10 Best UX Tools Shortlist
User experience (UX) design is crucial to the success of any digital product or website. It's the key to creating intuitive, functional, and visually appealing interfaces. To achieve this goal, UX designers rely on various UX tools to help them optimize their workflows and create the best possible user experience.
However, with so many UX tools available, it can be challenging to determine which tools are the most effective. That's why I researched and shortlisted the best software in this article.
I've carefully curated this list based on my experience and research to provide you with a detailed overview of each tool. In addition, I have listed the key features, pros and cons, screenshots, and pricing of each tool.
Overviews Of The 10 Best UX Tools
Here’s a brief description of each UX tool that showcases the best use case and standout features. Feel free to check out how I picked the software on this list at any time.
Figma
Best UX tool for collaboration with team members
Figma is a popular UX design tool well-suited for collaborative work and high-fidelity wireframes.
Why I picked Figma: A remarkable aspect of Figma is FigJam, which is an online whiteboard tool. FigJam can help you sketch your ideas, map your user journey, and collaborate with other team members. In addition, its audio chat feature enables users to communicate with each other through voice chat while working on the whiteboard.
Figma is ideal for individual designers, design teams, and product teams. One of the standout features of Figma is its collaborative capabilities, which allow multiple team members to work on the same project simultaneously without the need for any additional software or plugins.
Another key feature of Figma is its vector editing capabilities, which allow designers to create and manipulate complex shapes and illustrations.
Figma Standout Features and Integrations
Features include version history, team libraries, audio conversations, plugins and widgets, advanced drawing tools, prototyping, Figma editor, design system management, Sketch import, content management, overlays, automated provisioning, and advanced animations.
Integrations include Asana, Dropbox, Flinto, Maze, Microsoft Teams, Notion, Slack, Sprig, Trello, Zeplin, and others.
Pros
- Good interface
- Cloud-based software
- The free version provides several features
Cons
- Requires a powerful computer
- Occasional downtimes
Invision
Best UX tool for collaborative design reviews and feedback
InVision is a popular digital product design platform offering various tools and features for creating and collaborating on design projects. It helps designers, design teams, and product teams create high-fidelity prototypes, animations, and other design assets.
Why I picked InVision: The Freehand tool is a standout feature of InVision, which helps designers sketch, draw, and annotate designs. It's an intuitive and powerful collaboration tool that allows multiple users to collaborate, share feedback, and iterate on designs quickly and easily. Designers and stakeholders can communicate ideas and concepts in a fluid and dynamic way, making it a must-have for any team focused on collaborative design workflows.
InVision is a useful tool for UX designers, product managers, and other stakeholders involved in the design and development process. Features such as the Freehand tool, design libraries, and native integrations with third-party software make InVision a popular tool for UX design.
InVision Standout Features and Integrations
Features include presentations, prototype creation and development, digital whiteboards, wireframing, feedback management, reporting and analytics, real-time collaboration, threaded comments, and version control.
Integrations include Asana, Basecamp, Dropbox Business, Google Drive, Jira, Microsoft Teams, Notion, Rippling, Slack, Trello, and others.
Pros
- Extensive documentation and community support
- Robust prototyping and animation capabilities
- Large library of design assets and templates
Cons
- Some users have reported issues with version control
- Steep learning curve for beginners
Omniconvert
Best UX tool for conversion rate optimization
Omniconvert is a conversion rate optimization platform that enables businesses to create personalized experiences for their website visitors, leading to increased engagement, conversions, and customer loyalty.
Why I picked Omniconvert: Omniconvert offers a robust A/B testing feature that allows businesses to test different website versions and identify the most effective design and messaging. It also includes advanced segmentation and targeting options, which enable users to test different variations of their website pages for specific user groups.
It also offers a range of features, including A/B testing, web personalization, surveys, and more, that work together to improve website performance and drive revenue growth. The easy-to-use visual editor and advanced targeting options make it simple for users to create and test different variations of their website pages, allowing businesses to optimize their websites for maximum performance.
