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Topics Explored:

UX Laws & Psychological Principles

Hick’s Law

Jakob’s Law

Miller’s Law

Tesler’s Law

Fitts’s Law

Doherty Threshold

Von Restorff Effect

Law of Proximity

Law of Similarity

Law of Prägnanz

UI & Visual Design Principles

Gestalt Principles

Aesthetic-Usability Effect

Consistency Principle

Gridding & Alignment

Component Spacing

Colour & Contrast Rules (60–30 -10 rule)

Visual Hierarchy

Typography Guidelines

Additional Considerations

Accessibility

Usability Standards

Mobile-first thinking

Interaction & engagement patterns

Touch target sizing

Microinteractions & responsiveness

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Laws of UX is a collection of best practices that designers can consider when building user interfaces.

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UX/UI Design Principles in Modern Mobile Applications

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Discover how UX design, adaptability, and data security can elevate your mobile app to meet user expectations and industry standards.

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What is app design and what makes it good?

App design is a combination of UI and UX design to build out a usable piece of software. Modern users don't have patience for apps that are confusing to use. Ideal mobile app design is good-looking, functional, and straightforward all at the same time.

So, how do you measure good app design? A good app is measured by good UX.

Users should be able to navigate your application without needing to think. If they can instinctively figure out the design, they'll continue to use your application again and again.

In this article, we're going to look at the 9 principles of mobile app design and how you can incorporate them into your design work.

Here at UXPin, we use these principles on a regular basis. If you're looking to boost your design skills, get on to the UXPin free trial and start prototyping now.

Principle 1: Make it Easy

Prove your app's value by giving users what they want right away.

Normally, when someone downloads an app, he or she wants to use it for performing a specific task. Try to make a great first impression once they open your app. Don't interrupt them while they're using your app - or at least don't interrupt them immediately.

Let users do what they want to do. Users are there to find specific information, perform an action or consume some kind of content. If they can't do what they want easily, they might close your app and never come back.

Break down big tasks into really easy steps

Cognitive load measures the mental effort needed to complete a task. Minimize the cognitive load of using your app so that users can navigate step-by-step. They shouldn't view it as a chore that needs to be done.

Let's take a checkout process as an example: you could ask users for information all at once, but they'll find it easier to fill in information over multiple steps: their shipping address, billing information, credit card information, etc.

Tell the user exactly what they need to do

Your design should make it clear what the user needs to do. If you suspect that an integral part of your layout may confuse your users, use visual aids to explain what needs to be done. For instance, you can use a tooltip or a caption to provide instructions.

Don't hide important information

If you want the user to use your application effectively, turn their attention to the most important elements of your app. You can do so by increasing the font size, adding whitespace, and making sure that the element's color contrasts well with the background color.

Navigation elements should always be visible and they should facilitate the completion of high-value tasks.

People get used to the design patterns they encounter every day. For instance, they will expect to be able to swipe through pictures. Make sure you adhere to the typical navigation methods of the Internet.

Your users' past experiences of using other apps will inform their expectations for using all applications, including yours. Incorporate these common patterns into your design to allow them to easily navigate your app.

Take inspiration from UX design trends and most common patterns used today, but don't blindly implement them without considering their fit with your application. If necessary, slightly modify these patterns to fit the overall context of your design.

Make sure to follow the commonly accepted navigational principles for the structure of your app. Sometimes users will instantly understand the purpose of a certain feature or a page. For instance, people will recognize the purpose of the "what's new" page, or "search" field. Use these universally recognized concepts to simplify your app's design.

Make sure to check out the design guidelines published by developers of iOS and Android operating systems. These documents describe proven design patterns used in excellent layouts today.

Follow the 3-click rule

Users should be able to access any part of your app in less than three clicks. Keep the hierarchy of your navigation bar simple.

Doing so will make sure it's easy for your users to keep a mental map of what's going on in your app. Also, make sure your app shows the name of the page.

Whenever there's an error, let people return to the homepage or try to redirect them to other pages that might interest them.

