25 Top User Experience UX tools
Design is a vital element in any business as it is a pillar of communication with its stakeholders. It describes the company’s ideas, thoughts, opinions, and work.
It acts as a medium of interaction for its users. There upon, UX tools play a crucial role in assisting their users in developing designs and other aspects related to them.
Website creation and development has been made very simple through UX tools.
The simple elements of drag and drop, pre-created templates for websites, and other noteworthy features have enabled radical changes in the field of design and product development.
UX tools have proved to be of immense help in enhancing positive customer experiences.
Furthermore, it creates meaningful experiences for its users, which craft a beautiful customer journey on the website created using UX tools.
Overall, it facilitates smooth performance in designing, which leads to customer loyalty and brand integrity.
Here are the topics that we will cover in this blog:
What is UX?
UX is an abbreviation for user experience.
UX is considering and understanding how users are experiencing and interacting with a product. Putting your foot in your user shoes is the exact definition of a user experience.
What is UX Design?
UX design is designing the user interface pattern of a product design with all conscious on making user feel comfortable and easier to use the product.
The term "user experience" refers to all factors of an end-interaction user's with a company, its services, and its products.
Example of UX design: No call-to-action leads to no conversion. The users are left confused without any instruction on what to do next.
What are UX tools?
UX refers to "user experience," wherein designers use UX tools to develop software as part of their work.
UX design tools enable easy navigation for websites and other applications, which helps you create better products and services.
They are used throughout the various phases of product development processes.
They pave the way for a user-friendly product or service, thereby enhancing an efficient user experience and making things effortless and simple for its users.
Moreover, UX tools can be used for research and design, which enhances the overall experience of your website and/or software application.
Why to use UX Tools?
UX tools prove to be important in the product/service development process, right from research to designing activities.
They help fulfill the user’s needs in a beautiful way. In addition, they assist the designers in the formation of information, product experience, and user flow.
Also, UX tools help in cost minimization due to their efficiency in the product development process. It enhances brand loyalty through the provision of upbeat experiences.
It is also to be noted that these tools facilitate in generating better solutions for the designers.
Furthermore, UX tools are an integral part of contributing to business success as they allow for meaningful user experiences and blissful customer journeys.
Let us jump to the list of UX tools:
UX tools
Design tools
There are many UX design tools to use for various purposes. Let us see a range of UX tools/software applications that we can use:-
#1 Figma
Figma is an application software and a cloud-based design tool that helps its users create any design they desire, like logos, applications, websites, etc.
- Rating – 4.7/5
- Platform – It is enabled by desktop applications for Mac, Windows, and the web.
- Pricing – It is provided free of charge to its users.
#2 Sketch
Sketch is a local design software with collaborative design tools for MacOS. It provides many features and acts as an all-in-one platform for design.
- Rating – 4.1/5
- Platform – It only supports MacOS.
- Pricing – It is not available for free to use and the estimated cost per year is $99.
#3 Adobe XD
It is a vector design tool for applications and websites.
- Rating – 4/5
- Platform – It supports both Windows and Mac.
- Pricing – It is available for free of cost for a trial and the estimated cost per year is $120.
#4 Adobe Illustrator
It is a vector-based graphics software that helps in developing artwork. It helps in developing logos, icons, and illustrations.
- Rating – 3.9/5
- Platform - It supports both Windows and Mac.
- Pricing – It is available for free of cost for a trial and the estimated cost per year is $120.
#5 Adobe Photoshop
It is a graphics editor software that helps in creating images, graphics, paintings, and 3D arts.
- Rating – 3.5/5
- Platform - It supports both Windows and Mac.
- Pricing – It is available for free of cost for a trial and the estimated cost per year is $120.
#6 Framer
It is a cooperative design tool that excels in undertaking the marketing activities such as online campaigns, landing pages, etc.
- Rating – 4.7/5
- Platform - It is a web based design platform.
- Pricing – It is available for free, and the estimated cost per year is $144.
#7 UXPin
It is a code-based design tool that integrates design and the engineering process into one cohesive process.
It uses interactions, variables, expressions, and state-based animations to develop designs and prototypes.
It is trusted by design and product teams in top companies wherein they use UXPin like a common visual language. It enables an efficient design process for the product team.
- Rating – 4.5/5
- Platform –It is a web based design software that supports both Mac and Windows.
- Pricing – It is free to use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $240.
Prototyping
Prototypes help convey the design model before manufacturing or working on the product's production. The various prototyping tools available are as follows:-
Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, Framer, and UXPin, mentioned above, could be used for prototyping as well.
The prototyping tools are:
#8 Marvel
Marvel helps in turning out sketches and ideas into interactive models and designs.
- Rating – 3.9/5
- Platform –It is a web based design software.
- Pricing – It is free to use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $144.
#9 ProtoPie
It is high reliability software that helps develop better ideas through its powerful features.
- Rating – 4.6/5
- Platform –It supports both Mac and Windows.
- Pricing – It is not available for free without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $129.
#10 Axure
It helps in creating specifications for websites and applications by offering features like drag and drop placement, resizing, and widget formatting.
- Rating – 4.2/5
- Platform – It supports both Mac and Windows.
- Pricing – It is not available for free without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $348.
Portfolio Builder
The portfolio builder tools help designers develop their projects and showcase them for analysis and evaluation. It enhances better communication and understanding. It helps in the assessment of projects. The various portfolio builder tools available are as follows:-
#11 Webflow
It is a software that aids in website development. It enables website interactions and deals with content management systems.
