The Best UX Tools Employers Look For in 2024
Have you ever wondered what UX tools employers want you to know? I have, so I analysed 150 job descriptions to find out:
Data & Methodology
• 150 unique job listings, all coming from the UI & UX Designer Jobs Board.
• Job titles include UI/UX Designer, UX Designer, Product Designer & Head/Lead Designer.
• Of those listings, 50 were for junior designers, 50 for mid-level, and 50 for senior.
• Goal is to count how frequently the name of a UX tool, e.g. Figma, AdobeXD or Sketch appears in the job description.
• The data was analysed using a mix of manual inspection & Python.
• Of the 150 job descriptions, 51 did not have the name of any tool. The analysis is focused on the 99 job listings that mentioned at least a single tool.
The Tools Employers Mention The Most
The top 10 most in-demand UX tools are as follows:
1. Figma, 95 mentions
2. Adobe Suite, 30 mentions
3. Sketch, 23 mentions
4. Photoshop, 15 mentions
5. Illustrator, 14 mentions
6. Adobexd, 8 mentions
7. Miro, 6 mentions
8. Invision, 6 mentions
9. Principle, 5 mentions
10. Figjam, 4 mentions
• Figma was mentioned in 95 out of 99 possible listings. This is about three times as much as the second tool on the list- the Adobe Cloud/Adobe Suite, with 30 mentions.
• Though Adobe Suite, Photoshop, Illustrator & AdobeXD were mentioned a total of 67 times. This is a bit deceiving, since some job descriptions would list off Adobe Suite, Illustrator and Photoshop all at once. In total, Adobe products appeared in 46 unique job descriptions.
• Interestingly, Sketch is well above Adobe XD. This could be due to uncertainty over XD's future.
• Other than Figma, Adobe tools & Sketch, there isn't another frequently mentioned tool.
Why Is Figma so Dominant?
I think most of us expected Figma to be number 1, but not by this much. Possible reasons why this is include:
• Figma is Web-based, making it more accessible.
• Super generous free plan
• Big focus on collaboration
• Community building- Figma spends a lot of effort in community building, just look at Figma Config.
The Impact of Job Seniority on Tools
I had a theory that Figma is predominantly mentioned in Junior/Intermediate jobs, and Senior jobs will mention Photoshop/Sketch more. This proved to be false.
• Of the 37 junior jobs that mentioned a tool, 34 mentioned Figma
• Of the 36 intermediate jobs that mentioned a tool, 36 mentioned Figma
• Of the 26 senior jobs that mentioned a tool, 25 mentioned Figma
In hindsight, this was a stupid assumption. Instead, it would be interesting to look into the possible relationship between company age and the tools used. Or in other words- do older companies prefer older tools?
On another note, senior jobs mention tools less frequently. 24 of the senior jobs did not mention a tool, while this number was 13 for junior & 14 for mid-level jobs.
This could indicate that senior roles are not as focused on being a hands-on designer as they are on management/the UX process as a whole.
Additional Notes
I know that Adobe Suite is not a single tool, but a set of tools by Adobe. However, a non-trivial amount of listings would state "Knowledge of Adobe Suite", which made me include it.
Some companies put less importance on tools, indicated by statements such as "Knowledge of Figma or similar tools".
Others put heavy emphasis on the tool they use, with statements such as "Proficient in Figma".