A new year brings new trends–fashion, social media challenges, lifestyle, and of course, design. In the world of digital marketing, staying ahead of design trends isn’t just about aesthetics—it’s about capturing attention, driving engagement, and making a lasting impression.
As we step into 2025, graphic design styles continue to evolve, blending innovation with nostalgia, minimalism with bold expression, and AI-driven elements with human creativity. This year’s trends offer opportunities to elevate your ads and connect with your audience in fresh, impactful ways. Whether you're crafting social media visuals, email campaigns, or display ads, integrating these design elements will keep your creatives on-trend.
1. Maximalist Design & Unconventional Typography
Okay, so this one isn’t new to 2025, but it’s a trend that hasn’t died out since last year (and if used right, could even be everlasting). Maximalism pushes boundaries, embraces chaos, and creates visually rich compositions that break traditional graphic design rules. Typography becomes a statement, with distorted, oversized, and asymmetrical fonts creating show-stopping visuals.
This trend is perfect for brands that want to inject energy, personality, and a sense of controlled chaos into advertising by making every design feel vibrant and unique.
Keep the maximalism going–Try these elements in your designs:
- Layered textures
- Clashing colours
- Eccentric layouts
- Mixed typefaces
- Hand-drawn lettering
- 3D text effects to craft unique
Not sure how to implement this design style into your graphic design portfolio? Discover 5 ways you can use maximalism in your designs.
2. AI-Generated Visuals & Hybrid Aesthet
The rise of AI keeps climbing, and it certainly has a large role in design. It can be a quick, appealing, and cost-effective way to elevate your creatives. That being said, be careful. Audiences are as skeptical as ever and still crave an authentic brand experience. So how can you use AI in your designs while prioritizing authenticity?
- Combine AI-generated elements with traditional design for surreal, unique visuals
- Use AI-assisted motion graphics for engaging animations
3. Retro-Futurism & Y2K Aesthetics
The Y2K aesthetic is back with a vengeance, influencing everything from fashion to graphic design. This is a big trend, especially on social media, that resonates with a younger audience and pulls at the nostalgic heartstrings of the audience that grew up in the Y2K era. Here are some characteristics to add to your creatives for a Y2K feel:
- Typography – Futuristic, pixelated
- Style – Retro, chaotic
- Elements – Neon colours, metallic or holographic details, bold gradients, tech or cyber-inspired graphics
Whether it’s in ad visuals, website layouts, or branding, the Y2K trend taps into a sense of nostalgia while embracing the experimental, digital-first mindset of today.
4. Bold Colour Blocking & High Contrast
In 2025, our visuals are demanding and commanding attention! This trend embraces strong, vibrant colour combinations—think electric blues against fiery reds or neon yellows paired with deep purples—to create striking compositions with maximum impact. By using large, defined blocks of colour and sharp contrasts, designers can guide the viewer’s eye, enhance readability, and make messaging pop.
- Vibrant duotones, colour overlays, and unexpected contrasts
- Monochrome palettes with a pop of neon
You can apply this trend to essentially any design asset; digital ads, social media graphics, or website layouts. It ensures brands stand out in an oversaturated visual landscape, delivering a modern, energetic, and unforgettable aesthetic.
5. Handmade & Authentic Textures
No, it’s not new, but it’s classic and it will never ever not be stunning when applied to the right visuals! Hand-drawn elements are a great way to add visual appeal to an image by directing the eye exactly where it needs to go. It’s perfect for brands that want to convey a personal touch with a down-to-earth aesthetic. Use the elements to convey warmth, nostalgia, and a human connection:
- Hand-drawn illustrations
- Doodles
- Imperfect brushstrokes
- Paper cutouts and collage effects
- Grainy textures
This design approach helps brands stand out above overly polished aesthetics, giving them a raw, real, and relatable edge.
Some trends are new, others come back like a boomerang, and a few never leave. While these are some of the graphic design styles of the year, it’s always important to stay true to your branding. If any of these trends work with your tone and look, then run wild. If not, there are ways to include these trends in a way that still blends with your branding. It’s important to know the basics when designing ads, check out our guide to designing direct response ads to help you get the foundation right.
If you need help with your ads this year, reach out to us or request a free audit! We can help you create ads that incorporate today’s design trends to reach more audiences and perform better than ever.
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