Credit: Prototypr
UI and UX design rule the world of web design at present. All businesses, small and large, have comprehended the value of delivering top-notch user experience and ensuring product usability. Thus, having a flawless SaaS web design in the modern market means that you follow the principles of UI/UX and focus on customer satisfaction first.
To achieve superior usability, designers use various innovative and feature-rich tools specifically targeting UI/UX. Here is a list of the most popular software tools you should consider as a designer in 2022 to stand out among other UI/UX experts and win more clients.
Why Use Additional Software?
The first question many designers ask is, “why explore new tools if I have a set of working techniques and software?” The answer is in the modern digital industry’s UX/UI innovation and dynamic development. As software tools are getting more sophisticated, designers face the need to think out of the box and push the boundaries of design. That’s what you can achieve with innovative tools only.
So, functional UX products can help you:
● Conduct competitor analysis quicker
● Complete precise customer analysis and research
● Develop an interesting product structure
● Come up with a winning design strategy
● Perform simple prototyping and wireframing
● Test the software during iterations
● Coordinate your work with UI designers more efficiently
● Align UI/UX efforts with coding processes
UI software comes in handy when you need to:
● Offer stunning branding and graphic design
● Perform customer analysis from the usability perspective
● Do design research
● Implement designs with coders
● Ensure endless interactivity and user-friendly animation
● Develop user guides and storylines
● Complete effective UI prototyping
● Make your designs responsive and adaptive
What Universal UI/UX Tools to Choose?
Credit: UserGuiding
As you might notice, the tasks of UI and UX designers differ to a certain extent. These experts work in the web design niche but assume responsibility for slightly different aspects of project development. However, cooperation is key in large dev teams, and it’s much better to choose a single tool for UI/UX tasks than to bother with integrations. Here are the top 5 UI/UX tools that both designers can use.
#1 Sketch
There’s hardly another universal web design tool with as many features as Sketch. Just fancy: you can explore 700+ extensions within an all-in-one Sketch kit. That’s why the software heads the majority of UI/UX software lists, giving all tools and techniques a UI/UX designer may need in the work process.
It used to be an app only for iOS, but today, it’s a full-scale web app working on many platforms. Using Sketch, you can experiment with design however you want. Choose among thousands of fonts, apply intuitive vector editing, and introduce changes at any point. The iOS version of Sketch also supports numerous collaborative features, making teamwork a breeze.
#2 Figma
Figma is another tool that removes fragmentation from the design process. It’s an all-in-one design tool that unifies all design team members in a single, collaborative interface. Figma makes the design, UI development, and prototyping steps hassle-free with real-time collaborative tools and a huge set of features. Depending on your needs and technical opportunities, you can use Figma online and offline.
Experts note that Figma is pretty similar to Sketch in terms of functionality, but it is much better for team collaboration. The web-based nature of this tool allows seamless teamwork like the one on Google Docs. Even when several persons work on one file simultaneously, their named cursors show where they are in the document. Thus, you can track what every team member is doing now, and a click on a person’s avatar gives a sneak peek of what they’re viewing now. Team communication is conveniently organized via Slack, making the process handy and familiar for distributed teams.
#3 Adobe XD
Adobe has established itself as a leading brand name in the industry of graphic design, and its Adobe XD software is also popular among designers of all kinds. It’s a part of the Adobe Creative Cloud package that targets specifically UI/UX design aspects. It is an invaluable tool for prototyping, and the set of tools is virtually endless. You can bring any ideas to life with drawing tools, 3D transformations, advanced animation options, and grid varieties.
#4 Framer
Framer was made for designers focused on interactivity as a major usability criterion. It is simple in use, allowing you to develop end-to-end designs in minutes. This simplicity is achieved due to the richness of interactive components and layout tools. The best about Framer is its cross-platform interoperability; you can create designs for apps meant for iOS, Android, Windows, or all of them.
Those who don’t hunt for unique, customizable designs can minimize the time for web product design and launch. The software also offers many collaborative features, uniting distributed teams for productive work. The resulting apps and websites will impress even the most demanding end-users, giving you a competitive advantage.
#5 Origami Studio
Origami Studio is another handy tool for seamless design, animation, and prototyping in one place. Besides, this program is easily integrated with other design tools, giving UI/UX designers endless compatibility and frictionless collaboration. And the best about it is that Origami Studio is totally free; even newbies on a budget can work with this tool to create visually appealing and functional designs.
You can opt for pre-made templates or fully original tools that allow endless design customization. Though free, it comes with numerous advanced prototyping and design editing tools. So, Origami Studio is a universal tool for developing simple to advanced, complex interfaces for your digital products.
Right Tools Make Your Work Simpler
The tech world is developing lightning-fast, so software developers must keep pace with the trends. There are many UI/UX tools, with new software products offering more options and innovative features. Advanced analytics, sophisticated visual effects, outstanding collaborative features – this mix of functions is a modern reality. So, research the market carefully before you stop on some UI/UX tool; you’ll surely find an ideal tool with the needed functionality in the market.