Omniconvert Standout Features and Integrations
Features include web personalizations, surveys, multi-device website testing, advanced segmentation and targeting, advanced tracking and reporting, data audit, and UI/UX audit.
Integrations include Campaign Monitor, FreshMail, GetResponse, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Hotjar, HubSpot, Inspectlet, Kissmetrics, Mailchimp, and others.
Pros
- Comprehensive analytics and reporting features
- Excellent customer support and resources
- Easy to set up
Cons
- The UI needs improvement
- Limited integrations
Marvel
Best UX tool for both UI and UX design
Marvel is a design platform that allows you to create wireframes, mockups, and website or app prototypes for any device right from your browser.
Why I picked Marvel: The best part about Marvel is the 'Handoff' feature, which helps developers extract design specifications, assets, and CSS code directly from the prototype. This makes the handover process much smoother and reduces the risk of errors.
It works well for creating high-fidelity interactive prototypes that closely resemble the final product, allowing designers to test and validate their designs with users or stakeholders. Marvel also natively integrates with other design tools, such as Sketch, which makes importing designs and prototypes easy.
Additionally, it aids collaboration among team members through features like comments, feedback, and version control.
Marvel Standout Features and Integrations
Features include team libraries, animations, drag-and-drop design interface, UI kit library, version history, commenting, responsive web design, and feedback.
Integrations include Ballpark, Confluence, Dropbox Paper, Jira, Keynote, Microsoft, Sketch, Smartmockups, YouTube, Zeroheight, and others.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Automatic backups
- Compatible with Windows, Linux, Android, and Apple
Cons
- The free plan has limited features
- Lacks organization
Balsamiq
Best UX tool for creating quick and low-fidelity wireframes
Balsamiq is a design tool that helps users create low-fidelity wireframes. Its simplicity makes it an excellent tool for non-technical users.
Why I picked Balsamiq: A cool feature of Balsamiq is its Quick Add feature. It lets users quickly add UI elements to their wireframes by typing the element's name in the search box. Moreover, it supports many UI elements, such as text boxes, CTA buttons, and more.
Balsamiq is an ideal design solution for product managers, designers, and developers who need to sketch out design ideas quickly. Its pre-built library of UI elements helps designers create wireframes quickly. In addition, its collaborative features enable team members to share and review wireframes with ease.
Balsamiq Standout Features and Integrations
Features include built-in UI components, wireframes, project history, collaboration tools, data import and export, drag and drop editor, feedback management, UX prototyping, user management, and whiteboards.
Integrations include Bubbles, Confluence, Google Drive, Google Workspace, Jira, Shift, and Trello.
Pros
- Offers real-time collaboration features
- Affordable pricing plans
- Easy to learn
Cons
- Limited customizations options
- Limited export options
Framer
Best UX tool for creating code-based designs
Framer is a robust design and prototyping tool that combines design and coding workflows in a single platform.
Why I picked Framer: Framer's Magic Motion feature allows designers to create smooth and sophisticated animations between different layers of their design. You can use this feature to create dynamic and interactive effects, such as scrolling, transitions, and overlays, without complex coding.
Framer is well-suited for designing complex user interfaces and interactions, such as mobile apps, web apps, and other digital products. It also offers an in-tool commenting feature that lets users add comments directly to specific design elements, making it easy to provide feedback and input.
This feature is particularly useful for copywriters and developers, who can use it to provide input on content and functionality and ensure that designs are optimized for both user experience and technical requirements.
Framer Standout Features and Integrations
Features include interactive prototyping, real-time collaboration features, layouts, code components, UI kit library, design previews, responsive design, and templates.
Integrations include HubSpot, Intercom, Integromat, Logo, LottieFiles, Mailchimp, Slack, Typeform, YouTube, Zapier, and others.
Pros
- Comprehensive library of design and interaction components
- Powerful animation capabilities
- Real-time collaboration features
Cons
- Limited integrations with other design tools
- Limited vector and image editing capabilities
Maze
Best UX tool for user testing and creating iterative design
Maze is a user testing and design validation platform for UX designers, product managers, and researchers who want to build user-centered products and services.
