Laws of UX
Named, citable heuristics drawn from psychology — Jakob's, Hick's, Fitts's and more — that explain why interfaces feel effortless or frustrating.
This rubric is the transparent basis for the UX Index methodology.
Jakob's Law
Users spend most of their time on other sites, so they prefer your site to work the same way as all the other sites they already know.
Hick's Law
The time it takes to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices available.
Fitts's Law
The time to acquire a target is a function of the distance to and the size of the target.
Miller's Law
The average person can keep only about seven (plus or minus two) items in their working memory.
The Doherty Threshold
Productivity soars when a computer and its users interact at a pace (< 400 ms) that ensures neither has to wait on the other.
Law of Proximity
Objects that are near, or proximate to each other, tend to be grouped together by the user.
Peak-End Rule
People judge an experience largely based on how they felt at its peak and at its end, rather than the total sum of the experience.
Cite this framework
Reference this page in your own research, design docs, or audits:
TYPENORM. "Laws of UX." TYPENORM Frameworks Library. https://typenorm.com/labs/frameworks/laws-of-ux
Explore the rest of the frameworks library or see how these lenses produce a score in the UX Index methodology.