Updated 5th November 2025
App design mistakes are one of the most common reasons users abandon apps early. Whether you are building your first product or managing a live platform, avoiding these mistakes can save you from wasted development and unhappy users.
At AppsPlus, we specialise in designing and building apps that put the user experience first. By focusing on clarity, simplicity, and functionality, we help businesses create mobile apps that not only look great but also keep users engaged.
This guide breaks down the most frequent design issues, how they affect user experience, and what your team can do to prevent them.
Overloaded screens and chaotic layouts overwhelm users. When too much is happening at once, users cannot focus or find what they need. Cluttered interfaces lead to confusion, higher bounce rates, and lower engagement.
Good app design is about simplicity. Users should see clear calls to action, logical grouping of content, and enough spacing to breathe. Avoid stacking too many buttons, menus, or input fields together. For example, placing navigation links, popups, and promotional content in the same area confuses the user’s eye and breaks flow.
A streamlined interface helps users achieve their goals faster, especially in high pressure environments such as healthcare or field service apps.
When users tap a menu, they expect consistent results. If the navigation changes from one screen to another or patterns shift, it causes frustration. Inconsistent flow disrupts trust and makes users abandon the app too soon.
Apps must maintain predictable and consistent navigation structures. For example, keeping the bottom tab bar the same across all screens improves familiarity and speed. Changing icon behaviour or layout midway slows users down and reduces conversion.
A clear and repeatable structure improves usability and supports long term retention. Users will only make an app their go-to tool if it is easy to use and provides really transformative functionality. In other words, it should intuitively perform an important task, and do it quickly. An app needs to be easy to use. Bad user interface can lead to lots of issues in the future. Think about what your app is doing, and how.
Many developers still overlook accessibility. Colour contrast, font size, screen reader compatibility, and touch target size are often ignored, which excludes users with disabilities. This is especially important for mobile and tablet apps.
Ignoring accessibility standards such as WCAG 2.1 not only hurts the experience but can also create legal compliance issues. Apps should consider all user needs, not just the average use case. This includes people with vision, hearing, cognitive, or motor impairments.
Use tools like Google Lighthouse, Axe, or Apple Accessibility Inspector to test compliance and improve inclusivity from the very start.
Tapping an icon should do what users expect. If actions are hidden behind gestures or icons are unclear, users quickly become confused. Non standard patterns such as hiding important actions in obscure places create unnecessary friction.
Users drop off when they cannot figure out how to complete a task. Clear calls to action, visual cues, and consistent interaction logic are key. Avoid over engineering interactions. Instead, test each core flow with real users to catch issues early.
Set up fast feedback loops by observing real users, documenting confusion points, and fixing them. The simpler it is to interact with your app, the longer users will stay.
Your onboarding flow is your app’s first impression. A long, clunky, or irrelevant onboarding process is one of the most damaging design mistakes.
When onboarding does not clearly explain what the app does or how to use it, users leave. That includes skipped tutorials, overloaded instructions, or asking for too many permissions up front.
A good onboarding process introduces features gradually, explains benefits clearly, and adapts to user context. Short videos, tooltips, or guided walkthroughs work better than multiple screens of static information.
Many teams launch and then walk away. They build a version one and ignore user comments, app store reviews, or in app feedback. This creates a gap between what users need and what the app delivers.
App design is never finished. Feedback reveals real world friction. Regular usability testing, even with small groups, can highlight poor design choices and help you improve faster.
Tools like Hotjar, Maze, or direct user interviews uncover blockers and allow you to prioritise fixes based on actual behaviour.
If you do not adapt your user experience over time, it quickly becomes outdated. Designs that feel old, unoptimised performance, or failing to meet new user expectations all drive abandonment.
Apps need continuous refinement. That means re evaluating how users interact as trends shift or competitors raise the bar.
Performance is especially critical. If your interface lags or breaks under load, users will not tolerate it. Monitoring metrics such as time to interaction and drop off points will guide updates.
Many design mistakes happen when developers ignore the variety of devices people use. An app that looks good on one screen but breaks on another frustrates users immediately.
Your interface must adapt across phones, tablets, and desktop. Non responsive designs harm usability, especially if content is cut off, buttons are unreachable, or inputs fail.
Follow adaptive design principles such as flexible grids, scalable fonts, and touch friendly layouts. Always test across popular devices and screen sizes.
Few things destroy user trust faster than crashes or long loading times. Reliability is directly linked to whether users return. If an app performs badly once, many will never give it another chance.
Performance issues often include memory leaks, slow animations, or excessive API calls. These usually stem from poor design choices in the early stages.
Design teams must collaborate with developers to ensure performance is considered from the wireframing stage, not just after launch. Strong performance leads directly to better retention.
Designers create the interface, product managers define goals, and developers bring the app to life. If any of these groups work in isolation, design flaws slip through.
Designers risk usability mistakes when they ignore feedback. Developers can break consistency when making changes. Product teams may push aside accessibility in the rush to release.
Cross functional collaboration is essential. Design quality is a shared responsibility. Regular design reviews, usability tests, and feature audits reduce risk and improve the overall experience. At AppsPlus, we bring design, development, and product strategy together under one roof. This collaborative approach ensures every app we build is functional, accessible, and aligned with user needs from day one.
The best apps are built with empathy. You need to see your product from the perspective of the user, not just the business. That means thinking about people with impairments, busy professionals, and even those completely new to mobile apps.
Confusing experiences lead to frustration. Clear, inclusive, and performance driven design helps you build long term trust.
Use qualitative research, personas, and accessibility testing as standard practice. Your design should evolve around how real people use the app, not how stakeholders assume they should.
Avoiding these common app design mistakes does not require a bigger budget. It requires better processes. Focus on clarity, consistency, inclusivity, and continuous improvement. These small shifts create better user experiences, happier customers, and more successful apps.
At AppsPlus, we help businesses put these principles into practice. Our team designs and builds apps that are simple, intuitive, and inclusive, giving you a product that not only looks good but also delivers real results. By avoiding common pitfalls and focusing on what users truly need, we make sure your app supports growth and long term success.
Ready to build an app that your users will love? Contact us today to get started.
1. What are the most common app design mistakes businesses make?
The most common mistakes include cluttered layouts, inconsistent navigation, poor accessibility, unintuitive onboarding, and ignoring user feedback. These issues frustrate users and often lead to higher abandonment rates.
2. Why is accessibility important in app design?
Accessibility ensures your app can be used by everyone, including people with vision, hearing, cognitive, or motor impairments. Meeting accessibility standards like WCAG 2.1 is not only inclusive but also improves user experience for all. At AppsPlus, accessibility is built into every design from the start.
3. How do poor app design choices affect user retention?
Confusing navigation, slow performance, or frequent crashes make users lose trust in an app. Once that happens, they are unlikely to return. A well-designed app keeps users engaged, improves loyalty, and drives long-term growth.
4. How can businesses avoid bad app design?
The best way to avoid design mistakes is to focus on simplicity, test with real users, and refine continuously. Partnering with experts like AppsPlus gives you access to proven design processes that reduce risk and create apps users actually enjoy.
5. What is the role of usability testing in app design?
Usability testing shows how real people interact with your app. It highlights pain points, confusing flows, and performance problems before they become bigger issues. Regular testing helps businesses adapt quickly and deliver a smoother experience.
6. How much does fixing app design mistakes cost compared to doing it right the first time?
Fixing design mistakes after launch is almost always more expensive than designing correctly from the start. Investing in expert app design early saves time, reduces development costs, and leads to a better return on investment. AppsPlus helps businesses build apps right the first time, avoiding costly rework later.
