How to Become a Freelance UI Designer in 2024

While the majority of entry-level UI Designers will search for work at a tech firm, freelance work is becoming increasingly popular. Between 2020 and 2022, the rate of self-employment in the scientific and technical services industry rose to 13.5%. Freelancers have greater control over their own hours and their work. However, they also have more responsibilities in dealing directly with clients and finding their own work. Before pursuing freelance UI design, weigh the pros and cons and ensure you are prepared for the challenges with the work style. 

What is a UI Designer?

A UI Designer designs user interfaces, usually for digital applications such as the web, mobile, or video games. They build visual and interactive elements such as buttons, menus, and widgets. They also develop prototypes and refine their designs based on information gained from user research. Primary job duties of UI Designers include:

• Developing and enforcing a style guide that establishes a consistent visual “look” across the application.
• Designing each screen and individual elements within that the user can interact with.
• Making decisions about layout and visual elements that drive an intuitive user experience.
• Creating animations.
• Building wireframes and prototypes.
• Ensuring layout responsiveness across various screen sizes.

UI Designers craft designs for various industries, such as financial and banking, healthcare apps, retail apps, education, automotive, and gaming. A UI Designer’s primary goal is to design applications so that users intuitively understand how to use them and perform the actions or find the information they need without learning how to use the application first. UI Designers play a significant role in influencing how we use digital technology in our daily lives. 

Read more about what a UI Designer does.

What is UI Design Freelancing Like?

Freelance designers often choose a niche to work in as it helps to build up a reputation and client list within a specific skill set. UI design freelancers could decide to work on particular products such as web, mobile, or game design. They could also choose to niche into a specific industry, such as healthcare or finance. Freelance UI Designers might also specialize in particular software or programming languages. Many options exist for freelancers to showcase their unique skills and narrow their competition.

Once freelancers have determined their niche, they need to set up a network to help bring in clients. This can take many forms, such as building a website, managing social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn), and forming an email list. Unlike working a typical 9-5 job, freelancers are responsible for locating work rather than receiving assignments from their employer. Thus, freelancers must thus be their own marketing team. And a significant amount of effort goes into finding and negotiating with potential clients.

Beyond using their network for clients, many job boards post freelance work, such as Upwork and FlexJobs. On these boards, freelancers compete with other job seekers by showcasing their qualifications and negotiating rates. Interested clients will explain their expectations for a project's scope and deadlines. Freelance UI Designers then decide if they want to take on the project. 

Once a designer has accepted one contract, they may take on more projects depending on their work schedule. Regardless of how many projects they take on, they keep in contact with their contractor(s) with project updates. This amount of direct communication is often more than UI Designers working in tech firms see. However, it is not so different from communicating project progress and expectations with design teammates. Once a project is completed, freelancers turn over their work and receive their payment.

Freelance pay varies. Some freelancers charge by the hour, while others charge based on a standard commission price per project. Successful freelancers understand the proper rates to charge for their skills and time and know how to find clients willing and able to pay for their work. Sometimes, clients dictate what they are willing to pay. Beginner freelancers often make the mistake of taking on low-paying jobs to earn income. While this may be acceptable temporarily, it is not sustainable in the long run.

Is UI Design Freelancing Right for Me?

There are a number of factors that can help determine if freelancing is right for you. This includes ensuring you have the required skills and industry knowledge to work with multiple clients. Individuals with certain temperaments may also be more inclined to handle the additional responsibilities that come with freelancing than others.

Are You Prepared?

The initial question all aspiring freelancers should ask is, are you financially ready? To freelance as a career, it’s ideal first to have a source of steady income with savings in hand. This is why many who pursue freelancing first start at a regular 9-5 job at a tech firm. Gaining a steady income through freelance work can take weeks or even months. Thus it’s crucial to support yourself financially when first pursuing freelancing. 

Taking stock of your knowledge of standard industry tools is also important. Your clients will come from various backgrounds and have different requirements. If you only know Figma, you may need help with projects for clients requiring Sketch or Adobe XD. So, you must have at least a basic knowledge of all the industry tools you may need. 

