What is a wireframe in web design?

A wireframe in web design serves as a crucial blueprint that outlines the basic layout structure of a website, concentrating primarily on functionality. It provides a skeletal framework that visualizes the arrangement of elements on a page, such as headers, footers, content areas, and navigation. By emphasizing functionality rather than aesthetics, wireframes help designers and stakeholders focus on how the site will work, ensuring that the user experience is intuitive and effective. This foundational step allows for early testing of concepts before advanced design elements or graphics are added.

Other options would not align with the definition of a wireframe. For instance, a completed design ready for launch is the final product, significantly more advanced and polished than a wireframe. A detailed graphic design portfolio goes beyond web design to include a range of artistic endeavors and is not a specific part of the wireframing process. Finally, while a collection of user interface elements can be part of a wireframe, it is not an apt definition by itself, as it lacks the contextual structure that defines a wireframe's purpose and placement within the web design process.