10 PRINCIPLES OF

GOOD DESIGN

by Dieter Rams

lightbulb lightbulb

Good design is innovative...

With technology that is constantly improving, there are endless opportunities for designers to progress and to build upon what has gone before them. Creativity should develop and implement new techniques and features that can solve the problems of the present day industry.

hammer hammer

Good design is useful...

A product must serve its defined purpose. The top priority must be in allowing the product to successfully carry out what it is meant to fulfill and disregard anything that may distract from it. If a design does not do what it is advertised and do it well, it has not satisfied the functional criteria of a product.

paint

Good design is aesthetic...

The visual quality of a design is critical to its usefulness. Everyday products will gradually affect our willingness to use it. A beautiful and distinct design is more likely to be returned to and used over other similar products in the same market.

paint
talk bubble

Good design is understandable...

How clear a product is helps with readability and contributes to a more user-friendly interface. If it is confusing to use, customers are not likely to return as it causes more problems than it solves. Design should clarify how to use it and be self-explanatory in its function.

talk bubble
arrow arrow

Good design is unobtrusive...

Neutrality in a design leaves room for a user’s self-expression and doesn’t intrude on functionality. Decoration should remain restrained and not take control over a design, as the main priority of a design should be as a tool. Flair does not equal substance.

thumbs up

Good design is honest...

Claiming features a product does not have influences and manipulates buyers and users into purchasing a product that doesn’t do as it is advertised. Good design should only portray what it can truthfully carry out and does not suggest traits to make it appear bigger than it is.

thumbs up
clock clock

Good design is long-lasting...

It doesn’t follow temporary trends that may be out of date in a short time, but should use resources that can be reused in the future. A product’s usefulness increases with its durability to time, as it doesn’t rely on ideas that are relevant only to certain periods or styles.

list list

Good design is thorough...

Accuracy in a design ensures its continual functionality and attention to detail. Users will only trust a product that has been checked and inspected before it is released and will ensure later purchases. Quality should always be a priority in creating design that will last under any condition.

recycle

Good design is environmentally friendly...

Design should use its resources wisely to limit waste and to get rid of anything that isn’t essential to the function. This refers to not only real pollution, but also the visual that may distract from or limit a user’s experience. If it isn’t necessary, perhaps it shouldn’t be included.

recycle
ruler ruler

Good design is as little design as possible...

Back to purity and back to simplicity. Less is better when it concentrates only on the essentials and does not bring the design down with visual clutter. A design does not have to be complicated in order to impress, and will complement the product’s purpose and readability.

Dieter Rams Dieter Rams
DIETER RAMS...

is a world renowned industrial designer. He graduated from Germany’s Wiesbaden School of Art in 1953 and was awarded over a dozen design awards in his lifetime, including the the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Medal at the London Design Festival. Ram’s industrial designs have also been featured in the Less and More exhibition, which traveled across the world first from Osaka, Japan in 2008 to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 2012. As a designer, he was influenced by his grandfather’s philosophies that “less is better” and has inspired countless others around the world to create beautiful design and products. In the late 1970s, Rams became concerned by the development of the design world around him and shared his ten most important principles of good and successful design.