Save users' progress

Users today are busy and easily distracted. They might close your app to respond to an email or watch a new episode of their favorite TV show. Save their progress so that they can come back and finish their task without having to start over.

Make it accessible across multiple devices

If you have a desktop website and a smartphone app, both channels should automatically save the activities and progress of logged-in users. People should be able to use the app and the website interchangeably. For instance, online shoppers might browse products on their phones, but they'll usually place an order on a desktop computer.

Don't make up your own language

In some cases, it's better to rely on basic principles of app design. People easily understand the design frameworks they encounter every day. Your layout should fall in line with those expectations.

X in the top right-hand corner

A lot of applications feature X in the top right corner. Users instinctively know that clicking it will close the application.

Avoid dramatically changing the function of common symbols. For instance, the user expects X to close the window. Don't use X as a symbol for any other action.

Save Button

Your app should also have a Save button at the bottom of a page.

Light coloured text field for inputs

Normally, input field lines are light-colored. Ideally, they should match the color that the users associate with your brand. It is rare to see input fields with black borders.

Principle 4: Have a great, clear, and prioritized page design

Label products descriptively

Make sure the names you choose for products are descriptive and appealing. For instance, a customer might find it hard to see the difference between "standard shipping" and "regular shipping". Pick labels that showcase the differences between the two options.

You can use techniques like Card Sorting to get the feel of customers' mental models.

Your navigation should facilitate the completion of the most important and high-value tasks. Show the most important features in the primary menu and leave everything else for the secondary menu. Use Visual Weight techniques to divert users' attention to where it matters.

Changing font size, background contrast, and surrounding whitespace can help you divert users' attention to the most important features of your application.

F pattern vs. Z pattern

Most users aren't going to read text from start to finish. They are more likely to scan multiple paragraphs of text. The first few words of the opening paragraphs get the most attention. That's where you should place your most important messages to ensure that users don't miss them. This scanning behavior is described as an F pattern.

Users scan visual content in a Z-shaped pattern. Place your most important visuals in the areas where they are most likely to be seen by the users, following the Z-shape pattern on your webpages.

Principle 5: Have brand image consistency

The buttons, input fields, and other elements of your application should be based on your brand image.

If your application is based on an existing website, make sure its navigation works similarly to that of a website. Don't change the color palette or other basic functionality to avoid confusion.

Make sure your users can predict most of the time how your app will work and look.

Mobile users don't have the advantage of hovering and having a cursor to help them guess the outcome of their actions. Carefully design the elements to help users recognize their purpose.

Principle 6: Minimize input and commitment from the user

Don't ask for set-up information up front

Users see your app as a solution. Most people are focused on solving their problems. Don't bother them with questions, account registrations, or signup forms right away.

Let users use your app freely until it's absolutely critical to login, give a credit card, or whatever the action may be.

For example, Medium allows its users to enjoy a limited number of high-quality articles before asking them to create an account and subscribe.

Minimize the need for typing

Users find it hard to precisely type on their smartphones. Try to get the desired information without asking them for text input.

If you can't think of an alternative, provide input masks as a formatting guideline.

Prefill as much data as possible

Instead of asking users to write down their location, ask them to share their location and use a smart tool to fill in their address based on GPS data.

Provide optional inputs

Don't ask users for unnecessary information. If you'd like to collect the data, give users the option to fill out the form or leave it empty if they wish.

Autofill wherever possible

In some cases, you can use the phone's features to automatically fill in the fields. For instance, some apps allow their users to provide payment information by holding their credit cards in front of the camera.

Principle 7: Loading should be fast and well communicated

Users are impatient when it comes to waiting for the app to load. Make sure your app loads fast to minimize any friction.

Show something

If you're loading, make sure your user knows it's loading and not broken.

Seeing a blank loading screen might lead your users to think that your app doesn't work. People are used to seeing some sort of loading indicator - a progress bar or a loading spinner.

Load parts of the content gradually to display something as soon as possible. This way, users can start using the app right away, even if their Internet connection is unstable.

