research methods
Heuristic evaluation
What is heuristic evaluation?
A quick expert review that checks an interface against a short set of usability rules - you can see this in action right here.
Also known as: expert review
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The demo
This sign-up screen has four usability problems baked in. Click each one you can spot. A heuristic evaluation is exactly this: judging a screen against a short list of usability rules.
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Help people recover from errors. A raw error code with no cause and no fix. Say what went wrong, in plain words, and how to put it right.
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This one is fine. Clear label, plain hint, obvious purpose. Not every element is a problem.
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Make the rules visible. A password box with no stated requirements. People learn the rules only by failing. Show the constraints up front.
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Consistency and standards. Two buttons for the same kind of action, styled and labelled differently. Pick one pattern and hold to it.
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Prevent errors, allow undo. A one-tap destructive action with no confirmation and no undo. Guard irreversible actions, or make them reversible.
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This one is fine. A visible, clearly-labelled way out. People need an obvious escape.
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What this demo shows (text version)
A mock sign-up screen carries four planted usability problems: a cryptic error code with no recovery, a password field with its rules hidden, two inconsistent action buttons, and a destructive "delete account" with no confirmation. Two further elements (a clear email field and a visible cancel link) are fine, as decoys. Judging a screen against a short list of rules like these, before testing with users, is a heuristic evaluation: a fast, cheap way to catch the obvious breakages early.
A heuristic evaluation is a quick expert review that checks an interface against a short set of usability rules, before you test with users. It’s the cheap first pass that catches obvious breakages fast - run it to clear the easy problems, but don’t let it stand in for watching real people.
You just ran a heuristic evaluation: judging a screen against a short list of usability rules, no users required. It is the fast, cheap first pass that catches the obvious breakages before you spend real research time.
Heuristics find violations, not surprises. They will catch a missing error message or an inconsistent button every time, but only real users reveal the thing nobody thought to put on the list. Run the cheap pass first, then test what is left.
Two or three evaluators catch far more than one, because people fixate on different rules. It is the rare method where a quick committee genuinely beats a lone expert.