Why I picked Maze: The software enables users to create and run tests on prototypes, which simulate real-world user experiences. This helps designers identify usability issues and improve the user experience.
Maze also has an A/B testing feature that helps designers compare the performance of different design iterations and make data-driven decisions. This helps designers optimize their designs for usability, engagement, and conversion, ensuring that the final product meets the needs of users and stakeholders.
Maze is a great tool for gathering user feedback and testing design iterations.
Maze Standout Features and Integrations
Features include prototype testing, live website testing, in-product prompts, team management, open card sorting, custom templates, amplitude targeting, and enterprise-grade security.
Integrations include AdobeXD, Figma, InVision, Marvel, Sketch, and Slack.
Pros
- Simple interface
- Generates quick results from user tests
- Integrates with popular design tools
Cons
- Limited collaboration features
- The email campaign manager needs improvement
Axure RP
Best UX tool for creating interactive prototypes of websites and mobile applications
Axure RP is a powerful prototyping tool that helps users create high-fidelity prototypes with advanced interactivity and collaboration features, making it a valuable tool for designers.
Why I picked Axure RP: Axure RP's responsive design capabilities enable designers to test how their designs will look and function on different devices without additional coding or development work. Designers can set up breakpoints and define how different elements will behave on different screen sizes, ensuring the user experience remains consistent and effective across all devices.
With Axure RP, designers can quickly create and test different design iterations, gather feedback from stakeholders, and refine their designs before moving on to development. The software's robust collaboration features also enable designers to work closely with developers and ensure that the final product meets the needs of all stakeholders.
Axure RP Standout Features and Integrations
Features include dynamic interactions, conditional logic, animation effects, code export, diagramming, customer journeys, and others.
Integrations include Adobe XD, Confluence, Figma, Jira, MS Teams, Sketch, Slack, and others.
Pros
- Wide range of design features
- Robust collaboration and sharing features
- Responsive design capabilities
Cons
- Heavy software requirements
- Steep learning curve for beginners
Flowmapp
Best UX tool for creating visual representations of website and app architecture
FlowMapp helps UX professionals create sitemaps, user flow diagrams, and other visual representations of the website or app architecture.
Why I picked FlowMapp: A remarkable feature of FlowMapp is its ability to create and visualize user flows dynamically based on user behavior data. This feature enables businesses to identify potential user journey bottlenecks and optimize the user experience accordingly.
FlowMapp offers powerful collaboration and sharing capabilities, allowing teams to work together seamlessly on UX design projects, share feedback, and iterate quickly, resulting in faster time-to-market and improved user experiences.
FlowMapp Standout Features and Integrations
Features include collaboration tools, sitemap tools, user flow diagrams tools, cloud storage, drag and drop pages, project activity, SSL security, sharing features, team workspaces, and others.
Integrations include Framer, Google Drive, Google Sheets, InVision, Intercom, Photoshop, Pipedrive, Principle, Slack, Zoho, and others.
Pros
- Simple interface
- Provides collaboration features
- Supports multiple diagram types
Cons
- Limited design capabilities
- Limited prototyping capabilities
Adobe XD
Best UX tool for both individual designers and teams
Adobe XD is an all-in-one UX/UI design and prototyping tool ideal for UX designers, UI designers, and app developers. Its native integration with other Adobe Creative Cloud tools enables designers to work more efficiently on design projects.
Why I picked Adobe XD: Adobe XD is suitable for both individual designers and entire teams because it offers a range of features and capabilities that support both individual design workflows and collaborative design projects. For individual designers, Adobe XD offers a wide range of tools for designing and prototyping while also providing native integration with other Adobe Creative Cloud tools.
It offers powerful collaboration and sharing capabilities for teams, including real-time co-editing, version control, and commenting features. These features enable teams to work together seamlessly on UX design projects, share feedback, and deliver better user experiences faster.
In addition, it also provides powerful prototyping tools, collaboration, and sharing capabilities.
