UX engineers are essential members of contemporary software development teams. These technologists have the skills and language to improve communication between designers and developers. UX engineers frequently participate in cross-functional teams, facilitating communication and offering assistance to engineers and designers. They work with designers to translate design concepts into working code, bridging the gap between these professions. The final product is developed using this code as a base by front-end and back-end engineers. The job description, salary, ideal portfolio for a UX Engineer, and the distinction between a UX Engineer vs a UX Designer will be covered in this post.
What is a UX Engineer?
A UX engineer is a hybrid UX designer/developer role. They are sometimes known as UI engineers or UI/UX engineers. Typically, they are front-end programmers who are knowledgeable about design principles and design thinking.
As a link between design and development, UX engineers collaborate with engineering teams, design teams, or groups in between. They typically focus on front-end development, creating and improving user interface (UI) elements like layouts, buttons, links, and other interactive elements.
What Does the UX Engineer Actually Do?
The duties of a UX engineer (UXE) differ based on the business and the product, but they typically involve both design and engineering processes. The UXE method can be broken down into four steps:
#1. Ideation
In collaboration with user researchers and designers, UXEs outline usability objectives, generate ideas for fixes, and offer guidance on the technical viability of early designs. During the ideation phase, it is vital to brainstorm and draw concepts. UXEs offer technical insights into how an idea might function and whether it complies with the technological limitations of the product.
#2. Design
UXEs actively participate in the design process, from low-fidelity prototyping and wireframing to mockups and high-fidelity prototyping. If a design system is being used, the UX engineer will work with designers to create a library of tool components. To help designers prepare design files, documentation, and prototypes for the design handoff, a UX engineer is in charge.
#3. Build
The process of turning static designs into code is handled by a UXE. Layouts and UI components are part of their responsibility; the technical team is responsible for other front-end development, including data integration, APIs, performance, and analytics. Throughout the development phase, UX engineers collaborate with the engineering team to implement designs as intended.
#4. Test
In order to test concepts and provide solutions during the design process, UX engineers collaborate closely with designers. UXEs collaborate with engineers to find and correct coding errors.
UX Engineer Job Description
Start by outlining specific roles, responsibilities, and expectations in order to build a job description for a UX engineer that is effective. We have included UX engineer job description templates that you can modify and use.
Typical duties for this role include:
- Create and implement web front-end screens and functionality using up-to-date technologies, such as component architecture design on the ASP.Net stack, responsive design, HTML5, CSS3, JQuery, JavaScript, and other current relevant web UI technologies, in order to satisfy technical design requirements of new enhancements and resolve bugs and client operability issues.
- Use user-centered design and iterative usability testing to create solutions for increased usability.
- Describe the functional and usability requirements before development, testing, and release.
- Offer metrics for business, user, technical, and brand objectives’ effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction
- Contribute to the ideation, concept development, and creation of user-centered design solutions in support of strategic business goals and a road map.
UX Engineer Salary
The average annual salary for a UX Engineer in the United States as of May 6, 2023, is $106,299 per year. If you need a quick pay estimator, that comes out to be roughly $51.11 per hour. This amounts to $8,858 a month or $2,044 per week.
The bulk of UX Engineer salaries now ranges between $86,500 (25th percentile) and $122,000 (75th percentile), with top earners (90th percentile) making $147,000 yearly across the United States, according to ZipRecruiter, which reports annual incomes as high as $158,000 and as low as $42,500. The wide variation in the typical salary for a UX engineer—up to $35,500—indicates that there may be numerous prospects for income increases and promotion based on experience level, location, and skill level.
According to recent job ads on ZipRecruiter, there is a strong need for UX Engineers in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as the neighborhood. In your region, the average yearly salary for a UX Engineer is $105,234, which is $1,065 (1%) less than the $106,299 national average. For UX Engineer salary, Georgia comes in at number 49 out of 50 states.
UX Engineer vs UX Designer
New tech positions become available as technology and product design workflows change. One of those new, specialized jobs that help to promote collaboration between design and development is that of the user experience (UX) engineer. We’ll examine the distinction between a UX designer vs UX engineer, their roles, and the collaboration between these team members.
