If we were to talk about the word design 10 years ago then majority of the people would only think we are talking about graphic design. But since today’s world has become so advanced and digital, this definition has also evolved to a great extent. What we are trying to say here is the word design has evolved so much that it is not just related to graphic design anymore.
In this article we shall talk about the different forms of visual design among which the most prominent ones are UX and UI design along with graphic design. We shall take a look at these three individually and then understand what they are and what they do. So, all the people who are new to design industry, this article can prove to be of great help.
Graphic design Vs UX design Vs UI design – The comparison:
Below you can find a detailed comparison between graphic, UX, and UI design.
Understanding what Graphic design is:
Graphic design to put in simple words is being about the way things look. To some extent we believe all visual designs are rooted from graphic design. It is only the art of making a decision as to how things would look. Graphic designers are the one that have to choose the color and fonts of the graphics. Then they also have to arrange elements in layouts. These elements can be in the form of images and text.
Graphic designs are made both online and in printed form. Online form includes websites and mobile apps. Whereas printed materials include book covers, ads on magazine or in-store displays.
Examples of Graphic design:
Following are some examples of graphic design.
- Business processes
- Architectural blueprints
- Drawings by engineers
- Diagrams of different circuits
- Different patterns in sewing
Demand for Graphic designers:
Graphic designers always have and will stay in demand no matter what the circumstances are. The employment rate of graphic designers tends to grow by 5% from the year 2016 to 2026. This percentage is as fast as any other occupation. Thus the work done by graphic designers is equally important as any other work in the market.
Understanding what UX design is:
Moving towards User Experience (UX) design. It is known to be an all-encompassing experience that a user witnesses while interacting with a product or service and for achieving a specific goal. In other words, UX design is a procedure where a user-centered approach is applied for not only understanding but meeting the needs of the users. The aim here is to give users an experience that is both result-oriented and delightful.
UX designers are the ones that have to solve all types of problems relevant to the product, behavior, content, and businesses for the concerned people.
Examples of UX design:
Following are the examples of UX design.
- The designs you see on the Airbnb’s website while booking
- The Autoplay features offered by Netflix
- Similarly, the MailChimp’s password guidance
- The headspace’s inspiring UX retention strategy is also a good example of UX design
- Micro’s user onboarding is another good UX design example
- Todoist’s recurring tasks feature is another example
Demand for UX designers:
- As per the demand is concerned, UX designers are wanted by different companies and their demand is increasing steadily.
- LinkedIn ranked UX design to be one of the top 5 skills that are highly in demand in the year 2020.
- Whereas in the year 2021, Glassdoor added the UX design jobs in its list of best 50 jobs.
Interested in upskilling with a focus on UX design? Check out our comprehensive review here to see if Google’s certification fits your learning goals.
Understanding what UI design is:
Moving towards understanding what UI design is.
A UI is known to be a confined digital space that has the ability to see and perceive information. The focus of UI design is specially on the visual design of interactive elements and it lives in digital media. UI design has a variety of tools like,
- Drop-down menus
- Offering clickable elements
- Form fields
- Button styling
- Animations
- And many other critical tools
The UI designer works in a way that it takes the framework and wireframes that are created by the UX designer. And he first translates it into high-fidelity and then finalizes the visual deliverables before passing it on to the development team for production. UI designs specifically live in digital media like computer, smartphone, or tablet.
Examples of UI design:
Below you can find some examples of UI design.
- A computer mouse
- The very old iPod click wheel
- Similarly, a remote control
- Automated Teller Machines
- Virtual reality
- Speedometer
And many more.
Number of UX/UI designers globally:
According to the stats by LinkedIn, there are around 900,000 UI/UX designers that are directly connected on the LinkedIn network.
How UX design is different from graphic and UI design?
UX design is quite different from UI and graphic design because its focus is entirely on the logic and structure of the elements that you get to see and interact with. UX typically delivers the following to the UI team.
- Wireframes
- Site Maps
- Prototypes
- Other UX artifacts
Conclusion:
Graphic design, UI and UX design all have different purpose but in the end, all the visuals do come from graphic design. And if you are a graphic designer and have a wish to become a UX designer then we can say it is not an impossible task as being a graphic designer, you already know the design language. So all you need to do is brush up your skills and learn some new that are unique to UX design.
