good ux case study examples

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15 excellent ux case studies every creative should read.

• By Sandra Boicheva
• October 21st, 2021

In a previous article, we talked about UX portfolios and how they carefully craft a story of how designers work. Interestingly enough, recruiters decide if a UX freelance designer or an agency is a good match within 5 minutes into the portfolio . In order to persuade these recruiters, the portfolio needs to present an appealing story that showcases the skill, the thought process, and the choices taken for key parts of the designs. With this in mind, today we’ll talk about UX case studies and give 15 excellent examples of case studies with compelling stories.

The Storytelling Approach in UX Case Studies

An essential part of the portfolio of a UX designer is the case studies that pack a showcase of the designer’s skills, way of thinking, insights in the form of compelling stories. These case studies are often the selling point as recruiters look for freelancers and agencies who can communicate their ideas through design and explain themselves in a clear and appealing way. So how does this work?

Photography by Alvaro Reyes

Just like with every other story, UX case studies also start with an introduction, have a middle, and end with a conclusion .

• Introduction: This UX case study example starts with a design brief and presents the main challenges and requirements. In short, the UX designer presents the problem, their solution, and their role.
• Middle: The actual story of the case study example explains the design process and the techniques used. This usually starts with obstacles, design thinking, research, and unexpected challenges. All these elements lead to the best part of the story: the action part. It is where the story unveils the designer’s insights, ideas, choices, testing, and decisions.
• Conclusion: The final reveal shows the results and gives space for reflection where the designer explains what they’ve learned, and what they’ve achieved.

Now as we gave you the introduction, let’s get to the main storyline and enjoy 15 UX case studies that tell a compelling story.

1. Car Dealer Website for Mercedes-Benz Ukraine by Fulcrum

This case study is a pure pleasure to read. It’s well-structured, easy to read, and still features all the relevant information one needs to understand the project. As the previous client’s website was based on the official Mercedes Benz template, Fulcrum had to develop an appealing and functional website that would require less time to maintain, be more user-friendly, and increase user trust.

• Intro: Starts with a summary of the task.
• Problem: Lists the reasons why the website needs a redesign.
• Project Goals: Lists the 4 main goals with quick summaries.
• Project: Showcases different elements of the website with desktop and mobile comparison.
• Functionality: Explains how the website functionality helps clients to find, and order spare parts within minutes.
• Admin Panel: Lists how the new admin panel helps the client customize without external help.
• Elements: Grid, fonts, colors.
• Tech Stack: Shows the tools used for the backend, mobile, admin panel, and cloud.
• Client review: The case study ends with a 5-star review by the marketing director of Mercedes Benz Ukraine, Olga Belova.

This case study is an example of a detailed but easy to scan and read story from top to bottom, featuring all relevant information and ending on the highest note: the client’s review.

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2. Galaxy Z Flips 5G Website by DFY

This is a big project that covers every aspect of the website, including the UX strategy. The creative studio aimed to fully illustrate and demonstrate the significant upgrades over previous models and to enable two-way communication with the customers through an interactive experience.

• Intro: Summary of the project and roles.
• Interactive Experience: The main project goal.
• Demonstration: Explains the decision to feature 360-degree views and hands-on videos instead of technical terms.
• Screens: Includes high-quality screenshots of significant pages and features.
• Ecosystem: Highlight a page with easy navigation across different products as a marketing decision that makes cross-selling seamless.
• Essentials: Showcases a slider of all products with key features that provide ample information.
• Showroom: Interactive experience that helps the user “play around” with the product.
• Credits: As a conclusion, DFY features the stakeholders involved.

A strong presentation of a very ambitious project. It keeps the case study visual while still providing enough insight into the thought process and the most important decisions.

3. Jambb Social Platform by Finna Wang

Here we have a beautiful case study for a platform that aims to help creators grow their communities by recognizing and rewarding their base of supporters. It tackles a curious problem that 99% of fans who contribute in non-monetary ways don’t get the same content, access, and recognition they deserve. This means the creators need a way to identify their fans across all social platforms to grow their business and give recognition. To get a clear picture of what the design has to accomplish, Finna Wang conducted stakeholder interviews with the majority of the client’s team.

• Intro: Listing roles, dates, team, and used tools.
• Project Overview: The main concept and the reasons behind it.
• Exploration: What problem will the platform solve, preliminary research, and conclusions from the research.  The section includes the project scope and problem statement.
• Design Process: A thorough explanation of the discoveries and the exact steps.
• User Flows:  3 user flows based on common tasks that the target user/fan would do on the site.
• Design Studio: Visualization process with wireframes, sitemap, prototypes.
• Design Iterations: The designer highlights the iterations they were primary behind.
• Style Guide: Typography, colors, visual elements breakdown.
• Usability Testing: Beta site vs Figma prototype; usertesting.com, revised problem statement.
• Prototype: Features an accessible high fidelity prototype in Figma you can view.
• Takeaways: Conclusions.

An extremely detailed professionally made and well-structured UX case study. It goes a step further by listing specific conclusions from the conducted research and featuring an accessible Figma prototype.

4. Memento Media by Masha Keyhani

This case study is dedicated to a very interesting project for saving family stories. It aims to help users capture and record memories from their past. To do so, the design team performed user research and competitive analysis. The entire project took a 6-week sprint.

• Overview: Introducing the client and the purpose of the app.
• My Role: Explaining the roles of the designer and their team.
• Design Process: A brief introduction of the design process and the design toolkit
• Home: The purpose of the Homepage and the thought process behind it.
• Question Selection: The decision behind this screen.
• Recording Process: Building the recording feature and the decisions behind it.
• User research: a thorough guide with the main focuses, strategies, and competitor analysts, including interviews.
• Research Objectives: The designer gives the intent of their research, the demographics, synthesis, and usability testing insights.
• Propositions: Challenges and solutions
• User Flow: Altering the user flow based on testing and feedback.
• Wireframes: Sketches, Lo-Fi wireframing.
• Design System: Typography, colors, iconography, design elements.
• The Prototype: It shows a preview of the final screens.

This UX study case is very valuable for the insights it presents. The design features a detailed explanation of the thinking process, the research phase, analysts, and testing which could help other creatives take some good advice from it for their future research.

5. Perfect Recipes App by Tubik

Here we have a UX case study for designing a simple mobile app for cooking, recipes, and food shopping. It aims to step away from traditional recipe apps by creating something more universal for users who love cooking with extended functionality. The best idea behind it is finding recipes based on what supplies the user currently has at home.

• Intro: Introducing the concept and the team behind it.
•  Project: What they wanted to make and what features would make the app different than the competitors.
• UI design: The decisions behind the design.
• Personalization: Explaining how the app gives the user room for personalization and customizing the features according to their personal preferences.
• Recipe Cards and Engaging Photos: The decisions behind the visuals.
• Cook Now feature: Explaining the feature.
• Shopping List: Explaining the feature.
• Pantry feature:  The idea to sync up the app with AmazonGo services. This case study section features a video.
• Bottom Line: What the team learned.

This UX case study is a good example of how to present your concept if you have your own idea for an app. You could also check the interactive preview of the app here .

6. SAM App by Mike Wilson

The client is the Seattle Art Museum while the challenge is to provide engaging multimedia content for users as well as self-guided tours. Mile Wilson has to create an experience that will encourage repeat visits and increase events and exhibition attendance.

• Intro: Listing time for the project, team members, and roles.
• The Client: A brief introduction of Seattle Art Museum
• The Challenge: What the app needs to accomplish.
• Research and Planning: Explaining the process for gathering insights, distributing surveys, interviews, and identifying specific ways to streamline the museum experience.
• Sloane: Creating the primary persona. This includes age, bio, goals, skills, and frustrations.
• Designing the Solution: Here the case study features the results of their research, information architecture, user flows, early sketching, paper prototypes, and wireframes.
• Conclusion: Explaining the outcome, what the team would have done differently, what’s next, and the key takeaways.

What we can take as a valuable insight aside from the detailed research analysis, is the structure of the conclusion. Usually, most case studies give the outcome and preview screens. However, here we have a showcase of what the designer has learned from the project, what they would do differently, and how they can improve from the experience.

7. Elmenus Case Study

This is a case study by UX designers Marwa Kamaleldin, Mario Maged, Nehal Nehad, and Abanoub Yacoub for redesigning a platform with over 6K restaurants. It aims to help users on the territory of Egypt to find delivery and dine-out restaurants.

• Overview: What is the platform, why the platform is getting redesigned, what is the target audience. This section also includes the 6 steps of the team’s design process.
• User Journey Map: A scheme of user scenarios and expectations with all phases and actions.
• Heuristic Evaluation: Principles, issues, recommendations, and severity of the issues of the old design.
• First Usability Testing: Goals, audience, and tasks with new user scenarios and actions based on the heuristic evaluation. It features a smaller section that lists the most severe issues from usability for the old design.
• Business Strategy: A comprehensive scheme that links problems, objectives, customer segment, measurements of success, and KPIs.
• Solutions: Ideas to solve all 4 issues.
• Wireframes: 4 directions of wireframes.
• Styleguide: Colors, fonts, typeface, components, iconography, spacing method.
• Design: Screens of the different screens and interactions.
• Second Usability Testing: Updated personas, scenarios, and goals. The section also features before-and-after screenshots.
• Outcome: Did the team solve the problem or not.

A highly visual and perfectly structured plan and process for redesigning a website. The case study shows how the team discovers the issues with the old design and what decisions they made to fix these issues.

8. LinkedIn Recruiter Tool by Evelynma

A fresh weekend project exploring the recruiting space of LinkedIn to find a way to help make it easier for recruiters to connect with ideal candidates.

• Background Info: What made the designer do the project.
• Problem and Solution: A good analysis of the problem followed by the designer’s solution.
• Process: This section includes an analysis of interviewing 7 passive candidates, 1 active candidate, 3 recruiters, and 1 hiring manager. The designer also includes their journey map of the recruiting experience, a sketch of creating personas, and the final 3 personas.
• Storyboard and User Flow Diagrams: The winning scenario for Laura’s persona and user flow diagram.
• Sketches and Paper Prototypes: Sticky notes for paper prototypes for the mobile experience.
• Visual Design: Web and mobile final design following the original LinkedIn pattern.
• Outcome: Explaining the opportunity.

This is an excellent UX case study when it comes to personal UX design projects. creating a solution to a client’s problem aside, personal project concepts is definitely something future recruiters would love to see as it showcases the creativity of the designers even further.

9. Turbofan Engine Diagnostics by Havana Nguyen

The UX designer and their team had to redesign some legacy diagnostics software to modernize the software, facilitate data transfers from new hardware, and improve usability. They built the desktop and mobile app for iOS and Android.

• Problem: The case study explain the main problem and what the team had to do to solve it.
• My Role: As a lead UX designer on a complicated 18-month project, Havana Nguyen had a lot of work to do, summarized in a list of 5 main tasks.
• Unique Challenges: This section includes 4 main challenges that made the project so complex. ( Btw, there’s a photo of sketched wireframes literally written on the wall.)
• My Process: The section includes a description of the UX design process highlighted into 5 comprehensive points.
• Final Thoughts: What the designer has learned for 18 months.

The most impressive thing about this case study is that it manages to summarize and explain well an extremely complex project. There are no prototypes and app screens since it’s an exclusive app for the clients to use.

10. Databox by FireArt

A very interesting project for Firearts’s team to solve the real AL & ML challenges across a variety of different industries. The Databox project is about building scalable data pipeline infrastructure & deploy machine learning and artificial intelligence models.

• Overview: The introduction of the case study narrows down the project goal, the great challenge ahead, and the solution.
• How We Start: The necessary phases of the design process to get an understanding of a product.
• User Flow: The entire scheme from the entry point through a set of steps towards the final action of the product.
• Wireframes: A small selection of wireframe previews after testing different scenarios.
• Styleguide: Typography, colors, components.
• Visual Design: Screenshots in light and dark mode.

A short visual case study that summarizes the huge amount of work into a few sections.

11. Travel and Training by Nikitin Team

Here’s another short and sweet case study for an app with a complete and up-to-date directory of fitness organizations in detailed maps of world cities.

• Overview: Explaining the project.
• Map Screen : Outlining the search feature by categories.
• Profiles: Profile customization section.
• Fitness Clubs: Explaining the feature.
• Icons: A preview of the icons for the app.
• App in Action: A video of the user experience.

This case study has fewer sections, however, it’s very easy to read and comprehend.

12. Carna by Ozmo

Ozmo provides a highly visual case study for a mobile application and passing various complexities of courses. The main goal for the UX designer is to develop a design and recognizable visual corporate identity with elaborate illustrations.

• Intro: A visual project preview with a brief description of the goal and role.
• Identity: Colors, fonts, and logo.
• Wireframes: The thinking process.
• Interactions: Showcase of the main interactions with animated visuals.
• Conclusion: Preview of the final screens.

The case study is short and highly visual, easy to scan and comprehend. Even without enough insight and text copy, we can clearly understand the thought process behind and what the designer was working to accomplish.

13. An Approach to Digitization in Education by Moritz Oesterlau

This case study is for an online platform for challenge-based learning. The designer’s role was to create an entire product design from research to conception, visualization, and testing. It’s a very in-depth UX case study extremely valuable for creatives in terms of how to structure the works in their portfolio.

• Intro: Introducing the client, project time, sector, and the designer’s role.
• Competitive Analysis: the case study starts off with the process of creating competitive profiles. It explains the opportunities and challenges of e-learning that were taken into consideration.
• Interviews and Surveys: Listing the goals of these surveys as well as the valuable insights they found.
• Building Empathy: The process and defining the three target profiles and how will the project cater to their needs. This section includes a PDF of the user personas.
• Structure of the Course Curriculum: Again with the attached PDF files, you can see the schemes of the task model and customer experience map.
• Information Architecture: The defined and evaluated sitemap for TINIA
• Wireframing, Prototyping, and Usability Testing :  An exploration of the work process with paper and clickable prototypes.
• Visual Design: Styleguide preview and detailed PDF.
• A/B and Click Tests: Reviewing the usability assumptions.
• Conclusion: A detailed reflection about the importance of the project, what the designer learned, and what the outcome was.

This is a very important case study and there’s a lot to take from it. First, the project was too ambitious and the goal was too big and vague. Although the result is rather an approximation and, above all, at the conceptual level requires further work, the case study is incredibly insightful, informative, and insightful.

14. In-class Review Game by Elizabeth Lin

This project was never realized but the case study remains and it’s worth checking out. Elizabeth Lin takes on how to create an engaging in-class review game with a lot of research, brainstorming, and a well-structured detailed process.

• Intro: What makes the project special.
• Research: Explaining how they approached the research and what they’ve learned.
• Brainstorming: the process and narrowing all How Might We questions to one final question: How might we create an engaging in-class math review game.
• Game Loop and Storyboarding: Sketch of the core game loop and the general flow of the game.
• Prototyping: Outlining basic game mechanics and rounds in detail.
• Future Explorations: The case study goes further with explorations showing how the product could look if we expanded upon the idea even further.
• What Happened?:  The outcome of the project.

This case study tells the story of the project in detail and expands on it with great ideas for future development.

15. Virtual Makeup Studio by Zara Dei

And for our last example, this is a case study that tells the story of an app-free shippable makeover experience integrated with the Covergirl website. The team has to find a way to improve conversion by supporting customers in their purchase decisions as well as to increase basket size by encouraging them to buy complementary products.

• Intro: Introducing the project and the main challenges.
• Discovery and Research: Using existing product information on the website to improve the experience.
• Onboarding and Perceived Performance: Avoiding compatibility issues and the barrier of a user having to download an app. The section explains the ideas for features that will keep users engaged, such as a camera with face scan animation.
• Fallback Experience and Error States: Providing clear error messaging along with troubleshooting instructions.
• Interactions: explaining the main interactions and the decisions behind them.
• Shared Design Language: Explaining the decision to provide links on each product page so users could be directed to their preferred retailer to place their order. Including recommended products to provide users with alternatives.
• Outcome and Learning: The good ending.
• Project Information: Listing all stakeholders, the UX designer’s role in a bullet list, and design tools.

In Conclusion

These were the 15 UX case studies we wanted to share with you as they all tell their story differently. If we can take something valuable about what are the best practices for making an outstanding case study, it will be something like this.

Just like with literature, storytelling isn’t a blueprint: you can write short stories, long in-depth analyses, or create a visual novel to show your story rather than tell. The detailed in-depth UX case studies with lots of insights aren’t superior to the shorter visual ones or vice versa. What’s important is for a case study to give a comprehensive view of the process, challenges, decisions, and design thinking behind the completed project .

In conclusion, a UX case study should always include a summary; the challenges; the personas; roles and responsibilities; the process; as well as the outcomes, and lessons learned.

Video Recap

Take a look at the special video we’ve made to visualize and discuss the most interesting and creative ideas implemented in the case studies.

In the meantime, why not browse through some more related insights on web development and web design?

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Top 22 Stunning UX Case Studies You Should Know in 2022

An immersive yet well-structured UX case study helps UX professionals show off their design talents in portfolio websites, and let them communicate better with employers, designers and others easily.

However, as a UX designer , how can you write a perfect UX case study to easily get hired or communicate with others better?

Mockplus has handpicked 22 of the best UX design case study examples in 2022 to help you get inspiration, improve your portfolios and make your own things with ease. A step-by-step guideline about how to create a UX case study is also followed.

What is a UX case study?

A UX case study tells the story of how you create a great website or app and, in particular, what you do to improve the UX of the site. UX designers—newbies and experts alike—will often share a case study on a portfolio website as a great way to get hired. Just like sending a resumé. 

So, it is a lot more than just a copy of everything you've done while designing the project. To really showcase your design talent and the breadth of your abilities, you need to make sure the following are all included:

• A full description of your role in the project;
• The biggest challenges you've faced;
• The solutions you've chosen, how you chose them and why;
• How you communicate and collaborate with others; and
• The outcomes and the lessons you’ve learned.  

To this, you should feel free to add any further information that you think would help you stand out from the crowd. 

It is also worth remembering that UX case studies are a good resource for UX design beginners to learn more practical design skills and to gain from the real experience of others in dealing deal with difficult or urgent problems.

22 Best UX case study examp le s you should learn

Whatever stage you’re at and whatever you are writing your case study for, these 22 top examples are bound to inspire you. 

1. Perfect Recipe -UX design for cooking and shopping

Designer s : Marina Yalanska and Vlad Taran

Case Study : Perfect Recipe

This is a mobile application that enables users to search for food recipes and to buy what they need to cook different dishes.

Why d id  we choose this  one?

This case study illustrates the entire UX design process is very simple, plain language. Many aspects of the process are included, along with some really inspirational ideas, such as product personalization, challenges and solutions, animated interactions, and other interface details.

Extra tips :

This example is from the Tubikstudio blog, which is very popular among designers. It regularly shares different branding, UI, and UX case studies. We would strongly recommend that you follow this blog to keep yourself up to date with the latest and most creative case studies.

View details

2. GnO Well Being - Branding, Web Desing & UX

Designer : Marina Yalanska and Olga Zakharyan

Case Study : GnO Well Being

This is a creative illustration website that presents and sells a weighted designer blanket that helps you get a good night’s sleep, the first step to good health and a better life.

Why d id  we choose this ?

This example is so much more than a great UX case study. In addition to the UX design , it gives you insight into many more key design issues, such as the logo, custom graphics, website pages, interactions and so on. There are many ideas here that you could copy for your own projects.

3. Splitwiser - UI/UX case redesign

Designer : Chethan KVS (a Product designer at Unacademy)

Case Study : Splitwise

This is a concept mobile app that enables users to track and split expenses with friends. The designer has also given it another name, "Splitwise." 

Why do we choose this ?

This case study shares the designer's insights into key design decisions, such as why he chose this product, why he decided to redesign the logo, how to improve the onboarding and other pages, how to optimize the user flow, how to balance all pages and functions, how to enhance UX through bottom bars, interactions, gestures, view modes, and more.

Everything is explained using intuitive images, earning it thousands of “likes”. This is a great example that is bound to help you write a stunning case study on redesigning UX.

This comes from a popular media channel called "UX Planet" that regularly posts examples of the best and latest UX case studies from around the world. Another great place to keep you up to speed with the latest UX designs.

4. Deeplyapp.com - UX & visual improvements

Designer : Sladana Kozar

Case Study : Deeplyapp

This is a health and self-care website app that helps users maintain mental well-being with meditations and exercises. This case study talks you through the design process of creating a user-friendly mobile app.

This case study focuses on improvements to the UX and visual features of this mobile app. Many aspects are included to help you understand it better, such as the design background, what to build, UI flow diagram, discoverability design, visual balance, and much more. A full set of app interfaces are presented for you to study as well.

