Stop 06 · Design Collaboration & UXTopics · 2/10

UX Principles

In short

When users say an app "just feels easy", a few simple principles are usually at work. Knowing their names helps you explain exactly why a screen feels wrong.

Core ideas like consistency, feedback, error prevention and recognition-over-recall that make an interface feel intuitive — the vocabulary you need to give useful, specific design feedback.

The purple blob presses a glowing lift button in a building lobby.

Think of it like this

The lift button that glows

You press the lift button and it lights up. Nothing else has happened yet, but you relax: the system heard you. No light, and people press it ten times. That tiny glow is feedback, one of the core UX principles.

Watch it happen

Principles you'll hear in design reviews

Good UX

1/5Most UX principles help users with two things: understanding what's going on, and not getting hurt by mistakes.

The big ideas

What you need to know

Feedback

Every tap should get a response within a moment, even if it's just a loading state.

Consistency

If Save is a purple button on one screen, it shouldn't be a grey link on the next.

Recognition beats recall

Show choices on screen. Memory is weak, and users are busy.

Prevent and forgive errors

Block impossible inputs early and let people undo. Blame the design, not the user.

Save yourself the pain

Common mistakes

Oops

Saying "this feels off" in a review.

Do this instead

Name the principle: "There's no feedback after tapping Pay, so users may tap twice."

Oops

Treating principles as strict rules.

Do this instead

Use them as a vocabulary for trade-offs. Sometimes breaking consistency is right, but say why.

Your mission

Spot principles in the wild

~20 min

Quick check

A form lets users submit a date of birth in the future, then shows an error. Which principle is weakest?

Go deeper

1Read a summary of Nielsen's usability heuristics (covered in depth later in this phase).
2Critique an app you find confusing using specific UX principles, not just 'I don't like it'.
3Learn the difference between UX (experience) and UI (visual interface).