I'm creating a SaaS framework/boilerplate and have faced a decision issue (those always the worst). Should I create the main menu as a top navigation or a left menu?
What are the pros and cons as you see for either of them?
My thoughts
Top Navigation
Pros
- I can use the left navigation for sub menu entries
- It's easier to implement a logical mobile menu ("hamburger"-menu)
Cons
- There's a natural limit to how many items it can contains
Left Navigation
Pros
- Can in theory have unlimited items, although some limit is set for how much you can keep an overview of. I once read about 8
- Can have categories (with titles) to allow more than about 8 and still keep a good overview
Cons
- A mobile menu most likely must still be a "hamburger"-menu and isn't as logical as for the top menu
- There's a risk that the top bar becomes a bit empty
It could also be a combination of both, but what kind of entries should go where then? Maybe some UI/UX experts here have a more clear answer and suggestion.