App development · lesson 9 of 24 · free

UI vs UX — App development for students

UI means user interface: what you see and touch — colours, fonts, icons and the layout of a screen. UX means user experience: how it feels to use the app — is sign-up easy, do users get lost, how many taps does a task take? A beautiful app can still have poor UX. One simple UX check is counting taps: if two designs do the same task, the one with fewer taps is usually the better experience.

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Developer's tip

Look and feel — “UI = the look you see; UX = the experience of using it”

  1. UI (user interface) = the look: colours, fonts, icons, layout.
  2. UX (user experience) = how it feels: easy, fast, not confusing.
  3. Count taps: each arrow in a path is one tap; fewer taps for the same task = better UX.

Use it for: Comparing two designs, giving feedback on a friend’s app and improving your own.

Worked example: 👆 Two designs for the same task (each arrow is one tap). Which needs FEWER taps?
Design A: Home → Pay → Size → Item → Cart → Menu
Design B: Home → Address → Item → Pay → Design B

  1. Design A has 5 arrows, so 5 taps.
  2. Design B has 3 arrows, so 3 taps — fewer.

Check: Design B saves 5 − 3 = 2 taps ✓

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🏁 Lesson 9 test

20 questions. Check each answer, then go to the next one. Get 16 or more right to pass.

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🖨️ App Dev Worksheet: UI vs UX

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