UI & UX meaning and the difference between UI and UX

Working in UX requires a highly diverse skillset and a passion for user-centric design. According to a study conducted by the Design Management Institute, design-driven companies consistently outperformed the S&P 500 by 219% over a 10-year period. Furthermore, a study commissioned by Adobe found that design thinking in business creates a measurable competitive advantage. Design-led companies reported 41% higher market share, 50% more loyal customers, and 46% competitive advantage overall. AI tools are also becoming popular as ways to tackle simpler tasks more efficiently. For more info, read our full guide on the impact of AI on UX design.

At the most basic level, UI is made up of all the elements that enable someone to interact with a product or service. UX, on the other hand, is what the individual interacting with that product or service takes away from the entire experience. As with any growing technology, the UI designer’s role has evolved as systems, preferences, expectations, and accessibility has demanded more and more from devices. Now UI designers work not just on computer interfaces, but mobile phones, augmented and virtual reality, and even “invisible” or screenless interfaces (also referred to as zero UI) like voice, gesture, and light. Back in the 1970’s, if you wanted to use a computer, you had to use the command line interface. The graphical interfaces used today didn’t yet exist commercially.

How are UX and UI different?

This resource from UX Planet discusses what makes up a good UX/UI design portfolio. This article covers how to set up a portfolio, what should go in a UX devops team structure design portfolio, how to display information, and how to promote your work. These skills are crucial for anyone wanting to get started in UX/UI design.

“‘User experience’ encompasses all aspects of the end-user’s interaction with the company, its services, and its products.” Build your UX career with a globally recognised, industry-approved qualification. Get the mindset, the confidence and the skills that make UX designers so valuable. Now you know what UX stands for, what it means, and why it’s important.

How to Enhance Your Skills to Make the Jump from Graphic Design to UX Design

You’ll understand the role of a UX designer within an organization and what it takes to overcome common challenges at the workplace. You’ll also learn how to leverage your existing skills to successfully transition to and thrive in a new career in UX. In the third and the fourth lessons, you’ll learn about the most common UX design tools and methods. You’ll also practice each of the methods through tailor-made exercises that walk you through the different stages of the design process.

The definition of a UX designer’s role will vary depending on which industry or company you talk to. There’s a growing tendency for companies to hire for very specific roles, such as UX researcher or interaction designer, to cover all of the different aspects of user experience. Coming from a design background not only means having a good grip on design terminology, but also that you’re likely to be familiar with the conventions and trends in web or app designs. Most times, UX designers make use of standardized conventions (like a toggle switch for on/off states, dropdown list for multiple options, etc.) because users have come to expect these interactions on a website. Graphic designers—especially if you’ve created prototypes in the past—are also familiar with such conventions.

What is the difference between UX and UI?

When you work with user experience, it’s crucial to understand what those areas are so that you know how best to apply the tools available to you. Is there a gap between graphic design skills and UX design skills? Graphic designers already speak the language of design; they just need to brush up their skills to include those that are unique to UX design. Graphic designers often create mockups and wireframes of their designs prior to delivering a finished design. It gives a chance for clients to offer feedback on their designs and for them to improve them without having to start from scratch. UX designers create mockups and prototypes too, but these tend to be less focused on the “look” of the product and more on the “feel” of it.

However, their focus skews towards areas like information design, motion design, and brand. It’s important to distinguish the total user experience from the user interface (UI), even though the UI is obviously an extremely important part of the design. Even if the UI for finding a film is perfect, the UX will be poor for a user who wants information about a small independent release if the underlying database only contains movies from the major studios. UX designers work closely with UI designers, UX researchers, marketers, and product teams to understand their users through research and experimentation. They use the insights gained to continually iterate and improve experiences, based on both quantitative and qualitative user research.

Businesses

Today’s UI designer has nearly limitless opportunities to work on websites, mobile apps, wearable technology, and smart home devices, just to name a few. As long as computers continue to be a part of daily life, there will be the need to make the interfaces that enable users of all ages, backgrounds, and technical experience can effectively use. At the most basic level, the user interface (UI) is the series of screens, pages, and visual elements—like buttons and icons—that enable a person to interact with a product or service. You don’t need to wait to get hired as a UX designer to start gaining experience. Volunteer your skills for a charitable organization, non-profit, or business of a friend or family member.

• Now UI designers work not just on computer interfaces, but mobile phones, augmented and virtual reality, and even “invisible” or screenless interfaces (also referred to as zero UI) like voice, gesture, and light.
• The average base salary for a UX designer in the US is $95,567 according to Glassdoor.
• Just about anything a person has ever wanted to know can be accessed in the blink of an eye and few other search engines survive today.
• Select a program, get paired with an expert mentor and tutor, and become a job-ready designer, developer, or analyst from scratch, or your money back.
• ” You can learn more about UI design for accessibility in our guide.
• Volunteer your skills for a charitable organization, non-profit, or business of a friend or family member.

UX designers leverage a wide range of technical and workplace skills to bring a successful product or service to market (or improve upon an existing product). Many of these skills transfer from other fields, so even if you’re new to UX design, you’ve likely developed a few already. Focus on these essential skills, and you can begin to build a strong foundation for a career.

UX Design is User-Centered

We’ve got a couple of examples for you here but there are literally hundreds of programs globally and we couldn’t hope to cover them all. Designs are then tested with users to see if the research led to the right solutions. The designs are constantly iterated until research confirms that they are good enough. The look of a product is all about creating a product that has visual appeal and which, in particular, harmonizes with a user’s values and captures the spirit of what they expect in that product.

So, the next time you encounter a door you can’t get right, don’t worry, it’s not your fault, it’s bad design. A user looks at the product and knows what to do with it and there’s no need for manuals or additional signs. Employers tend to look for a mixture of design skills, business acumen, and soft skills.

2. What are a UX designer’s tasks?

On the contrary, good aesthetics have been found to improve the overall user experience of product—by making users more relaxed, creating a positive first impression, and generally just showing that you care(3). If there’s an occupation that is 100% linked with the public’s idea of what design is all about, it’s graphic design. From the familiar golden arches of the McDonald’s brand to the typography and colors of movie posters, graphic designers create some of the most iconic and ubiquitous designs around us. So why would a graphic designer like you want to change your career to UX design? Well, for one, much can be said about the sense of satisfaction and fulfillment derived from getting “under the hood” of the products you work on rather than working on the exterior. But how do you go about switching from graphic design to UX design?

A UX designer’s role in a project depends on the team size and project type. In larger organizations and complex products, you may have more specialist roles such as researcher, interface designer and UX writer. Since UX design encompasses the entire user journey, it’s a multidisciplinary field–UX designers come from various backgrounds, such as visual design, programming, psychology and interaction design.

The terms user interface (UI) and UX are often used interchangeably. This is a common mistake because the UI is the primary mechanism for user interaction with a product and is central to the overall user experience. It’s also possible to have a good user experience without a user interface. In fact, if it’s really good, oftentimes your users won’t even know it’s there (how many knots do you notice on the wooden bridge on the way across?).