Lastly, you’ll need a polished portfolio. A good portfolio is necessary to communicate your skills and accomplishments and help clients decide why they should work with you. Freelancing can be a very competitive career where you may find yourself bidding against other UI Designers to gain clients.

Do You Have the Right Temperament?

Freelancers needed to be organized individuals. Not only will you likely be working with multiple clients at once, but you’ll also need to keep track of your finances for invoices and doing your taxes. Freelancing can involve a lot of administration work you wouldn’t need to keep track of in a regular 9-5 job. 

Freelancers also need to be self-motivated. They don’t have a supervisor telling them what needs to be done and when. You need to be able to set and meet your own deadlines, manage all aspects of your work, and remain accountable to yourself.

While freelancers aren’t required to be extroverted, they must at least be willing to introduce themselves actively to new people. Maintaining a great relationship with clients is an excellent way to keep steady work. However, landing your first clients as a freelancer will require networking and cold pitching. Online communities and live UI events are excellent places to meet people. 

Benefits & Drawbacks of Freelancing 

Freedom is the main benefit of freelancing. Freelancers are able to work when they want, where they want, and on whatever projects they want. They can more easily pivot to work in different industries, learn new skills, and directly raise their income by taking on more work or raising their rates. Freelancing can provide a stable work-life balance and allow you to pursue your passions easily.

However, freelancing can involve a less stable income than a traditional job, especially when starting out. You also won’t have the health insurance or compensation for sick days or paid time off that you would receive from a traditional employer. In the end, freelancing is equivalent to starting your own business and all the administrative work and risk that comes with it. It’s important to note that the risk doesn’t always pan out and that carefully considering your situation is serious before deciding to undergo freelancing.

Steps to Become a Freelance UI Designer

There are several steps to becoming a UI Designer. Though the steps listed below are straightforward, everyone’s path to breaking into UI design is slightly different. You might not complete every one of these steps, and you might even do some of them out of order. You should review the steps provided and create a plan for the path you wish to take to UI design. And don’t be dismayed if that path changes.

Step #1: Surround Yourself with UI Design

An excellent place to start learning UI design is to set out to absorb as much information as you can. You can begin by reading UI design blogs, following industry trends, joining UI design forums and communities, and experimenting with UI design tools. Set a goal to do something UI-related every day. This can be as simple as reading a blog article. Surrounding yourself with UI design ideas and trends will give you the headstart you need to develop skills and networks and locate further resources for learning UI design.

Step #2 Consider a Bootcamp Course

Professional training isn’t required to become a UI Designer, but courses designed to teach UI design can be informative and cover any skill gaps you might have from self-learning. Bootcamp courses in UI design are specifically structured to feature comprehensive learning, enough to jumpstart a new career. Many even offer services such as portfolio workshops or job search assistance.

If you aren’t ready to attend a professional course, you can move this step to anywhere else on the list.

Step #3: Learn the Fundamentals of UI Design

UI design is built on the principles of interaction and visual design. You can use free resources such as seminars or training videos from skills-sharing websites to begin learning these core concepts. In the end, you’ll need to feel confident in your understanding of how elements such as graphics, text, space, and layout influence visual aesthetics, as well as how users interact with a digital product.

Step #4 Learn the Industry Tools

The industry uses various UI design tools, so you’ll need to research and decide which ones you want to learn. The most popular are Figma, Photoshop, and Illustrator, but there are others, such as Sketch and Adobe XD. You’ll likely learn various tools throughout your UI design career. So, a good place to start is by choosing whichever tool seems the most intuitive to you. You can also review job listings to see which tools employers require.

You don’t need to learn every tool. Ultimately, you need to be comfortable building wireframes and prototypes, as these are crucial UI design skills. Many tools offer free trials and learning resources, so you can begin practicing independently at no cost.

