What Is The Difference Between UX and UI Design?
May 12, 2025
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2 min read
If you’re just starting out in product design or exploring a career in tech, you’ve probably asked yourself, “What is the difference between UX and UI design?” While these terms are often used together, they refer to distinct areas of digital product creation. Understanding what each role involves—and how they work together—is essential for anyone entering the design world.
UX designer
A UX designer focuses on how users feel when using a product and how easy it is for them to achieve their goals. They understand users' problems and needs.
UX designers conduct user research and tests, write clear UX copy, and present their designs to businesses. They observe users and analyze how they complete tasks. By identifying users' needs and challenges, designers determine their goals. They aim to create designs that are not only visually appealing but also improve usability and increase user satisfaction.
Although UX writing is becoming its own profession, UX designers can also write copy that guides users and matches the brand's voice.
To ensure their designs work well, designers test them with users. This helps them discover any challenges users might face and understand user behavior when interacting with the design.
UI designer
A UI designer focuses on how a product looks, feels, and interacts with users. They aim to make the user interface as easy to use as possible and pay attention to all visuals and interactive elements that users encounter.
They make decisions about:
UI designers need a wide range of skills. They should be skilled in at least one traditional design area and know how to use tools like Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD.
Understanding color theory, typography, UI design patterns, and design principles, like the Gestalt Principles, is important for UI designers. They should be collaborative team players and have empathy for users. Good communication skills are essential so they can explain the purpose of each design element and the reasons behind their design choices.
What is the difference between UX and UI design?
So, what is the difference between UX and UI design? Simply put, UX is how a digital product feels, while UI is how it looks.
UX design includes user research, developing scenarios, organizing information, creating wireframes and prototypes, and designing interactions. In contrast, UI design focuses on layouts, colors, typography, graphic design, and overall visual appearance. UI design is part of UX design, so UX and UI designers need to collaborate closely during the design process. Many companies still hire one person to handle both UX and UI tasks.
It's important to realize that both are vital in creating a digital product. You can have a beautiful interface, but users won't trust it if it's challenging to use. Similarly, the product will still be less effective if you have an easy-to-navigate interface that looks dull or outdated. When UX and UI designs work together well, you create a beautiful, seamless, and interactive product that users will enjoy.
UX designer
A UX designer focuses on how users feel when using a product and how easy it is for them to achieve their goals. They understand users' problems and needs.
UX designers conduct user research and tests, write clear UX copy, and present their designs to businesses. They observe users and analyze how they complete tasks. By identifying users' needs and challenges, designers determine their goals. They aim to create designs that are not only visually appealing but also improve usability and increase user satisfaction.
Although UX writing is becoming its own profession, UX designers can also write copy that guides users and matches the brand's voice.
To ensure their designs work well, designers test them with users. This helps them discover any challenges users might face and understand user behavior when interacting with the design.
UI designer
A UI designer focuses on how a product looks, feels, and interacts with users. They aim to make the user interface as easy to use as possible and pay attention to all visuals and interactive elements that users encounter.
They make decisions about:
UI designers need a wide range of skills. They should be skilled in at least one traditional design area and know how to use tools like Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD.
Understanding color theory, typography, UI design patterns, and design principles, like the Gestalt Principles, is important for UI designers. They should be collaborative team players and have empathy for users. Good communication skills are essential so they can explain the purpose of each design element and the reasons behind their design choices.
What is the difference between UX and UI design?
So, what is the difference between UX and UI design? Simply put, UX is how a digital product feels, while UI is how it looks.
UX design includes user research, developing scenarios, organizing information, creating wireframes and prototypes, and designing interactions. In contrast, UI design focuses on layouts, colors, typography, graphic design, and overall visual appearance. UI design is part of UX design, so UX and UI designers need to collaborate closely during the design process. Many companies still hire one person to handle both UX and UI tasks.
It's important to realize that both are vital in creating a digital product. You can have a beautiful interface, but users won't trust it if it's challenging to use. Similarly, the product will still be less effective if you have an easy-to-navigate interface that looks dull or outdated. When UX and UI designs work together well, you create a beautiful, seamless, and interactive product that users will enjoy.
If you aren't following us on Instagram already, you're seriously missing out! Become a part of our ever-growing community and learn something new from the field of product design every. single. day.
Happy designing! 🥳
andrija & supercharge design team
If you aren't following us on Instagram already, you're seriously missing out! Become a part of our ever-growing community and learn something new from the field of product design every. single. day.
Happy designing! 🥳
andrija & supercharge design team
