There are an increasing number of websites dispensing with a link to “Home” in their primary navigation in favour of the company/site logo linking to the homepage. The logic behind this approach appears to be the belief that all users understand that the logo provides a link back to a website’s homepage and to save space.

Our experience of observing user behaviour suggests that a significant number of users will fail to return to the home page when the site logo is the only means of doing so (aside from the browser “back” button of course). Using the logo as a link to the homepage is not a bad thing; we actually recommend it especially as it is optimal from an accessibility perspective. However, it should not provide the sole means of navigating back to home.

It is difficult to argue that reserving a permanent spot for “Home” in a website’s primary navigation takes up an unreasonable amount of real estate which could be used for other navigation options. After all it is only four characters and “Home” plays a crucial role in in-site navigation, with many users treating a website’s homepage as a base which they return to between tasks.