Sometimes when I’m designing something new, or iterating on some features that can use a bit of love, I need a little UI pattern inspiration outside of Googling “UI pattern examples” for the type of industry and project I’m working on. Staring at a blank canvas can be daunting, so finding examples and a source for best practices in UI pattern design helps me to focus, find direction, and move more quickly than I would otherwise.
I decided to hit up my fellow Thinkers to learn more about the resources and inspiration sources they use when jumping into a new design. Here’s what they shared with me, with some additional thoughts and guidance for navigating each resource.
Resources for UI Pattern Examples
- Nicely done is a privately-curated collection of inspiring products, patterns, and UI designs that is updated periodically. This collection has a wide range of browsable filters and includes categories for checkout, dashboard, notification, and shopping cart designs, among many others.
- Calltoidea has a ton of filters as well, with well-curated examples in each section. A team of designers motivated by finding unique inspiration maintains this resource, and it’s focused primarily on usability and simplicity.
- UI Patterns is a massive collection with many helpfully-specific categories to browse through and explore. The focus isn’t just to supply different ways to solve complex UI problems but to offer reasoning and rationalization—with the aim of building a more visually-consistent worldwide web. I could spend hours poking through each section.
- Collect UI is updated daily, so the examples are always fresh and plentiful.
- Mobbin is a beautifully-arranged and extremely useful tool for browsing hand-picked mobile design patterns from apps that reflect the best in design.
Thanks to Summer, Lindsay, and Nick for sharing their recommendations with me. Hope you find these resources useful as well.
