GoodReads App UX Redesign
Skills
-
UX Design
-
UI Design
-
UX Research
-
Visual Design & Branding
-
Prototyping
Tools
-
Figma
-
FigJam
-
Canva
As an avid reader, I often like to track my reading progress, log the books I've read, write reviews, and check out others' reviews of books I am interested in. I do these things in the GoodReads app, where I can also see my friends' reading activity and reviews. However, while I love GoodReads, their interface feels outdated, difficult to navigate, and not intuitive. In this project I identified pain points within using the app, and developed simpler user flows and interactions, and a seamless user experience.
Research
Key Findings:
-
-
Users struggle with cluttered menus and unintuitive navigation.
-
Lack of confirmation messages or undo options.
-
Mobile experience lags behind desktop.
-
Users want richer features: content warnings, DNF option, better stats, social tools.
-
Personas
Based on the user data, I constructed 3 main personas.
Persona 1: The Casual Reader
Name: Jordan Patel
Age: 24
Occupation: Accountant
Reading Frequency: A few books per year
Goodreads Usage: Once every couple of months
Behavior & Needs:
-
Primarily uses Goodreads after finishing a book to log what they've read.
-
Reads reviews before buying a book to avoid wasting time or money.
-
Sticks to basic functions like “mark as read” and star ratings.
-
Would appreciate content warnings
Goals:
-
Log books for personal tracking without needing to write anything.
-
Easily see what other readers thought about a book before making a purchase.
-
Avoid books with content they’d prefer not to encounter.
-
Have a quick, frictionless user experience that doesn’t require a learning curve.
Pain Points:
-
App feels visually outdated and plain.
-
Interface feels cluttered or unintuitive to someone who doesn’t use it often.
-
Often forgets how to do simple tasks (e.g., add a rating, update reading status).
-
Wishes the app did a better job of flagging major themes or warnings about book content.
User Stories
As a casual user, I want...
-
To quickly log a finished book so that I can keep track without extra effort
-
To see content warnings before I buy/read so that I can avoid distressing material.
-
A clean, intuitive interface so that I don’t feel lost while performing simple tasks.
-
To read star ratings (with half-stars) so that I get a more accurate idea of quality.
-
Book recommendations based on my past reads so that I don’t waste time searching.
Quote:
"I just want to log the book and check some reviews—but I always feel like I’m clicking in the wrong place."
Journey Map
Persona 2: The Serial Reader
Name: Aisha Thompson
Age: 28
Occupation: Psychology Graduate Student
Reading Frequency: Daily
Goodreads Usage: Multiple times a week
Behavior & Needs:
-
Tracks reading progress daily
-
Actively joins yearly challenges
-
Writes and reads in-depth reviews
-
Wants real-time stats (pages, ratings, genres)
-
Needs a clean DNF option
-
Values clear content warnings
Pain Points:
-
Limited data visualizations—frustrated that she can’t easily analyze her reading habits over time.
-
No elegant way to log a book she didn’t finish.
-
Progress tracking and analytics are clunky and require too many clicks.
-
App crashes or slows down when shelves get too large.
Goals:
-
Maintain a detailed and accurate digital reading journal.
-
Engage meaningfully with the reading community through reviews and ratings.
-
Use Goodreads as a motivating and analytical tool.
-
Filter books with content that doesn’t align with comfort zones.
User Stories
As a serial reader, I want...
-
To log my daily reading progress so that I can stay motivated.
-
DNF option so that my stats remain accurate.
-
View charts/graphs of my reading habits so that I can analyze my reading life.
-
Content warnings so that I can make informed reading choices.
-
An updated, faster app so that large bookshelves don’t crash the platform.
Quote:
"I want to see my reading life in numbers—how many pages I’ve read, how fast I finish books, and what I tend to gravitate toward."
Journey Map
Persona 3: The Social Reader
Age: 18
Name: Devon Lee
Occupation: Student
Reading Frequency: Frequently, in bursts
Goodreads Usage: Daily during active reading phases
Behavior & Needs:
-
Uses Goodreads as a social space as much as a tracking tool.
-
Loves joining groups—especially fandoms, tropes, or genre-based ones (e.g., enemies-to-lovers, cozy fantasy, dark academia).
-
Enjoys jumping into book discussions, reading group comments, and sharing reactions.
-
Wants to connect with like-minded readers, see what friends are reading, and make new friends through books.
Goals:
-
Be part of a vibrant, fun reading community that mirrors fandom spaces.
-
Share excitement over books and get recommendations from others with similar tastes.
-
Use Goodreads not just to track books, but as a social platform.
-
Discover new reads organically through social exposure, not just algorithms.
Quote:
Pain Points:
-
Hard to tell when friends are active or what they’re currently reading.
-
Group features are limited on mobile—feels like desktop has all the community tools.
-
Lack of threaded replies and tagging makes discussion chaotic.
-
No real way to “follow” discussions or keep up with group threads in a clean way.
User Stories
As a socialreader, I want...
-
To easily join groups and fandom discussions so I can connect with other readers.
-
Threaded replies + tagging so that conversations are easier to follow.
-
To see what my friends are reading in real time so that I can engage with them.
-
A cleaner main feed so that friend activity doesn’t clutter book recommendations.
-
Group/community features that work equally well on mobile
"Reading is fun, but it’s even better when I can fangirl about it with people who get it."
Journey Map
Design Goals
Based on the data gathered from the user research, competitor analysis, and heuristic evaluation, I determined what my main goals would be for the direction of the redesign.
Create a sleek, minimalist interface
Make book logging and progress updates intuitive
Provide real-time reading stats
Add features like content warnings, half-stars, DNF option
Strengthen social/community engagement
New User flows
Logging & Rating a Finished Book
Onboarding a New User
Choosing Reading Preferences & Recommendations
Choosing & Entering a Reading Challenge
Redesigned Community - Joining a Group
Wireframes
Current GoodReads Design
Pain Points
-
Difficult to navigate
-
Simple tasks are complicated to do
-
Not visually engaging
-
Non-intuitive design
Result
My redesign direction focused on:
-
Clarity: reduced clutter, simplified menus.
-
Feedback: added confirmations & undo actions.
-
Community: enhanced group discussions and social features.
-
Personalization: real-time stats, tailored recommendations.
Hovering menu to expand additional options
-
Screen is less cluttered
-
More used actions are more readily available
-
Otherwise "hidden" elements are easier to find
-
Placed in bottom right corner for ease of use
-
Profile moved to upper right corner and out of the hamburger menu where it was previously hidden
-
Additional less used menu items in hamburger menu in upper left corner
Home
New home feed is less cluttered with friend activity and updates. Shows personalized reading recommendations to the user right away, along with what books you are currently reading and current reading challenges user is participating in.
Discover
Separate "Discover" screen. Most relevant books recommended by new releases and past reading history.
Filter Options
Easily filter through books by genre and toggle content warnings on and off.
Community/Social
Separate tab for social/friends/following feed and updates. Toggle between feed and groups.
Prototype
Onboarding
Logging & Rating a Book
Social
Future Opportunities
-
Hosting your own challenges that others can join
-
Flesh out "Community" tab more, really lean into social media aspect