UI/UX Designer Tools & Software

Design, prototyping, diagramming and graphics tools for user interface and experience design.

Who this toolkit is for

For UI and UX designers who research, design and prototype digital products.

Operating system:Windows macOS Linux

Distribution (optional)Ubuntu Debian Linux Mint Fedora Arch Linux Manjaro openSUSE Kali Linux Other / Not sure

Essential (1)

Core tools that are broadly useful.

UI Design & Prototyping

Figma
FreemiumAlso on Web
Why you may need this: Design interfaces and interactive prototypes, and collaborate with your team.
Open web app
Details

Recommended (3)

Useful for particular parts of the work or course.

User Flows & Diagrams

draw.io Desktop
Open Source
Why you may need this: Map user flows, site maps and journeys.
Flatpak (verified)
```
flatpak install flathub com.jgraph.drawio.desktop
```
Details

Browser Testing

Mozilla Firefox
Open SourceAlso on Android, iPhone/iPad
Why you may need this: Check designs as built in the browser.
APT (verified)
```
sudo apt install firefox
```
Details See alternatives
Google Chrome
FreeAlso on Android, iPhone/iPad
Why you may need this: Check designs as built in the browser.
Flatpak (verified)
```
flatpak install flathub com.google.Chrome
```
Details See alternatives

Specialist / Optional · Show specialist tools (4)

Consider these for particular modules, tasks or environments.

Graphics

Inkscape
Open Source
Why you may need this: Create icons and illustrations as SVG.
APT (verified)
```
sudo apt install inkscape
```
Details
GIMP
Open Source
Why you may need this: Edit screenshots and images.
APT (verified)
```
sudo apt install gimp
```
Details See alternatives

Notes & Research

Obsidian
FreeAlso on Android, iPhone/iPad
Why you may need this: Organise research notes and insights.
Flatpak (verified)
```
flatpak install flathub md.obsidian.Obsidian
```
Details
Notion
FreemiumAlso on Android, iPhone/iPad, Web
Why you may need this: Share research and documentation with a team.
Open web app
Details See alternatives

Build your UI/UX Designer setup

Build My Setup lets you add or remove apps, combine roles, see why each app is included, and get a single install command where verified packages exist. Nothing is installed automatically.

Build my UI/UX Designer setup on Linux