The function defines the structure
A website needs to serve every visitor intent — current customers looking for support, prospects evaluating, employees finding the careers page, journalists looking for press contact. That's why websites have global navigation: visitors arrive with diverse goals. A landing page exists for one purpose: convert a specific audience that arrived from a specific source. Removing navigation isn't a stylistic choice — it's removing exit ramps from the one path that matters.
The "homepage as landing page" trap
The most common version of this question is really: "Can my homepage be my landing page?" Usually no. The homepage gets traffic from 10+ sources (organic, branded search, partner links, podcasts, social) and 5+ visitor types (new prospects, returning users, customers, partners). A page optimized for one of those audiences is broken for the other nine. The fix: keep your homepage as the multi-purpose entry, and build dedicated landing pages for each paid campaign or specific audience.
When you need each
You need a website always — it's table stakes. You need a landing page when (1) you're running paid traffic with a specific offer, (2) you're targeting a specific audience that needs a different message than your default homepage, or (3) you're testing positioning for a new market. Read our landing page vs homepage guide for the full framework.