Design critique
Definition
A structured feedback session in which a designer presents work-in-progress and receives specific, actionable feedback from peers and stakeholders — focused on improving the design against defined criteria, not on rating the designer.
Design critique is distinct from design review: critique is iterative and happens while work is still in progress; review is a gate that approves or rejects work before it ships. A good critique culture is one where showing unfinished work is expected and safe.
How a critique runs:
- The presenter frames the work: what problem does it solve, what stage is it in, what kind of feedback is most useful right now (directional, detailed, copy, accessibility).
- The group observes silently before commenting.
- Feedback is specific and framed around the user or the goal, not personal preference ('This might confuse users who don't see the label before clicking' vs. 'I don't like this').
- The presenter captures feedback, clarifies, and makes decisions. Not all feedback needs to be acted on — the designer drives the work.
The whiteboard in critique: Critique often moves to a whiteboard when alternatives need to be sketched. The presenter or a peer might sketch a different layout to illustrate a point. Those sketches are ephemeral — important ideas vanish when the session ends. Snap them with BoardSnap to capture the design directions explored in the critique.
Critique vs. design review: Critique is frequent and informal; review is a milestone gate. Healthy design processes have more critiques than reviews.
Examples
- A design team runs weekly 30-minute critiques where two designers present work — the session is structured, time-boxed, and facilitated by a rotating team member.
- A product designer requests a critique specifically on the empty state designs before the component goes to the design review, using the feedback to refine before the formal gate.
- A cross-functional critique includes an engineer who flags that a proposed interaction pattern would require significant additional frontend work — caught early, before spec-out.
- A remote design team runs critiques asynchronously using recorded walkthroughs, then meets for 20 minutes to synthesize feedback.
Related terms
Snap a design critique. Ship its actions.
BoardSnap turns any whiteboard — including this one — into a summary and action plan.