Products · Broad category
Mobile websites
Raised as a usability problem by 595 people on Hacker News over 19 years (2008–2026), in 489 threads.
This is a broad category rather than one product, so its issues aren't ranked on the home page.
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Every issue, all time, most people first
Sites disable native zoom, so small text cannot be enlargedUnreviewed
20082026- Pinch-to-zoom is blocked or buggy on images, frustrating users trying to zoom in2026-07-10
- Sites force a mobile view that loses features and blocks zooming and panning2026-06-11
- Tiny phone screens and touch-based interfaces make browsing much worse than on desktop2025-03-19
Mobile sites are so frustrating that people are pushed into appsUnreviewed
20082026- Sites push phone users to install an app or cripple browser interactions, and desktop pages load slowly2026-10-25
- Mobile sites are made so painful to use that people are pushed toward the app2026-06-21
- Sites block linked content until the user downloads their app2026-04-06
Mobile sites are nearly unusable without an ad blockerUnreviewed
20082026- Mobile sites hang on ads or show a blank white screen instead of loading2025-09-08
- Cookie prompts and ad layers with tiny close buttons obstruct content and load slowly on mobile2025-08-30
- Mobile websites are slow, broken, and covered in intrusive popups2025-07-26
Most mobile pages take several seconds to loadUnreviewed
20082026- Articles take very long to load on mobile because of heavy ads2025-07-22
- Basic apps take about 10 seconds to load on mobile2025-03-17
- IPads get sent to mobile sites with horrible usability2025-01-27
Zoomed pages have huge elements, forcing endless scrolling for little textUnreviewed
20082026- Pages start zoomed correctly but then scroll horizontally and can be zoomed out oddly2026-06-25
- Pages zoomed in with huge elements, forcing endless scrolling to read little text2023-10-23
- Oversized fonts and endless scrolling cause thumb strain on phones2023-08-31
Header stays fixed and takes up a large portion of the screenUnreviewed
20082026- A permanently fixed header covers part of the screen while reading an article2025-06-18
- Persistent floating graphic over the middle of the screen makes the mobile site unusable2024-09-11
- Sticky headers and footers shift or appear unpredictably while reading content2022-11-27
Popups are difficult or impossible to close on mobileUnreviewed
20082026- Ads keep restarting with sound after pausing, forcing repeated silencing and closing2024-08-05
- Ads load late and push links, so users must be careful where they tap2022-11-28
- Ads load over the next move button, so users accidentally tap ads repeatedly2022-11-22
Deep links redirect to mobile home page, blocking the wanted pageUnreviewed
20082026- Desktop users redirected to the mobile site can't get back, and the return link is hard to find or missing2025-11-26
- Mobile redirects dropped users on the home page, losing the content they wanted2023-01-18
- Clicking links on HN or Reddit lands on the mobile site instead of desktop2021-04-22
Page jumps up and down while scrolling, making reading hardUnreviewed
20082026- Page scrolls to top when returning from another app, losing reading place2026-09-25
- Page jumps around while reading, plus popups and ads make it unusable2022-08-29
- Page keeps jumping back to the top while the user is reading during load2017-09-05
Mobile browser visits redirect to app store instead of loading siteUnreviewed
20082026- Mobile browser visits redirect to the app store page instead of loading the site2026-07-15
- Tapping View post on mobile redirects to the App Store instead of the post2025-05-06
- Sites on mobile constantly present dubious decisions and unnecessary hurdles2020-10-13
Small links require repeated zooming before they can be tappedUnreviewed
20082026- Tap zones of nearby controls overlap, so small buttons are hard to tap reliably2025-06-11
- Links are too small to tap on phones, so users must pinch-zoom before touching them2023-06-24
- Buttons are close together, so users often tap the wrong one2023-06-04
App install prompt keeps reappearing after being dismissed repeatedlyUnreviewed
20082026- Popup takes over the screen after scrolling, forcing app install prompt2026-08-28
- Full-page app ad appears to be impossible to dismiss on phones2026-08-14
- Install-app popup can't be dismissed, forcing workarounds to view a shared link2025-10-13
Pop-up appears and vanishes too fast to read or respond toUnreviewed
20082026- Pop-up appears and vanishes too fast to read or react to2025-05-06
- Repeated full-screen pop-ups block content; buttons shift so people accidentally click allow2024-10-15
