Hacker News: Mobile Web Redesign
Improving usability and readability for a mobile-first experience
Project Overview
The Hacker News mobile web redesign focused on improving usability, readability, and navigation within a highly content-dense platform. The goal was to modernize the interface while preserving the product’s core value: fast access to high-quality technical discussions.
The project explored how a clearer structure and mobile-first layout could improve engagement metrics such as article discovery, session depth, and participation in discussions.
My role: User Researcher, UX Designer, UI Designer,
The project explored how a clearer structure and mobile-first layout could improve engagement metrics such as article discovery, session depth, and participation in discussions.
My role: User Researcher, UX Designer, UI Designer,
This project followed a design thinking approach, moving from user research and problem definition into ideation and high-fidelity prototyping. The scope focused on identifying usability issues in the existing mobile experience and translating insights into a clear, testable redesign concept.
Current Experience
A review of the existing mobile web experience revealed several structural and usability issues, particularly around navigation clarity, content hierarchy, and community visibility. These limitations made it difficult for users to quickly understand the platform, discover relevant content, or engage in discussions.
Research & Key Challenges
To ground the redesign, I conducted five qualitative interviews with tech-savvy users to understand reading habits, navigation patterns, and expectations for community-driven platforms.
Key themes that emerged
- Lack of Clarity: Users struggled to understand the site’s structure and primary focus.
- Outdated visual language: The interface felt inconsistent with modern web standards.
- Community visibility: Commenting and discussion features were difficult to discover.
- Mobile inconsistency: The experience varied across devices and screen sizes.
- Navigation friction: Finding specific topics or sections required unnecessary effort.
Problem Statement
How might we redesign the Hacker News mobile homepage to improve clarity, navigation, and community engagement, without compromising the platform’s speed and content density?
Design Direction & Solutions
The redesign focused on simplifying structure while introducing clearer visual hierarchy and mobile-first interactions.
Key decisions included:
- A modernized, high-contrast layout optimized for readability
- Clear topic categories to support faster content discovery
- Enhanced navigation and filtering for browsing and sorting articles
- A visible community module highlighting active discussions
- Improved comment threads to support deeper participation
- Mobile-first responsive behavior across all core flows
Key Experience Changes
- Simplified navigation with clear categories.
- Defined user flows from homepage → article → discussion
- Stronger hierarchy to surface what matters most first
Core surfaces redesigned:
- Homepage with featured and categorized content
- Article pages optimized for reading and scanning
- Commenting system designed for conversation, not clutter
Visual System
The visual refresh focused on clarity over decoration:e-first interface. I aimed to do so by creating a new:
- Color: Restrained, tech-inspired palette
- Typography: Modern, readable type optimized for long-form content
- Layout: Spacious, mobile-first structure with clear hierarchy
Final Prototype
A clickable high-fidelity prototype demonstrates the redesigned mobile experience, showcasing updated navigation, article discovery, and community interactions.
Value & Expected Impact
For users
- Faster discovery of relevant content
- Improved reading experience on mobile
- Clearer access to community discussions
For the platform
- Increased engagement and session depth
- Stronger participation in discussions
- A modernized experience aligned with user expectations
Key Takeaways
- Clear hierarchy is critical in content-heavy products
- Community features must be visible to be valuable
- Mobile-first structure improves both usability and engagement
This project demonstrates how structural clarity and thoughtful visual restraint can significantly improve usability without overcomplicating a mature product.