Who is a UX Designer?
Throughout the design process, a UX designer (user experience designer) creates answers to user problems. A UX designer will work on every step of the design process in startups and small businesses. UX professionals, in contrast, focus on a particular function in significant projects and huge enterprises.
Who is a UX Engineer?
Front-end developers known as “UX engineers” are responsible for the viability of prototypes. Due to their expertise in both engineering and user experience, UX engineers are frequently referred to as “unicorns” in the tech business.
Are UX Engineers also UX Designers?
UX engineers typically come from backgrounds as software engineers or product designers. Typically, they major in computer science or HCI (human-computer interaction). They may not be UX designers specifically, but they are aware of the entire design process and incorporate design thinking and UX principles into their work. Most UX design efforts don’t involve UX engineers directly. Their main objective is to convert a designer’s prototypes into usable code.
Do you need a UX Engineer vs a UX Designer?
Most small businesses and startups do not require a UX engineer. Because designers and developers collaborate closely in these smaller teams, there is less need for a specialist UX engineer.
Large firms with difficult collaboration between designers and engineers are where UX engineers have the greatest influence. By working with designers to translate designs into code and then collaborating with engineering teams to deliver the final product while keeping the designer’s vision, these engineer/designer hybrids assist in bridging the gap.
UX Engineer Portfolio
Most job descriptions want a portfolio. According to the Google job description for UX engineers, you need a portfolio that “effectively demonstrates design process, interaction, and visual design skills.” You should incorporate previously completed work when describing the development portion of your skill set.
Additionally, once you are invited to an interview, you will almost always be asked to demonstrate your programming abilities. You need a portfolio with well-organized case studies if you want to showcase your design methodology and visual design abilities.
You may either utilize a platform like WordPress to construct your own portfolio website, or you can concentrate on the UX aspect of it by using a platform like UXfolio. Whichever choice you select, the template below will assist you in building a UX Engineer portfolio that can attest to your expertise in each of the aforementioned areas.
The Structure of a UX Engineer Portfolio
- Home page
Link to resume, contacts, Git, and a short bio
Links to case studies
- Case studies
How to Create a UX Engineer Portfolio?
There are a few alternatives available to UX engineers when building a UX portfolio website:
- Make use of a content management system, such as WordPress, Squarespace, etc.
- Create a static website utilizing Javascript, CSS, and HTML.
A static website gives UX engineers greater creativity and flexibility, while a CMS is simpler to maintain. A static website gives UX engineers the chance to demonstrate their whole range of abilities, from design to front-end development.
UX Engineer Portfolio Examples
#1. Xenia Lin – US-based UX Engineer
The site of Xenia’s portfolio contains an introduction to her qualifications, experience, and work. Xenia uses this platform to showcase her love for creating extended reality experiences as well as her design and development expertise.
#2. Matt Farley – Canadian-Based Product Designer & UX Engineer
Matt’s portfolio site has a simple user interface and the call to action “Say Hello,” which directs users to his contact page.
#3. Adham Dannaway – Australian-Based Product Designer & Front-End Developer
On the homepage of Adham, there is a cool hero animation with the words “designer” and “on either side. There are links to some of his most recent works below the fold. Links to the remaining pages of Adham’s portfolio website and social media are available under the header menu.
#4. Helen Khor – UK-Based UX Engineer
Helen displays a variety of projects on her webpage. She also provides a link to the prototype and the project on GitHub. Despite having a straightforward user interface, Helen just provides the most crucial details and links for others to view her work.
#5. Ata Dogan – AR Product Designer @ Meta
The website for Ata’s online portfolio includes an immersive video showcasing his creations, methods, and speeches. Introducing himself and his job is a clever concept. A brief biography, a list of his speaking engagements, and links to his social media are all included on Ata’s About page.
How to Become UX Engineer
There are numerous paths one can take to become a UX engineer. Here are several ways you can get started, whether you’re a seasoned web developer looking to transition into UX, a recent graduate, or anywhere in between.