You can also check out its Part 1 post for more details.

5. Talent Envoy - improving the recruitment process 

Designer : Enes Aktaş (Experienced UX designer)

Case Study : Talent Envoy

Talent Envoy is an intelligent job assistant that helps users find their ideal job and get to all the way to signing a contract faster and more easily.

This case study firstly points out the biggest challenges and problems faced by job-seekers—the shortage of US recruitment markets. It then talks to you through the detail of how the designers optimized the recruitment process. You will also find information on the user research process, the UI flowchart design, the related wireframe and Sketch designs, the main page design, and more. 

All the details have clear explanations and they offer a great example of how to use user research to solve problems and improve UI interfaces.

This one comes from another hot media channel called "Muzli" which shares the latest ideas, designs, and interactions about websites or website apps from all over the world. Don’t miss out on this site if you want to stay ahead of the curve. 

6. My Car Parking - UI/UX case study

Designer : Johny Vino (Experienced UX and interaction designer)

Case Study : My Car Parking

This is a mobile app that can help people get parking slots easily even when they travel beyond their normal routes. 

This is a masterclass in how to write a case study that is simple, well-structured, and easy to understand. Many intuitive lists and images are used to explain the design ideas and processes. 

It has received “claps” from over seven and a half thousand people and   is a perfect example of how to write a well-structured and easy-to-understand case study.

7. Parking Finder App - UI/UX case study

Designer : Soumitro Sobuj

Case Study : Parking Finder App

This is another concept mobile app that makes it easy for users to find parking slots even in big or overcrowded cities.

This case study is beautifully presented and gives a good presentation of the whole design process. It covers nearly all the issues that a textbook UX case study should have, such as problems and solutions, user-centered design, design strategy, user flow, information architecture , interface wireframes and visual designs, and much more besides. 

It is one of the best examples we have found of a case study that really teaches you how to write the perfect UX case study.

8. Pasion Del Cielo - coffee ordering experience

Designer : Jonathan Montalvo (Senior Designer, Branding, UXUI )

Case Study : Pasión del Cielo

This is a concept project about a real local coffee shop in Miami.

This case study demonstrates effective ways to engage users with the Pasión brand and how a site can make it as easy as possible to turn page views into coffee sales. 

There is a lot of analysis included to explain the entire design process, such as analyzing the competition, feature analysis, brand and interface improvements, and much more. Most important of all, many user personas have been created to evaluate and enhance the UX.

This is a good example to check for anyone looking to improve their own UX case study. Above all, it shows what can be done with rich images, bright colors, clear layouts, and well-crafted personas.

9. Workaway App - UX redesign

Designer : Rocket Pix (UXUI, web designer )

Case Study : Workaway App

This is a mobile app that provides international hospitality services; it helps users to contact each other to organize homestays and cultural exchanges.

This UX design case study explains how the designer redesigned the Workaway App to make it easier for users. Many intuitive charts (pie charts, flow charts, line charts), cards, and images are used to illustrate the ideas.

It is simple and easy to follow, and also a good example of how to create an intuitive case study with charts and cards.

10. Receipe App - UI/UX design process

Designer : Dorothea Niederee (UX, UI designer   )

Case Study : Recipe App

This is a food app design offering inspirational recipes for anyone who wants to eat healthier.

This case study gives a clear demonstration of the entire UI/UX design process. Three user personas are defined to present different users' needs. Some colors, typography, and UI elements are also shared.

This is a good example of how to define a detailed user persona in your UX case study.

11. Hobbfyy - a social and discovery app UX design

Designer : Mustafa Aljaburi (UX, UI designer   )

Case Study : Hobbfyy

This is a social and discovery app that makes it quick and easy to get everything you need for your hobbies.

This case study aims to show how to develop a site that will provide its users with solutions, in this case to get what they need for their hobbies. Beautiful images, a storytelling style, and special layouts are used to explain everything.

12. Bee Better - habit tracker app UX case study

Designer :   Anastasiia Mysliuk (UX, UI designer   )

Case Study : Bee Better

This is a habit tracker app that makes it easy for you to develop new useful habits.

This case study aims to solve problems associated with how we form and develop habits. It helps users find solutions and make habit formation more interesting; it motivates them to maintain their useful new habits. Many aspects of design, such as problems, solutions, the design process, discovery and research, user journey map, prototypes, and much more are illustrated and explained in simple language.

This would be a good example to follow if you are looking to create an easy-to-understand UX case study.

13.Sit My Pet - pet sitting app UX case study

Designer : Aiman Fakia (UX, UI, visual designer )

Case Study : Sit My Pet

This is a pet-setting app that provides pet owners with a digital service that helps them connect with pet sitters.

This UX case study describes a site that aims to make pet sitting more easily accessible for pet owners. It analyzes both its users and its competitors very well. The way solutions are evaluated, the user stories, and other related aspects are followed in detail to give you a better understanding of the project as a whole.

This is a good example of how to develop a UX design based on user needs.

14. Groad - food ordering system UX case study

Designer : Phap (UI designer )

Case Study : Groad

This is a food ordering app offering food delivery services from stores, restaurants, cafés, fast food bars, and others. 

This UX case study uses beautiful illustrations and colors to explain the entire design process. As well as the usual parts of the design process—UI flow chart, UI showcasing—the related logo and icon designs, typography, and other aspects are included. This is a good example if you are looking to learn how to create an immersive case study with beautiful illustrations and colors.

15. iOS VS Android UI/UX Case Study

Designer : Johanna Rüthers

Case Study : Econsy

Here is another concept app that helps people live more sustainably by using a scanning process to give them information about the ecological and social impact of products they are thinking of buying. 

This case study explains the differences in the mobile app’s appearance when it is applied on the Human Interface Guidelines (IOS) and Material Design Guidelines (Android). This will help you to create an app that works well on both Mac and Android devices.

More UI/UX case studies & designs:

16.Timo Bank - UI/UX Case Study

Timo Bank is a mobile banking app project produced by Leo Nguyen, a freelance designer and creative director. This case study aims to provide more intuitive transfer, payment, and money management solutions for mobile users.

This is a great example to consider if you are hoping to create a better banking app.

17. Endoberry Health App Design

Endoberry Health App Design provides useful solutions for women suffering from endometriosis. In turn, this gives doctors a better understanding of individual cases. The design challenges, solutions, and UI details are displayed and explained to illustrate the design project.

18. Job Portal App

Job Portal App has been specially made for designers and freelancers. This case study uses cute illustrations, simple words, and clear storytelling to explain how the designer worked out the ideal job hunting solutions for users.

19. Cafe Website - UI/UX Case Study

Café Website gives its users a great experience by making it quick and easy to order a coffee online. Many elegant page details are displayed.

20. Ping - the matchmaker app case study

Ping is a dating app that offers users a unique and effective way to find their perfect match. As you can see, its mascot is really cute and this case study will show you how a cute mascot can enhance the UX.

21. Hubba Mobile App - UI/UX Case Study

Hubba Mobile App is a B2B online marketplace where retailers can find and purchase unique products for their stores or shops. This case study aims to explain the process of creating a special mobile app for this online marketplace. It offers a beautiful and clear presentation of the entire UI/UX design process.

22. Music App - music for children

Music App shares the fancy UI and colors from a music app made for children. It is a good example that is sure to inspire you to create a distinctive children's app.

How do you create a UX case study?

If you are still not entirely sure how to go about creating a distinctive UX case study, here are a few simple steps to walk you through the entire process from start to finish:

Step  1.  Figure out your purpose

The final outcome will depend on what it is you are trying to achieve. So, before you start writing a UX design case, you should first figure out in detail what its purpose is. Ask yourself some basic questions:

• Is it for a job interview?
• Is it for improving your personal portfolio?
• Is it designed to show off your design talents on social media?
• Is it just created to practice your design skills?
• Is it made to share design experiences with other designers?

In short, figuring out your purpose and setting a goal can make the entire design process so much easier.

Step   2.   Plan or outline your case study

Whatever you want to do, it is always a good idea to start with a plan. When it comes to writing a UX case study, you should also outline your entire UX case study and decide on what sections you want to include.

For example, nowadays, a good UX design case study often covers:

• Overview : Start with a short paragraph that introduces your project.
• Challenges  and  goals : Explain the project background and point out the biggest challenges or problems you've encountered. Explain the goals you want to achieve and how you will overcome the challenges you have identified. 
• Roles  and  responsibilities : Tell readers what role you play in the project and the specific features of your role that will help create a better product.
• Design process : Introduce the entire design process in detail so that readers can see clearly what you have done to make life easier for users. Many employers check this part very carefully to see whether you have the basic skills and abilities they are looking for. So, never underestimate the importance of this section. 
• Solutions  and  outcomes : No matter what problems you have faced, the solutions and the final outcomes achieved are what really matters. So, always use this section to showcase your skills and achievements. 

You might also want to add further sections:

• User research :   Some full-stack designers also include this to give a more comprehensive view of their design skills.
• UI designs : Some experienced designers also display their relevant UIs, and UI flow, along with low- and high-fidelity prototypes to enrich the content.

Of course, if you are a newbie, and you still have questions, why not go online and search for UX case study templates that you can study and follow.

Step 3.  Explain the design process clearly

As we've explained above, the design process is always one of the most important parts of a good UX case study. You should always introduce clearly as many of the relevant parts of the process as possible. For example: show how you and your team communicate and collaborate effectively; demonstrate how you have developed ideas to address user problems; explain how you and your team have dealt with emergencies or mishaps.  

You can also introduce the UX design tools that you have chosen to simplify the entire design process. Mockplus, is an online product design platform, enabled us to adapt quickly and effectively to working from home during the recent Coronavirus lockdown. Prototyping our designs, sharing ideas, working together in an effective team, taking the process from design to handoff, it all works smoothly with this single tool.

Step  4. Improve readability and visual appeal

The content should be the main focus of your case study—but not the only focus. To make the case study as good as possible, you also need to think about its readability and visual appeal. Here are some suggestions to follow:

• Explain everything as clearly as possible.
• Add images, illustrations, charts, cards, icons, and other visuals.
• Create a clear storytelling structure or layout.
• Choose an immersive color scheme.
• Add eye-catching animations and interactions.
• Use vivid video, audio, and other multimedia resources.

The final visual effect can be make-or-break for whether your UX case study is going to stand out from the crowd. You should always take it seriously.

Step   5. Summarize

Every UX case study can be a good chance to practice and improve your design skills. So, in your conclusion, don’t forget to analyze the entire process and summarize the outcomes. Always take a minute to figure out what lessons you should take away from the process, what tips should be remembered, what should be improved, and—most important—what your next steps are going to be.

UX case studies are one of the most essential parts of a UX designer's portfolio. The ability to write a well-structured UX case study is also one of the basic skills that a competent UX professional should have. So, UX case studies play a very important role in UX designer's life.

We hope our picks of the best UX design case studies along with our step-by-step guide will help you create a stunning UX case study.

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21 UX case studies to learn from in 2024

UX case studies are the heart of your design portfolio. They offer a peek into your design process, showcasing how you tackle challenges, your methods, and your results. For recruiters, these case studies serve as a metric for evaluating your skills, problem-solving abilities, and talent.

If you’re considering creating your own UX case study in 2024 but don’t know where to start, you’re in the right place. This article aims to inspire you with 21 carefully hand-picked UX case study examples, each offering valuable lessons.

But before we dive into these examples, let’s address a question that might be lingering: Is a UX case study truly worth the effort?

Is it worth creating a UX case study?

The short answer is yes.

Remember how in math class, showing your workings was even more important than getting the correct answer? UX case studies are like that for designers. They are more than just showcasing the final product (the polished website or app); they detail the steps taken to get there (the research, user testing, and design iterations). By showing your design process, you give potential employers or clients a peek into your thought process and problem-solving skills.

A well-laid-out case study has many benefits, including the following:

Building credibility

As case studies provide evidence of your expertise and past successes, they can build credibility and trust with potential employers or clients.

Educational value

By showing your design process, you provide valuable insights and learnings for other designers and stakeholders.

Differentiation

A compelling case study can leave a lasting impression on potential recruiters and clients, helping you stand out.

Iterative improvement

A case study is like a roadmap of each project, detailing the highs, lows, failures, and successes. This information allows you to identify areas for improvement, learn from mistakes, and refine your approach in subsequent projects.

Now that you know why a stand-out case study is so important, let’s look at 21 examples to help you get creative. The case studies will fall under five categories:

• Language learning app
• Learning app
• Travel agency app
• Intelly healthcare app
• Cox Automotive
• Swiftwash laundry
• Wayfaro trip planner
• New York Times app redesign
• Disney+ app redesign
• Fitbit redesign
• Ryanair app redesign
• Forbes app redesign
• Enhancing virtual teaching with Google Meet
• Airbnb’s global check-in tool
• Spotify home shortcuts
• AI-powered spatial banking for Apple Vision Pro
• Sage Express

In this section, we’ll explore case studies that take us through the complete design journey of creating a digital product from scratch.

1. Language learning app

If you’re a designer looking to get your foot in the door, this is one case study you need to check out. It’s so well detailed that it helped this designer land their first role as a UX designer:

Created by Christina Sa, this case study tackles the all-too-common struggle of learning a new language through a mobile app. It takes us through the process of designing a nontraditional learning app that focuses on building a habit by teaching the Korean language using Korean media such as K-pop, K-drama, and K-webtoon.

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Key takeaway

This case study shows how a structured design process, user-centered approach, and effective communication can help you stand out. The creator meticulously laid out their design process from the exploratory research phase to the final prototype, even detailing how the case study changed their view on the importance of a design process.

If you’re searching for a comprehensive case study that details every step of the design process, look no further. This one is for you:

This impressive case study by Finna Wang explores the creation of a fan-focused responsive platform for Jambb, an already existing social platform. The creator starts by identifying the problem and then defines the project scope before diving into the design process.

This case study shows us the importance of an iterative problem-solving approach. It identifies a problem (pre-problem statement), creates a solution, tests the solution, and then revises the problem statement based on the new findings.

3. Learning app

If you need a highly visual case study that takes you through every step of the design process in an engaging way, this one is for you:

This case study walks us through the design of a platform where users can find experts to explain complex topics to them in a simple and friendly manner. It starts by defining the scope of work, then progresses through research, user journeys, information architecture, user flow, initial design, and user testing, before presenting the final solution.

This case study demonstrates effective ways to keep readers engaged while taking them through the steps of a design process. By incorporating illustrations and data visualization, the designer communicates complex information in an engaging manner, without boring the readers.

If you’re in search of a case study that details the design process but is also visually appealing, you should give this one a look:

This case study by Orbix Studio takes us through the process of designing GiveHub, a fundraising app that helps users set up campaigns for causes they’re passionate about. It starts with an overview of the design process, then moves on to identifying the challenges and proposing solutions, before showing us how the solutions are brought to life.

This case study illustrates how a visually engaging design and clear organization can make your presentation easy to grasp.

5. Travel agency app

This case study is quite popular on Behance, and it’s easy to see why:

The case study takes us through the process of creating a travel app that lets users compare travel packages from various travel agencies or groups. The creators set out a clear problem statement, propose a solution, and then show us the step-by-step implementation process. The incorporation of data visualization tools makes this case study easy to digest.

This is another case study that shows the importance of using a clearly defined design process. Going by its popularity on Behance, you can tell that the step-by-step process breakdown was well worth the effort.

6. Intelly healthcare app

If you’re looking for a UX case study that explores the design journey for both mobile and desktop versions of an app, this is one you should check out:

This case study explores the process of creating Intelly, an app that transforms patient care with telemedicine, prescription management, and real-time tracking. The case study begins with a clear design goal, followed by a layout of existing problems and design opportunities. The final design is a mobile app for patients and a desktop app for doctors.

This case study highlights the importance of proactive problem-solving and creative thinking in the design process. The creators laid out some key problems, identified design opportunities in them, and effectively leveraged them to create an app.

7. Cox Automotive

If you prefer a results-oriented case study, you’ll love this one:

This case study delves into how Cox Automotive’s Manheim division, used LogRocket to optimize their customers’ digital experience for remote car auctions. It starts by highlighting the three key outcomes before giving us an executive summary of the case study. The rest of the case study takes us through the process of achieving the highlighted outcomes.

A key takeaway from this case study is the significance of using user data and feedback to enhance the digital experience continuously. Cox Automotive used LogRocket to identify and address user-reported issues, gain insights into customer behaviors, and make data-driven decisions to optimize their product.

These case studies are more focused on the visual aspects of the design process, teaching us a thing or two about presentation and delivery.

If you love a case study that scores high on aesthetics with vivid colors, cool illustrations, and fun animations, you need to check this one out:

This case study takes us on a visual journey of creating Rebank, a digital product aimed at revolutionizing the baking industry. It starts with the research process, moves on to branding and style, and then takes us through the different screens, explaining what each one offers.

This case study illustrates the value of thinking outside the box. Breaking away from the conventional design style of financial products makes it a stand-out case study.

9. Swiftwash Laundry

If you’re looking for a case study that prioritizes aesthetics and visual appeal, you should check this one out:

This case study by Orbix Studio gives us a peek into how they created Swiftwash, a laundry service app. It takes us through the steps involved in creating an intuitive, user-friendly, and visually appealing interface.

If there’s one thing to take away from this case study, it’s the value of presenting information in a straightforward manner. Besides being easy on the eye, this case study is also easy to digest. The creators lay out the problem and detail the steps taken to achieve a solution, in an easy-to-follow way, while maintaining a high visual appeal.

10. Wayfaro trip planner

If you’re looking for a concise case study with clean visuals, you should definitely check this one out:

This Behance case study takes us through the design of Wayfaro, a trip planner app that allows users to plan their itineraries for upcoming journeys. The creators dive straight into the visual design process, showing us aspects such as branding and user flow, and explaining the various features on each screen.

This case study shows us the power of an attractive presentation. Not only is the mobile app design visually appealing, but the design process is presented in a sleek and stylish manner.

App redesign

These case studies delve into the redesign of existing apps, offering valuable insights into presentation techniques and problem-solving approaches.

11. New York Times app redesign

If you’re looking for an app redesign case study that’s impactful yet concise, this one is for you:

This study details the creation of “Timely,” a design feature to address issues with the NYT app such as irrelevant content, low usage, and undesirable coverage. It takes us through the process of identifying the problem, understanding audience needs, creating wireframes, and prototyping.

This case study shows us that you don’t always need to overhaul the existing app when redesigning. It suggests a solution that fits into the current information setup, adding custom graphics to the mobile app. Starting with a simple problem statement, it proposes a solution to address the app’s issues without changing what customers already enjoy.

12. Disney+ app redesign

If you’re looking for an engaging case study that’s light on information, you should check out this one:

This case study by Andre Carioca dives right into giving the user interface a little facelift to make it more fun and engaging. By employing compelling storytelling and appealing visuals, the creator crafts a narrative that’s a delight to read.

Given how popular this case study is on Behance, you can tell that the designer did something right. It shows how injecting a little playfulness can elevate your case study and make it more delightful.

13. Fitbit redesign

If you want an in-depth case study that doesn’t bore you to sleep, this one is for you:

This case study by Stacey Wang takes us through the process of redesigning Fitbit, a wearable fitness tracker. The creator starts by understanding personas and what users expect from a fitness tracker.

Next was the development of use cases and personas. Through a series of guerrilla tests, they were able to identify user pain points. The redesign was centered around addressing these pain points.

This case study highlights the importance of clear organization and strong visual communication. The creator goes in-depth into the intricacies of redesigning the Fitbit app, highlighting every step, without boring the readers.

14. Ryanair app redesign

If you’re bored of the usual static case studies and need something more interactive, this app redesign is what you’re looking for:

This case study takes us through the process of giving the Ryanair app a fresh look. Besides the clean aesthetics and straightforward presentation, the incorporation of playful language and interactive elements makes this case study captivating.

This case study shows how adding a bit of interactivity to your presentation can elevate your work.

15. Forbes app redesign

This case study starts by explaining why the redesign was needed and dives deep into analyzing the current app. The creator then takes us through the research and ideation phases and shares their proposed solution. After testing the solution, they made iterations based on the results.

When it comes to redesigning an existing product, it’s a good idea to make a strong case for why the redesign was needed in the first place.

UX research

These case studies are centered around UX research, highlighting key research insights to enhance your design process.

16. Enhancing virtual teaching with Google Meet

This case study by Amanda Rosenburg, Head of User Experience Research, Google Classroom shows us how listening to user feedback can help make our products more useful and inclusive to users.

To improve the virtual teaching experience on Google Meet, the team spent a lot of time getting feedback from teachers. They then incorporated this feedback into the product design, resulting in new functionality like attendance taking, hand raising, waiting rooms, and polls. Not only did these new features improve the user experience for teachers and students, but they also created a better user experience for all Google Meet users.

