mrhinkle Web UX Review
Evaluates whether a site works well for humans, not just whether it technically works. Catches the friction that automated tools miss: confusing navigation, buried content, unclear CTAs, and mobile pain. Produces a scored review with prioritized fixes.
Workflow
- Confirm the target and audience — the URL or pages to review, who the primary visitor is, and what they're trying to accomplish. UX is judged against a goal.
- Walk the key journeys — at minimum: homepage first impression, the primary conversion path (contact/signup/purchase), and mobile. See
reference/journeys.mdfor what to ask on each page type. - Evaluate against the heuristics and checklists — apply Nielsen's 10 usability heuristics plus the navigation, visual-hierarchy, mobile, and readability checklists in
reference/checklists.md. - Flag anti-patterns — scan for the common UX traps in
reference/checklists.md(mystery-meat navigation, walls of text, auto-playing media, hidden contact info, hover-only interactions, etc.). - Score and prioritize — fill the scorecard below, then rank fixes by impact. Navigation and mobile issues usually outrank cosmetic ones.
Nielsen's 10 usability heuristics (what to check)
- Visibility of system status — loading/feedback states, active-page highlighting, visible success/error messages.
- Match with the real world — plain-language labels and CTAs, intuitive icons, no unexplained jargon.
- User control and freedom — working back button, clear escape routes (logo/home), no dead ends, no forced signup to explore.
- Consistency and standards — buttons look like buttons, links styled consistently, nav in the same place everywhere.
- Error prevention — validate before submit, mark required fields, sensible defaults, confirm irreversible actions.
- Recognition over recall — options visible or one click away, breadcrumbs, clear category labels over generic "More".
- Flexibility and efficiency — skip-to-content link, multiple paths to content, bookmarkable URLs, filters over endless scroll.
- Aesthetic and minimalist design — every element earns its place, generous whitespace, high signal-to-noise, no distracting motion.
- Recognize and recover from errors — helpful 404s, field-level errors that say how to fix, friendly tone.
- Help and documentation — FAQ/help near the point of confusion, contact reachable from every page.
Full source: Nielsen Norman Group — https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ten-usability-heuristics/
Scorecard
Score each 0–100; overall is the average.
| Category | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation & structure | Can visitors find things fast? | |
| Visual hierarchy | Is important content prominent? | |
| Mobile experience | Does it work on phones? | |
| Readability | Is text easy to read? | |
| Forms & interaction | Are CTAs clear and clickable? | |
| Perceived performance | Does it feel responsive? | |
| Error handling | Are problems communicated well? | |
| Content quality | Is information useful and complete? | |
| Design consistency | Does everything feel cohesive? | |
| Accessibility & inclusivity | Usable by everyone? | |
| Overall | Average |
Bands: 80–100 excellent · 60–79 good · 40–59 fair (fix friction) · below 40 needs redesign.
Output Format
- Overall score and one-line verdict.
- Top 3 friction points — the highest-impact problems, stated as what the visitor experiences.
- Scorecard table (above), filled in.
- Findings by area — grouped by category, each with: what's wrong, why it hurts the visitor, and the concrete fix. Tag each High / Medium / Low priority.
- Prioritized fix list — the order to tackle them (navigation and mobile first).
Reference
reference/checklists.md— navigation, visual-hierarchy, mobile, readability checklists and the anti-pattern list.reference/journeys.md— page-type-specific questions for homepage, about/services, contact, and blog/resources.
Standards
- Nielsen's 10 usability heuristics — https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ten-usability-heuristics/
- WCAG 2.2 (contrast, targets, readability) — https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/quickref/