You can use simple loops or progress bars to display loading progress, but users are more likely to keep waiting if you create a simple, but entertaining loading animation.

Principle 8: Optimize your app for mobile, and diverse mobile users.

If your app is going to include a lot of text, make sure that it scales well on all types of screens. Text is much easier to read when each line contains no more than 40 characters. You should also adjust the line spacing.

If your app involves visual content like images and videos, make sure your app can be viewed in both - portrait and landscape modes.

Make sure your pages are built for mobile

When building a layout for your app, design easily clickable and properly spaced-out buttons. Users shouldn't accidentally click something they're not supposed to. For instance, put enough space between the Back and Next buttons to avoid accidental clicks.

Make sure your pages are built for different kinds of devices

Your app will be viewed on smartphones with 4-inch screens as well as 12+ inch tablets. Make sure your content properly scales to fill available space on larger screens. Make sure pages don't look crowded on small screens.

Principle 9: Do app design for humans

Font Size

A sizable portion of Internet users today have impaired vision. Use a font size of at least 16px so that your text is legible to everyone.

Color blindness

You shouldn't rely solely on colors to communicate with your users. You should also use symbols so that color-blind people can understand the message.

Deafness

Your app should be adapted for the deaf and hard of hearing, especially if it contains sound components. Video and audio content should be captioned and subtitled.

Disabilities

HTML has built-in features to communicate the meaning of the content. For instance, you can use alt attributes to describe the visual images for people who can't see.

Gender selections

Unless the core functionality of your app revolves around the user's gender, don't ask them to specify their gender. If you run a simple business like a car rental service, there's no need to know the customer's gender.

Conclusion

Designing an app from scratch is a lot of work. Thankfully, you can use UXPin and its built-in accessibility features to design an app that is accessible to everyone. You can start creating beautiful code-based designs right away by signing up for a 14-day free trial.

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App design is a combination of UI and UX design to build out a usable piece of software. Modern users don't have patience for apps that are confusing to use. Ideal mobile app design is good-looking, functional, and straightforward all at the same time. So, how do you measure good app design?

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As part of the early development stage, I researched UX and UI design fundamentals specifically for mobile app experiences. Since there are many fields within design, each with its own specific rules and best practices, I wanted to build a clearer understanding of how users interact with mobile interfaces and how design decisions impact usability.

This research helped me gain new knowledge and confidence when approaching layout, navigation, and user interaction, giving me a solid base for making informed design choices moving forward.

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Visual Aspect in Successful Apps - Features Analysis

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Visual Aspect in Successful Apps - Features Analysis

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The Double Diamond UX process helped me fully understand the design process from a theoretical perspective. It outlines four key phases: Discover, Define, Develop, and Deliver, and gave me a clear framework I can apply in future.

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The UX Design Process explained step by step with a mobile app project

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The Laws of UX - 19 Psychological Design Principles

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Here I have collected interesting videos that show clear examples from a visual point of view and also help to develop viewing experience. Mainly focusing on mobile app design, design trends of 2025 and the main design principles

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MUST WATCH !!!

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4 levels of UI/UX design (and BIG mistakes to avoid)

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main topic - navigation bar

a useful video with a beautiful visual that clearly explains all the main aspects before the design of the application and helps to avoid common mistakes, there are also interesting tips

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Top UI/UX Design Tips - How to Design a Great Bottom Mobile Navigation Bar

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1. Prominence

2. Icon Consistency

3. Call to Action

4. Increase Line Height

5. Consistency

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These tips focus on enhancing typography and text layout to improve readability and overall user interface design.

Line Height

Letter Spacing

Text Alignment

Text Width

Hierarchy in Text

Spacing Between Text Elements

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Colour Psychology is a very powerful tool that could ......

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Color Psychology: How To Choose the Right Colors for Your Brand

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Discover how brand color psychology influences consumer perception and success. Learn to choose the right colors to make your brand stand out and thrive.