When there isn’t room for extensive user research and you need to make quick improvements to the user experience, it’s best to go straight to your users for feedback.

17. Airbnb’s global check-in tool

This case study by Vibha Bamba, Design Lead on Airbnb’s Host Success team, shows us how observing user behaviors inspired the creation of a global check-in tool:

By observing interactions between guests and hosts, the Airbnb team discovered a design opportunity. This led to the creation of visual check-in guides for Airbnb guests, which they can access both offline and online.

There’s a lot to be learned from observing user behavior. Don’t limit yourself to insights obtained from periodic research. Instead, observe how people interact with your product in their daily lives. The insights obtained from such observations can help unlock ingenious design opportunities.

18. Spotify Home Shortcuts

This case study by Nhi Ngo, a Senior User Researcher at Spotify shows us the importance of a human perspective in a data-driven world:

When the Spotify team set out to develop and launch the ML-powered Shortcuts feature on the home tab, they hit a brick wall with the naming. A/B tests came back inconclusive. In the end, they had to go with the product designer’s suggestion of giving the feature a name that would create a more human and personal experience for users.

This led to the creation of a humanistic product feature that evoked joy in Spotify’s users and led to the incorporation of more time-based features in the model, making the content more time-sensitive for users.

Although data-driven research is powerful, it doesn’t hold all the answers. So in your quest to uncover answers through research, never lose sight of the all-important human perspective.

Artificial intelligence

The following case studies are centered around the design of AI-powered products.

19. AI-powered spatial banking for Apple Vision Pro

If you want to be wowed by a futuristic case study that merges artificial intelligence with spatial banking, you should check this out:

In this revolutionary case study, UXDA designers offer a sneak peek into the future with a banking experience powered by AI. They unveil their vision of AI-powered spatial banking on the visionOS platform, showcasing its features and their AI use cases.

This case study shows us the importance of pushing boundaries to create innovative experiences that cater to user needs and preferences.

20. Sage Express

If what you need is an AI case study that isn’t information-dense, this one is for you:

This case study by Arounda takes us through the design of Sage Express, an AI-powered data discovery tool that automatically extracts patterns, tendencies, and insights from data. It outlines the challenge, proposes a solution, and details the journey of bringing the proposed solution to life. But it doesn’t stop there: it also shows the actual results of the design using tangible metrics.

This case study underscores the importance of showing your outcomes in tangible form. You’ve worked hard on a project, but what were the actual results?

If you’re looking for a clean and well-structured AI case study, this will be helpful:

This case study takes us through the process of creating Delfi, an AI-driven banking financial report system. It details the entire design process from onboarding to prototype creation.

If there’s one thing to learn from this case study, it’s how a well-structured presentation can simplify complex information. Although the case study is heavy on financial data, the organized layout not only enhances visual appeal but also aids comprehension.

This article has shown you 21 powerful case study examples across various niches, each providing valuable insights into the design process. These case studies demonstrate the importance of showcasing the design journey, not just the final polished product.

When creating your own case study, remember to walk your users through the design process, the challenges you faced, and your solutions. This gives potential recruiters and clients a glimpse of your creativity and problem-solving skills.

And finally, don’t forget to add that human touch. Let your personality shine through and don’t be afraid to inject a little playfulness and storytelling where appropriate. By doing so, you can craft a case study that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

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20+ Outstanding UX/UI Design Case Studies

Discover an expertly curated collection of 20+ inspirational UX/UI design case studies that will empower you to create outstanding case studies for your own portfolio.

• Comprehensive end-to-end case studies covering research, ideation, design, testing, and conclusions.
• Perfect for designers building portfolios and looking for inspiration to create their own case studies.
• Learn new methods and techniques, improve your understanding, and apply them to your projects.
• Gain insights from the successes and challenges of accomplished designers.

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All case studies included in this collection are sourced from real designers' portfolios and are used for the purpose of learning and inspiration. The original authors retain all rights to their work.

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11 Amazing UX design examples to learn from

Good UX design can make or break the relationship you have with customer. Here are 11 brilliant UX design examples to learn from.

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Good UX design can make or break your business’s product and customer relationships. Because of this, products are more people-focused than they’ve ever been. Today, best practices include answering JTBD (jobs-to-be-done) or customer needs, accommodating diverse people, offering easy-to-use interfaces, and delighting users at every step of the journey.

In this article, we’ll take our hat off for some of the most delightful user experience examples we’ve seen in recent years, whether it’s new tech, innovative visuals, or smart—JTBD-focused—experiences. Here are the products that leave users coming back for more, and can inspire best practices to apply in your own UX design strategy.

Grab a cup of something hot, sit back, and enjoy some of the top UX examples at the moment.

Top B2B & B2C UX design examples

UX matters. A PwC survey of 15,000 consumers found that one in three consumers will leave a brand they love after one bad experience. That same survey study found that almost 80% of American consumers say convenience and speed are among the most important factors to a good customer experience.

There’s no denying the wonders good UX design can do for your brand, so let’s take a look at what it looks like in this article.

Airbnb's booking experience

Source: Airbnb

A UX design example most are familiar with, Airbnb is leading the charge when it comes to creating a booking experience that gets the job done for websites. Airbnb has clearly done their research. The homepage design addresses typical pain points travelers have when trying to find accommodation.

The homepage also inspires travelers who are unsure where to go by offering popular destinations nearby. It gives a mix of what people love: entire homes, pet-friendly homes, or unique stays. The action of booking is simple and at the top of the fold. Quick, clear, and user-friendly.

Lesson learned? Research users’ needs and problems in your design process and use the data to determine what matters most to them. Once you know, offer it up on a plate.

Netflix’s autoplay features

Source: Netflix

The autoplay features from Netflix are quite possibly some of the most intrusive and heavily debated UX features to grace the planet.

There are two autoplay features that people have a love/hate relationship with.

• The Netflix ‘play next episode’ feature has made our minds up for us on more than one occasion. It’s a fantastic example of doing a job the user wants to do without even needing to ask.
• Netflix also introduced an autoplay trailer feature as you scroll through their media library—giving users quick insights into the movies and series they hover over. This particular autoplay feature was met with a great deal of controversy and debate.

The second feature forces engagement at the cost of the annoyance of the users and is generally referred to as a Dark UX pattern.

After a general uproar, the time came for Netflix to enable users to switch off this autoplay feature.

You win some; you lose some. Lesson learned ? Test new features with your users before you mass-release. Stay customer-centric, not product-centric, and integrate data-driven user experiences.

Miro’s user onboarding

Source: Miro

Miro does a fantastic job of nudging their user base towards an Aha! moment by focusing on a user’s job to be done.

Miro enables users to build the board they need and learn as they go with modal popups as they navigate their way through building a board. The popups are unobtrusive and tailored to the user’s in-app actions.

Lesson learned ? Helping a user get value from your app and reach their Aha! Moment faster is a key principle of a great user experience. Find small ways to support your users by providing them the information they need upfront to complete their tasks. You can do this in-app, or with email and visit a user’s inbox with product tips, and onboarding bumpers.

Headspace’s inspiring UX retention strategy

With a 4.8 star rating on the app store and over 13k reviews, Headspace is a leader in the online meditation market. Dealing with users looking to overcome stress and anxiety, sleep better, and live a mentally healthier life, it’s critical that the app experience is as smooth as any meditation they practice.

We particularly love the Headspace app’s focus on gamification to build user retention. Much like Duolingo, Headspace manages to bring a competitive edge to the educational world. It offers goals and keeps users active daily on the app with an ongoing streak—pushing people to meditate every day and keep a regular practice.

Lesson learned ? Good UX can help toward critical product success metrics. 90% of users have stopped using an app due to poor performance. A great experience can not only deter someone from leaving, but it can encourage them to use your app even more.

Todoist’s recurring tasks feature

Source: Todoist

Todoist have a wealth of features to help people manage their personal or team tasks. The app is easy to navigate, drag and drop-friendly and gives you that ingrained sense of gratification when you cross a task off a to-do list.

However, the UX design example we particularly want to call out is Todoist’s recurring due dates. It’s a simple feature that showcases Todoist has really done their user research and identified one of their users’ key tasks.

Lesson learned ? Identify your users’ needs by researching their recurring tasks. If there’s a way to simplify or automate a key task, design accordingly.

Mailchimp’s password guidance

Source: Mailchimp

Mailchimp is often championed when it comes to its brand. They sit at the top of the food chain and for good reason. However, it’s not their branding alone that’s doing them favors; it’s the way they deliver it—through innovative UX design and copy.

Their password guidance in their welcome form is a fantastic example of this. No one likes to be told they need their go-to password to be stronger and fulfil criteria it’s never had to before. However, Mailchimp guides users in a friendly way to generate a stronger password. Plus, at the end of it, you get this gratifying checkbox popup. You’re all set!

Lesson learned ? Good UX design can make routine tasks that people typically don’t enjoy more pleasant. Sign-up forms or profile creation can become a great experience with the right UX guidance and design principles.

Revolut’s customizable app

Source: Revolut

Who said we couldn’t enjoy banking? Revolut is leading the charge with its user-friendly banking app that allows users to customize their own experience as they like. For this, they get pride of place in this UX design examples list. Customers can switch out backgrounds, icons, and chop and change the home screen as they see fit.

Lesson learned ? Empower users to make a product theirs by allowing them to tweak the design to fit their preferences.

Duolingo’s gamified experience

Source: Duolingo

We briefly mentioned Duolingo earlier and likened its gamification to that of Headspace, however, Duolingo takes gamification to a whole new level in their UX design.

The platform is fun and friendly while challenging users to keep learning. They manage to make the experience of learning a new language more interesting by combining animations, a light-hearted tone of voice, and gamified UX such as levels, streaks, and more.

Lesson learned ? Gamification still works wonders and it’s expected to be a $30.7 billion market by 2025. Think about ways you can gamify your brand experience. Badges, levels, unlocking new content—all of these features will encourage users to stick around.

Take it a step further and gamify brand communications via email, chat responses, or other communication channels.

Medium’s “clap” feature

Source: Medium

This one’s an oldie but a goldie. Medium’s clap your appreciation feature was fantastically innovative when it first aired, and it still is. It’s a simple yet unique way of showing appreciation as opposed to hitting a like button. We’ve seen it tweaked and adapted over the years—most recently by TikTok.

Lesson learned ? If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. Good UX design doesn’t need to be about reinventing the wheel. If you like a UX design idea and think it will work well with your product or website and audience—then make it your own and try it out.

If it’s simple, joyful, and serves its purpose, you’re on to a winner.

Spotify’s Year Wrapped

Source: Spotify

You’re most likely familiar with Spotify’s end-of-year wrapped stories that flood your social feeds. Spotify makes the list as a top UX design example for the power of data and what it can do for your content.

They share this piece of content in a story format, one that most are familiar with thanks to Instagram and give users one-click options to share their story with friends.

Lesson learned ? Leverage user data stories in your designs and deliver users content that’s entirely unique to them. Spotify gets pride of place on this list of UX design examples for their innovative use of data, sticking to formats people know, and creating an experience that has the potential and ease to go viral.

Glovo’s navigation

Last but not least on our UX design list is Glovo. The app has a tricky job. There’s a high chance people are coming to it hungry, which means they want their need to be met in the quickest way possible.

Glovo not only set up great navigation to find a food source but the UX of their app makes each button clear, and perfectly pairs visuals with copy.

As you click through to find your restaurant, you’re given fewer options and eventually, a list of restaurants broken down by user needs: something fast, something cheap, something rated well.

The entire experience is rapid, done in a few clicks, and fills bellies as quickly as possible. Keeping everyone happy.

Lesson learned ? Remember what your users are here for, and get them to it as quickly as possible.

UX Design FAQs

To help us answer these UX design FAQs, we spoke to Adriano Trenahi , Product Design Manager at Eventbrite (previously eDreams & Mango).

• What is considered good UX design? What is considered bad UX?

“There are standard ways of evaluating UX. The most famous is Jakob Nielsen's 10 general principles for interaction design , also known as usability heuristics—although this does not necessarily apply only to usability.

Personally, I say good UX is when a user can achieve a certain objective in the easiest, fastest, and most pleasurable way possible; considering the situation, environment, and UX tools available .

For example, imagine a person that wants to share a photo on their phone with friends. There are plenty of ways in which you could do that, good UX designers would aim to reduce effort and avoid unnecessary taps by predicting and prompting suggestions on the phone interface. It would also consider more aspects such as voice commands or proximity sensors.

Good UX is unnoticeable most of the time, although a feeling of relief and easiness when completing a task or using a service are positive indicators.

Adriano Trenahi , Product Design Manager at Eventbrite

That feeling of relief and easiness when completing a task or using a service are also indicators of good UX.

Bad UX, on the other hand, is very noticeable as it generates frustration, annoyance, and anxiety, whether in a user’s app or inbox. It can make a user feel stupid when that’s not the case.

An excellent example of that? Norman Doors. A Norman door is a door whose design tells the person to do the opposite of what they're supposed to do. Watch this video from VOX , and to better understand how bad UX is embedded in our world.”— Adriano Trenahi, Product Design Manager at Eventbrite

• Is it possible to have good UX with bad UI?

“In my opinion, no. They go hand in hand. UX is only good when its aesthetics follows. Imagine creating a great product or service but displaying them with hard-to-read typography, a small or super big button, a color palette that is perceived as untrustful, or images that are disrespectful to a particular culture. Those are essential aspects that you need to consider, and your product or service won't thrive if you don’t nail them all.” — Adriano Trenahi, Product Design Manager at Eventbrite

• What does a UX designer do?

A UX designer (user experience designer) focuses on building a positive experience for someone and a business’s product. UX designers are typically responsible for user research, creating design solutions, and user testing. UX designers are the in-house voice of the customer.

The Complete Guide to UX Case Studies

Updated: October 23, 2023

Published: August 21, 2023

Writing a UX case study can be overwhelming with the proper guidance. Designing for the user experience and writing about it in a case study is much more than writing content for a webpage. You may ask, “If my design speaks for itself, should I include a UX case study in my portfolio?”

Yes, you should include UX case studies in your portfolio. And here’s why.

You need to make your portfolio stand out among the crowd. A UX case study is a great way to do that. Let’s take a minute to define what a UX case study is and look at some examples.

Table of Contents

What is a UX case study?

The benefits of ux case studies, examples of ux case studies, tips for creating a ux case study.

UX portfolios are essential to showcasing UX designer skills and abilities. Every UX designer knows better designs bring better results. Sometimes, it’s easy to let the design speak for itself — after all, it is meant to engage the audience.

But, in doing that, you, as the designer, leave many things unsaid. For example, the initial problem, the need for the design in the first place, and your process for arriving at the design you created.

This is why you need to include UX case studies in your portfolio.

UX case studies tell a curated story or journey of your design. It explains the “who, what, when, where, and how” of your design. The text should be short and sweet but also walk the reader through the thinking behind the design and the outcome of it.

[Video: Creating a UX Case Study: Right and Wrong Way to Approach It]

There are many benefits to including UX case studies in your portfolio. Think of your UX portfolio as a well-decorated cake. The designs are the cake, and UX case studies are the icing on the cake— they will catch your audience's eye and seal the deal.

Take a look at the benefits of adding UX case studies to your portfolio.

Don't forget to share this post!

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20 of the Best UX Portfolio Examples

So, you’re looking for some UX portfolio inspiration?

Making sure you’ve got an impressive portfolio to your name is important for both fresh-faced UX designers and seasoned industry veterans.

In this article, we’ll try to inspire you with awesome UX portfolio examples and UX design portfolio best practices.

The 20 Best UX Portfolios

Without further ado, here are our picks of the best UX design portfolio examples.

1. Gloria Lo nails the high-impact introduction

Who is gloria lo.

Gloria Lo is a self-taught product designer based in Sydney, Australia. In her own words, she is passionate about improving the lives of others through design and is constantly looking to learn new things every day.

What makes Gloria’s UX design portfolio so great?

One of the first things your UX portfolio should do is introduce you as a designer. Employers and potential clients want to know who you are and what you’re all about—and they should be able to find this out within seconds of landing on your portfolio website.

Gloria has nailed her designer introduction with a three-tiered approach. First, she treats us to a bold, eye-catching headline that describes her in terms of her favorite activities.

In just four simple verbs, we know that Gloria is a creative, multi-talented soul with quite a few hobbies in her repertoire. Oh, and these verbs “light up” in different colors when you hover over them—a nice additional dash of personality!

After such an enticing headline, we’re inevitably curious to know more about Gloria—and sure enough, her portfolio delivers. Directly beneath that unmissable heading, Gloria tells us exactly what she does and what she’s passionate about in just two sentences.

Gloria has mastered the delicate art of brevity while still managing to convey the most important information—not an easy feat!

By now, Gloria has well and truly piqued the viewer’s interest. Luckily, her portfolio also features a comprehensive “About” page, complete with a video, a section detailing her values (with the help of emojis), a very thorough testimonial from a former employer, and links to her music and artwork.

What can we learn from Gloria Lo?

When it comes to your own UX design portfolio, make like Gloria and be sure to include a meaningful introduction. Keep it compact yet high-impact on the home page, and then provide more detail in a dedicated “About” section.

Besides crafting a gripping “about me” statement, try to inject a bit of personality into the visual design, too—just like Gloria’s colorful hover effect.

Key takeaway

The viewer should know exactly who you are and what you do within seconds of landing on your UX design portfolio. Craft a compelling headline that provides all the most important information at a glance.

View Gloria Lo’s full portfolio website

2. Moritz Oesterlau masters the art of storytelling through case studies

Who is moritz oesterlau.

Moritz Oesterlau is a multi-skilled product/UX designer based in Germany. He also dabbles in interface design and frontend development.

Moritz studied UX design with CareerFoundry and is now part of the Global Goals Curriculum 2030 team, helping to shape a democratic, just, and sustainable society through the power of education.

What makes Moritz’s UX design portfolio so great?

Moritz’s portfolio really gets to the heart of what UX design is all about: going through a process to solve a user problem. Moritz doesn’t just show the finished product; he shares, in detail, all the methods and processes that got him there.

Each project is presented as a case study, which immediately tells us we’re in for a lot more than just eye candy.

Click on any one of these case studies and you almost feel like you’re in the room with Moritz himself—a fly-on-the-wall as he works through his UX design process.

Take the Approach to Digitization in Education case study , for example. Moritz leaves no stone unturned, documenting the project from start to finish.

He takes us on a logical journey, putting the design challenge into context before going through competitor analysis , interviews and surveys, building empathy and creating user personas , defining the information architecture , wireframing , prototyping, and usability testing .

For each step, he explains what he did, why he did it, and what he learned as a result.

What can we learn from Moritz Oesterlau?

When showcasing your UX design work, follow Moritz’s example and place your process front and center. You’ll notice that Moritz doesn’t show the finished product until the very end of each case study, and that’s because he’s telling a logical story.

With each case study, start from the beginning and guide the viewer through the main steps that led you to the final solution. It’s okay to include screenshots of a beautiful end product, but make sure you’ve documented your process in detail first.

Showcase your process, not just the finished product. Write about the methods you used, what you learned along the way, the challenges you came up against, and how you solved certain problems. Each case study should tell a complete, logical story.

View Moritz Oesterlau’s full portfolio website

3. Elizabeth Lin reigns supreme with visual storytelling

Who is elizabeth lin.

Elizabeth Lin is a San Francisco-based product designer and self-proclaimed fashion, teaching, and classical saxophone enthusiast.

What makes Elizabeth’s UX design portfolio so great?

Elizabeth Lin’s portfolio provides another excellent example of storytelling. Just like Moritz, she presents her design work in the form of case studies, documenting her process from start to finish.

What really stands out in Elizabeth’s portfolio, though, is her use of visuals to support the narrative she’s weaving.

Each point in her case study is illustrated with some kind of visual element—be it a virtual wall of Post-it notes, a survey form that was sent to research participants, or early-stage prototypes.

Another effective storytelling technique that Elizabeth uses is to include little bitesized notes and reflections down the right-hand side.

Set in a different font and color to the main body text, these snippets catch your eye as you scroll.

They provide further, more personal insights into the project—such as “It was cool seeing how differently teachers would use this dashboard” or “We didn’t move forward with this exploration because we wanted to validate the base solution first.”

Supporting your case studies with visual artifacts really brings the project to life. Elizabeth’s portfolio illustrates perfectly how visual and textual storytelling should work together to demonstrate your UX design process.

What can we learn from Elizabeth Lin?

The aim of your UX portfolio is to both show and tell. Just like Elizabeth, support each case study with meaningful visuals—that is, real artifacts from your project, not just illustrations.

