UI and UX are like two parallel lines both working closely with each other but still never converging.
Both UX and UI designers work to create interactive and beautiful interfaces. However, there are a lot of fundamental differences between their level of skills and their involvement at various stages of design and development.
This article takes a closer look at the main difference between the two and will help in deciding which career suits you the most.
User Experience (UX)
The main focus of UX design is the experience of the user while using the product. Therefore, the involvement of a UX designer occurs at the early stages of development of new product. The UX design takes into consideration the wants and needs of the users right from the beginning.
Anything and everything that impacts the user’s experience is of utmost importance for UX designer. They are equally concerned about looks of the product but it is the visual design of product impacting user’s experience that precedes everything for UX design.
UX Designer typical responsibilities:
- Carrying out research for understanding wants and needs of end users
- Evolve a strategy and plan for design of product
- Analysis of the user interaction of product
- Prototype development
- Address the needs of user during design process
- Refining the design as per user testing
Educational and skill requirements:
Since the field of UX design is still emerging, there are no traditional path to become one. There are plenty of instances where people from different backgrounds have gone on to become good designers but there are no prerequisites and skills required can be learnt with proper dedication.
Salary: The average salary for UX designer in India is Rs 5.5 Lakhs annually according to Glassdoor.
User Interface (UI)
The emphasis of User Interface is on the visual and interactive components of the product interface. The main goal is to enhance the visuals and responsive design of the product.
The designer tries to make the interface such that the user feels like being guided towards where they want to go or what they want to do.
The UI design tries to make the product as aesthetically pleasing as possible thereby making the product design consistent and coherent. Even through the main goal of UI design does not prioritize user experience but still they are working on things created by UX design.
UI Designer responsibilities:
- Using prototypes to create final prototypes and wireframes
- Interaction with other team product development teams
- Analyzing competing products
- Creation of design that are responsive and aesthetically pleasing
Educational and requirements:
The UI design is more of visual nature and hence the professional in this field tend to have background in fine arts, graphics and development of interfaces. Main skills required are Visual design interface, animation and interface development. All these skills require deep knowledge about programming languages also.
Salary: The average salary for UX designer in India is Rs 6 Lakhs annually according to Glassdoor.
| User Experience (UX) | User Interface (UI) |
| Creating items that are user-friendly. | A human-centred approach to the visual experience of a product. |
| Applied for Physical as well as digital products | Applied to digital products only |
| Focus is on user’s experience from first contact to last | The focus is on graphical connections that enable people to connect with a product. |
| End result is a product that delight users with their effectiveness | The overall outcome is a pleasing-to-the-eye product. |
Irrespective of the career path chosen, success and opportunities depend entirely on learning the basic skills and upgrading the skills with time.
