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Human Interface Guidelines (macOS) vs Material Design

Developers should learn and use the macOS HIG when building desktop applications for macOS to ensure their apps are intuitive, accessible, and visually cohesive with the operating system, which can lead to better user adoption and positive reviews meets developers should learn material design when building applications that require a modern, accessible, and consistent ui, especially for android apps or cross-platform projects using frameworks like flutter or angular material. Here's our take.

🧊Nice Pick

Human Interface Guidelines (macOS)

Developers should learn and use the macOS HIG when building desktop applications for macOS to ensure their apps are intuitive, accessible, and visually cohesive with the operating system, which can lead to better user adoption and positive reviews

Human Interface Guidelines (macOS)

Nice Pick

Developers should learn and use the macOS HIG when building desktop applications for macOS to ensure their apps are intuitive, accessible, and visually cohesive with the operating system, which can lead to better user adoption and positive reviews

Pros

  • +It is particularly important for apps targeting the Mac App Store, as adherence to these guidelines is often required for approval, and it helps in creating professional-grade software that leverages macOS-specific features like Dark Mode, Touch Bar, or Continuity
  • +Related to: ui-design, ux-design

Cons

  • -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Material Design

Developers should learn Material Design when building applications that require a modern, accessible, and consistent UI, especially for Android apps or cross-platform projects using frameworks like Flutter or Angular Material

Pros

  • +It is particularly useful for teams aiming to follow Google's design standards, improve usability, and reduce design inconsistencies, making it ideal for enterprise applications, consumer apps, and products targeting a broad audience
  • +Related to: android-development, flutter

Cons

  • -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

These tools serve different purposes. Human Interface Guidelines (macOS) is a concept while Material Design is a design-system. We picked Human Interface Guidelines (macOS) based on overall popularity, but your choice depends on what you're building.

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The Bottom Line
Human Interface Guidelines (macOS) wins

Based on overall popularity. Human Interface Guidelines (macOS) is more widely used, but Material Design excels in its own space.

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