In the constantly changing landscape of UX design, it is quite important to stay anchored in foundational principles while attempting to stay informed about emerging trends. If you are starting as a UX designer or if you have been in the game for several years, some books consistently come up and stand out for insight, depth, practicality, and inspiration. Below is a curated list of 15 UX books that you should consider for 2025, followed by some guidance on how to approach reading them.

• Why These Books Matter

Before diving into the list, it’s helpful to understand why these books are so often recommended:

• They connect human behavior and psychology to design decisions, rather than only focusing on tools or trends.
• Many are timeless, meaning that although tech evolves, human factors remain stable.
• They cover the full spectrum: from usability and research through to interaction patterns, collaboration, and design systems.
• They help you think like a designer, not just use a design tool.

As an example, one article says, “One of the easiest ways to upskill and inspire your own UX design is by reading books from people who are passionate about creating intentional user experiences.”

1. Foundational Usability & Human-Centred Design

• The Design of Everyday Things, by Don Norman
• A classic. Norman explores how things communicate with users, how design can eliminate guesswork, and how affordances, signifiers, and constraints matter. Wikipedia + 1
• Why read it? It resets you to thinking, “What’s the user’s frame of mind? What assumptions are they bringing?”
• Best for: All levels—deeply beneficial for anyone who wants a strong conceptual foundation.
• Don’t Make Me Think (Revisited) by Steve Krug
• Web usability focus: make interfaces obvious, reduce cognitive load, and test with real users. Wikipedia + 1
• It’s still relevant in 2025, especially as we talk about UX across mobile, web, apps, and devices.
• Best for: Beginners and those wanting strong usability thinking.
• The Elements of User Experience: User‑Centered Design for the Web by Jesse James Garrett
• Introduces the five “planes” of UX: strategy, scope, structure, skeleton, and surface. Maze+1
• Great for helping map out how UX fits into a larger product/service context.
• Best for: Designers moving from individual screens to broader systems.

1. Behaviour, Perception & Psychology

• 100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People by Susan Weinschenk
• Connects behavioral science to design decisions: what grabs attention, what memory does, and how people make decisions. UX Magazine +1
• Why: Because you design for people, not just features. It helps you see patterns in user behavior.
• Best for: All UX practitioners who want to deepen their psychology lens.
• Laws of UX: Using Psychology to Design Better Products & Services by Jon Yablonski
• More focused on “laws” (Jakob’s Law, Fitts’s Law, Hick’s Law, etc.) and how they translate into interface decisions. jonyablonski.com+1
• Why: When you want to justify design decisions with cognitive science, this is a go-to.
• Best for: Designers working on complex systems, apps, or product teams who want deeper justification.
• Hooked: How to Build Habit‑Forming Products by Nir Eyal
• Centers around how to make products create habits—both ethically and not: triggers, actions, rewards, investment. eiosys.com +1
• Why: As UX expands to retention, behavioral design, and product strategy, this book helps you to think beyond one-time use.
• Best for: Product/UX designers working on engagement, SaaS, and apps.

1. Process, Collaboration & Team Dynamics

• Lean UX: Applying Lean Principles to Improve User Experience by Jeff Gothelf & Josh Seiden
• Integrates Lean/Agile thinking into UX: quicker iterations, team collaboration, and outcome over deliverables. thesigma.co+1
• Why: Several organizations in 2025 expect UX to fit into fast-moving product cycles.
• Ideal for: UX designers who work within product teams, startups, or in agile environments.
• Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days by Jake Knapp, John Zeratsky & Braden Kowitz
• A five-day framework for rapid prototyping and testing of ideas. UX Beginner +1
• Why: Useful when you have limited time/resources and need to test quickly.
• Best for: Designers working in fast-paced environments or with cross-functional teams.
• The UX Team of One: A Research and Design Survival Guide by Leah Buley
• Helps you think about what to do when you’re the only designer or your team is very small. Reddit
• Why: Many organizations still have minimal UX resources; this allows for tactics and strategies accordingly.
• Best for: Solo UX practitioners, small teams, or freelancers.