Step #5 Build Your Portfolio

You’ll need a portfolio to showcase your skills to employers. If you’ve elected to attend professional training, you can start your portfolio with the projects you completed in class. With or without coursework, you’ll need to build your own projects. Several online websites offer UI design prompts, case studies, and fake client requests to jumpstart your projects. 

Remember that a portfolio showcases more than just finished designs. You should document the need your project was designed to fulfill and show each step of your creative and technical process. Be sure to go into detail about the methods and tools used.

Step #6 Network

Networking can make a huge difference in finding a job in UI design. They can also be excellent resources for getting feedback on your portfolio or resume, advice on which skills you need to improve, and locating additional training resources. Use websites like LinkedIn or Twitter to find and connect with industry professionals, including designers, entrepreneurs, and recruiters. You can also build connections in online forums and communities. If you’re lucky, you might find UI events or meet-ups in your local area. 

Step #7 Find a Mentor

A mentor is someone with years of industry experience in UI design and who can guide you on your path to becoming a UI Designer. They can provide you with personal insights into the industry and offer individual feedback on your skills. If you choose to attend a UI design bootcamp, your instructor commonly serves as a mentor during your time with them. They may even agree to mentor you after the course if you foster a relationship. Otherwise, your network is the best resource for finding a mentor.

If you struggle to find a personal mentor, you can find a UI Designer whose work you admire and who shares their advice and expertise online through blogs, video tutorials, and social networks. Study what they have to teach, learn the paths they took to UI design, and dig into their favorite learning resources. 

Step #8 Gain Experience

It may be necessary to gain real-world work experience before landing an entry-level job in UI design. Look for volunteer opportunities in UI design or website development (which shares similarities with UI design). Your network might even have some work opportunities for you. Freelancing for a time is also a viable option.

If your UI design job search isn’t working out, you may need to take a position in an adjacent field, such as visual design, graphic design, interaction design, or web development. However, you can gain experience and later transition to a role more suited to your desires.

Step #9 Continue to Grow

UI Designers never stop learning. Technology is constantly changing, and industry trends follow along with it. Any successful UI Designer has to stay on top of these emerging ideas. Even when you find a job in UI design, don’t assume you’re done. Go back to steps #1 and #6. Continue to immerse yourself in UI design and keep up with your network of professionals. Stay in contact with your mentor or find a new one with new insights to pass on. Attend conferences and events and strive to learn new skills.

Step #10 Learn Business Skills

In addition to all the skills of a regular UI Designer, future freelance UI Designers will need to learn skills for running their own business (such as finance and contract law) and marketing their business (such as web design and social media marketing). Even freelance UI Designers who plan to contract consultants to help run their small business should have a basic understanding of these areas to understand what kind of outsourcing they need to support their freelance work.

Learn the Skills to Become a UI Designer at Noble Desktop

Noble Desktop offers several UI design classes for those seeking professional instruction in pursuing a career as a UI Designer. Classes are small and feature expert instructors and free retake options. Courses can be attended in person in NYC or online from anywhere. 

The UI Design Certificate is designed to prepare students to launch a career in UI design. You’ll learn essential design principles as well as how to use the most popular UI design tools: Figma, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Throughout the course, you’ll complete a number of hands-on projects and build a portfolio to showcase your skills to potential employers.

Should you be interested in UX design as well as UI design (the two fields commonly overlap), you can pursue the UX & UI Design Certificate. You’ll learn the design principles and industry tools of both UX & UI design, build a professional portfolio, and receive one-on-one job preparation assistance. 

Bootcamps are also available where you can learn the ins and outs of the most popular UI design tools, including Figma, Photoshop, and Illustrator. These courses are open to pure beginners and are designed to guide you to mastery of the program. 

If you’re not ready to jump into a full UI design course, you can explore Noble Desktop’s learning hubs. These hubs are designed to inform you about a topic and offer learning resources, including free tutorials and self-guided education. UI design learn hubs include:

• Learn UI Design
• Learn Visual Design
• Learn Adobe XD
• Learn Figma
• Learn Sketch