Which UI Trends Should You Follow in the Year 2021?
By: Milan Panchasara
Tags: UI Design, Designer, 2021 Trends, Trending, Trending Topic

A little bit of this and a little bit of that makes the best UI trends for 2021!

UI/UX designing is no more an uncharted terrain. Designs have changed, evolved, and became more relevant in the current times, and so are the designers. Last year 2020 (since we are just a few days away from 2021) gave us some fascinating ideas of how intuitive app designs overrules the heart Vs. mind phenomena. We have studied some popular websites rigorously and have tried to find out how people stick to a website/app over the other.

Industry research has helped us craft some amazing designs that you can check out in our portfolio. However, we believe knowledge is half implemented if it is not shared. And hence, we would like to share the best UI design trends of 2021 that we would also implement in the coming year and beyond.

Some of these top UI trends are completely new, while others are so popular that they will be repeated in the next year. If you were to ask us our favorite, I doubt we could really answer that question! Because it’s completely an individual’s choice and project’s scope that will decide which UI trend should be included in your project.

Let’s look at the UI trends that made it through our List

Glass Morphism:

We all embrace the “look through glass” feel, and it seems glass morphism will be the most favorite UI trend to follow in 2021. Glassmorphism has left neumorphism behind and will rule in the years to come. In this UI trend, the background is blurred, and the elements on the screen are emphasized.

Glassmorphism enhances transparency and follows a multi-layered approach. The objects on the screen look floating and elegant. Glassmorphism is more vertical than neumorphism, with vivid colors being used to give a blurry effect to transparency.

Glassmorphism was first introduced in the year 2013 with iOS 7, and ever since then, it is winning the hearts of millions. This UI trend tops the charts, and I hope you will like it too.

3D elements:

Should I say it is an evergreen UI trend that will continue to be followed even in the year 2021? You can use various frameworks to design 3D elements that don’t increase the page loading time.

You can include various effects along with 3D elements and make the design aesthetically pleasing. You can expect your users to stay a little longer than you would have thought by including 3D elements in your app design.

Skeuomorphic design:

Skeuomorphism refers to UI objects in UI design that look almost similar to real-world counterparts. The users can interact with the UI objects in any way they feel comfortable.

If you want to grab an idea of what Skeuomorphism is all about, you can check out the recycle bin icon available on your device. Skeuomorphism makes it possible for you to make your screen and design more friendly for the audience. The elements behave in a realistic way, making the user feel more amiable.

Well, I guess that it is the main motive for developing a user-friendly UI, isn’t it? I just shared with you our secret recipe, make the most of it.

UI optimized animations:

Animations are my favorite; is it yours? Well, I am sure it is. Another trend that is going to make it through the coming years is animations. You can make use of a lot of plugins and tools to create interactive animations. However, you need to make sure that it doesn’t affect the application’s speed if you include animations.

Animations can be a powerful element to create visually appealing applications. Make sure you do a smart placement of animations where you can get maximum engagement.

Bright colors:

Vivid colors catch my eyes; does it do the same to you? I am sure it does. Bright and vivid colors have been the talk of the town for a long time. They make the screen look magical, vibrant, and interactive.

I guess this is the main reason why Instagram changed its icon and made it more alluring. It doesn’t end here; Facebook, Spotify, and Dropbox changed colors to upgrade the dynamics. This UI design trend for 2020 was followed in the past year and will continue to do so in 2021, making applications loud, fun, and interactive.

Dark pink, Shades of blue with some yellow and green splash are something that we look forward to in terms of screen elements colors.

Soft shadows, layers, and floating elements:

Do you want to make your app screen look prettier? Well, this trend is our favorite when we discuss user interface design trends 2021. Soft shadows have the potential to hit the right chord and thereby engage the audience.

You can play around with text, images, videos, etc., and incorporate this trend into your mobile application. When we talk about layers, well, yes, you can create a stack of elements and surprise your audience, one after another. It adds depth to the design, and you can expect higher engagement.

However, make sure that you put the payers in the right order; otherwise, you may lose the deal.

Combining real-life pictures with graphics:

This UI trend 2021 may sound new, but let me tell you, it is just an amendment of a graphics-rich design trend. In this trend, you can mix and match real-life images of people or products and combine them with fabulous graphics.

You can customize your app design in whatever way you want and enhance your brand’s likeability.

Storytelling combined with typography:

Stories set up connections! You read, you connect, and use the application repeatedly, which is the primary intention behind storytelling. Focusing on user-journey didn’t help much in the past year; however, storytelling around the product helped.

Stories have the power to glue users on the screen and thereby make the brand memorable. The storytelling trend has much to do with the content, its hierarchy, and the typography.

You need to use every element of the storytelling wisely. First, you need to decide on what story will you include; second, its placement over the screen, and lastly, what typography will you use. You can check out various eye-catching typography trends and include the same in your prototype. Prototype for app development allows you to experiment with your ideas to see possibilities where you can get maximum user’s attention. It minimizes the waste of time and resources by helping you design a product similar to the end product.

Well, if you can not decide on this, you can hire UI designers who will help you with this trend. Their expertise and skills will assist you in deciding the story narratives.

Minimalism:

Minimalism in design, graphics, typography, and colors makes things more readable and engaging. It lets you emphasize the application’s concept rather than diverting the user’s attention towards other things.

Minimalism looks aesthetically pleasing, and you can get users eyes rolling all over the screen. Designers can create empathy around the design and thereby increase the user’s focus time. How will you initiate minimalism in design?

You should checkout for redundancy in the content. Remove words & phrases that are not making much sense.

Check for features that are time-consuming.

Analyze the confusing navigation.

Be selective enough in what you want to show and what you want to hide. This will make the screen look more cluttered and impressive.

Conclusion:

Did we cover enough to get you through 2021? Well, I think we did. We do not want to flood your screen with every possible UI trend. Instead, we believe in delivering the trends that we follow and implement.

You will find a few hundred new UI trends for 2021, but the ones we have curated will solve the purpose of conversion. We at Kody Technolab have designers with the required skills and knowledge. These UI/UX designers firmly believe in delivering the best solution based on the client’s requirements. You can connect with us and discuss your project idea at length. We would be happy to help you in every way possible.