User Experience (UX)
User Experience (UX) is the overall experience a user has after interacting with a product or a service, including usability, accessibility, and satisfaction.

User Experience (UX) is the total experience a person has with a product, system, or service. It includes all interactions, how easy it is to use, how it feels, and how well it helps the user achieve their goals. UX goes beyond aesthetics and includes functionality, structure, and user perception.
The concept of UX came from the field of human-computer interaction and was popularized by Don Norman, who said design should be about the user’s needs and behaviors. UX design considers many factors such as visual design, information architecture, content clarity, and performance. All of these contribute to whether a user finds a product intuitive, helpful, and worth coming back to.
UX work often starts with research to understand the user’s motivations, pain points, and behaviors. Methods like interviews, usability testing, and user journey mapping are used to gather insights. These findings guide decisions in design and development to reduce friction and increase engagement.
Good UX results in products that are easier to use and more efficient. It also has measurable business benefits: higher customer satisfaction, lower support costs, and higher retention or conversion rates. Bad UX causes confusion, frustration, and abandonment.
UX is closely related to other disciplines like UI (User Interface) design, product design, and service design, but is distinct. UI focuses on the visual layout and controls, while UX is about the whole experience from first touchpoint to post-use reflection.
Learn more about this in our UX Design Foundations Course.
Key Features of User Experience
- Focuses on the user’s overall interaction with a product or service
- Involves research methods like interviews and usability testing
- Aims to improve usability, accessibility, and user satisfaction
- Informs design decisions through data and observation
- Closely tied to but distinct from UI design
- Impacts business outcomes such as conversion and retention
- Covers pre-use, actual use, and post-use reflections
Recommended resources
Courses
Reducing User Churn
User Psychology
UX Design Foundations
Introduction to Figma
Design Terminology
UI Components I
Common Design Patterns
Product Discovery
Government Design Foundations
Apple Human Interface Guidelines
Accessibility Foundations
UI Components II
Service Design
Mobile Design
Design Composition
Wireframing
CSS Foundations
3D Design Foundations
UX Design Patterns with Checklist Design
AI Fundamentals for UX
Lessons
Best Practices for Onboarding UX
Designing Sticky Features
Principles of Social Impact and Equity
Building Community and Leveraging Social Proof
Design Psychology: Hick's Law
Common Designer Roles
Engagement Patterns
Mental vs. Conceptual Models
Psychological Theories Behind Gamification
Building Loyalty Programs to Retain Users
Cognitive Biases
Introduction to Churn Metrics and Analysis
Microinteractions in UX/UI Design
What is UX Design?
Gamification Principles in Non-Game Contexts
Progressive Disclosure in UX
Minimizing Cognitive Load
Intro to UX Copy
UX Laws
UX Design Deliverables
UX Design Principles
8 Design Tips to Reduce Cognitive Load
Basic Journey Mapping and Service Blueprinting
Personalization Strategies to Reduce Churn
How Human Memory Works
Re-engagement Campaigns for Dormant Users
Segmentation and Churn Prevention Strategies
UX Culture in Design Teams
Exploring the Power of AI in Visual Design
Persuasive Design Practices
Deceptive Patterns
Feedback Loops and Continuous Improvement
Fundamental User Needs
Common Causes of Customer Churn
Designing for User Delight
Mastering Email and In-App Messaging for Retention
The Nature of User Errors
Building User Trust
Predictive Analytics and Machine Learning for Churn
Turning Friction into Positive Experiences in UX Design
Exercises
Equity assessment

Multiple levels of progressive disclosure

Pleasure needs

Minimize the learning curve
Feature usage patterns

What is progressive disclosure?

What is UX design?

Authority

Tracking net promoter score (NPS) to predict churn

How to leverage anchoring bias

Establish an omnichannel presence

Provide scannability

Define the gaps in UX culture

Facilitate UX design workshops

What are mistakes?
Early warning signals in churn

Customization

Include onboarding for new users

Badges

UX designer

Allow undoing recent actions

Other progressive disclosure examples
Churn risk patterns

Simplify the checkout process

Facilitate communication between users

How to prevent confirmation bias
Preventing rework & errors

Include badges

Calculating and interpreting churn rate

Offer multiple interactive options

The $300 million button

Differences between product, UX, and engineering

Secondary features

Why gamify

Place buttons intuitively

Measure user satisfaction

The need for social relatedness

Integrating internal processes

Show error warnings

Creating lasting delight

Usability

Underlying AI algorithms

Chunking

Design for mobile responsiveness

Challenges and quests

Ease memory burdens

Miller’s Law

UX design vs. UI design

False consensus effect

Work on visual design
Project Briefs
Tutorials

Gamification Principles in Non-Game Contexts

Mastering UX Writing Tones

Mastering the 60-30-10 Rule in Design

Mastering Elevation for Dark UI: A Comprehensive Guide

16 Best Practices for Posting Your First Project

Storytelling, not reporting. Engaging case studies

8 Design Tips to Reduce Cognitive Load

Framing in UX Design: A Big Guide to Shaping What Users Think and Do

11 Best Practices for Designing 404 Pages

14 Dark Patterns Examples in Design You’ll Want to Avoid

A Guide to Conducting Effective Usability Testing

Step-by-Step Video Accessibility Audit Guide + Free Checklist

How To Celebrate Failures With Your UX Team
FAQs
UX focuses on product interaction, while CX covers the broader journey, including customer service and brand perception.
UX can be evaluated through metrics like task success rate, error rate, time on task, and user satisfaction scores.
No, UX principles apply to physical products and services as well, though it's most commonly associated with digital interfaces.