How to find a good web designer
[]Updated in 2026: “Web designer” now covers a wider range of work than it did when this article was first drafted. A useful hiring process starts by narrowing the role.
Find a good web designer by defining the job before judging portfolios. Decide whether you need brand, marketing, product or systems work, then test comparable evidence, accessibility judgement and collaboration.
Define the work
A campaign site, an online shop and a complex product interface need different experience. Write down the primary users, decisions, content, technical platform, accessibility target, delivery constraints and measures of success.
Separate capabilities that are often bundled together: research, information architecture, interaction design, visual design, prototyping, content design, front-end development and design-system work. One person may cover several. Ask which work they perform personally and which they delegate.
Read portfolios as evidence
For two comparable projects, ask:
- What problem were you given?
- What did you learn from users or data?
- Which options did you reject, and why?
- What did you personally deliver?
- What changed after launch?
A good answer names constraints and trade-offs. A weak answer describes the final style but cannot explain the decision process. Visual polish matters, but it does not prove the design was understandable, accessible or effective.
Test technical and accessibility judgement
Design decisions affect semantic structure, keyboard operation, focus order, error recovery, responsive behaviour and performance. Ask how the candidate collaborates with developers and how they validate those details.
The W3C recommends WCAG 2.2 as the current conformance target. A designer does not need to implement every component, but should understand how design choices support or obstruct conformance.
Use a paid trial
Before a large commitment, run a small representative paid engagement with agreed scope, ownership, confidentiality and evaluation criteria. Review the quality of questions, handling of feedback, decision rationale and reliability, not just the artefact.
A portfolio shows selected outcomes. A trial shows what working together feels like. You need both.
