Breadcrumbs on top or at the bottom

kondrich

Dear JoomlArt,

What's the reason why you are displaying breadcrumbs at the bottom of pages like in JA Flix or JA Event Camp rather than on top of the pages as general web design guidelines suggest?
Yes, I know that I can re-arrange it in template style editor and move it on top. But why not on top by default?

Wherever I look for it (Wikipedia: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Breadcrumb_navigation, other websites, LLMs like Google Gemini and Claude.ai), all sources suggest to put it on top. Claude.ai even mentions placing it at the bottom (or sidebar) under "What to prevent".

I'd really like to know why you decided like this.

Kind regards,
Klaus

pinochico3

Breadcrumb
serves as another option for visitors to navigate websites

It is definitely not the primary navigation option, it is definitely not the only option, and there are definitely no recommended or general rules for where it should be placed (even if you claim otherwise).
It all depends on the design.
If you're citing Wikipedia, AI experts, and the like, you're wrong. I'm sorry, but that's the way it is.
You should rather refer to graphic designers and UX specialists. But even they must first obtain information about the purpose of the website, how it is designed, and what its purpose is. Only then can you decide whether to place the breadcrumb navigation under the menu at the top or bottom above the footer, or somewhere else entirely, or even omit it altogether.

The purpose of breadcrumb navigation is to simplify movement on the website for visitors or to supplement existing methods.
The nature of the website will determine where it is appropriate to place it.

For example, I consider breadcrumb navigation on an e-shop to be misleading and counterproductive compared to filters and online methods for searching, sorting, and displaying goods, so I place it above the footer so that it does not take up space where I need it most and does not distract attention from other more important elements.
But there are exceptions, and then this does not apply.
Note that on a mobile phone or tablet, for example, I duplicate the pagination and place it both at the top and bottom.

Even so, you always have the option of incorporating A/B testing into your website and comparing how customers behave and whether breadcrumb navigation at the top/bottom/nowhere on your website (and nowhere else—that's what A/B testing is for) will be effective.

P.S.
Do not confuse any AI nonsense with the only correct standard of truth.

It is just "parroting" information found on all indexed websites from Google Search, which has been stolen and declared to be the work of some AI.

Note that some Joomla developers have already deleted discussions and tutorials for fear that their know-how and knowledge will appear for free in this pseudo-AI nonsense.

And Wikipedia is not the standard of truth either—it is written by anyone, not by experts who verify information from three independent sources.

saguaros

It's a design choice tailored to the visual style of those particular templates.

The idea is to give more emphasis to the sections at the top, and then provide breadcrumbs in a less prominent location so they don’t compete visually with the main content.

And as you mentioned, it's alway easy to adjust this navigation on top or bottom 😉

kondrich

Thank you, @saguaros and @pinochico3.

@pinochico3: I did some classic web research before I asked various LLMs just ouf of interest. I mentioned Wikipedia due to it's popularity and reputation and not more for a better overview.