How To Create Enough White Space In Mobile App Design

The effective utilization of white space in UI design

White space, one of the most neglected parts in design is often going to be the most effective solution for UX/UI designers.

At the beginning of my design career, I never saw the real value behind white space and the number of ways in which it could make my designs look more beautiful and attractive. However, when challenging times came up, the effective utilization of white space was critical to solving problems.

However, the proper utilization of white space is very essential otherwise the design can end up looking non-professional and plain.

What is white space exactly?

White space is the empty space between layouts, lines in paragraphs words, between multiple design elements, etc. These elements could be images, typography, illustrations, icons and so on. White space doesn't refer to an empty white background and it doesn't necessarily have to be white as well, it can be of any colour or pattern and therefore we also call it as negative space.

Now that you understand what white space in design refers to, let's dive in a little deeper to understand how it would affect the usability and user interface.

1. Improve your visual hierarchy

Setting the visual hierarchy forms to be one of the most critical steps for a UI designer. As a basic rule of thumb, the most important information must be at the top, bold and easily visible while the least important information at the bottom, in a smaller box, less focused. This is easy to comprehend and even showcase in your design.

However, in the above example, the image on the left utilizes a lesser white space. This could sabotage your visual hierarchy and cause confusion or disinterest for the user to absorb the given set of information.

Thus the example in the right shows how white spaces can make the designs more scannable allowing easier comprehension.

2. Help users focus on important aspects

Negative space helps the users to focus on the most relevant content. This is usually done through the effective utilization of macro and micro spaces in the design.

In laymen terms, macro space refers to the larger segments of white spaces in design(space between headers, footers and the margins in a website) while micro spaces refer to the smaller spaces between different UI elements (the space between lines and paragraphs)

If you want to direct the user's focus on an illustrative figure instead of the text, adding effective white space around it ensures a greater focus on the required design element. In the example above, on the left, the illustration is mixed with other elements disallowing the user to absorb appropriate information whereas, on the right side, the illustration enjoys white space, allowing the user to focus on the relevant illustration which in turn is linked to the provided information.

3. Find the right balance

How much white space is enough white space? A question asked frequently in the field of design. A simple answer to this is, designs that allow the users to comprehend the information without overwhelming them is the most balanced white space design.

In the example above, the image on the right explodes with information making it overwhelming. While the image on the right is soothing which enables comprehension without overwhelming the user.

4. Keep it consistent

Consistency is the key to white space. Every piece of information in design is consistent and so is white space. The logical utilization of the space creates appropriate space for each element in the design.

Inconsistency in the utilization will lead to an abrupt user interface.

In the example of the left, inconsistent white spacing is making it look like 2 groups of photos one on the top and the other one at the bottom. While in the image on the right, all 6 photos look consistent and part of 1 set.

5. Creatively adapt white space in elements

The creative utilization of white space is a skill and can make elements look more beautiful and beat the standard principles of using negative spaces only to increase focus and retention.

One can get their creative juices out and not utilize white space to declutter of improving the visual appeal but to portray something that is relevant and enhances the visuals.

The above are certain examples where white space is used creatively to display the brand mission and identity. The most common example is FedEx where the white space is utilized to display an arrow that resonates with the brand mission.

In conclusion, white space is like art, you got to do it right to make your designs look effective and professional. We hope you liked reading the article and it helped you rethink the principles of white spacing in user interface design.

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