Adobe XD Standout Features and Integrations
Features include prototype design tools, 3D transforms, animations and transition designs, repeat grids, document storage, feedback management, pre-built templates, usability testing, version control, wireframe creation, mockup creation, and data synchronization.
Integrations include CloudApp, Crowdin, Frontify, Jira, Microsoft Teams, Miro, RoboHead, Slack, Sisense, Zeplin, and others.
Pros
- Powerful prototyping tools with interactive elements and animations
- Native integration with other Adobe Creative Cloud tools
- Regular updates and new feature releases
Cons
- Steep learning curve for new users
- Requires a powerful computer
The Best UX Tools Comparison Chart
Here is a table you can use to compare the software we just covered in the overviews.
Tool | Trial Info | Price | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Figma Best UX tool for collaboration with team members | Free plan available | From $15/editor/month | Website |
2 | Invision Best UX tool for collaborative design reviews and feedback | Free plan available | From $7.95/user/month | Website |
3 | Omniconvert Best UX tool for conversion rate optimization | 30-day free trial available | Plans start at $390/month | Website |
4 | Marvel Best UX tool for both UI and UX design | 7-day free trial + free plan available | From $16/user/month (billed annually) | Website |
5 | Balsamiq Best UX tool for creating quick and low-fidelity wireframes | 30-day free trial | From $9/month | Website |
6 | Framer Best UX tool for creating code-based designs | Free plan available | From $10 /site/month | Website |
7 | Maze Best UX tool for user testing and creating iterative design | Free plan available | From $99/month | Website |
8 | Axure RP Best UX tool for creating interactive prototypes of websites and mobile applications | 30-day free trial | From $29/user/month | Website |
9 | Flowmapp Best UX tool for creating visual representations of website and app architecture | 14-day free trial available | Plans start at $9/month for a single user | Website |
10 | Adobe XD Best UX tool for both individual designers and teams | 7-day free trial | From $9.99/user/month | Website |
Other Options
Here are a few more worthwhile options that didn’t make the best UX tools list but are worth your consideration.
- Sketch
Best UX tool for the entire design process
- Miro
Best UX tool for visual ideation and mapping user flows
- MockFlow
Best UX tool for creating wireframes, user flows, and sitemaps for websites and mobile apps
- UXPin
Best UX tool for creating high-fidelity prototypes that emulate the final digital product
- Justinmind
Best UX tool for designing and testing interactive prototypes of web and mobile apps
- Webflow
Best UX tool for designing responsive websites without coding skills
- ProtoPie
Best UX tool for creating interactive prototypes without code
- Origami Studio
Best UX tool for creating mockups, designs, and animations
How I Picked The Best UX Tools
Here’s a breakdown of how I selected the best UX tools. First, I researched UX tools with high user ratings. Then, I combed through reviews of users to understand their experience with the software.
I used my years of experience in product management and product design to set parameters against which I evaluated each tool. Below are the selection criteria I used to review the tools in this article.
Selection Criteria
Here’s a short summary of the main selection and evaluation criteria I used to develop my list of the best UX tools for this article:
Usability
Is the software easy to use? Does it have a short learning curve? Is the interface easy to navigate or clunky? How is the customer support service?
Standout Features
UX tools that stand out have unique features that solve specific problems in the design process. These features can range from collaboration tools to advanced prototyping features and user testing capabilities. The best UX tools should offer innovative features that make the design process more efficient and effective.
Software Integrations
Teams use multiple software for an efficient workflow. A good UX tool offers built-in integration with other design software and third-party tools.
Pricing
Does it offer flexible pricing plans? Is the pricing clear and transparent? Does it offer adequate features for the price? I considered all of these options as I created this list.
Best UX Tools FAQs
Find answers to common questions other people ask about this topic.
What are UX tools?
What are the benefits of UX tools?
What are the 6 types of UX tools?
Conclusion
I hope you found this list of the best UX tools helpful. Keeping with the design side of product management, I recommend you read our article on how product managers should use wireframes. You will also benefit from learning how to create the perfect product requirements document.
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