Every time you work on a new design project, document your process: take screenshots of user research surveys you send out, snap photos of your wall covered in sticky notes after a heavy brainstorming session, and keep hold of your wireframes as they progress from low to high fidelity.

When it comes to adding a new case study to your portfolio, these artifacts will help you tell a logical story.

Don’t just tell the story of each project; bring it to life with visual artifacts. For each step you go through in your case study, include a photo or screenshot of how it looked in action.

View Elizabeth Lin’s full portfolio website

4. Olivia Truong showcases her approach to problem-solving

Who is olivia truong.

Olivia Truong is a product designer based in Boston, Massachusetts. In her own words, Olivia likes to go out into the world and capture its beauty and weirdness.

What makes Olivia’s UX design portfolio so great?

Above all else, UX designers are problem-solvers. Your UX design portfolio should therefore demonstrate how you identify and tackle a variety of user problems. Olivia’s portfolio does a great job of this, as you’ll see in her Routr case study .

Olivia kicks off her case study by framing the problem in a personal, relatable way. She doesn’t just talk about the “user” problem—she frames it as “our” problem, inviting the reader to step into the user’s shoes, just as she has done.

Next, Olivia explains, in detail, how she set about trying to solve this problem—in a section aptly named “There Must Be Something Out There”. We learn how she scoured the internet and App Store for a solution, only to find that none of the existing solutions fit the bill.

In the section that follows, “Taking The Dive”, Olivia shares the next steps in her problem-solving journey: brainstorming the elements of a successful date.

After thoroughly framing the problem and describing her approach to solving it, Olivia moves onto “The Making Of Routr.” Notice how, even when talking about her solution, Olivia consistently refers back to the original user problem.

Olivia’s portfolio portrays her as a thoughtful problem-solver—granting her huge bonus points in the eyes of any recruiter or potential client. This focus on problem-solving also conveys another essential UX trait: empathy for the user.

When reading Olivia’s case study, you don’t get the feeling that she’s just going through the motions; she’s genuinely engaged in the problem and how she can solve it for the user. That’s the sign of a passionate UX designer!

What can we learn from Olivia Truong?

UX designers are problem-solvers, so make sure your portfolio reflects that. There are two key lessons we can learn from Olivia’s portfolio: first, start each case study by framing the problem in detail, and second, frame the problem in a way that conveys empathy.

Above all, think about the language you use. Don’t just state the problem; relate to it and put some emotion behind it! Olivia describes how planning dates was a “headache” because “coming up with ideas was not the easiest thing to do in our busy lives.”

This is much more personal and empathy-driven than if she’d said “Users struggle to come up with date ideas because they’re so busy.” Last but not least, refer back to the original problem throughout—even when you progress to the solution.

Your UX design portfolio should demonstrate your approach to problem-solving. Kick off each case study by framing the problem in detail, using emotive language to convey empathy. Refer back to the problem throughout.

View Olivia Truong’s full portfolio website

5. Priyanka Gupta is the queen of the unsolicited redesign

Who is priyanka gupta.

Priyanka Gupta is a product designer and tech enthusiast based in San Francisco. Aside from creating awesome user experiences, Priyanka is also pretty active on Medium .

What makes Priyanka’s UX design portfolio so great?

Early on in your UX career, you might struggle to fill your portfolio with real projects. As your career progresses, you might look for ways to make your portfolio stand out. So what can you do?

Cue the unsolicited redesign à la Priyanka Gupta.

When Priyanka runs into bad UX, she can’t help but do something about it. Where most of us might just abandon ship and find an alternative product, Priyanka goes above and beyond: she redesigns the entire experience!

So, in addition to real client projects, Priyanka’s UX portfolio also showcases some rather impressive unsolicited redesigns.

One can’t help but be impressed by Priyanka’s initiative and drive. She’s gone out of her way to redesign an entire digital experience, just because she’s passionate about good UX—how cool is that?!

What’s also interesting is how Priyanka chooses to showcase these redesigns. She could just stick to the standard case study format, but as we know, she’s the kind of designer who likes to go above and beyond.

Click on one of her unsolicited portfolio pieces and you’ll be taken to a full-on, published blog post. Nice!

Despite the fact that these unsolicited redesigns are pure “passion projects”, Priyanka lends them the credibility they deserve by documenting her process in detail.

In her redesign of the Sephora iOS app , she starts by framing the problem: “Despite using the app religiously, I had trouble navigating through it. After observing that other people also experienced issues with the app, I pursued this redesign as an opportunity to improve the experience in any way I could.”

What follows is a detailed breakdown of every step she took to redesign the app, from brand analysis, user research, and affinity mapping , right through to persona creation, prototyping, and implementation—not forgetting those all-important visual artifacts that are absolutely crucial to UX storytelling!

What can we learn from Priyanka Gupta?

Priyanka is an experienced UX designer who presumably has plenty of real projects for her portfolio. This doesn’t stop her from conducting unsolicited redesigns when she comes across intolerably bad UX—as she puts it, it’s like an itch she just needs to scratch!

If you’re a new UX designer trying to build up your portfolio, take a leaf out of Priyanka’s book and complete some unsolicited redesigns of your own. This is a great way to demonstrate initiative and show that you’re a proactive designer who is willing to go the extra mile.

Just as Priyanka does, be transparent about the fact that these are unsolicited projects—a simple disclaimer is all you need.

Another valuable takeaway from Priyanka’s portfolio is the power of blogging. Priyanka doesn’t just limit herself to her portfolio website; she also shares her case studies and tips via Medium (where she’s accrued over a thousand followers!).

There are many different ways to share your process, so don’t be afraid to try a multichannel approach.

Unsolicited redesigns are an excellent way to build up your UX portfolio and demonstrate your initiative as a designer. As always, frame the problem, document your process, and tell a good story—and don’t forget to include a disclaimer.

View Priyanka Gupta’s full portfolio website

6. Lola Jiang delivers measurable outcomes and metrics

Who is lola jiang.

Lola Jiang is a California-based UX designer currently working at Google. Lola’s impressive resume includes having worked at YouTube as an interaction designer.

What makes Lola’s UX design portfolio so great?

One of the biggest challenges you’ll face as a UX designer is measuring and demonstrating the impact of your work. You know you’ve improved the user experience, but how do you substantiate that?

Look no further than Lola Jiang’s portfolio. Lola does an extremely important (yet scarce) thing: she puts the measurable impact of her UX design in the context of business needs.

Take her AI Training Platform case study, for example. Following a brief introduction to the project (literally one sentence), Lola offers the project’s outcomes: “The new design reduced task times by 68% and improved users’ subjective satisfaction by 139%.”

It’s immediate and impactful. Lola then takes us through the flow of the project, outlining the scale and scope of the work. She details the challenges, different iterations, and design, and clearly demonstrates the motivations behind decisions.

Lola rounds off her case study with a post-relaunch analysis, using concrete data to validate the final redesign: “With the original design, the set of tasks took 19 minutes. With the new design, the set of tasks took 6 minutes. Nearly 68%. Users’ subjective satisfaction with the new design (4.3/5) was 139% higher than the original design (1.8/5).”

What can we learn from Lola Jiang?

Lola does a great job of showing how she works in a business setting. This is crucial if you want to practice UX for a living, but it’s a trick that many designers tend to miss. While it’s true that you’re there to advocate for the user, it’s also important to recognize that companies have their own goals to meet—and you need to show how UX contributes to that.

If, like Lola, you can demonstrate how your work brings value, you’ll set yourself up for some serious bonus points. If you have data related to the project, this will be easy—but what if there aren’t any concrete metrics to showcase?

Even without data, you can frame your work in a business context. Set a business or product goal at the start of the case study. What do you hope your work will achieve? This is separate from the user goal, but the two should go hand in hand.

For example, creating a more pleasant app experience for the user should help to boost customer retention.

Likewise, establish a few success metrics before you begin. How will you measure the impact of your work? What tell-tale signs will you look out for after you’ve launched or relaunched the product? The best UX designers are those who can advocate for the user while meeting the needs of the business, so try to convey this throughout your portfolio.

Use your portfolio to demonstrate how you add value to the business. Set business goals and success metrics for each case study, and, where possible, include data and tangible outcomes.

View Lola Jiang’s full portfolio website.

7. Daniel Autry features “just the right amount” of portfolio projects

Who is daniel autry.

Daniel Autry is a designer, developer, and behavioural researcher based in Charlottesville, Virginia. He is fascinated by the social product space and is currently researching the intersection between technology and mental illness.

What makes Daniel’s UX design portfolio so great?

Daniel Autry’s portfolio features some remarkable work in the mental health space, but that’s not the only reason he’s made it onto this list. Daniel’s portfolio also helps to answer that all-too-common conundrum: What’s the “right” amount of projects to showcase in your UX design portfolio?

Before we go any further, let’s be clear on one thing: There’s no “magic number” when it comes to portfolio projects. Some people will tell you five, others will say three—you might even hear that one is enough!

Daniel has opted to showcase four projects in his UX portfolio, and while we’re not saying that he’s found THE magic number, it is a magic number of sorts.

In other words, Daniel has found the number that works for him: He features just enough projects to showcase his range as a designer while still keeping it limited enough so as not to overwhelm the user—smart UX design in action!

In the space of just four featured case studies, we see that Daniel is a versatile designer who has worked on a variety of projects across a range of sectors—from mental health to financial trading to e-learning. So, it’s not just about how many projects you showcase; it’s just as important to pick a good variety.

Besides his four featured projects, Daniel’s portfolio also includes a section dedicated to “Other Works”. Here, he links to articles he’s written on Medium, additional projects he’s worked on, as well as upcoming endeavors.

This is a great way to divide your portfolio, especially if you’re struggling to decide which of your best work should feature!

What can we learn from Daniel Autry?

Daniel’s portfolio teaches us an important lesson about the “right” number of portfolio projects: There isn’t one! Every UX designer is unique, and your portfolio should reflect that.

Don’t get too hung up on whether you should include three projects or five; focus instead on selecting a handful of projects that best showcase who you are as a designer.

If you want to brand yourself as a versatile, adaptable designer, feature as diverse a variety of projects as possible.

If you see yourself as a specialist in a certain industry, highlight the projects that demonstrate this. At the same time, don’t overwhelm the viewer: a hiring manager looking through your portfolio probably won’t browse through ten UX case studies, so choose wisely!

There is no hard-and-fast rule when it comes to how many projects you should feature in your portfolio. Choose a good enough variety to showcase your skillset, while keeping it minimal enough so as not to overwhelm the user. If you’ve got lots more work you want to showcase, add a separate section.

View Daniel Autry’s full portfolio website

8. Vera Chen highlights the importance of context

Who is vera chen.

Vera Chen is a product designer and former Facebook intern. She has a Master’s degree in Human-Centered Design and Engineering, and has also dabbled in singing and acting.

What makes Vera’s UX design portfolio so great?

Not only is Vera’s portfolio a beautiful thing to behold (just look at those illustrations!); it also highlights the importance of context when presenting your UX work.

Vera doesn’t just outline the problem statement for each case study—she steeps it in a solid back story, describing the events that led her there. She also clearly explains her role on each project, who she worked with, and what design and prototyping tools and methods they used.

Just by including these few extra details, Vera paints a clear picture of what the project entailed and how she contributed. Another excellent example of UX storytelling!

Let’s take Vera’s Wedding Library case study , for example. See how she dedicates two whole sections to setting the scene? First, there’s the project background which lays out the scope of the project. Then there’s the context section, a detailed story about newlyweds Murphy and Diana and the frustrations they faced when planning two weddings.

Vera doesn’t just tell us what the problem is. She shows us exactly how it came to light, and in what capacity she was employed to help solve it. By the time we scroll down to Vera’s process, it’s easy to see where each step fits into the overall project.

It’s a bit like reading a novel: you need a little bit of background before you can start relating to the characters and the plot.

What can we learn from Vera Chen?

There are two very simple yet effective takeaways to be had from Vera’s portfolio. First and foremost, provide plenty of background context—this works wonders when telling the story of each case study.

Vera doesn’t start with the problem statement; she sets the scene, describing the people, events, and circumstances that surround and lead up to this particular design challenge. Aim to precede your problem statement with a small paragraph dedicated to “setting the scene”.

Secondly, state your role on each project. What were you commissioned to do? Where did you fit into the overall team? At the same time, listing your teammates is a nice touch; UX design is a highly collaborative field, so it’s important to demonstrate individual value while acknowledging that the end result was a team effort!

For each case study in your UX portfolio, provide as much context as you can. Set the scene with a brief backstory before launching into your problem statement. This includes stating your role on the project and, if necessary, who you worked with.

View Vera Chen’s full portfolio website

9. Zara Drei bedazzles with awesome UX and UI

Who is zara drei.

Zara Drei is a London-based UX designer. When she’s not solving problems with beautiful, user-centric web products, you can find her playing around with electronics, making video loops, building ceramic and metal sculptures, or producing electronic music.

What makes Zara’s UX design portfolio so great?

We’ve talked a lot about the importance of showcasing your UX design process. Now it’s time to contemplate the power of beautiful UI! This brings us to Zara Drei’s portfolio—the epitome of digital elegance.

Zara specializes in creating digital products and experiences for luxury, fashion, and beauty brands, and this is reflected in every detail of her portfolio.

In fact, scrolling through Zara’s portfolio is like wandering through the beauty department of a high-end store, or flipping through the pages of a glossy magazine—and that’s no accident.

She has given as much thought to her color palette , typography , and imagery as she has to writing up her case studies and sharing her process. The result? A flawless portfolio that truly makes its mark.

What can we learn from Zara Drei?

Your UX design portfolio is not just a website—it’s part of your personal brand. Like your case studies, the overall aesthetic of your portfolio should tell a story about who you are as a designer. Consider how Zara uses color and imagery to evoke a sense of luxury throughout her portfolio; how can you create a similar effect?

Spend some time figuring out your personal brand. Are you fun and quirky? Artsy and edgy? Corporate and serious? Perhaps you’re all about eco-friendly design.

Once you’ve got a theme in mind, you can start to think about the kinds of colors and imagery that will help to convey this. Just because you’re a UX designer doesn’t mean you can neglect the visual design of your portfolio.

Your portfolio should embody your personal brand, so treat it like any other UX project and give it the high-shine finish it deserves!

Your portfolio website should reflect your personal brand, and visual design plays a crucial role. The best portfolios offer the full package—detailed case studies wrapped in stunning UI design and flawless UX—so aim to tick all the boxes!

View Zara Drei’s full portfolio website

10. Minimalism from Victoria Kazakova

Who is victoria kazakova.

Victoria Kazakova is a Polish UX designer, web developer, and photographer. 

What makes Victoria’s UX design portfolio so great?

In the enormous and sometimes confusing online world we trawl through daily, Victoria Kazakova’s UX portfolio wins the prize for clarity and ease of understanding. 

Throughout Victoria’s portfolio, she sticks to a minimalist design palette and clear signage, a simplicity that makes for a delightfully smooth read. 

Better still, words that spring up on command stroll through the portfolio, leading the reader from section to section. 

Charts and graphics displaying her skills and experience are so simple they appear iconic. There’s no chance the reader could feel lost or confused.  

What can we learn from Victoria Kazakova?

When it comes to graphic design, sometimes simplicity is best. The last thing you want to happen when someone reads over your portfolio is for them to feel overwhelmed with data.

Victoria’s portfolio is a great example of how responsive screens can ease the user’s journey through pages of information. 

Don’t be tempted to overload. Stick to two classy fonts and an inoffensive colorway. These simple building blocks can lead the user’s eye as they navigate your work. 

View Victoria Kazakova’s full UX portfolio

11. Yu-Hsuan offers zero-gravity UX

Who is yu-hsuan.

Yu-Hsuan is a UX designer, currently working for Google as an interaction designer. 

What makes Yu-Hsuan’s UX design portfolio so great?

Yu-Hsuan’s impressive role at Google means that many of her current projects are “locked” due to non-disclosure agreements. This is a common problem in the UX design community and a hurdle many designers face when putting together their portfolios. 

Yu-Hsuan’s deft solution is to focus on the illustrative side of her UX portfolio, which showcases her passion and side projects as a graphic designer and game designer. 

She also uses her illustrations to depict the otherwise locked aspects of the projects she’s describing. This gives a lovely cohesion with the rest of the content in her portfolio and reduces the jarring effect locked projects can sometimes have. 

The floating designer illustration that seems to hover over the portfolio is very cool and points at a sense of fun and creativity necessary to succeed in illustration and gaming. 

What can we learn from Yu-Hsuan?

Through her illustrations, Yu-Hsuan has subtly displayed her UX skills in her portfolio itself. 

This visual approach means the separate parts of the portfolio hang together perfectly, even when some of the projects are locked off. 

Another tip from Yu-Hsuan is to be approachable in your portfolio. Dropping in the line “Please contact me if you want to go through the case study” gives a real sense of openness, collaboration, and sharing. 

If you can’t show direct evidence of a project, don’t hesitate to get creative. A strong visual style not only shows off your design chops but helps a large portfolio hang together nicely. Also, be approachable!

View Yu-Hsuan’s full UX portfolio

12. A holistic introduction to Cristina Gafitescu

Who is cristina gafitescu.

Romania-based Cristina Gafitescu is a junior UX designer with a playful approach to visual design.

What makes Cristina Gafitescu’s UX design portfolio so great?

Cristina’s UX portfolio makes a great first impression as it tells her story in an interesting-to-follow, visually engaging way. 

Her playful page layouts and graphics show Cristina’s panache as an illustrator and designer. They also provide a great backdrop as she offers a holistic introduction to herself. 

Through a post-it note, almost diaristic approach, the reader really gets a feel for what kind of person Cristina is, her education and experience, and what attracted her to UX in the first place. 

That’s not to say this portfolio is totally informal. Cristina also does a great job of showing her processes, identifying problems (with a focus on UX research), solutions, and testing. 

When the temptation may be to opt for oblique, abstract graphics that display your design chops in the coolest terms, save a thought for a more intimate approach. 

Cristina’s portfolio is emotionally honest, charming, and informative. The effect on recruiters—especially those suffering from portfolio fatigue—is likely persuasive. 

View Cristina Gafitescu’s full UX portfolio

13. The spatial awareness of Rucha Moghe

Who is rucha moghe.

Rucha Moghe is a UX designer with a background in architecture based in India. 

What makes Rucha Moghe’s UX design portfolio so great?

From start to finish, Rucha’s UX portfolio ticks all the right boxes. It’s visually strong and easy to digest. Her user journey map is smart and in context, and the user flows, wireframes, and usability study are all useful.    

Tehni: A Plant App is an especially great case study and easy to follow. On the whole, Rucha’s portfolio is incredibly strong on user personas. 

As Rucha suggests, her background as an architect provides her portfolio with a great sense of user-centered design principles, spatial awareness, and problem-solving skills transferable to digital spaces. 

No space feels wasted, nothing is jumbled, and the reader never feels lost or confused. This is architectural elegance in portfolio form. 

Reinventing the wheel in your portfolio isn’t necessarily a good idea. Rucha’s portfolio nails the basics: it’s logical with an easy-to-follow narrative that shows how user problems were solved. It’s bold and eye-catching and features great user personas.

View Rucha Moghe’s full UX portfolio  

14. Nguyen Duc Thang’s deep case studies

Who is nguyen duc thang.

Nguyen Duc Thang is a UX designer based in Hanoi, Vietnam. Although just starting in his career, Nguyen Duc Thang knows how to put together a really strong portfolio. 

What makes Nguyen Duc Thang’s UX design portfolio so great?

Much like Rucha Moghe, Nguyen Duc Thang’s UX portfolio gets the basics right despite the difference in experience. 

Nguyen Duc Thang’s branding is particularly strong, with eye-catching graphics consistently holding the content together throughout the document. 

After introducing himself, Nguyen Duc Thang covers his skills and qualifications before launching into extensive case studies. No stone is left unturned in these exhaustive examples, which detail wireframing, prototyping, testing, user personas, visual design, and information architecture. Bravo! 

Don’t scrimp on your case studies. Tell the world how you nailed that project, from top to tail.

View Nguyen Duc Thang’s full UX portfolio

15. Precocious design from Gilbert Christian

Who is gilbert christian.

Gilbert Christian is an Indonesian UX design student in the early stages of his career. As Gilbert mentions in his portfolio, he’s open to all manner of part-time, voluntary work, or UX internship programs. 

What makes Gilbert Christian’s UX design portfolio so great?

Despite his relative inexperience, Gilbert’s UX portfolio is extremely easy on the eye, with strong data visualization and imagery leading you from one page to the next.   

Gilbert’s case studies show a maturity beyond his experience, with thorough documentation giving us insight into his work processes. 

