Build The Ultimate Design Portfolio
A simple, effective, and impact-driven approach to building your ultimate UX/UI & Product Design portfolio
A Design Portfolio is more than just a collection of pretty screens. It’s your story, your identity, your proof of impact - a reflection of how you think, solve problems, and bring ideas to life.
The best portfolios are:
Personal – Be authentic. Don’t try to mimic someone else’s style. Your portfolio should reflect you.
Versatile – Show your ability to tackle different challenges across industries and formats.
Simple – Avoid unnecessary complexity. Make it easy for someone to skim through and understand your work.
Dynamic – Update it regularly. Your portfolio should evolve with your skills and experience.
At the end of the day, be true to yourself. Don’t fake projects, don’t overcomplicate things, and don’t let perfectionism hold you back.
Pro Tip: Start somewhere and refine as you go.
🌐 The Platform: Where to Build One?
PDFs and third-party links? That’s old news. Build a website - it’s your digital world!
A design portfolio today is more than just static screens - it’s an experience in itself.
What your Portfolio should have
A strong introduction – Who are you? What do you do? What drives you?
Your best work – Quality over quantity (more on this later).
Your thought process – Case studies that tell a story, not just show visuals.
Accessibility & mobile optimisation – Your site should be easy to navigate, readable, and accessible on the go.
Tools like Webflow, Framer, Notion, WordPress, and even a simple coded site work great. Just make sure it loads fast and is easy to navigate.
Pro Tip: Prioritise clarity over fancy animations and keep navigation intuitive - don’t make people dig for your work.
🔎 Picking the Right Projects
Not all projects belong in your portfolio. Less is more.
Be selective and choose 2–3 strong case studies that best showcase your skills, impact, and range.
How to Choose the Right Projects?
Focus on the domain you want to work in. Applying to a fintech role? Show fintech work. Want to work in e-commerce? Showcase relevant case studies.
Pick projects that highlight different strengths - research, interaction design, UI, or design systems.
Highlight the impact created by projects if you have access to that information such as increase/decrease in engagement, change in drop-off rates, etc
Pro Tip: Your projects should tell a story, not just display screens.
📄 Structuring Your Case Study
The biggest mistake designers make? Overcomplicating the case study.
A case study should be a narrative, not a step-by-step feature breakdown. Here’s a simple yet effective structure:
Case Study Breakdown
1. The Brief – Set the stage
What are you talking about and why it is?
Define the problem statement or challenge you set out to solve.
Explain the goals and constraints that came with the inception of the project.
2. Discover – Understanding the problem
What research did you do and why?
How did you gather insights? Talk about the artefacts you used such as user interviews, surveys, competitor analysis, etc.
What were the key learnings?
Pro Tip: Keep it clear—don’t flood this section with research reports. Show only what’s important.
3. Define – Synthesizing insights into a clear direction
How did your research findings lead to the insights you generated?
What were your key takeaways?
How did this help you frame the solution that we are going to see next?
4. Design – Bringing the solution to life
Show iterations, wireframes, prototypes and/or any other artefacts you have built
Highlight design decisions - not just the final screen
What worked, what didn’t, and how did you refine your approach?
5. Conclusion – Wrapping it up
What did you learn, and how did it shape your approach as a designer?
What was the outcome of the project? Share measurable outcomes such as metrics, impact, results - if possible.
What were the key takeaways?
Key Case Study Elements:
Domain worked on, project duration, team size and other vital information about the structure of the project.
A short, clear description for a quick brief - almost like an executive summary.
Visuals that make an impact - don’t overload with process screenshots.
Keep it concise and get to the point - avoid the fluff.
Pro Tip: Show a mix of UX, UI and other design areas. For example: a UX/UI design case study that only showcases just UI is incomplete.
⭐️ Portfolio Tips
1. Tell a story
Your process should read like a journey, not a checklist. Every project should have a beginning (problem), middle (process), and end (solution + impact).
2. Quality > Quantity
3 impactful projects are better than 10 weak ones. Curate only your best work.
3. Show it all
UX without UI is incomplete. UI without UX is meaningless. Show the full product thinking behind your work. If you’ve done research, however basic, include it!
4. Storytelling is everything
Your ability to communicate how you think, and why you make certain decisions is more important than the final designs themselves.
Pro Tip: Talk to the person who is reading it and give them an insight into how you work.
5. Include measurable impact
Design isn’t just about aesthetics. Prove that your work created value by using numbers to show impact. For example:
“Reduced drop-off by 20% after redesigning the payment experience.”
“Increased engagement by 35% with a new onboarding experience.”
Note: Insights aren’t always easy to get due to the sensitive nature of the data
6. Keep it simple
Avoid jargon, make it easy to skim through and still understand.
Don’t rely too much on AI generated copy. You should speak the same language that you put in your portfolio.
Maintain a structured layout - Use headings, bullet points and whitespace to your advantage.
Don’t try to fit in the world in one case study. Remove the fluff and keep it relevant.
🚫 Handling NDA Projects
We all have projects that are locked under NDAs. But there are ways to showcase them without breaking confidentiality:
If the project is live, submit the link instead!
Ask for permission - in most cases, employers allow portfolios to include work as long as it’s not confidential.
Rewrite case studies to focus on process, not details.
Use generic descriptions instead of company names. Blur or abstract sensitive data if needed.
Most employers understand NDA constraints, so be transparent about what you can and cannot share.
Final Thoughts
A great UX/UI portfolio is more than just screens - it’s a reflection of how you think, solve problems, and create impact.
Be intentional with the projects you include.
Make your portfolio personal - it’s your story and you know it best!
Don’t overcomplicate it - keep it simple, structured, and engaging.
Pro Tip: Don’t include anything in your portfolio that you haven’t done
Most importantly - keep it evolving. Your portfolio is never ‘done.’ Keep refining it, updating it, and making it a true reflection of your best work.