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Over the last couple of years, I've explored a wide variety of apps, and while some fell short of expectations, others surprised me with their versatility and usefulness. Through this journey, I've discovered some fantastic apps, many of which have become my everyday drivers.

To add to that, these aren't just apps that I casually use; they're tools that genuinely add value to my life. Whether it's staying on top of tasks, travelling, improving my health, or boosting productivity, these apps have proven their worth on many occasions.

In this article, I'll take you through the apps that have earned a permanent spot on my Home Screen. Whether you're aiming to improve your habits, become more organised, or try something new, these apps have the potential to make a real difference.

So without any further ado, here are the tools that could change everything for you in 2025...

1. Setapp

I wanted to start this list with Setapp, which I've been using as a paying customer for all of last year.

Setapp is like Netflix but for macOS and iOS apps. I pay a set monthly price of $12.49 per month, and that provides me with access to over 250 apps, and there is a cheaper option available.

The subscription provides access to some phenomenal apps such as Ulysses, Spark Mail, Craft, Headway, and more. If you are interested in trying it out for yourself, I am leaving my affiliate link, which helps support by work.

But that's not why I decided to include it first in this article; the actual reason is that many of the apps I'm about to share, I've discovered through Setapp, and some of these apps have made a real difference in my everyday life.

When I first discovered Setapp, I didn't know what to think of it, but I decided to try it for free for 7 days, and I was sold on the idea. Not only does it provide me with access to some fantastic apps, it also helps me to run my side hustle.

The app offers a wide range of software, from optimisation software to work, creativity, development, and AI. Speaking about AI, if you're not sure what you're looking for, the app has an AI assistant built in, simply tell it what you're after, and it will try to match an app to it. This tends to be a feature I use a lot, especially when I'm rushing.

Overall, I think it's fair to say that I'm incredibly satisfied with this app; not only has it helped me save money, but it also makes finding apps easier and stress-free.

2. Awesome Habits

Since it's the new year, I decided to have Awesome Habits second on this list. Awesome Habits is the first app on this list that I've discovered thanks to Setapp.

I was never one for tracking habits. I tried many apps over the years, but somehow, most of the apps I've tried didn't work for me, and after a few weeks, I gave up on them.

That's until I discovered Awesome Habits, an app that I've been using to track my habits throughout most of last year. Awesome Habits is the first app that I haven't given up on using, and I think the main reason for that is its interface as well as the fact that it's straight to the point.

I like the fact that I can sync the app with Apple Health, which allows me to automatically track fitness goals such as steps and exercise minutes.

The app is available on macOS, iOS, and watchOS. Having the app on your Apple Watch is great, as it allows me to tick things off my list without having to use my phone.

3. Endel

Endel is an audio app that creates personalised soundscapes that match your activities. With the help of artificial intelligence, the app helps you to enhance focus, sleep, relax, and power you through activities.

As someone who lives a busy lifestyle, this is honestly a game changer!

To begin with, Endel helps me focus. I can either listen to soundscapes that are designed to help me focus, or I can start a timed session or a Pomodoro timer, which is perfect for someone who uses the Pomodoro technique.

The app can also help me relax. Using public transport can be hectic sometimes, and as someone who relies on it to get to and from work, I am very familiar with what it can be like. I find that Endel helps me get away from the hustle and bustle of a busy train carriage, which helps me to set up for the day. I also like to use Endel when I go for a walk during my break, as it also sets me up for the afternoon.

Endel is also great for sleep, and, best of all, you can set Endel to turn off after a certain time so that once you fall asleep, you don't have it running all night, which you can do if that's what you prefer.

Endel also works with activities. I like going for walks during my breaks at work, as I find it to be a great excuse to get some steps in and to get away from the computer screen. When I'm walking, the soundscapes respond to my steps, which, I think, is a fantastic feature as it motivates me to go on longer walks and makes the sound more interactive.

Endel is available on a wide range of platforms, including iOS, Android, watchOS, WearOS, Mac, Alexa, and even music streaming platforms if you just want to listen!