Gilbert’s portfolio is stunning and applies the same key UX design principles present in his work. 

If in doubt, build a logical narrative showing how a problem was understood, defined, and solved. 

View Gilbert Christian’s full UX portfolio

16. Valentina Gigli’s bold branding

Who is valentina gigli.

Valentina Gigli is a junior UX designer based in Argentina.  

What makes Valentina Gigli’s UX design portfolio so great?

Aside from the bold color scheme and font choice, Valentina keeps things simple with her portfolio. 

After introducing herself, Valentina discusses her “aptitude palette”, before moving on to her design examples. 

Whether you’re a fan of purplish magenta or not, the bold titles and lurid colors certainly make for clear signposting and remain in the mind’s eye for some time after looking away, a key sign of successful branding. 

When it comes to color schemes and fonts, it’s tempting to play it safe. Taking some risks may mean your portfolio pops out from the crowd.

View Valentina Gigli’s full UX portfolio

17. Aleyna Aykanat raises a smile

Who is aleyna aykanat.

Akeyna Aykanat is a Turkish UX designer with skills in public speaking, 3D product modeling, and graphic design.

What makes Aleyna Aykanat’s UX design portfolio so great?

Aleyna’s work is in monochrome black and white, with grainy charcoal textures offering depth to each slide. 

The result feels mature and assured—and Aleyna has the content to match it, too. 

After what feels like a serious offering, Aleyna offers something of a UX visual joke at the end of her portfolio, including a fake loading page, before bidding us farewell. 

Overall, it leaves one with the impression of Aleyna as a fun-loving lateral thinker—just the kind of person we’d like on our team. 

Many UX design portfolios are made using guidelines shared amongst tens of thousands of junior designers at bootcamps and other learning establishments. 

These cookie-cutter portfolios can feel a little soulless and may result in recruiters developing a kind of portfolio fatigue. 

As Aleyna shows so elegantly, including a curveball element—in this case, the joke towards the end of her portfolio—shows the portfolio has been assembled with care and craft, not painted by numbers.  

View Aleyna Aykanat’s full UX portfolio

18. Sharon Kravanja’s scrapbook stylings

Who is sharon kravanja.

Sharon Kravanja is a Parisian UX designer at the beginning of her career.

What makes Sharon Kravanja’s UX design portfolio so great?

From the outset, Sharon makes no bones about her very junior status as a UX designer. This is reflected in her opening statement and the primitive doodles that annotate and decorate each portfolio page. 

Despite this seemingly youthful approach, Sharon’s visual scrapbook style demonstrates impressive self-branding. Scribbles and sweeps bring cohesion to all the moving parts of the portfolio while playfully communicating Sharon’s self-awareness as an inexperienced but sincere and brave designer. 

Be yourself. A recruiter will sooner remember Sharon’s somewhat youthfully exuberant portfolio over safer designs.

View Sharon Kravanja ’ s full UX portfolio

19. Sophisticated graphics from Anna Hlushko

Who is anna hlushko.

Anna Hlushko is a Ukrainian UX designer with a self-professed focus on minimalism. 

What makes Anna Hlushko’s UX design portfolio so great?

Anna Hlushko’s portfolio speaks of a detail-oriented UX designer with serious design chops. 

Modernist typography and dark, grainy hues glue the elements of this portfolio in place. Anna’s graphic design skills are at the higher end of the spectrum, and these pages wouldn’t look out of place in a MoMA brochure.

Beyond the slick exterior, Anna also touches on her approach to tackling stages of work, including research, and details some case studies. 

Play to your strengths. If visual design is your thing, make sure your portfolio pops. This may be the one chance you have to show off your chops. 

View Anna Hlushko’s full UX portfolio

20. Thorough research by Hoàng Kỳ Phong

Who is hoàng kỳ phong.

Hoàng Kỳ Phong is a Hanoi-based UX designer passionate about art and design. 

What makes Hoàng Kỳ Phong’s UX design portfolio so great?

With black and white images projected onto a backdrop of cartridge paper, Hoàng Kỳ Phong’s portfolio has a classic feel. 

Structurally, it is a masterclass in logical layout and digestible design. Extra marks are awarded for detailed market research and survey information. 

Consider the user at every step by demonstrating the process and results.

View Hoàng Kỳ Phong’s UX portfolio

Why do you need a UX design portfolio?

When creating an impressive UX portfolio, it’s important to understand exactly what your portfolio should achieve. What information should your portfolio present? What do you want people to learn about you and your work when they land on your portfolio?

Your UX design portfolio is not just a virtual gallery of all your most beautiful work. It’s a carefully crafted story that offers a behind-the-scenes look at your methods and processes.

How do you tackle different UX design challenges? What’s your approach to solving problems? Are you user-centric?

It should introduce you as a designer and give the viewer an understanding of your work. And, of course, all of these insights should come gift-wrapped in a visually engaging, user-friendly package.

How to build an amazing UX portfolio

Since a portfolio is all about showcasing your work as a designer, it’s obvious that you need to get some experience so that you have work to spotlight in the first place.

But what if you don’t have any industry experience (yet)? Not to worry.

It’s entirely possibly to build a strong portfolio, break into the industry, and succeed without previous UX design experience . One great place to start is by taking a free UX design short course to make sure you’re cut out for this area of the design field.

Next, you can then to enroll in a UX design certification program —preferably one that provides personalized UX mentorship and portfolio reviews.

To see a live portfolio review with a seasoned UX designer, check out this video:

Beyond this, you want to make sure that your portfolio meets these criteria:

• Includes a memorable introduction
• Consists of just the right number of high-quality UX case studies
• Demonstrates reflexivity —shows your ability to reflect and learn
• User-friendly format (practice what you preach)
• Excellent UI design —shows you know what a good, polished final product looks like

To learn more about these five criteria (and how to meet them), read more in this guide: Five Golden Rules to Build a Job-Winning UX Design Portfolio .

Where else can you look for UX design portfolio inspiration?

That just about concludes our selection of awesome UX design portfolios from around the web. We hope this list has given you a feel for some of the most important UX design portfolio best practices and left you feeling suitably inspired.

For more portfolio inspiration, check out websites like Bestfolios , Behance , and Dribbble . For further tips and advice on building your own UX design portfolio, check out these articles:

• 9 Awesome Portfolios From UX Design Bootcamp Graduates
• How I Designed And Built My UX Design Portfolio From Scratch
• 9 Free Websites for Building You UX/UI Portfolio

And finally, if you’re a UX designer looking to specialize, we’ve also written guides to build portfolios for UX writing and UX research . If you spot any further examples of great portfolios while navigating the web, do let us know so we can add them to the list.

Want to keep exploring UX design? Here are a few other articles you might like:

• How to become a UX designer in under one year
• Do you need a degree to become a UX designer?
• 7 best practices to help keep your UX skillset in shape
• How Nikolaos became a UX designer

And if you’re on the hunt for even more UX design inspiration, here are 15 quotes from design masters .

Frequently asked portfolio (FAQ) about UX portfolios

What should be in a UX portfolio?

A UX portfolio should showcase your expertise, understanding, and passion for UX. A portfolio can include elements like case studies, design, personal projects, examples of your process, and should be presented in a visually pleasing way.

How do I start a UX portfolio for beginners?

A beginner’s UX portfolio is a vital tool for entering the industry. Highlight your passion and motivation for the UX design, include your personal approaches, and if you have minimal case studies to present, include personal projects. 

How do I build my UX portfolio?

With the amount of free templates available online, building your UX portfolio has never been easier. However, it’s important to not limit yourself to a standardized approach and showcase your own unique talent. 

First and foremost, choose your projects and case studies carefully. Then present them in a logical narrative that tells a story about your design process. In your descriptions, highlight your motivations and thought processes.

Across your portfolio, focus on showcasing your design skills and problem-solving abilities, and keep your portfolio up-to-date with your latest work. Be sure to customize your portfolio for the audience.

The Best UX Designer Portfolios: Inspiring Case Studies and Examples

What makes a winning UX portfolio? More than a showcase of skills, a UX designer’s portfolio is an opportunity for them to create an enjoyable user experience as well as demonstrate their UX mastery.

By Miklos Philips

Miklos is a UX designer, product design strategist, author, and speaker with more than 18 years of experience in the design field.

PREVIOUSLY AT

A considerable amount of time and effort goes into building a stellar UX designer portfolio. If the right type of content is chosen with great UX, it will be a worthy investment.

What makes a winning UX design portfolio? As outlined in a previous article “ UX Portfolio Tips and Best Practices ,” telling a compelling story is key. Recruiters and others who may be evaluating your work are busy—you only have a few minutes to engage them before they decide whether or not you made the cut.

A long list of relevant skills, the tools you use, and how many years of experience you have is of no real benefit to your visitors, or to your presentation. The best UX portfolios outline the user-centered design process —how the problem was solved.

Be explicit about your skills , the process you use, and the kinds of projects you specialize in, but be mindful of presenting too much information. User experience portfolios should not be a retrospective of ALL past work. Choose projects that are specific, recent, and outstanding, and present them as a design process.

Hiring/UX managers want to see: user research, research reports, sketches, wireframes, user flows, wireflows, user stories, customer journey maps, prototypes, user-testing, and the final product. If possible, it’s also good to include analytics tools used to see how successful the product was.

Here are a few other points to remember:

• Beware of technical jargon and splashy imagery—simple project descriptions and visuals are more effective.
• Wireframes are not pretty, so emphasize your structural ability. Share the process!
• Write clear project summaries. Make them easy to read—not too much text!
• If there are confidentiality issues blot out company logos and/or blur areas of the images. There is no bigger turn-off than encountering a page that is password protected. That is bad UX.
• Include a few stakeholder testimonials.
• Conclude each project case study with what you learned.

If you’re a UX designer, your UX portfolio should demonstrate exceptional UX.

A UX designer’s portfolio is more than a showcase of skills, it’s an opportunity to create an enjoyable user experience so designers need to prioritize good work, tell an engaging story, and demonstrate their UX mastery! Let’s take a look at some exceptional UX design portfolio examples.

Ten Inspiring UX Designer Portfolios

Karolis kosas.

Karolis grew up in Vilnius, Lithuania and currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where he is a product designer at Stripe . Aside from many other interesting, self-initiated projects, he is the co-founder of Anchovy , a free, extremely simple iPhone app that turns your words into beautiful color gradients that can be sent as real paper postcards to anywhere in the world or shared with friends on Facebook Messenger.

What’s Great About This UX Designer Portfolio

This is a nice-looking, well-designed UX designer portfolio. Clearly, Karolis spent time considering its UX. Apart from the sparse, clean layout and great UI designs, a lot of detail is provided on his design process. For example, on the CUJO project, he describes how he interacted with the user base while doing his research, identified the biggest user pain points, and worked out where they could add more value. On all of his projects, UX research takes center stage as the primary driver of design decisions, and he wraps up his projects by describing how successful they were.

His UX designer portfolio site is at: http://karoliskosas.com

Originally from Washington, D.C., Alex is an illustrator turned UX designer. As well as co-founding a business focused on B2B products, he has worked with the Local Search Team on Google Maps and on eCommerce and social gaming projects. He continues to put users first while considering simultaneous and future efforts, ensuring pixel perfection and a delightful user experience.

Taking one of his projects as an example—Google Live Popular Times—Alex clearly spells out what the project was about, what he did, and how he got there. He presents the problem and the UX research performed in order to dig deep and define the design problem statement . He also mentions design constraints on an existing product, and how he took user research insights to come up with a simple solution.

Taking back a few brownie points because among all of the great UX process case studies, he has a project thumbnail that links to a Dribble shot and offers no detail whatsoever about the project. It’s best for UX designers to demonstrate a consistency of design in their UX portfolios as it conveys professionalism and respect for the visitor.

His UX designer portfolio site is at: https://www.alexlakas.com

Hailing from a small town in Australia, Simon is a product designer currently based in San Francisco and has worked on projects for some major brands such as Uber, Amazon, Google, Medium, and Barclays (bicycle rental).

Simon’s case studies are very detailed and take visitors through his design process in a thoughtful way. His example of the London By Bike app for the Barclays bike rental system is especially thorough. He really researched potential users and came up with detailed personas that he uses throughout the project to guide design decisions, priorities, and to create empathy between the client and his team. He went out for a ride himself to “walk a mile in the user’s shoes;” in this case “ride a mile.” - :)

His UX designer portfolio site is at: http://simonpan.com

Niya Watkins

Niya is a freelance UX designer based in Washington, DC. She previously worked in international affairs and says that her time in the civil service is where she learned what a hindrance inefficient, poorly-designed websites were to productivity. She often found herself using creative solutions to save time, energy, and money, and was subsequently ‘accidentally’ pushed into user-centered design, ergo: UX.

What’s Great About Her UX Designer Portfolio

To kick things off, Niya gives us the background of each project, her role, and research process. She then goes into her process for: personas, card sort, information architecture, sitemap, interaction design, wireframes, prototypes, user testing and all the other typical steps a great UX designer takes to arrive at the best designs. She even includes a link to the InVision prototype for all to check out. Very comprehensive.

As with Rahul a few reviews down, we’re taking back a few brownie points because of site navigation issues (this could be a Squarespace template limitation—nevertheless, it’s poor design). Also, the “latest projects” section has four projects on her homepage, and when she invites visitors to “see all” we see the same four projects, nothing more. That’s not what was expected and it’s bad UX.

Her UX portfolio site is at: https://www.niyawatkins.com

Pendar Yousefi

Pendar didn’t grow up in 60s America, and never went to the moon, but has always done things because they were hard. Today, he finds himself leading the design team at Google Translate , with a mission to help the 10% of the world’s population who use their products every month.

Really juicy UX case studies. Pendar goes into great detail about his UX design process on every one of his projects, presenting the problem and the challenges each presented. Looking through his UX design case studies and the hypotheses the team came up with around the product problem, make for a fascinating and educational read. Often the product team assumed a bunch of reasons why a problem existed, only to find out after user research that those assumptions were completely wrong.

The UX design process case studies are very detailed—almost too much—but despite their volume are easy to read because there is just the right balance between illustrative images and text as he walks us through the process. When user testing shows the design is heading in the wrong direction, it’s fascinating to see how the team took a sharp turn and corrected course.

His UX portfolio site is at: https://mahimoto.com/projects

Rahul is a freshly-minted UX/product designer who interned at Google in the summer of 2018. He writes about his experience and what he learned in a detailed and self-reflective manner. Prior to his UX internship, he worked for 3 years as a UI and UX designer in both enterprise and start-up environments. His UX portfolio includes case studies of work for Amazon Go Plus, GE Appliances and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Rahul’s case studies are very detailed and walk people through his design process in an easily consumable way. Some designers make the mistake of adding way too much text to their case studies—most reviewers/ recruiters are busy and simply don’t have the time to go through that much detail. Use graphics and charts, they get to the heart of the process and speed up readability.

We’re taking back a few brownie points due to some site navigation issues and for using a general goal description. His designer goal statement: “ My goal as a designer is to create engaging, functional and accessible user experiences that delight people and solve complex business problems ” doesn’t differentiate him from fifty thousand other UX designers out there. UX designers need to make themselves stand out by sharing something that is unique about them.

The site’s navigation is not great. “Work” and the homepage are exactly the same. If you click on “About” it reloads the same page into a new browser tab over and over again.

A lot of UX designers use portfolio templates from Squarespace , Wix , etc. which is fine—nevertheless, it’s important to remember that your UX portfolio has its own UX, and you will be judged on the usability—the UX design of your portfolio.

His UX designer portfolio site is at: https://rahuljain.co

Samuel Medvedowsky

Samuel is a French UX & Interaction designer based in Paris currently working at Metalab . He has designed for both large and small companies and enjoys finding innovative ways to create useful, usable and engaging products as well as delightful user experiences.

In line with other successful UX designer portfolios, Samuel provides visitors with a given project’s background, his role, and the challenges he faced. When going through a project, he tells us how deep user research showed him where the user pain points were, and helped him define clear objectives and scope. His UX design process is demonstrated clearly throughout the project walkthroughs.

As with a couple of other UX portfolio examples included in this review, we’re taking back a few brownie points because of site navigation issues. When we’re on the homepage the “Case Studies” navigation link just reloads the page. Also missing is something that would have been the icing on the cake: there are no takeaways about what he learned at the end of each project.

His UX portfolio site is at: http://www.samuel-medvedowsky.com

Kristian Tumangan

Kristian is a California native with several years of in-house and agency experience. A self-motivated designer, he especially enjoys understanding user behavior and being able to use that information to design delightful experiences.

Kristian’s UX design process is demonstrated clearly throughout the project walkthroughs. The typical UX design methods and subsequent UX artifacts are shown step-by-step—discovery, personas, storyboarding , sketches, wireframes, prototypes, sitemaps, user testing and so on. And he finishes up with the key learnings he took away from the project. He addresses the problem, the solution, his role, the tools he used throughout the process, as well as providing a link to his live Marvel prototype.

Again, as with other UX designer portfolios included in this review, we’re taking back a few brownie points because of site navigation issues and silly stuff under his “About” page: “infrequent golfer, gamer, internet surfer, napper, sporadic traveler, and decent cook.” UX designers must pay attention to the UX of their site.

His UX designer portfolio site is at: http://www.ktumangan.com

Adithya Holehonnur

Adi is a software engineer turned UX designer who grew up in Kudremukh , a small town in the heart of the western ghats in India where he spent most of his childhood wandering around in jungles or playing cricket. He currently works as a UX design lead for Honeywell, Bangalore.

Replete with animated GIFs of final app designs, this UX designer portfolio stands out, not only because of the detailed case studies but also for the “reflections” section at the bottom of each project—as UX designers we continue to learn from every project we engage. Adithya also presents the results that were achieved at the end of his case studies so visitors can see for themselves what design goal was accomplished—the successful fruits of his product design process.

His UX designer portfolio site is at: https://www.adithyaholehonnur.com

Dora trained as an industrial designer at two of the world’s leading design schools. Fascinated by beautiful environments, creatures, and objects, she is also interested in the philosophy of design and in examining the social implications of product-making. She enjoys the complexity and fast pace of UX design and ‍likes to explore the possibilities of commercializing new product ideas because she believes that profitability and business success can ensure that artists and designers not only survive but also thrive.

Dora is a recent grad of Springboard ’s UX Course. Her UX designer portfolio case study for her capstone project “Five-to-Eight” is exemplary. It goes into great, step-by-step detail about her user-centered design process and how she arrived at her final designs.

Her UX portfolio case study can be found here: https://www.daorongfang.com/5-to-8

Further Reading on the Toptal Blog:

• UX Portfolio Tips and Best Practices
• Presenting Design Work: The Right Way
• The Best UX Tools (with Infographic)
• The Tried and True Laws of UX (with Infographic)

Understanding the basics

What is a ux portfolio.

A UX designer portfolio is designed to showcase a UX designer’s work. It typically contains detailed case studies of UX design projects, demonstrating skill and approach.

What is the work of a UX designer?

A UX designer is an advocate for the end-users of a website or product. Key areas of focus include information architecture, user research, branding, visual design, and content. They need to empathize with their subjects, tell a story well, and possess strong creative, technical and problem-solving skills.

What are UX methods?

Some UX design methods include service blueprints, customer journey maps, personas, use cases & scenarios, wireframes, user research & usability studies, prototyping, sketches, accessibility analysis, heuristic analysis, brainstorming, mood & storyboards, KPIs, competitive audit, stakeholder interviews.

What is a UX process?

There is overlap in the UX design process, but the key phases are UX strategy, research, analysis, and design.

What does a user experience researcher do?

A UX researcher engages user experience research which is used to communicate what is needed from the end user’s perspective to UX designers and product teams and includes a wide range of methods, eg. usability testing, interviews, surveys, card sorting, tree testing, heat maps, field testing, etc.

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UX Design Case Study: The What, How, and Why with Stellar Examples

19 September 2022

Inspiration can come from anywhere. Sometimes, it may manifest in the most vivid dreams. Other times, it may be that unique design around the corner. At Pepper Square, we’re always fishing for the next best thing in design, and we always keep our eyes open. Yes, even if it means staring at a puddle from an unflattering angle.

Since we live in the age of the internet, some things come easy to us. We don’t have to look far to find some great sources of inspiration, especially for design. All great design begins by placing the user at the heart of the problem and gradually eliminating pain points.

Case studies are one of the best ways to understand the planning, strategizing, designing, and development process. We’ll look at a few UX design examples and elaborate on our favorite ones, so you don’t have to.

What are UX Case Studies?

Think of it this way. It’s a summary (but a detailed one) of everything that has gone into the design process and how it delivered value. UX case studies offer vital insights about the project and highlight the designer’s skillset beyond designing and design thinking.

