Simplicity

Reducing complexity so users can accomplish tasks with minimal effort and confusion.

stellae.design

Design Principles

Simplicity is the principle of reducing a design to its essential elements, removing anything that doesn't serve the user's goals. In UX, simplicity means fewer steps, fewer competing elements, clearer language, and more intuitive interactions. Research consistently shows simpler interfaces have higher completion rates, fewer errors, and better satisfaction. However, simplicity is not about removing features — it's about organizing complexity so it feels simple. As John Maeda wrote: 'Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful.'

Why It Matters

Simplicity in design means presenting only what is necessary for the user to accomplish their goal, removing everything that does not serve a clear purpose. Cognitive load research consistently shows that simpler interfaces lead to faster task completion, fewer errors, and higher user satisfaction. Achieving simplicity is paradoxically difficult — it requires deep understanding of user needs to know what to leave out.

Real-World Examples

Google's search homepage

Google's homepage is one of the most visited pages in the world and contains almost nothing — a logo, a search field, and two buttons. This radical simplicity communicates a clear purpose and eliminates any decision other than typing a query. The restraint is the result of deliberate design, not a lack of features.

Apple's product pages with progressive disclosure

Apple's product pages lead with a single hero image and a short tagline, progressively revealing specifications, comparisons, and purchase options as users scroll. The initial simplicity draws attention to the product, while depth is available for those who seek it. This approach respects both casual browsers and detail-oriented buyers.

Counter-example

A settings page with every option visible at once

An application displays all 60 configuration options on a single scrolling page with no grouping, categories, or search. Users feel overwhelmed and cannot find the one setting they need. True simplicity would organize options into meaningful groups and surface only the most commonly changed settings by default.

Role-Specific Guidance

Common Mistakes

• Teams often confuse simplicity with minimalism — removing visual elements while leaving the underlying complexity intact does not make an experience simpler. Another common mistake is over-simplifying to the point where users cannot find important functionality, trading discoverability for aesthetics. Simplicity should emerge from understanding user priorities, not from arbitrarily reducing feature count.