4. Bublup

Next on the list is Bublup, an app that provides a new way to save, organise, and share your digital life. From sharing photos, videos, documents, or recipes to working on projects and collaborating with teams.

But that's not all because Bublup has some incredible features that make working on projects and sharing things more enjoyable.

I primarily use Bublup as a library for links to content I find useful and may want to revert to in the future. A great example of the types of links I save to Bublup are guides, reviews of products I'm considering buying later, as well as travel planning.

One of my favourite features of Bublup is the Roll feature, which allows me to create an instant web page from a folder. Best of all, it takes seconds to create a Roll and not too long to edit it to the way you want to see it. I use Rolls throughout my website. For example, the things I recommend page is a Roll, and so are the everyday tech carry and what's in my tech backpack pages.

Bublup has many other cool features, such as the ability to create forums, which I'm considering using in the future. I think that it's an excellent feature for project teams and companies, especially when working on products.

I've been using Bublup for over a year, and not only has it helped me stay organised, it has also helped me with collaborative tasks, my side hustle, and my knowledge management system. As a paying customer, I can't stop speaking highly enough of it. That is why I decided to join their affiliate program. If you are interested in trying out Bublup yourself, I am leaving my affiliate link.

5. BusyCal

As someone who lives a busy lifestyle, I manage multiple calendars and to-do lists to ensure I stay on top of everything. That's why I need a calendar app that is both easy to use and has some useful features to help me stay on top of things.

That's where BusyCal comes in. BusyCal is a powerful calendar app available on macOS, iOS, and watchOS. It's highly customisable and packed with several useful features, starting with customisation.

Most of the calendar apps that I've used over the years give you the ability to switch between day, week, month, year, and list views. But what makes BusyCal different is that you can customise the views. For example, you can choose the number of weeks shown in the month view and the number of days shown in the week view. You can even customise the calendar font, size, colours, and time format.

As someone who travels a lot, I find the travel time incredibly useful as it allows me to block out the time I need to get to the event. You can determine the travel time manually or get it automatically using the location services and Apple Maps. You can even receive alerts when it's time to leave if the traffic conditions change.

Another feature that I find useful is the menu bar app in macOS. The menu bar app shows a real-time counter for ongoing and upcoming events, and when I click it, it shows me a detailed calendar.

I also like the tags feature, which enables you to tag events, which makes it great for tracking and filtering.

I've discovered BusyCal thanks to Setapp, and based on my experience so far, I think that it is a phenomenal app.

6. Trip.com

Last on this list is Trip.com, which is my primary travel app. I use Trip.com to book train tickets when I commute to and from the office. I use it to book hotels, flights, coaches, and more.

Best of all, the app allows you to collect points, which is great if you travel a lot, as you can use the points to fund future trips.

As a frequent traveller, there are times when things don't go quite to plan, whether it's cancellations due to bad weather, delays, or last-minute changes to your plans. Trip.com is a great app to have on your phone as it allows you to quickly make alternative arrangements.

The app has helped me on so many occasions, such as when the concert I was on overran and I quickly booked a last-minute hotel with the help of the app. The app also helped me to book last minute coach tickets when the trains were disrupted due to bad weather.

I think that Trip.com is a great app to have on your phone, especially when you rely on the trains in the UK. Having used the app for a long time, I think that it is a genuinely helpful app to have on your phone. That's why I am sharing my affiliate link.

Final Thoughts

There are many apps that I use throughout the day, but in this article, I decided to share six of the less discussed apps that I use daily and that really make a difference in my life.

Let me know in the comments which app stood out to you or whether you already use any of the apps mentioned.

Before You Go

Enjoyed this post? Sign up for my weekly newsletter to receive exclusive content, tips, and more straight to your inbox!

🔗 Connect with me on social media:

Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links. Find out more in my affiliate disclaimer.

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Discover 6 must-try apps for 2025 to boost productivity, track habits, manage travel, and more. I used these apps last year, and they do help!

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[Text from the website above, click to see]

"Since it’s the new year, I decided to have Awesome Habits second on this list. Awesome Habits is the first app on this list that I’ve discovered thanks to Setapp.