But UX case studies are different than your typical case studies. Following Aristotle’s storytelling elements may be the only thing you need to build a case study for the latter. By leveraging his storytelling style, you already have a generous dose of material, to begin with.

For instance, although the “plot, character, and theme” may not exactly be present in these specific avatars , you already have a fair idea of where to begin. The other elements follow.

The Importance of a UX Case Study

• A way to build trust

UX case studies showcase an agency’s past work and provide more than just an idea to prospective clients. It’s an in-depth presentation of a company’s portfolio. Since such information is readily available, it is also a form of building trust.

For it is human nature. Clients will want to work with companies that provide the right information and are transparent. Case studies are a way of doing so.

• A showcase of skills

Case studies highlight problems, solutions, and how one got to that solutions. With the latter, you enter the area of skills where agencies can show their might. This is another important parameter that clients use to understand whether a particular agency can solve their problems.

This is also one of the main reasons why UI/UX design agencies have a section for UX case studies in their website.

• Future references

Since case studies are essentially a record of all that has been done for a particular project, it easily becomes a repository for the future. Interns or other newly-joined members can easily go through these case studies to know more about the agency’s work.

This helps in a smoother transition of work and ensures that everyone at an agency is on board with the way they do things.

How to Build a UX Case Study?

Introducing an arc to the story for UX case studies will provide order and structure. Divide the case study into three parts with a designated introduction, middle, and conclusion.

Remember that no one has the time anymore. So, keep it crisp and hit readers with data that matters.

Step 1 – Introduction

The introduction should ideally encapsulate the main challenges and a problem statement. Then, follow it up with the solution you offered and your role in tackling the problem. It should not be more than five lines as it is essentially your elevator pitch.

At this stage, it’s also a good idea to share an outline of your approach and hint at the final deliverables.

Step 2 – Talk about the obstacles

Outline the problems and constraints you faced and explain your specific design thinking process. Briefly illustrate your research and progress leading to the next steps and, ultimately, the end goal.

Step 3 – The project’s summit

Keep the reader hooked on how you achieved your big goal. Talk about your story’s apex at this stage and knit a tight narrative to highlight the most significant bits.

Step 4 – Guiding factors

You must show how you combined extensive research and user insights to devise a plan and solution. Now is an excellent time to shed light on the ideas and decisions that led to your project’s final iterations.

Step 5 – Conclusion

The final stage of the case study should showcase the results and the resolution. Highlight how your solution helped reach or exceed a business-oriented goal or how you helped deliver value to the client with your solution.

Remember that not all UX case studies follow the five-pronged approach. You may also condense it to fewer steps if you wish, but the crux must remain the same.

What to Include in Your Case Study

UX Writing – it goes without saying that a UX case study should include all hallmarks of UX writing. It is the most basic step that users will look into as it helps them understand a point or two. UX writing also has the knack of grabbing one’s attention as it conveys the important points effortlessly.

Wireframes – a detailed case study will have a wireframe that showcases all relevant information and helps the user learn more about the whole structure. Based on the requirement, you can include a specific wireframe and depending upon the clarity needed, you can choose between the types of wireframes.

User Testing – always include results from user testing including feedback as it keeps the case study engaging and shows the different lengths you went to in order to make things work. As a parameter, user testing also helps clients understand how open you are towards feedback.

User Research – if the case study involves studying specific users or looking into a target group, you need to include results from the same. Considering the fact that user research is important, one does not need more than a single reason to have it in their case study.

Essential design aspects – a UX case study needs to include the right design aspects that in turn can drive home the more important points of the project. These aspects form a direction for the case study and take things towards a favorable outcome.

Common Mistakes that You Should Avoid

A UX case study without mistakes is what everyone wishes to see. It needs to be presentable and unique, which indirectly means that errors should be cut to a minimum or no errors at all. So to help you out, here are some common mistakes that you need to avoid while writing your UX case study.

• Forgetting the overall experience

Focusing only on the user interface and forgetting the overall objective of experience is a common mistake that should not reflect on your UX case study. Since design is not only about the UI, you need to pay attention to what matters and looking at a number of UX case study examples will tell you the same.

• Missing out on a structure

The modern approach to storytelling does include a structure even though some case studies don’t directly showcase the same. Every case study brings in a specific plan, approach and thus follows a structure that you need to continue following.

Missing out on these points can eliminate the purpose of your case study and even fail to highlight the key areas of focus.

• Failing to include the elements of storytelling

You don’t want to miss out on the elements of storytelling because you want your readers to stay focused and read what you are presenting. As mentioned before, following Aristotle’s storytelling elements is about capturing what is most important for a UX case study.

Hence include these elements and take your case study to a whole new level.

• Forgetting to highlight what’s important

Every UX case study has important points that describe how you came to a solution and the steps that you followed to do so. These points may or may not be complex but they need to enter the mind of a human who’s attention span lasts for 7 seconds.

Thus it is a challenge to ensure that the process of creating a case study is engaging. Highlighting the most significant points is one thing, making sure the reader wants to read it is another ball-game altogether. It is important to get creative with how you present your story.

• Not doing a thorough checkup

From punctuation errors to spelling mistakes and more, a case study could be filled with a ton of errors. So a thorough check up along with multiple readings is important before putting out your case study. Only through constant checkups can you reduce any errors that may exist.

Here’s how Pepper Square showcased its UX case studies for three leading brands and delivered exceptional solutions.

Pepper Square UX Case Study Examples

• National Fitness Campaign (NFC)

To transform the way the world views outdoor exercise and make exercising accessible and free for all, NFC tasked Pepper Square to bring free fitness to over 1,000 cities across the US by 2021. It’s a great example of UX design meets the physical world.

Pepper Square’s Solution?

• Redesign the existing mobile app
• Increase user engagement at local fitness courts
• Gamify the experience for users
• Introduce exciting fitness challenges

The Value Delivered?

Among other things, Pepper Square was able to make the refashioned app live in 3 weeks, and app downloads increased by 40% after the fresh release.

Read the entire case study here .

• Sun Mobility

Sun Mobility tasked Pepper Square to bring mass adoption of electric vehicles to reimagine the future of urban transportation.

Pepper Square created multiple touchpoint experiences for Sun Mobility that would engage OEMs, fleet operators, and end customers to transition seamlessly to new-age transportation.

One of the most crucial highlights was that the mobile app helped drivers in better decision-making by leveraging intelligent data. Promotional collaterals for Auto Expo 2018 included corporate presentations, brochures, kiosks, stickers, and cap designs that garnered buzz and traffic to the website.

Read the full case study here .

To build a productivity app for mothers, two entrepreneurs shared their dream with Pepper Square to create an app to help multi-tasking mothers prioritize their ‘me-time.’

Pepper Square created an ‘exclusive for mothers’ end-to-end productivity app. The app helps mothers convert their elusive free time into ‘me-time’ to accomplish things that are important to them. It’s the ultimate organizer/planner that every mother needs.

With uniquely designed lists, notes, and a calendar, users of the app found the app beautiful and intuitive. Furthermore, Pepper Square enhanced the app experience with valuable feedback and learnings with iterative usability testing at the beta stage with real users. Here is a detailed look into our case study with Mamma Miya .

We were tasked to help a client market their new food product, digital cheese blast and promote the same.

Pepper Square’s Solution? Pepper Square created a fun new platform where users could cheese-blast themselves with the latest flavors by Old El Paso and also share these pictures on social media. The option to directly share these pictures was installed to promote virality.

The Value Delivered? The campaign was a success as it had generated 8 million impressions with the social app and increased Twitter conversations by 1000%. With an exclusive story on the website, media highlighted Ketchum as a frontrunner in leveraging the digital space.

Audience showed support for the interactive concept by sharing images on social media, thus marking a successful project and a definite case study. Learn more about the case study, here .

Pepper Square’s approach to UX case studies is simple. Introduce the problem. Emphasize the solution. Put a spotlight on the value delivered with a well-crafted UX problem statement .

Here are a few other examples of the best UX case studies you can seek inspiration from.

• How HubSpot Redesigned Their Website – A Case Study

Here’s one of the best examples of a website redesign case study . Led by UX designer Austin Knight, the website redesign project was supported by three other team members, a marketing manager, a visual designer, and a developer. The supplement team included copywriting, product positioning, and technical development members.

With session recordings, qualitative research, and multivariate testing of minor changes in the first stage, Knight could devise a foolproof strategy to forge forward. By following the five steps of design thinking, HubSpot was able to revamp its website and make it a “data-informed UX success.”

• How to Live a Healthier Life with Bee Better – A Case Study

The makers are Bee Better understood one thing: everyone wants to be better and live healthier lives. But most complain that they are pressed for time. Another problem people face is that when they try to pick up a good new habit, they only find the will to keep at it for merely a week. It’s because they aren’t motivated enough. After all, habit development is a tedious process.

Busy Bee offered the ideal solution by making the process of habit-building fun and interactive. By engaging the user with friends and family, the app offers additional encouragement and tracks progress.

• Linkedin Recruiter Tool by Evelynma – A Case Study

With current recruiting tools making it hard for platforms like Linkedin to receive accurate information, UX designer Evelyn Ma Rasmussen looked to change things. Her goal was to also increase the likelihood of recruiters getting a positive response.

Rasmussen followed a detailed process of collecting information from candidates, crafting a user journey, and creating personas that in turn helped her visualize design. The outcome helped Linkedin engage with users and connect to the right candidates in order to receive a positive response.

• Giving customers exactly what they need – Cover Girl’s Case Study

Imagine a virtual makeup store where you can try out every shade of lipstick or see how a smokey eye looks on you. Now, you don’t have to imagine that anymore. In collaboration with AR company Holition, CoverGirl introduced a virtual makeup studio.

An instantly shoppable makeup experience, it set out to solve three main problems users complained about:

• Lack of time
• Distance from a physical location, and
• Removing makeup on the go

These were also the reasons why many preferred online shopping. But online shopping has its flaws too. There is no way to visualize how a particular shade would look on different skin types and textures. The virtual makeup studio took heed to user problems and found a revolutionary solution.

Existing and prospective clients always look for fresh ideas to elevate their brands and business. So, showcasing case studies to them is a great way to open more doors for further opportunities. It’s a window or a sneak peek at your team’s capabilities and what you can achieve with your set of expertise in UX project ideas .

Case studies are also a preview of your approach and your design thinking pattern. Besides this, UX case studies provide vital insights to recruiters. It helps weave a story of the task and how you navigated tricky waters. When done correctly, it helps maximize your appeal as a designer.

Alka is the Chief Creative Officer at Pepper Square. She has defined the user experience for some of the finest global brands over the last eight years.

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How to Write a UX Case Study in 10 Steps

When you're starting out as a UX designer, you know that you need case studies for your portfolio. However, there's not a lot of concrete information out there on exactly what should be in a case study. People have different expectations for UX case studies, so in this article, we'll guide you through 10 steps to build a solid UX/UI case study.

If you really want to showcase your work effectively, approach your case study with the same diligence you would apply to a design project. Don’t just throw something together quickly because you need to fill your portfolio. You’ll miss a valuable opportunity to stand out. Think of creating a case study as a project in itself:

• Begin with research and inspiration : Look at other successful projects and case studies.
• Choose the content to highlight : Focus on the most impactful aspects of your work.
• Sketch layouts or structures : Plan how you’ll present your information visually.
• Develop a wireframe : Create a rough layout for your case study.
• Refine the design and visual presentation : Ensure your case study is visually appealing and consistent.
• Plan your release : Think about when and where you’ll publish your case study; consider a small social media campaign.
• Extend your reach : Write additional blog posts, articles, or use other project elements to generate interest.

🧠 Uxcel top tip: A compelling title is crucial for drawing readers in. Avoid generic titles like "Landing Page Case Study." Instead, be creative and engaging. For example, "From Clicks to Conversions: Enhancing Our Landing Page UX" is more likely to capture attention.

What is a Case Study?

A case study in UI/UX is a comprehensive narrative of a design project. It details the designer's approach to solving a user interface or user experience problem, including the project’s background, the problem addressed, the designer's role, and the steps taken. This format can significantly boost your chances of getting hired.

Purpose of a Case Study

The purpose of a case study is to:

• Communicate design thinking : Recruiters seek candidates who can explain their designs clearly and appealingly.
• Showcase skills and process : Highlight your abilities, thought processes, choices, and actions in context through engaging, image-supported stories.
• Engage recruiters quickly : Enhance your portfolio with 2–3 case studies featuring your best writing and captivating visuals to capture recruiters’ interest within 5 minutes.

10 Steps to Create a UX/UI Case Study

Step 1. introduction.

Your introduction sets the stage for your case study, providing readers with a clear understanding of the project's background and your involvement. Here’s how to craft a compelling introduction:

Explain the project

• Overview : Start with a brief description of the project. What is it about? Is it a mobile app, a website redesign, or a new feature?
• Your role: Clearly define your role in the project. Were you the lead designer, a team member, or focused on a specific area like user research or visual design? If you collaborated with teammates, be sure to acknowledge their contributions.
• The scenario : Provide some context for the project. Why was it initiated? What were the business goals or user needs that drove the project?

Set the context

• Project background : Give a brief background of the project. Mention any relevant details such as the industry, target audience, and the problem that needed solving.
• What you’ll cover : Outline what your case study will discuss. This gives readers a roadmap of what to expect.

Step 2. Define the objectives

Defining the objectives of your project is crucial for setting the direction and scope of your work. This step involves clearly outlining what you aim to achieve and how you plan to get there.

• Clearly state objectives : Articulate the specific goals you aimed to achieve with the project. This helps readers understand your focus and the criteria for success. For example, the main objective could be to improve user satisfaction scores related to the checkout process and decrease the overall time taken to complete a purchase by 30%.
• Define success metrics : Mention the key performance indicators (KPIs) or metrics you will use to measure the success of your project. This adds a quantitative aspect to your objectives. In the realm of the checkout scenario, the metrics could be checkout completion rate, user satisfaction scores from post-purchase surveys, and the average time to complete a transaction.

Step 3. Research goals and methods

Research is a critical component of any UX/UI project. It provides the foundation for understanding user needs, identifying pain points, and informing design decisions. This step involves setting clear research goals, using appropriate methods, and sharing valuable insights.

• Understand user needs : Define what you aim to learn about your users, including their behaviors, preferences, motivations, and pain points.
• Identify pain points : Specify the problems you need to uncover, focusing on areas where users struggle or express frustration.
• Gather feedback : Describe how you will collect feedback from users about existing or proposed designs.
• Explain research methods : Use methods such as one-on-one interviews, surveys, competitive analysis, and analytics review. Explain how these methods will help you achieve your goals.
• Detail your findings : Summarize the most important insights gained from your research, which should directly inform your design decisions.

🧠 Uxcel top tip: Share snippets of interviews or research deliverables to add visual interest to your process. However, don’t overdo it—no one wants to read four pages of interview transcripts.

Step 4. Define the problem

Defining the problem is crucial, as some designs may look great but solve non-existent issues or overlook more important ones.

• Clearly state the issue : Ensure readers understand the specific problem by describing it in precise terms. A well-defined problem should be specific and measurable, such as "users struggle to find their account settings" instead of a vague statement like "the app is confusing."
• Provide context : Offer detailed information about the problem uncovered during research. Specify the conditions under which the problem occurs, the affected user segments, and any relevant data.

Step 5. Define the audience

Defining your audience is essential for creating a product that meets user needs effectively.

• Identify target users : Clearly understand who will use or is already using the app or product. Determine the demographics, behaviors, and needs of your primary users.
• Create personas : Develop detailed personas to represent your target audience. These should include information such as age, occupation, goals, challenges, and preferences to help guide your design decisions.

Explore how to create personas in the Personas in UX Research lesson, which is part of the UX Research course.

Step 6. Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a crucial step where creativity and collaboration come into play. It’s about generating a wide range of ideas and narrowing them down to the most viable solutions.

• Use ideation techniques : Describe the ideation techniques you and/or your team used if any, such as brainwriting, SCAMPER, Crazy 8s, mind mapping, affinity diagrams, and sketching. Explain how these techniques helped in exploring different aspects of the problem and generating innovative solutions.
• Generate and share ideas : Present the initial ideas that emerged during brainstorming sessions. This can include rough sketches, mind maps, or notes from whiteboard sessions. Highlight the diversity of ideas and the collaborative effort.

Explore efficient ideation techniques in the Ideation Techniques & Challenges lesson, which is part of the Design Thinking course.

Step 7. Share your process

Sharing your process is vital for demonstrating how you approached the project and the reasoning behind your decisions. Include user flows, information architecture, and initial wireframes to show the evolution of your design. Along the way, briefly explain why you made certain design choices and how they address the problem or enhance the user experience.

🧠 Uxcel top tip : Don't expect people to read everything. Find the balance between showing your design work and articulating your decisions. If you need to describe some of the decisions you made or explain the process in more detail, try writing on Medium or your personal/company blog and then link it to your case study.

Step 8. Provide your solution

This step is where you showcase the final solution to the problem you’ve been addressing. It's your opportunity to present your design work and explain how it effectively resolves the identified issues.

• Present designs or interactive prototypes : Demonstrate how users interact with your design. You can even record videos to show key interactions and transitions.
• Color palette : Share your thoughts on how the selected color palette supports the overall design and brand identity. Provide color swatches and examples of how colors are applied in the interface.
• Typography : Describe the typography used in your design and its impact on readability and aesthetics. Include examples of headers, body text, and other typographic elements.

Include any additional design assets or elements that contribute to the final solution, such as icons, imagery, and illustrations.

Step 9. Testing and iteration

If you conducted testing and iterations after the launch, this is the step to discuss it. Sharing these insights shows how you refined your designs to create a better user experience.

• Share testing insights : briefly mention the reasons for testing, the methods used, and the findings.
• Detail improvements : Describe the specific changes made based on the testing feedback. Highlight how these iterations improved the user experience and addressed any identified issues.

Step 10. Conclusion and final thoughts

This final step should be concise but informative. Reflect on the process and share your final thoughts and any lessons learned throughout the project. If possible, include specific metrics or feedback to demonstrate the impact of your work.

Explore our design brief to test your skills by creating a UX/UI case study for a landing page that embraces diversity and inclusivity principles.

Tips for a Successful Case Study

• Permission : Get your employer’s or client’s permission before selecting a project for a case study, especially if you've signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).
• Consistency : Use cohesive color palettes from tools like Coolors or Adobe Color to ensure a clean and consistent presentation.
• Brand personality : If relevant, discuss the brand personality and design principles in your case study.

🧠 Uxcel top tip: Set an eye-catching cover image. If you don't have many followers yet, attracting attention can be challenging. We recommend giving special attention to the cover image of your case study—something that stands out and grabs people's attention as they scroll through their feed. Ask yourself: "What will make my project noticeable at first glance?"

Writing a UX case study is crucial for your career, especially when you're just starting out. A well-crafted case study not only showcases your skills but also demonstrates your ability to think critically and solve problems effectively. By including every necessary step—from initial research to final design—you can present a comprehensive and compelling narrative that highlights both your qualitative and quantitative research. This thorough approach will captivate your audience, impress potential employers, and significantly increase your chances of landing your dream job.

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21 UX Design Examples That Work and Why

11 min read

A good UX design helps to make your product easier to use and create a delightful experience. In this article, we’ll go over 21 good user experience (UX) design examples used in popular SaaS tools and show you:

• The elements they use
• Why they work and how

A good UX design follows design principles that make it easy to use, help you complete key tasks easily, have a crisp and colorful design, and are accessible and inclusive.

Here are the best examples of good B2B SaaS UX designs and why they work:

• Userpilot breaks down long processes onto multiple screens to prevent overwhelming users with too many options.
• Trello uses placeholder text to make using its key features easier.
• Miro uses banners to show helpful tips in user onboarding to prevent interrupting users.
• Asana uses gamification, in the form of a unicorn, to delight users when they have completed a task.
• Zoom uses a simple UI to limit user distractions and make it simple to find key features.
• Slack’s empty state helps to show its features and minimize the user’s cognitive load.
• Airtable uses a simplified sign-up form to collect customer data and avoid overwhelming users with too many questions.

Good B2C UX design examples:

• Grammarly uses a demo document as a demonstration to give users a hands-on experience with their product.
• The design of Nike’s website improves the customer experience by reducing the actions needed for a user to buy.
• Airbnb’s UX design immediately gets users to reach the Aha! moment by showing available places they can rent.
• Netflix offers an autoplay feature so users can continue watching the next episode without taking any action.

UI vs UX design

UI, which stands for User Interface, refers to the process of designing complete interfaces that allow users to interact with your product. This includes buttons, toggles, or icons. UI is, in fact, a part of UX.

