Is My Design “Good”? 5 Questions to Critically Evaluate Your Own Work

You’ve just put the final touches on a design. You’ve kerned that last bit of type, aligned every pixel, and chosen a color palette that feels just right. You lean back in your chair, and the inevitable question creeps in: “Is this… good?”

It’s a deceptively simple question. “Good” can feel subjective, a matter of personal taste. But while style is subjective, effective design is not. Moving from “Do I like it?” to “Does it work?” is the hallmark of a professional.

Instead of waiting for feedback or relying on a gut feeling, you can critically evaluate your own work. Ask yourself these five essential questions to move from uncertainty to confident clarity.

1. Does It Achieve Its Primary Goal?

Before a single pixel is placed, every design should have a clear objective. Is it to drive sign-ups? Explain a complex process? Sell a product? Build brand trust?

How to self-critique:
Strip away all the aesthetics and look at your design with brutal honesty. If the goal was to get a user to click a “Download Now” button, is that button the undeniable focal point? Or is it lost in a sea of competing elements? Your design is not a piece of art for a gallery; it’s a functional tool. If it isn’t fulfilling its core job, it doesn’t matter how beautiful it is. It’s like a stunning sports car with no engine.

2. Is the Hierarchy Clear in 5 Seconds?

This is the “blink test.” Show your design to a colleague (or even just glance at it yourself) for five seconds, then look away. What do you remember? What element did your eye go to first, second, and third?

How to self-critique:
A user should never have to ask, “What am I supposed to look at?” A clear visual hierarchy established through size, color, contrast, and spacing, guides the viewer effortlessly. If the secondary information is shouting louder than the primary message, you have a hierarchy problem. Your design should communicate its message in order of importance, even at a fleeting glance.

3. Have I Removed Everything Unnecessary?

A famous quote, often attributed to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, states: “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

How to self-critique:
Scrutinize every single element. Does that extra line, that additional shade, that decorative icon serve a purpose? Or is it just “nice to have”? Every non-essential element competes with the essential ones for the user’s attention. Practice ruthless editing. If an element doesn’t support the goal or improve usability, have the courage to remove it. Embrace the power of white space, it’s not empty space, it’s breathing room for your core content.

4. Is It Accessible and Inclusive?

Good design is design for everyone. It considers users with diverse abilities, including those with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive disabilities. Ignoring accessibility isn’t just a legal or ethical misstep; it’s a design failure that excludes a significant portion of your audience.

How to self-critique:
Ask yourself some key questions:

• Color Contrast: Is there sufficient contrast between text and background? (Use a tool like WebAIM’s Contrast Checker).
• Color Dependence: Is color alone used to convey critical information (e.g., “items in red are required”)? If so, add an icon or text label.
• Text Size & Legibility: Is the body text easily readable? Is the typeface clear and uncomplicated at various sizes?
• Focus & Interaction: Can the design be navigated easily with a keyboard? Are interactive elements clearly defined?

Designing for accessibility often results in a cleaner, more logical, and better experience for all users.

5. Does the Design Evoke the Right Feeling?

Design is communication, and a huge part of that communication is emotional. Your color choices, typography, imagery, and spacing all contribute to a mood and a brand personality.

How to self-critique:
Look at your design and list three adjectives it evokes. Is it:

• Modern and trustworthy, or playful and energetic?
• Luxurious and serene, or urgent and bold?

Now, compare that list to the brand’s values and the message you intended to send. A website for a meditation app should feel calm and safe, while a poster for a music festival should feel exciting and vibrant. If the emotional tone is off, the design will feel dissonant and untrustworthy, even if the user can’t pinpoint why.

Shifting your self-evaluation from “Do I like it?” to these five critical questions will fundamentally change your design process. It moves you from being a creator who relies on taste to a problem-solver who relies on purpose.

So next time you’re staring at a finished composition, don’t just wonder. Interrogate it. Your most honest and valuable critic is already in the room.