I was never one for tracking habits. I tried many apps over the years, but somehow, most of the apps I’ve tried didn’t work for me, and after a few weeks, I gave up on them.

That’s until I discovered Awesome Habits, an app that I’ve been using to track my habits throughout most of last year. Awesome Habits is the first app that I haven’t given up on using, and I think the main reason for that is its interface as well as the fact that it’s straight to the point.

I like the fact that I can sync the app with Apple Health, which allows me to automatically track fitness goals such as steps and exercise minutes.

The app is available on macOS, iOS, and watchOS. Having the app on your Apple Watch is great, as it allows me to tick things off my list without having to use my phone."

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Awesome Habits – Habit tracker for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch

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Instead of setting goals, start improving your regular habits. Small and easy changes will compound into remarkable results. With our app, you will get better every day and achieve the kind of success that lasts.

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[Text from the website above, click to see]

https://endel.io/adhd ADHD & Focus with soundscape

Endel is an audio app that creates personalised soundscapes that match your activities. With the help of artificial intelligence, the app helps you to enhance focus, sleep, relax, and power you through activities.

As someone who lives a busy lifestyle, this is honestly a game changer!

To begin with, Endel helps me focus. I can either listen to soundscapes that are designed to help me focus, or I can start a timed session or a Pomodoro timer, which is perfect for someone who uses the Pomodoro technique.

The app can also help me relax. Using public transport can be hectic sometimes, and as someone who relies on it to get to and from work, I am very familiar with what it can be like. I find that Endel helps me get away from the hustle and bustle of a busy train carriage, which helps me to set up for the day. I also like to use Endel when I go for a walk during my break, as it also sets me up for the afternoon.

Endel is also great for sleep, and, best of all, you can set Endel to turn off after a certain time so that once you fall asleep, you don’t have it running all night, which you can do if that’s what you prefer.

Endel also works with activities. I like going for walks during my breaks at work, as I find it to be a great excuse to get some steps in and to get away from the computer screen. When I’m walking, the soundscapes respond to my steps, which, I think, is a fantastic feature as it motivates me to go on longer walks and makes the sound more interactive.

Endel is available on a wide range of platforms, including iOS, Android, watchOS, WearOS, Mac, Alexa, and even music streaming platforms if you just want to listen!

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Endel - Personalized soundscapes to help you focus, relax, and sleep. Backed by neuroscience.

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Our patented technology creates soundscapes that adapt in real-time. It reacts to inputs like time of day, weather, heart rate, and location. Neuroscience shows Endel consistently improves focus and lowers stress.

for increasing focus vs playlists*

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Endel - Personalized soundscapes to help you focus, relax, and sleep. Backed by neuroscience.

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Personalized soundscapes to help you focus, relax, and sleep. Backed by neuroscience.

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Video Review - VERY USEFUL

Apps:

Stepping

Awesome Habits

Stipple (?)

Endel

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Brand New Productivity Apps You’ve Never Heard of (2025)

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Video Review - also so useful, I like the way he explains about the features and brings examples of how it could be used in daily life

Apps:

ByDesign

Sleep Cycle

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The 5 Best Productivity Apps (that ACTUALLY WORK) 2025 🤯📱🔥

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7 BIGGEST UI/UX Design Trends Of 2025. | Saptarshi Prakash

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The SECRET to Finding Inspiration for Web & App Design FAST

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Website -https://spdload.com/blog/mobile-app-ui-ux-design-trends/#:~:text=For%20instance%2C%20Netflix%20uses%20advanced,further%20enhancing%20seamless%20user%20experiences.