UX , which stands for User Experience, is the entire experience of the user’s interaction with your product. It includes the design of the UI but also elements such as usability, accessibility, performance, and user satisfaction.

Both UI and UX design are part of PX (Product Experience).

What makes a good UX design?

When creating a good UX design, you need to keep in mind some of the following design principles :

• Usability : Your product’s important areas and features should be easy to locate and move to with the help of a search with filters.
• Functionality : A good UX should make it easy for users to complete key tasks.
• Visual design : You should use high-definition images, clean and simple elements, and colors to make your UX design compelling.
• Accessibility : A thoughtful UX design should do its best to cater to everyone and be inclusive.

B2B SaaS UX design examples

The following seven examples are good UX designs from B2B SaaS companies to help inspire your UX designers.

1. Userpilot uses progressive disclosure to avoid overwhelming users

Progressive disclosure is a design pattern that gradually shows users information over multiple screens.

Using progressive disclosure decreases the time it takes for a user to take action while minimizing the cognitive load, making engagement with the UI much easier.

For example, you can break up a multi-step process into multiple screens, just like Userpilot uses when building a checklist.

2. Trello’s enhanced UX with placeholder text

Using placeholder text is a good UX practice because it’s an excellent tool for guidance. It’s a visual or textual cue that sits in the interface showing the context of the action a user should do.

Placeholder text removes the thinking from the user so they can take action the first time.

Trello uses placeholders to highlight key actions in the interface, guiding users by using “add a card” and “add a list” as placeholders.

3. Miro’s user onboarding process

Using banners is a great example of good UX design. It allows you to display information to the user based on what they are doing within your product.

The benefit of using banners is that they minimize disruption while providing the user with additional guidance and helpful tips.

You can trigger these banners based on the user’s actions so the information shown is relevant and personalized.

Miro offers users helpful advice on pop-up banners during onboarding , adding additional support to any new features a user might use for the first time.

4. Asana’s unicorn that celebrates your wins

Gamification is a way to engage users with your product and encourage them to return. It can use game elements such as checklists, leaderboards, badges, and levels to motivate users.

You can use gamification to entertain your users and to celebrate users succeeding with your product.

Asana adds an element of gamification when a user completes a task. A flying unicorn moves across the screen when a user completes a task, adding a touch of delight and motivation for repeated engagement with the tool.

5. Zoom’s simplified user interface

A simplified user interface is a UX design where you minimize the number of UI elements and interactions to core actions. You should aim only to display a limited number of options and make buttons and icons large so they sit prominently on the screen.

Keeping to a simple UI makes it easy for a user to navigate and use your product, especially for those who might not be familiar with your product. The easier users find your product, the better the user experience.

Zoom is so successful because of how simple its design is. There are no cluttered menus or interfaces. None of its options make you think about what to do next.

6. Slack’s empty states that prompt action

An empty state is when a user reaches a moment in a product where there is nothing to display. It could be because there is a lack of user data or when a users encounter an error.

Empty states can become a problem if left blank as they cause the user to freeze.

Slack utilizes empty states to its advantage to provide value to a user by using tooltips to show how to use the product and get users started.

7. Airtable’s balanced usability

Balanced usability is when you create a UX design that balances great usability for a user and still achieves a business goal, such as collecting customer data.

The benefit of balanced usability is that users and businesses get what they want in an agreeable state. The user completes their actions and progresses to the next step without being overwhelmed.

Airtable balances the need for data and reduces customers’ effort to enter their details by using a simplified sign-up form

B2C UX design examples

A SaaS that sells directly to consumers can have a different experience than B2B. Here are some good UX examples to be inspired by.

1. Grammarly’s demo document

A product tour is an interactive guide showing new users how to use your product. It should give them a hands-on experience of how the product can be valuable to them.

Using a product tour helps users to reach activation, and once activated, they are more likely to stay a user because they understand the value of your product.

Grammarly uses a demo document as a product tour so users get a hands-on experience of how it works to stop users from getting bored.

2. Nike’s selling experience

You should simplify the actions a user takes to complete a goal.

Nike has a brilliant UX design made to anticipate user needs. They have placed the important elements needed to buy all on the same screen, so the user only needs to make a few clicks to complete their order.

3. Airbnb booking experience

An Aha! moment is when the user grasps the value your product could offer and makes them want to engage so they get the value and their job done.

The beginning of the booking experience for Airbnb lets users instantly get the Aha! moment by seeing the available places to rent even before they started the search process.

4. Netflix’s autoplay feature

An autoplay feature is a UX design example that automatically plays media content, such as audio or video, without a user having to take action.

Using an autoplay feature helps the user’s jobs to be done without asking or prompting, resulting in a greater user experience.

Netflix implements a UX design that auto-plays the next episodes and trailers, taking advantage of that “just one more” action, keeping users on the app longer.

5. Canva’s contextual guidance

Contextual guidance is where you present information to users at a relevant and timely point when using your product.

Contextual guidance aims to improve the user experience by reducing confusion, frustration, or errors and increasing efficiency and satisfaction.

Canva uses contextual guidance to showcase its different features using tooltips to show relevant information to support the action the user did.

6. Asos’s visually appealing UX

A visually appealing UX is pleasant to look at, engaging, and aesthetically attractive to users. It considers graphic design principles, such as color theory, layout, and visual hierarchy, to create a visual composition for the user.

Using a visually appealing UX helps increase user engagement and retention, as users are more likely to spend time on your product.

Asos uses visually appealing UX to grab users’ attention with the image of people wearing Asos clothes but also provides informative elements clearly for when users want to start shopping.

7. Fenty Beauty’s accessible design

Accessible design is where you create user interfaces that are easy to use and understand. It could include simplified navigation, different media formats (video or images), and interactive content.

Accessible design helps to improve the overall user experience, making it easier for all customers to use your product and increase engagement and satisfaction.

Fenty Beauty has a good accessible UX design because they:

• Show items in the correct currency of the user.
• Enable users quickly see what colors they can choose for a certain item.
• Have a feature that lets users experience what a product looks like on them.

Mobile apps UX design examples

The UX design examples can be different on a mobile device. Here are some examples of good UX to inspire your UX designer.

1. Duolingo’s simplified user flows

A user flow can take new users through the main product feature so they understand the value your product can offer them.

You can use a simplified user flow by breaking down the flows into single steps to create a seamless user experience. A simple flow helps to lower cognitive load as they only have one thing to concentrate on.

Duolingo does it during their onboarding flow and as part of their mobile product experience.

2. Calm’s sign-up flow minimizes users’ cognitive load

Reducing cognitive load is a design method that reduces the mental effort for users to understand and interact with your product. It helps users focus only on the important information to stop confusion or frustration.

Calm shows us a great UX design example for mobile devices where they’ve broken down a sign-up flow into sections rather than presenting new users with one long form.

3. Spotify’s end-of-year wrapped stories

Using user data in design is a great way of creating a personalized experience. You can use data collected directly from the user or their in-product behavior.

Using customer data allows you to tailor the experience for each user, helping to increase user engagement.

Spotify leverages the user’s own data into its design, creating content tailored to the individual user. Spotify adds appealing visuals and lets users share their wrapped stories with a click of a button.

The end-of-year wrapped stories are successful, with 60 million people in 2021 sharing their version.

4. Twitch’s uninterrupted videos

Being able to cater to your user’s needs even when they want to do something else on their mobile devices helps create a great user experience.

One way you can achieve this is by creating a seamless experience where a user can still use your product while using their mobile device for something else.

Twitch does this by letting users still watch whatever video they are watching outside of its app. The user doesn’t have to feel stuck watching the video in the app, giving them more control over their actions and improving the customer experience.

5. Revolut makes the user the UX designer of its app with its customization options

Letting users adjust a product’s interface or functionality to suit their needs and preferences is a good UX design example of customization.

Adding this to your product helps to increase user engagement and satisfaction, as the user can become their own UX designer and create an app tailored to them.

Revolut shows off this good UX design example by allowing users to choose different widgets on the home page to show information that is important to them.

6. Twitter’s accessibility in product UX

Accessibility in UX design is creating a user interface that people with various abilities, including those with disabilities, can use.

Creating inclusive interfaces means that more people can get value from your product, making it easy for all users to use.

Twitter gives the user control of important accessibility settings to improve the user experience, such as VoiceOver functionality and color contract options.

7. Glovo’s great navigation

Great navigation is where a user can move through your product easily and intuitively to find the information or perform an action.

Excellent navigation means a user can move through your product without confusion or frustration, achieving the value your product offers.

Glovo, a popular food delivery app, makes its navigation simple and clear to use. It combines images and text to help make the options clearer, speeding up the entire app experience.

After reading this article, you should have plenty of inspiration for UX design to take in your product to improve your customer experience and encourage users to stay around for longer.

If you want help to create a better UX experience with your product, Userpilot can help. You can build in-app experiences to guide users and use segmentation to provide each user with a personalized product experience. Book a demo call with our team and get started.

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7 Best UX Case Study Generators (and how to use them)

If you're looking for UX case study ideas, topics or challenges, these UX case study generators can help you create portfolio pieces and improve your UX/UI skills. Here are some of the best ones and the pros and cons of using them.

What is a case study generator?

A UX Case Study Generator is a tool that serves up hypothetical UX design project ideas, problems, challenges or exercises that you can complete on your own to practice your UX skills or use to create UX Case studies and projects for UX/UI portfolio.

UX Case Study Generators

1. UX Challenge

UX challenge provides prompts and exercises that allows you to practice your problem-solving skills and create one-off projects for your portfolio. The Challenges presented here have been created by UX Designer Yachin and are based on real-world problems.

You can browse through a few different industries or categories on the homepage and then view the details of the project brief.

With more than 15 millions prompts available, there are lots of UX/Product Design prompts to choose from. To start, click on 'Product/UX' and then Click ‘New Challenge’. If you like certain elements of the brief you can lock those in place and then click New Challenge again to regenerate the unlocked parts until you find something you like.

3. Designercize

This fun arcade game-like interface lets you choose the level of difficulty and gives you a timer so that you can test your speed. While this tool doesn’t allow you to select a specific category, you can regenerate exercises until you find one that appeals to you.

4. UX Tools Challenges

If you need practice creating specific UX deliverables or applying certain user research methods this is a great option. You can browse through a number of UX prompt cards and click on a UX challenge to view a hypothetical scenario, instructions and tutorials on how to approach the challenges.

5. Uplabs Challenges

Uplabs hosts open design challenges that you can enter for prizes. They have deadlines in place and submissions are reviewed via voting. Check out their active listings to see on-going challenges and see the submission details and requirements. You can also view past challenges and try using them as practice on your for use as UX case study ideas.

6. 100Daysofproductdesign

100 Days of Product is a series of design challenges that help you learn to tackle specific problems that arise in UX and product design roles (such as running a design sprint) and prompts you to create deliverables around them. There is also a separate set of whiteboarding challenges that you can take in preparation for interviews.

7. DesignerUp

Our Product Design course is home to one the best UX and Product Design case study creators you can find...yourself! You get to ideate on original concepts yourself from scratch, is completely unique, perfectly suited to who you are as a designer, shows your process and ensures you stand out from the crowd. You also get free access to our portfolio builder for Notion that has helped our students easily create product design case studies and land their dream roles!

UX Case Study Usage

There are 4 main ways we recommend applying these generator prompts and challenges based on your goals:

Option 1: Self-Practice - Use these as practice for yourself to develop your problem-solving skills, thinking on your toes, learning to manage your time and refining your workflow. You don’t need to show it in your portfolio but you can share it on social media and other places to get some feedback and get into the hang of doing projects and getting to know your own timing and process.

Option 2: UX Case Study Creation - Use these for your UX portfolio to create UX case studies . Give yourself a deadline, deliberately choose a project and document the process as you go. Be mindful of the projects you choose and make sure that they align with your own unique positioning as a designer and with the opportunities you want to attract.

Option 3: Whiteboard Challenge - Work on the prompts in 45 min sessions using a whiteboard like Figjam to show and tell your process. Record your screen so that you can replay it and share it with others for critique. This video could even be an incredible addition to your portfolio to showcase how you think and solve problems on the fly.

Option 4: Take-home Exercise - To simulate an interview take-home challenge or test, you can tackle a prompt or brief over the course of 8-10 hours.

Pros and Cons of Using UX Case Study Generators

There a few pros and cons about using case study generators that you should know about:

If you can do them, so can everyone else

Firstly, remember that if you have access to these design challenges and briefs so do all the other designers. That means that there is a good chance your work might end up looking similar to their work if you’re not careful. If you want to stand out, try customizing the prompts and challenges and adding your own unique spin.

Treat them as real UX projects

If you plan to feature these UX case studies in your portfolio, make sure to treat them as real UX projects; not just hypothetical exercises. Conduct actual research, analyze your findings and document your process. This will go a long way in helping you differentiate yourself from those that simply complete the challenge at face value.

Not consider real-world experience

Keep in mind that these generated UX case study projects and prompts are not considered 'real-world or ‘real- work experience’ by employers, but rather self-directed projects. They are a good first step for new UX designers to start practicing their problem solving skills on their own and refining their UX design process, but you'll have to go the extra mile if you want to use them in your portfolio to impress during interviews.  

Choose the right one

If you are looking to use these ideas as UX Case studies in your portfolio, I reccomend reading this article on how to choose which case studies you should do and how to Create a Magnetic UX Case Study that will actually get you noticed and hired.

Move into doing real projects

These projects are also no substitute for doing real-world projects such as things you design and build yourself, freelance jobs, client work or open-source projects. Generated prompts and challenges cannot introduce the ambiguity of business requirements, changing stakeholder needs and team dynamics that are most sought after in a hirable UX designer. So think of these as a stepping to help you jump into the real thing as soon as possible. Here are some examples of stellar UX/UI and Product Design portfolios that we love!

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The 10 Most Inspirational UX Design Portfolio Examples in 2024

The highly competitive landscape of UX design demands a portfolio that will be your passport to success. It's your stage to unveil your expertise, innovation , and problem-solving prowess. Irrespective of your expertise, crafting a compelling UX design portfolio is essential to thrive in this exciting field. The easy way out of this is referring to UX portfolio examples .

94% of first impressions gained by websites are due to the platform’s design and web UI . Apart from the budding UX designers and the business masters, the clients and hiring managers are aware of these stats as well. Hence, to stand out and get the best business, designers must showcase their work in the best way possible. A well-designed product designer portfolio is the solution.

This article uncovers the secrets of creating the best UX portfolios . With a list of the top 10 UX portfolio examples , you will get valuable insights and inspiration to transform your portfolio into a masterpiece. 

Best UX Design Portfolio Examples

1. pratibha joshi: cover the vital elements of an attractive portfolio.

Pratibha Joshi’s landing page with her introduction and current designation.

© Pratibha Joshi Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Pratibha Joshi is a product designer working in the field of UI /UX design. She also has a degree in UX design and has worked with Microsoft, Sprinklr, and Google. Pratibha’s UX portfolio is an ideal example of UX design portfolios. It is a captivating blend of design finesse and compelling narratives, a masterpiece that both novices and experts in the UX realm can refer to. Her portfolio is unique in that it seamlessly intertwines design projects with captivating stories while incorporating all the essential elements, making it a good UX portfolio. Unique and Inspirational Factor This portfolio stands out due to its perfect combination of design and depth. It expertly blends fascinating stories into her design projects, making it an inspiring resource for UX designers and hiring managers. Her ability to convey the design process and decision-making behind each project is a source of inspiration. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Pratibha’s portfolio is unique in its use of thorough case studies , which showcase her problem-solving abilities and meticulous design approach. It goes beyond merely showing the finished product; it reveals the entire design process . The key takeaways include a strong focus on user-centered design and a structured presentation of her work.

Pratibha covers all elements of a UX portfolio through her case studies.

What can beginners and experts learn from this? Newcomers can learn the art of storytelling and cohesive presentation, while seasoned professionals can admire the depth and detail of her case studies. This portfolio is a benchmark for effectively communicating the value of UX design work and is a perfect example of a good UX portfolio .

2. Gloria Lo: Land the Landing Page Game

Gloria Lo’s landing page with her introduction, designation and hobbies.

© Gloria Lo Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? As the landing page shows, Gloria Lo is a Sydney-based UI/UX product designer. She also dabbles in singing, painting, and writing. She has very smartly incorporated it into her landing page, giving visitors a quick overview of her likes and skills.

This portfolio is an excellent example of effective landing page design and personal introduction in the digital world. It is a compelling model for those seeking to make a powerful first impression. Unique and Inspirational Factor What distinguishes Gloria’s portfolio is its meticulous attention to the landing page. The design is visually captivating and highly functional. These attributes offer seamless navigation to the designer's work. Attention to detail is inspirational for those who seek to make a striking first impression and communicate their unique personality. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Gloria’s portfolio stands out from the competition through its well-thought-out landing page that provides clear signposts to the designer's skills, personality, case studies , and projects. The major takeaway is the importance of balancing aesthetics and user-friendliness in the design of the landing page, ensuring that visitors can quickly access the heart of the portfolio. What can beginners and experts learn from this? The professionalism in this portfolio is evident in the precision of the landing page, where design elements harmonize with user experience. Beginners can learn how to craft a landing page that makes an immediate impact, while experts can appreciate the meticulous design decisions that contribute to a seamless and engaging user journey.

Writer, designer and educator Ellen Lupton shows examples of visual storytelling and the importance of  storytelling in design.

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3. Jeff Shibasaki: Establish Expertise as a Novice

 Jeff displaying his work experiences through case studies.

© Jeff Shibasaki Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Jeff Shibasaki is a professional UX writer and a budding UX designer from Atlanta. Jeff’s UX portfolio inspires new entrants with limited hands-on experience in the UX design field. It demonstrates how to effectively utilize imagined case studies, work testimonies, and other creative elements to showcase one's potential and build a compelling portfolio. Unique and Inspirational Factor The portfolio's uniqueness lies in transforming limited real-world experience into a powerful display of skills and potential. The creator boldly showcases their creativity and problem-solving abilities through imagined projects. 

Jeff’s innovative approach sets his portfolio apart in a competitive field.

Imagined case studies used by Jeff to show his design prowess and cover up for lesser experience.

Differentiator and Major Takeaways Key takeaways from Jeff’s portfolio include the importance of creative storytelling , effectively using imagined case studies, and showcasing one's ability to solve real-world design problems. The portfolio's professionalism lies in its capacity to transform limited hands-on experience into core highlights. Jeff utilizes his design skills to make this possible. This proves that imagination can be a powerful asset in UX design. 

Jeff has also highlighted his UX writing skills through the multiple work experiences he has completed. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn the power of storytelling and creatively demonstrating their skills, even without extensive experience. For experts, this example serves as a reminder that creativity and ingenuity can be as important as a long list of past projects. Jeff’s portfolio is perfect if you’re looking for beginner UX portfolio examples.

Stephen Gay, UX Design Lean at Google One, walks us through his criteria for evaluating a UX portfolio.

4. Lola Jiang: Leverage the Power of Measurable Metrics

Homepage of Lola Jiang shows her UX portfolio in a subtle way.

© Lola Jiang Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Lola Jiang is an experienced UX designer working at Google. She is a professional designer who also provides feedback on other’s portfolios. What sets her work apart is her unique approach of exhibiting her accomplishments. Jiang presents case studies in a detailed manner using the correct data. Unique and Inspirational Factor Jiang’s UX portfolio example stands out by emphasizing metrics and showcasing the tangible impact of her design projects. It is inspirational because it goes beyond design aesthetics and highlights how design decisions lead to measurable results. This makes it a valuable resource for aspiring UX designers who want to emphasize the practical value of their work.

Lola’s work with Google ads where she uses metrics to show the impact of her design work.

Differentiator and Major Takeaways Clients are always on the lookout for details that are result-oriented. Lola Jiang, through her UX portfolio, has been able to highlight the impact of a UX designer. Her emphasis on metrics and quantifiable results shows the effects of design decisions. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn the value of data-driven decision-making, while experts can appreciate the thoroughness of her case studies. Lola's portfolio serves as a reminder of the power of metrics in UX design. It also signifies how design choices can drive meaningful and measurable results.

5. Moritz Oesterlau: Case Studies, a Vital Element

Case study by Moritz about his work on building a website concept.

© Moritz Oesterlau Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Moritz Oesterlau is a tenured UX/UI designer. He has six years of experience and also works as a tutor. His portfolio is a compelling example of how to present UX design work in a comprehensive and accessible manner. It serves as a reference for those looking to craft a portfolio that showcases their work with clarity and precision.

