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Shashwat Pritish
Shashwat Pritish

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Your UI Isn’t Ugly — It’s Inconsistent (Here’s How to Fix That)”

#frontend #webdev #ui #design

Most developers think their UI looks bad because they’re “not good at design”.

That’s rarely the real problem.

More often, the UI feels off because it’s inconsistent.

Not ugly.

Not broken.

Just quietly inconsistent — and your users feel it instantly.

Inconsistency Is Invisible (Until It’s Not)

Users usually can’t explain why your product feels uncomfortable.

But they notice things like:

  • Buttons that don’t behave the same
  • Spacing that randomly changes
  • Fonts that almost match, but not quite
  • Colors that mean different things in different places

Their brain keeps asking:

“Wait… is this the same thing or not?”

That mental friction is what makes a UI feel amateur.

The Real Cost of Inconsistency

Inconsistent UI doesn’t just look bad — it slows users down.

  • Users hesitate before clicking
  • Trust drops subconsciously
  • Learning time increases
  • Your product feels harder than it actually is

Good UI reduces thinking.

Inconsistent UI demands it.

5 Places Where Inconsistency Sneaks In

1. Spacing

Margins and padding change screen to screen.

Fix:

  • Pick a spacing scale (4, 8, 16, 24, 32)
  • Never eyeball spacing again

2. Typography

Same text type, different font size or weight.

Fix:

  • Define text roles: heading, subheading, body, caption
  • Use them everywhere — no exceptions

3. Colors

The same color means different things.

Fix:

  • One color = one purpose
  • Success, warning, error, primary — be strict

4. Buttons

Different shapes, sizes, or hover behaviors.

Fix:

  • Create button variants (primary, secondary, danger)
  • Reuse, don’t redesign

5. Interaction Patterns

Same action behaves differently across pages.

Fix:

  • Decide patterns once
  • Apply them everywhere

Consistency Is a Design Skill — Not Talent

Great designers aren’t magically creative.

They’re boringly consistent.

They:

  • Repeat decisions
  • Reuse components
  • Avoid clever one-offs
  • Prefer systems over screens

That’s why their UI feels calm.

How to Fix Your UI (Practically)

Start small:

  1. Audit one screen
  2. List all spacing values used
  3. Normalize them
  4. Repeat for typography and buttons

You don’t need a redesign.
You need discipline.

Final Thought

Your UI probably isn’t ugly.

It’s just:

  • Trying to be helpful
  • Making too many decisions
  • Asking users to think too much

Consistency removes that burden.

And suddenly —

your UI feels professional.

What’s one area of UI consistency you struggle with the most?

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