What Is The Difference Between UX And UI?

Posted by Alice Porter on September 20th, 2017

It’s a common misconception in the business world that UX and UI are the same things. This can be a costly mistake to make, particularly when creating a mobile app. While the two are closely linked and often work alongside each other, these two roles are not interchangeable and should be treated as distinct entities within the development process. Problems can arise when decision makers confuse the two and make important decisions based on misinformation.

Let’s start by defining the two different roles.

UX means user experience while UI means user interface. Both are concerned with the way a user interacts with an interface but they work from different perspectives. UI looks at the visual elements in play and is more closely related to design. While UX is more analytical. If UX and UI were a box of cookies, UI would be the design of the box while the UX would be the way in which the box of cookies opens. Both are related to the design of the box, but they look at different forms of design.

So, what does this mean for your next design project?

If you’re working on a mobile app or mobile website, you should expect to be working with a UX and UI designer or team. UX design usually takes place first, as this is the step that helps to determine how the website or app should function. Once this is settled on, the UI designer will step in and create a user interface that makes the UX possible. Sometimes the process will go back and forth between the two teams, and sometimes updates will need to be made to the user interface or user experience later down the line.

This doesn’t only happen for websites and apps.

If you’ve ever purchased a train ticket using an automated machine, then you will have experienced UX and UI. While it may be just another form of an app, this will have gone through a similar process. The buttons you click on to buy a ticket is the UI, while the path you take to find the right ticket for your journey is UX.

One requires research while the other requires innovation

If you are creating your UX based on innovation, there is the risk that no one will be able to use your app. Likewise, if you try to create a UI based on research, you will simply be creating something that already exists. Good mobile app development companies know that UX needs to be based on research while the UI needs to be innovative. Users want to see something new and novel, but they also want to know how to use it. UX should be intuitive while the UI breaks boundaries.