- Constant popups, hidden buttons and tiny close icons make articles hard to reach2024-07-29
Page jumps as content loads, so taps land on the wrong elementUnreviewed
20082026- Page elements shift after load, so taps land on the wrong thing2020-08-05
- Page jumps as content loads, so taps land on the wrong element2019-03-19
- Page content shifts as it loads, so taps land on ads instead of links2016-12-28
Ads and videos cover half the screen and cannot be scrolled awayUnreviewed
20082026- Video ad leaves text covering about a third of the phone screen2024-07-07
- Most of the phone screen is covered by popups, ads and prompts2022-08-06
- Ads and cookie notices shrink the visible area of websites on small screens2021-03-20
Slight sideways scrolls accidentally switch articlesUnreviewed
20082026- Accidental swipes to new articles while scrolling; back/forward swipe gestures hijacked2025-04-06
- Swipe gestures meant for article navigation interfere with OS gestures2018-02-05
- Horizontal swipe scrolling changes articles instead of revealing hidden content2017-11-15
Typing search queries on phones is hard, so people prefer appsUnreviewed
20082026- Recipe search results on phone screens are hard to read and sift through2026-09-09
- Filling in and repeatedly modifying search forms on phones is very annoying2021-04-29
- Typing a search on mobile is cumbersome, needing a URL or another app first2019-11-12
Formatted input fields keep resetting the mobile keyboard while typingUnreviewed
20082026- Hard to enter input on mobile: autocomplete fails, no arrow keys, virtual keyboard unusable2025-05-02
- Keyboard covers most of the screen when typing on mobile sites2017-10-04
- Formatted input fields keep resetting the mobile keyboard while typing2015-05-11
Blocking unwanted page elements is not simple, so people leaveUnreviewed
20082026- Websites feel generally terrible, requiring content blockers to browse sanely2023-10-13
- Sites are hard to use on desktop; users leave when blocking elements is not simple2022-06-20
- Mobile web browsing had become so unusable that Apple added content blockers2015-12-08
Mobile sites force double tapping and scrolling to get anywhereUnreviewed
20082026- Custom scroll or edge-tap elements interfere with native mobile navigation and cause accidental clicks2017-07-10
- Some sites block double-tap maximize, so text can't fill the screen width and users must scroll around2015-07-20
- Sites hijack bottom touch events, blocking the browser's back interface on iOS2014-05-30
Mobile web could only handle simple tasks, forcing separate appsUnreviewed
20082026- Mobile interfaces are unusable, with missing features and poor Google Docs experience on phones2026-07-18
- Users assume interactive websites on phones must be apps, so they don't use them2025-07-26
- Web interaction models are unique, confusing, and poorly implemented on mobile2018-12-21
Flick gestures interfere with vertical scrolling and block zoomingUnreviewed
20082026- Touch gestures feel janky and map zoom scrolls the whole page2019-08-06
- Finger swiping doesn't scroll the page; must drag a scrollbar instead2017-11-21
- Vertical scrolling is broken, forcing taps on a next button to see each page2015-12-22
Ads slow the phone so the article cannot be readUnreviewed
20082026- Full-screen video ad keeps popping up on its own after dismissal, blocking article reading2026-11-03
- Ads bog the phone down so the article can't be read2025-05-11
- Ads pop in late, text jumps, and pop-ups and spinners obscure the article2024-07-31
Going back after scrolling returns to the top, forcing a re-scrollUnreviewed
20082026- Scroll-to-top button gets hit by accident while scrolling, and rarely helps2023-10-26
- Pressing back after scrolling returns to the top of the page, forcing a re-scroll2018-01-19
- Scrolling navigates to new pages, so back button needs six presses to return2014-08-18
Pages load slowly, scroll jumpily, and layout shifts on rotationUnreviewed
20082026- Users don't dare tap until pages finish loading; layout keeps jumping around2016-05-21
- Page loads, then a loading screen forces a 15-20 second wait before a harder-to-read paginated layout2013-12-10
- Page takes seconds to load, scrolling is slow and jumpy, and layout jumps on rotation2013-06-21
Wrong layout served by orientation until rotating and refreshingUnreviewed
20082026- Broken, unresponsive mobile layouts; forced device rotation before showing ads2014-11-30
- Page serves wrong layout by orientation; mobile version only loads after rotating and refreshing2012-10-01
- Page breaks when rotating the phone and breaks further rotating back2010-09-20
Entering account, shipping and billing details on phones is fiddlyUnreviewed
