← DictionaryBelow the Fold
Everything on a page that requires scrolling to reach.
Everything past the first screen.
What It Is
Below the Fold belongs to Website, specifically the Layout part of it. What it actually refers to is everything on a page that requires scrolling to reach.
It is a label with a settled working definition, so the value is in using it the same way every time. Used with that meaning, it stays a working tool rather than a talking point.
How It's Used
Most of the time Below the Fold is used in site builds, page structure and the technical decisions underneath them. It rarely travels alone — expect it next to Above the Fold, Scroll Depth and Layout. The practical test is whether everyone in the room means the same thing by it.
Why It Matters
Ignoring Below the Fold rarely fails loudly — it fails slowly. When it is unclear, the site still launches — it just quietly underperforms. The businesses that treat it seriously spend less time redoing work.
It is a label people agree on so they stop describing the same thing five different ways. Everything past the first screen.
Termshift™
How the meaning shifts depending on who is using it, and where.
In agency and in-house rooms, Below the Fold means exactly everything on a page that requires scrolling to reach.
In plain conversation it comes out as everything past the first screen.
The Bottom Line
The practical takeaway on Below the Fold: everything past the first screen. Judge it by that, not by how it sounds.