What Is Below the Fold?
Below the fold describes all the content on a webpage that a visitor does not see until they scroll down past the browser's visible viewport. The term mirrors the newspaper industry term for stories placed on the lower half of a front page, below the physical fold in the paper. On a website, the fold is wherever the browser window ends, which differs across devices and screen sizes. A large desktop monitor at 1440p resolution will show more content above the fold than a smartphone screen showing the same page.
Below-the-fold content plays a supporting role in the conversion process. Where the above-the-fold section must make an immediate strong impression and give visitors a reason to stay, the below-the-fold area gives businesses room to provide the detail, social proof, and reassurance that persuades visitors who are interested but not yet ready to act. This is where testimonials, client logos, case study summaries, detailed feature lists, pricing tables, and secondary calls to action typically live.
A common mistake in web design is treating below-the-fold content as an afterthought. Many businesses invest heavily in hero section design and copywriting, then fill the rest of the page with generic filler content. Visitors who scroll are typically more engaged and more likely to convert than those who do not, so the below-the-fold experience directly affects your conversion rate. Scroll depth tracking in tools like Google Analytics 4 and Hotjar can reveal exactly how far down your pages visitors actually read, and which content sections correlate with conversions. If your main testimonial section is only seen by 20% of visitors, moving it higher may unlock conversions you are currently missing.
For South African businesses serving audiences with varied device types, it is important to test what appears below the fold on both desktop and mobile. Content that sits comfortably in the first scroll on a laptop may require three or four scrolls on a budget Android phone with a small screen. Use responsive design breakpoints carefully to ensure that high-priority content such as pricing, trust badges, and your phone number appear at an appropriate depth across all common screen sizes used by your target audience.
Below the Fold In Practice
A Cape Town-based accounting firm redesigned their services page after scroll depth analysis showed that only 28% of mobile visitors were scrolling far enough to see the "Why choose us" section and client testimonials. Those sections were previously positioned almost halfway down a long page, below a detailed feature comparison table that most visitors skipped. By restructuring the page to lead with a brief feature summary and placing the testimonials section immediately after the above-the-fold hero, visibility of the testimonials rose to 67% of mobile visitors, and enquiry form submissions increased by 24% over the following six weeks.
For a Johannesburg e-commerce brand selling premium homeware, heat map analysis revealed that visitors who scrolled below the fold and viewed the "How it is made" product story section were four times more likely to add an item to their cart than those who did not. This insight led the brand to reframe the below-the-fold content as a deliberate persuasion sequence: social proof first (customer photos and star ratings), then the brand story, then a secondary "Shop the range" call to action. The below-the-fold area became a conversion engine rather than padding, and average order value increased as more visitors engaged with the full product story before purchasing.
The relationship between above-the-fold and below-the-fold content can also be influenced by friction. If the above-the-fold section creates strong interest but the CTA asks for too much commitment too early, many visitors will scroll down looking for more information to justify their decision. Providing that information clearly below the fold, and then presenting the CTA again at the natural end of the persuasion sequence, serves visitors who need that extra reassurance. A sticky header or sticky "Get a quote" bar can bridge both areas, ensuring the conversion action is always accessible no matter how far a visitor has scrolled.
FAQ
Should I put my call to action above or below the fold?
Your primary call to action should appear above the fold so every visitor sees it without scrolling. A secondary call to action should also appear below the fold, ideally after you have delivered sufficient persuasion through testimonials, feature explanations, or case study evidence. Having only one CTA at the top means visitors who scroll deeply and become more convinced have no obvious next step close to where they are reading.
Does placing content below the fold hurt SEO?
No, content below the fold is fully indexed by Google as long as it is in the HTML and not hidden behind JavaScript that defers loading. Google crawls and indexes all accessible page content regardless of its position on screen. Placing important keyword-rich content below the fold does not harm rankings, though ensuring above-the-fold content loads quickly does positively affect Core Web Vitals scores.