#1. Match up your skills.
Your ability to contribute will be crucial in persuading employers to recruit you as a UX engineer. There are various courses you may take to master the foundations even if you don’t have all of the technical abilities required for the position. Here are some abilities you’ll need and information on how to get them.
Programming languages:
The front-facing sections of websites and apps—the menus, layouts, and navigation pages—are often the domain of UX engineers, so knowing the coding languages that will enable you to develop the structure and design of your products will be essential. These include Javascript, HTML, and CSS.
UX concepts:
What distinguishes UX engineers from front-end engineers is their understanding of UX and their ability to apply such techniques to their work. If you’re not already familiar, you should learn what user-centered design is, how to identify pain spots, how to prototype, and how to do user research.
Sense of design and design tools:
It’s not necessary for people who are artistically inclined to have a sense of design; many ideas can be learned. Not only will understanding design principles improve your abilities as a UX engineer, but it will also make it easier for you to interact with the designers on your team.
#2. Create a portfolio.
An easy way to show you what it takes for the job is to have a portfolio where you can highlight your abilities. You can upload your completed projects on LinkedIn if you have a few to your name. With website hosting services like Wix or Squarespace, you can also build a portfolio. Website customization is a wonderful approach to practicing your UX engineering skills. Pay attention to clear, understandable design, and make sure your code is functional and error-free.
#3. Learn the space.
A new environment might be intimidating because there are unfamiliar terms to learn, skills to master, and employment to find. By joining networking organizations, perusing forums, or accessing resources like books and podcasts (logins may be necessary), you may assist yourself in becoming familiar with the vocabulary, pain points, and ways of thinking utilized in the UX field.
#4. Give a degree or certification some thought.
A degree can be a structured way to develop your UX engineering abilities whether you are currently a student or are thinking about returning to school. Consider pursuing one of the following disciplines of study: Computer science, design, psychology, and human-computer interaction.
Are you not seeking a degree? A crash course in the field of user experience can be obtained through a number of UX certifications and boot camps. Even while they can be rather expensive (up to thousands of dollars), they might still be less expensive than earning a full degree.
Does UX Engineer Require Coding?
There is no need for coding in user experience design. But as a UX designer, knowing the fundamentals of coding might be useful.
What Do You Need to Be a UX Engineer?
Engineer UX abilities:
- Proficiency with market analysis and user research technologies.
- Understanding of design flow and information architecture.
- Strong prototyping and wireframing abilities.
- Outstanding visual design abilities and expertise.
- Mastery of a variety of design platforms and tools.
- Good written and verbal communication abilities.
Is UX Paid Well?
Yes. In the US, the base wage for a User Experience (UX) Designer typically falls between $90,000 and $120,000.
What Companies Are Hiring for UX Engineer Jobs?
Medpace, Inc., Asylon, Welch Mechanical Designs, LLC, MCR Safety, Burgaflex North America, General Equipment Company, Booz Allen Hamilton, Smith & Nephew, The Structures Company, LLC, and Eighty20 Collective are the top employers right now for UX engineer positions.
What Are the Top Cities With Open UX Engineer Jobs?
There are available positions for UX engineers in a number of cities, including Austin, Dallas, New York, Annapolis Junction, Atlanta, Chicago, San Diego, and Cupertino.
Conclusion
A new and expanding position that combines creative sensibility and coding skills is UX engineering. If you are certain that you want to work as a UX engineer, you may begin by acquiring the necessary skills, creating a portfolio, and learning about the industry. Attend the Google UX Design Professional Certificate program, if possible. Free for the first week.
Related Articles
- USER EXPERIENCE DESIGNER: Definition, Duties, How to Become it, Salary & Certification
- WRITING PORTFOLIO: Ultimate Guide to What to Include
- User Experience Research: Meaning, Method, Certificate, and How to Become One
- UX DESIGNER: Job Description, Skills, Courses, and Salary
- UX CERTIFICATION: Best UX Design Certification for 2023
- FRONT-END RATIO: How to Determine Front-End Ratio Explained
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