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The consequences and problems of gadgets in our reality - how it affects us and how to manage it (Rus🇷🇺)

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The consequences and problems of gadgets in our reality - how it affects us and how to manage it (Rus🇷🇺)

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Почему мы РАЗУЧИЛИСЬ ДУМАТЬ? | амоБлог

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Could be used as guide (NOT necessary to reference) 

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Could be used as guide (NOT necessary to reference) 

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https://www.rajmidoshi.com/Signflow  - I like the process content of app. (User flow, wireframes, user personas)

https://www.designrush.com/best-designs/logo/trends/best-fonts-for-logos - 10 Best Fonts for Logos in 2025 and Where to Find Them - some interesting examples (maybe useful in future)

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Habit Building Studying - what people struggling?

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Habit Building Studying - what people struggling?

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Low attention span

Overstimulation

Sound scaping

Psychology of Colour

Neuropsychology

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Spotify

Revolut

Weather

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Truth about Planning - Setting deadlines (Rus 🇷🇺)

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Truth about Planning - Setting deadlines (Rus 🇷🇺)

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У тебя МАЛО времени. Жесткая ПРАВДА О ПЛАНИРОВАНИИ | АМОБЛОГ

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Opal

Endel

Awesome Habits

Notion

Stepping

ByDesign

Sleep Cycle

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Nimble – Story: Dissecting The App: Revolut

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May 11, 2022. [UX] The fintech company’s app is marketed as being the one app for all things money. But what does that mean in practice?

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How Spotify's user experience is helping them win the streaming wars

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At the time of Spotify's initial launch in 2008, music streaming and streaming in general was more of a novelty than the competitive battleground that it is today. There were definitely players in...

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Notion Dashboard: Key Features, Pros and Cons

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Is there a Notion dashboard and, if there is, does it have the robust features project managers need? We take a look and have the answers.

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UI UX Design Agency for SaaS, Fintech & AI | Adam Fard UX Studio

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Launched in 2018, Notion quickly became a sensation in the productivity bubble reaching a staggering million users by 2019. In 2021, the app has become indispensable for both personal and corporate use. We at Adam Fard Studio are no exception. We've been using Notion since its early days for all intents and purposes: project & task management, documentation storage, education hub, etc.

Being design geeks that we are, we couldn't accumulate a vast amount of notes on Notion's design. Therefore, we thought it'd be fun to consolidate our thoughts and create a review. We've structured our thoughts into pros and cons.
⚠️ A brief note on the article's structure: alongside the general notes, you'll find quotes from our design team.
Without further ado, let's get into the article!

Sorted pros

Pro #1 - Simplicity

The first thing the whole of our design team pointed out is that how simple yet powerful Notion is. Even without grasping the app's full potential, many first-time users can recognize the fluidity, intuitiveness, and responsiveness of the app. Then, of course, it would take some trial and error to utilize Notion better, but it's certainly manageable.

Let's unpack the simplicity into more concrete terms:
- The app is fairly simple. It's fairly easy to format the pages and other types of content. Easy to understand. Easy to reference pages between themselves. Navigation using the keyboard is awesome
Pro #2 - Customizability

We're sure that although Notion boats millions of users, no two users utilize the app in quite the same way. There are simply too many things you can customize. Additionally, the use cases are nearly limitless.

That said, let's get into a slightly more detailed account of what makes Notion so customizable:
- The number of layout/components options to select from - being able to quickly add media, tables, or even more complex elements such as Gantt charts to a document is fantastic. In addition, your document is kept clean and tidy. - Customization of notes, so you can see titles, dates, and other parameters that you need; It's easy to customize files (add properties; date; badges; icons; etc.) - Many customization options for navigation structure. I like the flexibility of the categorization of content. - Different views for pages (boards, timelines, lists, etc) are great

Notion offers a huge selection of content variety.

Pro #3 - Versatility

When it comes to the workplace, no one likes to use more apps than they absolutely need to. Otherwise, you just get bogged down in a myriad of tools that often aren't integrated, which is a recipe for tedious and needless work.

What's so great about Notion is that it's able to replace a large number of apps. In fact, we at Adam Fard Studio are content with using Notion as single project management and documentation tool.