1. Interaction Design & Design Patterns

• About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design by Alan Cooper et al.
• Covers interaction design from goal-directed design to interface patterns, mobile, desktop, etc. thedesignbooks.com
• Why: When you want to dig beyond “make it pretty” into how the interaction flows work.
• Best for: Behavior-centered UX designers, desktop and mobile apps, product UX.
• Designing Interfaces: Patterns for Effective Interaction by Jenifer Tidwell
• A compendium of UI/interaction patterns and how to apply them effectively. thesigma.co
• Why: Patterns help speed up decision-making and provide shared language with developers.
• Best for: Designers working with pattern libraries or UI components.
• Refactoring UI: The Book by Adam Wathan & Steve Schoger
• More of a focus on the visual craft of UI design: spacing, typography, colors, and visual hierarchy. thesigma.co
• Why: For UX designers who also touch UI or want to level up the polish of their interfaces.
• Best for: Designers with some UX foundation looking to bridge into UI finesse.

1. Systems, Metrics & Strategy

• Measuring the User Experience: Collecting, Analyzing, and Presenting UX Metrics by Tom Tullis & Bill Albert
• Helps to think about how to measure UX outcomes, rather than just deliver wireframes or visuals. sprig.com
• Why: In many organizations, you’ll be expected to show impact (not just design).
• Best for: Mid-to-senior UX designers, UX leads, and product managers.
• Design Systems: A Practical Guide to Creating Design Languages for Digital Products by Alla Kholmatova
• Covers how to scale UX/UI: component libraries, governance, and cross-team workflows.
• Why: As products mature, design systems are key for maintaining consistency and speed.
• Best for: Large product UX/UI designers, multi-app organizations. While not listed in all of the articles, it was listed on community lists. Reddit +1
• Sprint to Strategy: Drive UX Outcomes with Systems and Metrics (or an equivalent strategic UX/design book)
• No single canonical “strategy” book appears in all the lists, but emerging UX roles increasingly require thinking at the strategic, product-system level to align UX with business, metrics, AI, etc. For example, design in the intelligence era, or human-AI systems, is becoming more relevant. arXiv+1
• Why: In 2025, the UX role is evolving beyond the screen—into AI-enabled experience, system design, and cross-modal interactions.
• Best for: Senior designers, UX leads, and product designers who shape overall experience strategy.
  How to read this list (and get value)
  The following are some practical tips to help you make the most of this reading list:
• Set a reading plan
  You don’t have to read all 15 books cover to cover this year. Instead, you select 2-3 that match your current role/need and rotate.
• Example: If you’re a new designer, start with “Design of Everyday Things,” “Don’t Make Me Think,” and “100 Things…
• If you are mid-career and focusing on product metrics or design systems, select “Measuring the User Experience,” “Design Systems,” and “Laws of UX.”
• Apply as you read
• Don’t just read—do. Follow up each chapter/book with one concrete takeaway and apply it to the next project.
• For example: take a cognitive-bias insight from “100 Things…” and explore how that changes your design
• Mix old and new.
• Some books, such as “The Design of Everyday Things,” are several decades old yet still highly relevant. Others are more recent and reflect current paradigms—AI and design systems.
• The key is combining timeless human-centric thinking with contemporary context.
• Take or build notes
• Create a “UX book summary” notebook or digital document. For each book, include 2-3 key insights, how you’ll apply them, and one question you still have.
• Example: For “Laws of UX”, note: Fitts’s Law → bigger targets = easier click; Jakob’s Law → users expect patterns from other apps.
• Revisit periodically
• Your role, tools, and context will change. Re-reading parts of these books every 2-3 years helps you see them in a new light.
• As one designer said, “I still learned a lot” reading “About Face” after several years in UX. Reddit • Share and discuss • Book clubs, team discussions, design Slack channels: sharing perspectives deepens learning. • Ask questions like: “Which insight surprised me?” or “What should I challenge in this book, given today’s context?”

Final Thoughts

The UX discipline is at an interesting juncture in 2025: design remains rooted in understanding people, while technology demands that designers frame both single screens and ecosystem experiences. These 15 books strike a balance between the human side of UX, the practical craft, and strategic systems. You are building a reading habit around them, doing more than just acquiring knowledge; you’re developing a design mindset that can adapt, critique, and lead. As the saying goes: “You design for people, not for screens.”