Unique and Inspirational Factor This UX design portfolio example stands out for its user-friendly design and comprehensive case studies. It is an informative and easy-to-navigate resource for anyone interested in Moritz’s work. He highlights the importance of providing easy access to essential portfolio details, making it a user-centric example. About Moritz, his work, and his contact details are all made visible in a connected way. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Moritz's portfolio is one of the best UX portfolio case study examples . It is exceptional due to its well-structured case studies that showcase his design process, from initial ideas to final implementation. He has also mentioned the time he took to complete each project. It provides easy navigation to critical information and projects, making it an exceptionally user-friendly resource.

Case study details represented by Moritz in his portfolio.

What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn from Moritz's portfolio by understanding the significance of presenting their work in an organized and accessible manner, ensuring that essential details are easily discoverable. For experts, Moritz's portfolio serves as a reminder of the importance of effectively portraying your UX design case studies in a detailed and structured manner.

6. Jessica Hische: Use Design to Showcase Your Personality

Attractive and vibrant homepage of Jessica Hische’s portfolio.

© Jessica Hische Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Jessica Hische is  a lettering artist, author, logo specialist, and UI/UX designer. She has drafted letterforms, worked in advertising, for books & films, and many more. Her portfolio is one of the most captivating UX writer portfolio examples of how to infuse creativity and personal expression into your portfolio. Her work inspires anyone looking to go beyond the ordinary and use their portfolio as a canvas for self-expression. Unique and Inspirational Factor What sets Jessica Hische's portfolio apart is its artistic flair and unique approach to presenting her work. It's inspirational because it showcases the potential of a portfolio as not just a professional representation but as a canvas for artistic expression. Her portfolio is a true embodiment of the fusion of art and design.

Typography , Illustrative and Lettering work by Jessica as displayed on her portfolio.

Differentiator and Major Takeaways Jessica's portfolio uniquely showcases her design skills and highlights her artistic expression and creativity. It goes beyond traditional portfolio formats and demonstrates that a portfolio can be an art form. Key takeaways from Jessica's portfolio include the importance of personal branding, creative exploration, and the idea that a portfolio can serve as a platform for self-expression. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Jessica Hische's UX portfolio example highlights the ability to balance creativity and professionalism. She demonstrates how your portfolio can be a creative expression while effectively communicating one's design skills. It is a valuable resource for beginners and experts, offering insights into personal branding, creative exploration, and the art of merging creativity with professionalism.

Michal Malewicz , co-founder of HYPE4 explains the importance of visual skills and shares some tips in this video.

7. Daniel Autry: Best Foot Forward

Daniel Autry’s introduction on his UX portfolio.

© Daniel Autry Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Daniel Autry is a product designer and developer who works for Google, specifically on news experiences. Daniel’s portfolio is an excellent demonstration of strategic curation when it comes to UX design portfolio examples . It is an ideal reference for those seeking to present their best works with clarity and impact. Unique and Inspirational Factor What distinguishes Daniel Autry's portfolio is his selective approach to showcasing work. It's inspirational because it emphasizes the art of restraint—each case study is a portfolio in itself. This portfolio proves that quality, not quantity, is the key to creating a lasting impression. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Daniel's portfolio stands out by its focused approach, presenting a carefully curated selection of his best works. He has included his best results under the featured tab and mentioned the key areas he worked on in the project. He also concisely mentions his other works in the later part of the portfolio. The major takeaways include the importance of selecting quality over quantity, strategic curation highlighting strengths, and a reminder that a concise portfolio can significantly impact a competitive field. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn the value of strategic selection and how showcasing fewer, high-quality projects can leave a more memorable impression. Experts can appreciate the art of presenting a portfolio that prioritizes the viewer's experience, making it easy to navigate and absorb the essence of each project.

Cory Lebson, Principal and Owner of Lebsontech LLC, talks about how you can reframe your professional experience in your UX portfolio in this next video.

8. Kyle Kovacs: Minimalism And Consistency

Kyle Kovacs UX portfolio uses minimalism to display his design work.

© Kyle Kovacs Portfolio, Fair Use

Who & Why? Kyle Kovacs is a computer science graduate who stepped into UX design due to his passion for design. Kyle shows how consistency and minimalist design can elevate the user experience in a UX portfolio. It is a reference for creating a professional and visually attractive presentation. Unique and Inspirational Factor What sets Kyle Kovacs' portfolio apart is its regularity in both design and content. It's inspirational because it demonstrates how a minimalist approach can still convey depth and impact, showcasing the power of simplicity in UX design presentation . Kyle uses the same font and design styles throughout his portfolio and has kept the text and design elements minimal yet impactful. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Kyle's UX design portfolio example stands out through its consistent design language and minimalist writing style, creating a seamless and engaging user journey. The major takeaways include the importance of visual continuity, minimalist writing, and the ability to convey complex design concepts. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn the significance of maintaining a visual theme throughout their portfolio, while experts can appreciate the art of simplifying complex ideas. Kyle's portfolio serves as a reminder that a minimalist approach can be both professional and impactful.

9. Yu-Hsuan: Illustrative Touch To Make Up For Locked Projects

Homepage of Yu Hsuan’s UX portfolio, a product designer at Oracle design.

© Yu Hsuan Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? Yu Hsuan is a product and UI/UX designer working on financial products at Oracle Design. She has previously worked at Google Assistant, NYU IT, and Backer-Founder. Yu has seamlessly blended UX design with an illustrative touch. It is an inspiring reference for those looking to infuse creativity into their portfolios, primarily through visual storytelling. Unique and Inspirational Factor Yu Hsuan's portfolio harmonizes UX design and illustration , creating a cohesive narrative for her work. Many UX designers face the confidentiality factor associated with their projects while curating their portfolios. Yu has managed to leverage her design skills to her benefit to tackle this problem. With an illustrative touch, Yu has tried to add depth and personality to her UX projects. Differentiator and Major Takeaways Yu's portfolio offers a glimpse into her UX projects through password-protected case studies while creatively showcasing side projects with an illustrative flair. The major takeaways include the importance of storytelling, the integration of illustration to convey personality, and how a mix of locked and visually accessible projects can create a sense of mystery and engagement. Yu has tried to incorporate and showcase whatever is missing in the locked projects using her illustrative skills in her side projects, which she calls Playground. What can beginners and experts learn from this? Beginners can learn the power of storytelling through visuals, while experts can appreciate the strategic use of locked projects to build anticipation and curiosity. Yu's portfolio is a reminder that creativity and a personal touch can coexist with professionalism.

Side projects and experimental design work by Yu Hsuan as displayed on her portfolio.

10. Run Wild: Interactive Design and Seamless Navigation

Run wild design’s interactive and appealing landing page on his portfolio.

© RunWild Portfolio, Fair Use

Who and Why? RunWild Design , aka Chris, is a designer who has worked for over 12 years with brands on their products, websites, apps, and UI/UX designs. He also does illustrative and graphic work. Chris introduces a refreshing take on UX design presentation, emphasizing interactive brilliance. He has created an immersive experience that aptly integrates design work. Unique and Inspirational Factor Its innovative interactive design and easy navigation set Run Wild’s portfolio apart. It's inspirational because it transforms the typical UX portfolio into an engaging journey, allowing visitors to explore projects effortlessly. This portfolio inspires by demonstrating that UX design can extend beyond projects, creating an immersive and memorable experience.

Run wild design’s portfolio inroprates seamless navigation by highlighting cire elements of his design work in his portfolio.

Differentiator and Major Takeaways Run Wild's portfolio stands out through its commitment to user experience, leveraging vital elements of its design work (Logos & illustrations) and user-friendly navigation. Chris understands the importance of the ease users seek, even if it is a client trying to find the best designers. He has successfully incorporated interactive design and smooth navigation to present diverse work. What can beginners and experts learn from this? The innovative portfolio of Run Wild can teach beginners the value of incorporating interactive elements to make their portfolios more memorable. Expert designers with more experience can note the strategic use of easy navigation to guide visitors through diverse projects.

Takeaway: So, What Makes a Good UX Portfolio?

Crafting a stellar UX portfolio is more than just showcasing your design projects; it's about storytelling that resonates with your audience. All the remarkable UX portfolio examples from across the world have shown us that irrespective of your tenure or experience, paying attention to crafting an innovative UX portfolio can push you toward success very fast. The portfolio is a testimony of your design skills if crafted with a specific vision, keeping in mind the key elements that the industry looks for. 

The essential elements of a good UX Portfolio: Powerful storytelling, Data-driven case studies, Strategic Curation, Minimalistic Approach, Interactive Brilliance, Personality and Creativity.

© Interaction Design Foundation, CC BY-SA 4.0

Let's revise the key takeaways from these inspiring UX portfolios to understand what makes a portfolio stand out:

1. Powerful Storytelling : Explain the design journey from concept to execution by seamlessly blending captivating stories with design projects.

2. Data-Driven Case Studies : Try to showcase the tangible impact of your design decisions through data to convey real value and highlight the importance of organized presentations.

3. Strategic Curation : Make your portfolio stand out with its selective approach by strategically showcasing your best work.

4. Minimalistic Approach : Demonstrate the power of minimalism in your portfolio by using simple and crisp design elements.

5. Interactive Brilliance : Use interactive design and seamless navigation to create an immersive experience for your visitors.

6. Express Personality : Make your portfolio a canvas for self-expression by going beyond showcasing skills and finding ways to infuse creativity into your portfolio. 7. Infused Creativity : You can showcase your skills with an out-of-the-box creative approach to make your portfolio stand out among competitors.

Want to Create a Stunning UX Portfolio?

Beginning the journey to create a UX portfolio that impresses and captivates your potential clients can be daunting. Whether you're just starting or looking to enhance your existing portfolio, the path to excellence lies in understanding the art of presentation. 

Gain insights from industry experts, refine your storytelling techniques, and learn how to showcase your work with IxDF's course on creating a UX portfolio . This course is the ideal option if you’re looking to elevate your design narrative to new heights!

References and Where to Learn More

We’ve used the following UX design portfolios of these great designers:

Frances Tung

Christina Richardson

Joshua Taylor

We’ve also used the hilarious The Worst Portfolio Ever , created by Alex Cornell. You can check out Alex’s explanation of his parody portfolio here .

More Inspirational UX portfolios here.

How to Create a UX Portfolio

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Topics in this article, what you should read next, how to write the conclusion of your case study.

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How to Make Full Use of Your UX Design Portfolio

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Case Study Research Method in Psychology

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

On This Page:

Case studies are in-depth investigations of a person, group, event, or community. Typically, data is gathered from various sources using several methods (e.g., observations & interviews).

The case study research method originated in clinical medicine (the case history, i.e., the patient’s personal history). In psychology, case studies are often confined to the study of a particular individual.

The information is mainly biographical and relates to events in the individual’s past (i.e., retrospective), as well as to significant events that are currently occurring in his or her everyday life.

The case study is not a research method, but researchers select methods of data collection and analysis that will generate material suitable for case studies.

Freud (1909a, 1909b) conducted very detailed investigations into the private lives of his patients in an attempt to both understand and help them overcome their illnesses.

This makes it clear that the case study is a method that should only be used by a psychologist, therapist, or psychiatrist, i.e., someone with a professional qualification.

There is an ethical issue of competence. Only someone qualified to diagnose and treat a person can conduct a formal case study relating to atypical (i.e., abnormal) behavior or atypical development.

 Famous Case Studies

• Anna O – One of the most famous case studies, documenting psychoanalyst Josef Breuer’s treatment of “Anna O” (real name Bertha Pappenheim) for hysteria in the late 1800s using early psychoanalytic theory.
• Little Hans – A child psychoanalysis case study published by Sigmund Freud in 1909 analyzing his five-year-old patient Herbert Graf’s house phobia as related to the Oedipus complex.
• Bruce/Brenda – Gender identity case of the boy (Bruce) whose botched circumcision led psychologist John Money to advise gender reassignment and raise him as a girl (Brenda) in the 1960s.
• Genie Wiley – Linguistics/psychological development case of the victim of extreme isolation abuse who was studied in 1970s California for effects of early language deprivation on acquiring speech later in life.
• Phineas Gage – One of the most famous neuropsychology case studies analyzes personality changes in railroad worker Phineas Gage after an 1848 brain injury involving a tamping iron piercing his skull.

Clinical Case Studies

• Studying the effectiveness of psychotherapy approaches with an individual patient
• Assessing and treating mental illnesses like depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD
• Neuropsychological cases investigating brain injuries or disorders

Child Psychology Case Studies

• Studying psychological development from birth through adolescence
• Cases of learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, ADHD
• Effects of trauma, abuse, deprivation on development

Types of Case Studies

• Explanatory case studies : Used to explore causation in order to find underlying principles. Helpful for doing qualitative analysis to explain presumed causal links.
• Exploratory case studies : Used to explore situations where an intervention being evaluated has no clear set of outcomes. It helps define questions and hypotheses for future research.
• Descriptive case studies : Describe an intervention or phenomenon and the real-life context in which it occurred. It is helpful for illustrating certain topics within an evaluation.
• Multiple-case studies : Used to explore differences between cases and replicate findings across cases. Helpful for comparing and contrasting specific cases.
• Intrinsic : Used to gain a better understanding of a particular case. Helpful for capturing the complexity of a single case.
• Collective : Used to explore a general phenomenon using multiple case studies. Helpful for jointly studying a group of cases in order to inquire into the phenomenon.

Where Do You Find Data for a Case Study?

There are several places to find data for a case study. The key is to gather data from multiple sources to get a complete picture of the case and corroborate facts or findings through triangulation of evidence. Most of this information is likely qualitative (i.e., verbal description rather than measurement), but the psychologist might also collect numerical data.

1. Primary sources

• Interviews – Interviewing key people related to the case to get their perspectives and insights. The interview is an extremely effective procedure for obtaining information about an individual, and it may be used to collect comments from the person’s friends, parents, employer, workmates, and others who have a good knowledge of the person, as well as to obtain facts from the person him or herself.
• Observations – Observing behaviors, interactions, processes, etc., related to the case as they unfold in real-time.
• Documents & Records – Reviewing private documents, diaries, public records, correspondence, meeting minutes, etc., relevant to the case.

2. Secondary sources

• News/Media – News coverage of events related to the case study.
• Academic articles – Journal articles, dissertations etc. that discuss the case.
• Government reports – Official data and records related to the case context.
• Books/films – Books, documentaries or films discussing the case.

3. Archival records

Searching historical archives, museum collections and databases to find relevant documents, visual/audio records related to the case history and context.

Public archives like newspapers, organizational records, photographic collections could all include potentially relevant pieces of information to shed light on attitudes, cultural perspectives, common practices and historical contexts related to psychology.

4. Organizational records

Organizational records offer the advantage of often having large datasets collected over time that can reveal or confirm psychological insights.

Of course, privacy and ethical concerns regarding confidential data must be navigated carefully.

However, with proper protocols, organizational records can provide invaluable context and empirical depth to qualitative case studies exploring the intersection of psychology and organizations.

• Organizational/industrial psychology research : Organizational records like employee surveys, turnover/retention data, policies, incident reports etc. may provide insight into topics like job satisfaction, workplace culture and dynamics, leadership issues, employee behaviors etc.
• Clinical psychology : Therapists/hospitals may grant access to anonymized medical records to study aspects like assessments, diagnoses, treatment plans etc. This could shed light on clinical practices.
• School psychology : Studies could utilize anonymized student records like test scores, grades, disciplinary issues, and counseling referrals to study child development, learning barriers, effectiveness of support programs, and more.

How do I Write a Case Study in Psychology?

Follow specified case study guidelines provided by a journal or your psychology tutor. General components of clinical case studies include: background, symptoms, assessments, diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes. Interpreting the information means the researcher decides what to include or leave out. A good case study should always clarify which information is the factual description and which is an inference or the researcher’s opinion.

1. Introduction

• Provide background on the case context and why it is of interest, presenting background information like demographics, relevant history, and presenting problem.
• Compare briefly to similar published cases if applicable. Clearly state the focus/importance of the case.

2. Case Presentation

• Describe the presenting problem in detail, including symptoms, duration,and impact on daily life.
• Include client demographics like age and gender, information about social relationships, and mental health history.
• Describe all physical, emotional, and/or sensory symptoms reported by the client.
• Use patient quotes to describe the initial complaint verbatim. Follow with full-sentence summaries of relevant history details gathered, including key components that led to a working diagnosis.
• Summarize clinical exam results, namely orthopedic/neurological tests, imaging, lab tests, etc. Note actual results rather than subjective conclusions. Provide images if clearly reproducible/anonymized.
• Clearly state the working diagnosis or clinical impression before transitioning to management.

3. Management and Outcome

• Indicate the total duration of care and number of treatments given over what timeframe. Use specific names/descriptions for any therapies/interventions applied.
• Present the results of the intervention,including any quantitative or qualitative data collected.
• For outcomes, utilize visual analog scales for pain, medication usage logs, etc., if possible. Include patient self-reports of improvement/worsening of symptoms. Note the reason for discharge/end of care.

4. Discussion

• Analyze the case, exploring contributing factors, limitations of the study, and connections to existing research.
• Analyze the effectiveness of the intervention,considering factors like participant adherence, limitations of the study, and potential alternative explanations for the results.
• Identify any questions raised in the case analysis and relate insights to established theories and current research if applicable. Avoid definitive claims about physiological explanations.
• Offer clinical implications, and suggest future research directions.

5. Additional Items

• Thank specific assistants for writing support only. No patient acknowledgments.
• References should directly support any key claims or quotes included.
• Use tables/figures/images only if substantially informative. Include permissions and legends/explanatory notes.
• Provides detailed (rich qualitative) information.
• Provides insight for further research.
• Permitting investigation of otherwise impractical (or unethical) situations.

Case studies allow a researcher to investigate a topic in far more detail than might be possible if they were trying to deal with a large number of research participants (nomothetic approach) with the aim of ‘averaging’.

Because of their in-depth, multi-sided approach, case studies often shed light on aspects of human thinking and behavior that would be unethical or impractical to study in other ways.

Research that only looks into the measurable aspects of human behavior is not likely to give us insights into the subjective dimension of experience, which is important to psychoanalytic and humanistic psychologists.

Case studies are often used in exploratory research. They can help us generate new ideas (that might be tested by other methods). They are an important way of illustrating theories and can help show how different aspects of a person’s life are related to each other.

The method is, therefore, important for psychologists who adopt a holistic point of view (i.e., humanistic psychologists ).

Limitations

• Lacking scientific rigor and providing little basis for generalization of results to the wider population.
• Researchers’ own subjective feelings may influence the case study (researcher bias).
• Difficult to replicate.
• Time-consuming and expensive.
• The volume of data, together with the time restrictions in place, impacted the depth of analysis that was possible within the available resources.

Because a case study deals with only one person/event/group, we can never be sure if the case study investigated is representative of the wider body of “similar” instances. This means the conclusions drawn from a particular case may not be transferable to other settings.

Because case studies are based on the analysis of qualitative (i.e., descriptive) data , a lot depends on the psychologist’s interpretation of the information she has acquired.

This means that there is a lot of scope for Anna O , and it could be that the subjective opinions of the psychologist intrude in the assessment of what the data means.

For example, Freud has been criticized for producing case studies in which the information was sometimes distorted to fit particular behavioral theories (e.g., Little Hans ).

This is also true of Money’s interpretation of the Bruce/Brenda case study (Diamond, 1997) when he ignored evidence that went against his theory.

Breuer, J., & Freud, S. (1895).  Studies on hysteria . Standard Edition 2: London.

Curtiss, S. (1981). Genie: The case of a modern wild child .

Diamond, M., & Sigmundson, K. (1997). Sex Reassignment at Birth: Long-term Review and Clinical Implications. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine , 151(3), 298-304

Freud, S. (1909a). Analysis of a phobia of a five year old boy. In The Pelican Freud Library (1977), Vol 8, Case Histories 1, pages 169-306

Freud, S. (1909b). Bemerkungen über einen Fall von Zwangsneurose (Der “Rattenmann”). Jb. psychoanal. psychopathol. Forsch ., I, p. 357-421; GW, VII, p. 379-463; Notes upon a case of obsessional neurosis, SE , 10: 151-318.

Harlow J. M. (1848). Passage of an iron rod through the head.  Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 39 , 389–393.

Harlow, J. M. (1868).  Recovery from the Passage of an Iron Bar through the Head .  Publications of the Massachusetts Medical Society. 2  (3), 327-347.

Money, J., & Ehrhardt, A. A. (1972).  Man & Woman, Boy & Girl : The Differentiation and Dimorphism of Gender Identity from Conception to Maturity. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Money, J., & Tucker, P. (1975). Sexual signatures: On being a man or a woman.

Further Information

• Case Study Approach
• Case Study Method
• Enhancing the Quality of Case Studies in Health Services Research
• “We do things together” A case study of “couplehood” in dementia
• Using mixed methods for evaluating an integrative approach to cancer care: a case study

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