It facilitates the design of the store visually without the use of code, thereby being a great source of help in e-commerce.
Moreover, it provides features for editing right on the page. In addition, it aids in website hosting wherein it serves and maintains files for websites through its features.
- Pricing – It is available for free use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $144.
#12 Editor X
It is a well advanced platform with sophisticated designs and layouts for web professionals and designers.
It is an add-on software for those wishing to develop a modern website, and it also holds features for developing responsive designs.
- Pricing – It is available for free use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $264.
#13 Weebly
It is a website builder and hosting software that assists in developing websites. It helps in developing blogs and content creation.
Moreover, it provides features for setting up an online store.
It contains customizable templates, domains, and easy to use tools for website creation.
- Pricing – It is available for free use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $72.
#14 UXfolio
It is a software that offers design templates for portfolio building. It aids in creating meaningful portfolios.
- Pricing – It is available for free use without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $108.
#15 Squarespace
It is software that helps in the development of customizable websites and offers features for website hosting, too. It allows users to use their pre-built templates and offers a variety of features for portfolio building.
- Pricing – It is not available for free without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $144.
User flow
In terms of UX design, "userflow" refers to the path taken by the user to complete the desired task. It denotes the starting point, the ending point, and the process.
Figma, Sketch, and Adobe XD, mentioned above, could also be used for creating user flows as well.
Other UX tools
To get an idea of what UX tools really are, let us see the following tools used by many for various purposes:-
#16 Copywriting tool - Grammarly
This tool helps in composition of words in the right way to make sense in communication and interactions.
Also, this provides clarity in decision making and is essential in creating a valuable user experience.
It is a typing assistant that reviews spelling, pronunciation, grammar, and other aspects of the English language.
#17 Team Collaboration tool - Dropbox
This tool helps share and save files and media among individuals.
It is a cloud-based system that collaborates on projects through back-up of files and media.
#18 Questionnaire tool - Google forms
This tool helps collect primary data, thereby providing assistance for conducting research.
Google forms provides various templates and designs for collecting data for research.
It enables sharing the same through the provision of links and other sharing options to conduct surveys.
Moreover, it saves the collected data and makes it available for the user to download and work on it.
#19 Flowcharting tool – OmniGraffle
Businesses require flowcharts for various purposes, and UX tools come in handy to develop flowcharts in the desired manner and fulfill the purpose.
OmniGraffle is an application for developing illustrations and diagrams. It is used to create visuals and flowcharts.
#20 Wireframing tool – Marvel prototyping
A wireframe is a two dimensional illustration of a page that helps the designer in framing or communicating their plan in development of the product.
It focuses on space allocation and prioritization of content. Designers use the wireframing tool to establish the structure of products to enable solutions.
Marvel prototyping is a user-friendly wireframing application that provides various prototyping tools and facilities for its users.
It has vast features for prototyping, wherein designers create models or diagrams to deliver their ideas and to determine what needs to be improved in their design.
#21 User-interface design tools - Sketch
These tools help in developing complicated visualizations, thereby providing design solutions.
Sketch is a design tool used by designers to create web elements such as icons, pages, etc.
#22 Handoff tool – Zeplin
Handoff refers to the process of putting forward the finished design for the purpose of execution. It indicates the intent and knowledge of the designer and consists of visual elements, user flows, and data validations.
The software/tools that are used for handoff include Zeplin, Adobe XD, Sketch, UXPin, and Marvel, which were previously mentioned.
It is a tool that helps the designers export the finished work to the stakeholders.
Zeplin is a software that provides a workspace for team members to collaborate on their work/designs and provides easy navigation through cataloging.
#23 Whimsical
It is software that provides a suite of collaboration tools and aids in creating user flow, mind maps and flowcharts.
- Platform – It is a web based software.
- Pricing – It is available for free without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $120.
#24 VisualSitemaps
This software helps in creating a visual sitemap, which denotes the relationship between pages and describes the pages’ content and navigation.
- Platform – It is a web based software
- Pricing – It is available for free without a trial, and the estimated cost per year is $171.
#25 ReplayBird
Replaybird is a digital user experience tool that analyses and provides insights on user behavior.
ReplayBird software lets the user watch how a user interacts with websites and products .
Users can watch session replays and analyze the product metrics with more efficiency.
Conclusion:
The introduction of user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) has changed the designing and development process dramatically through its remarkable features.
The terms UX and UI are rooted from “user-centered design”. These terms work on the basis of ergonomic principles, which focus on the man-machine relationship.
UX tools have made designing trouble-free by eliminating the complexities of dealing with software and technology.
Moreover, it has made designing a hassle-free task through the development of interactions and the elimination of toil in coding.
UX tools are used throughout the various stages of product development, and they integrate the development tools.
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ReplayBird is a digital experience analytics platform that offers a comprehensive real-time insights which goes beyond the limitations of traditional web analytics with features such as product analytics, session replay, error analysis, funnel, and path analysis.
With Replaybird, you can capture a complete picture of user behavior, understand their pain points, and improve the overall end-user experience. Session replay feature allows you to watch user sessions in real-time, so you can understand their actions, identify issues and quickly take corrective actions. Error analysis feature helps you identify and resolve javascript errors as they occur, minimizing the negative impact on user experience.
With product analytics feature, you can get deeper insights into how users are interacting with your product and identify opportunities to improve. Drive understanding, action, and trust, leading to improved customer experiences and driving business revenue growth.
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