardo can help

Dardo designs and builds marketing websites for apps and SaaS products: the SaaS website design service covers the home page, feature and pricing pages and the download paths, and web design covers the brand system they sit in. Dardo doesn't build the mobile app itself. For more examples, see the best B2B SaaS websites and SaaS pricing page examples.