Let's zoom into the versatility a little more:
- Notion seems to be a great replacement for multiple tools such as Trello (see our Fast way to create checklists, submenus, pasting images through the Basic blocks; - The modularity and the ability to turn the same entity into a post, or a table row or something else - I like the integration capabilities (email notifications, slack etc.) Trello UX review), for Kanban bards, Google docs and co. for text editing or even management tools such as Basecamp or Monday.com. - Collaborative editing is essential - Collaboration: easy to work together on one document. Ability to see who edited a document last time
Pro #4 - Collaborativeness

Real-time collaboration is a make-or-break feature for the overwhelming majority of corporate users. There are very few apps out there that are useable solo. In that regard, Notion does not disappoint.

You can see who's doing what in real-time just like in Google docs.

Pro #5 - Templates

Templates are a lifesaver for any repetitive task. Notion has a bunch of those. It's especially useful for the new users (see our UX onboarding checklist), who haven't had the time yet to fully comprehend the breadth of usage.
- Import information is very easy - Easy to set a structure for a document: the ability to change instantly type of the block
Pro #6 - File Management

We keep a lot of files in Notion in either an embedded form or as attachments

Sorted Cons
-No tabs on the desktop app version - Navigation could be improved. I'd add visually more accent on primary action. In terms of hierarchy: there's a need to distinguish clearly what is the most important and what is secondary
Con #1 - Navigation

An app with a usage breadth so wide as Notion's is bound to struggle with navigation to some degree. Also, the fact that you can nest pages within pages within pages and so on doesn't help either.

Con #2 - The learning curve
- You need to spend a lot of time to fully utilize Notion
Yes, we did say that Notion was fairly easy to get into. However, even after years of usage, we're still not sure that we use it to its full potential. We'd say that it's an "easy to learn, hard to master" situation.

There are a lot of features hidden in drop-downs, a lot of properties, and use cases.

A lot of options for content, a bit overwhelming to discover in a small dropdown. A bit hard to understand how to use properties. It needs some trying/failing to get how it works
- Copy-paste feature is not perfect. Sometimes the structure of pasted elements is broken; Sometimes it's not clear what you remove and as a result, there is a chance to remove something by mistake. - Unclear way to undo file deletion - it is mostly reserved for admins, a user has to revert the entire board to an earlier state in a changelog that is pretty hidden. Additionally, the Gantt Chart view could use undo option. Gantt chart view could have custom addition of events that are not tied to board content (just a label as in a file with a chart).
Con #3 - Error recovery

Mistakes are inevitable. However, it's the job of the design team to foresee them and help users rectify them. For the most part, Notion delivers on that design principle. There were a few instances where this wasn't the case though.

Con #4 - Feature discoverability
- Some interactions are kind of hard to discover because they are hidden, visible on hover - The list of possible elements to add is long and adding a picture (which is a quite common thing to do) takes too much time. Maybe a visible bar with all the options accessible right away could be an option (not on hover).
While versatility and customizability are good things, they sometimes may be at the expense of discoverability. What it means, is that if there's a large selection of features, they become harder to find.

Speaking of the discoverability of Notion's feature, here's what we have to say:
- No consistency in behavior while clicking on menu items: in some cases, it is a dropdown, in some- pop-up. As a user, I can feel insecure since I don't know what to expect by clicking on the item - Some interactions are a bit confusing which has an impact on the efficiency of work e.g. actions available on hover only. Limited flexibility - E.g. Not being able to modify certain elements, such as font size in the toggle list title.
Con #5 - Inconsistencies

Visual appeal aside, inconsistent designs are often synonymous with confusing designs. Normally you would expect similar features or patterns executed in a similar way. By and large, this is the case with Notion. However, there are a few inconsistencies we've managed to catch.

Conclusion

Although we've identified nearly the same number of pros and cons, the advantages clearly outweigh the drawbacks. We believe that Notion's experienced great success not accidentally, but at least in part because of its great design.

That said, we hope you found this review educational and entertaining. Thanks for sticking till the very end, and see you in our next article!

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Notion has gotten the world by storm. It's become indispensable for both corporate and personal productivity. And being the design geeks that we are we can't help but review such a big tool.

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