20082026- Entering account, shipping and billing details on phones is fiddly and hard2015-03-10
- Entering billing details on a small phone screen makes small purchases a pain2010-08-06
- Entering credit card details on a mobile phone is very painful2010-04-27
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 50 complaints
- Full-screen video ad keeps popping up on its own after dismissal, blocking article reading2026-11-03
- Hard for users with limited hand control to scroll vertically without horizontal drift2026-10-26
- Sites push phone users to install an app or cripple browser interactions, and desktop pages load slowly2026-10-25
- Page scrolls to top when returning from another app, losing reading place2026-09-25
- Recipe search results on phone screens are hard to read and sift through2026-09-09
- Annoying horizontal scrollbar appears on mobile layout2026-08-28
- Popup takes over the screen after scrolling, forcing app install prompt2026-08-28
- Full-page app ad appears to be impossible to dismiss on phones2026-08-14
- Pages forcing fixed aspect ratio styling to fit the viewport makes them harder to use on mobile2026-07-30
- Mobile interfaces are unusable, with missing features and poor Google Docs experience on phones2026-07-18
- Mobile browser visits redirect to the app store page instead of loading the site2026-07-15
- Navbar stays open after changing pages, hiding the new page content2026-07-13
- Pinch-to-zoom is blocked or buggy on images, frustrating users trying to zoom in2026-07-10
- Text is next to unreadable on mobile2026-07-07
- Pages start zoomed correctly but then scroll horizontally and can be zoomed out oddly2026-06-25
- Mobile sites are made so painful to use that people are pushed toward the app2026-06-21
- Code snippet font sizes are inconsistent when reading on mobile2026-06-16
- Sites force a mobile view that loses features and blocks zooming and panning2026-06-11
- Browsing the web on mobile is harder, with clunky tabs and painful URL typing2026-05-05
- Sites block linked content until the user downloads their app2026-04-06
- Web browsing on phones has much worse UX than native apps2026-04-06
- Default mobile web experience on many sites is terrible, pushing people to apps2026-03-22
- Modal buttons go off-screen with text scaling and cannot be scrolled to2025-12-09
- Desktop users redirected to the mobile site can't get back, and the return link is hard to find or missing2025-11-26
- App install banner must be dismissed every time, interrupting use of the site2025-11-19
- Mobile apps and sites are always a compromise compared to full desktop software2025-11-19
- Apps untested on old devices and slow networks become unusable for many users2025-11-05
- Install-app popup can't be dismissed, forcing workarounds to view a shared link2025-10-13
- Mobile sites are nearly unusable due to barrages of popups pushing the app2025-09-24
- Mobile sites hang on ads or show a blank white screen instead of loading2025-09-08
- Cookie prompts and ad layers with tiny close buttons obstruct content and load slowly on mobile2025-08-30
- Mobile sites are deliberately made much worse than the app2025-07-26
- Mobile browsing forces users through many badly designed sites2025-07-26
- Users assume interactive websites on phones must be apps, so they don't use them2025-07-26
- Mobile sites repeatedly pester users with 'it's better in the app' pop-ups2025-07-26
- Mobile websites are cluttered with intrusive elements pushing people to download the app2025-07-26
- Mobile websites are slow, broken, and covered in intrusive popups2025-07-26
- Mobile websites have crappy UI, forcing user to switch to desktop mode2025-07-26
- Users are served dark patterns unless they manually request the desktop site2025-07-26
- Browser login sessions expire after days, forcing users to log in again2025-07-25
- Websites are broken and unusable on phones, pushing users toward apps2025-07-25
- Articles take very long to load on mobile because of heavy ads2025-07-22
- Sites render a narrow text strip on large monitors, forcing users into dev tools to read2025-07-17
- Simple data pages like bank transactions work poorly on mobile browsers2025-06-27
- Open sites become unusable when the phone loses a good connection2025-06-19
- A permanently fixed header covers part of the screen while reading an article2025-06-18
- Tap zones of nearby controls overlap, so small buttons are hard to tap reliably2025-06-11
- Sticky nav bar takes too much vertical space when rotated, leaving two text lines visible2025-05-29
- Ads bog the phone down so the article can't be read2025-05-11
- Tapping View post on mobile redirects to the App Store instead of the post2025-05-06