Mobile wireframes or mobile app wireframes are crucial steps intended before development to create a complete map for prototyping, stakeholder validation, and gathering feedback.
Wireframe statistics show that using wireframes can reduce design time by 50%. Meanwhile, 17% of startups fail because of a lack of wireframing.
A mobile app wireframe or mobile website wireframe with a clear call-to-action has 62% higher conversion than others, and 94% of first impressions originate in the app’s functionality and design.
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Good Read: What Are Wireframes In Software Development?
What Is a Mobile App Wireframe?
A wireframe is a low-to-level-fidelity concept design with static simulations to depict the skeletal framework of a mobile website wireframe or mobile app wireframe. The visual hierarchy clearly outlines the page layout, transitions between pages, and user flows before the developers start development.
What Are the Benefits of Mobile App Wireframes?
The advantage of mobile application wireframing is a picture, blueprint, or preview to reference every step in mobile development. However, there are more advantages to wireframing processes:
- Guide the source code for developers to follow design patterns
- Plan the design work for the actual content and features
- Improve design decisions to include or exclude important details
- Determine the app layout for the home screen and other mobile screens
- Refine the screen size, a specific article, a page layout, or interactions in multiple iterations
- Define specific user interface elements and other visual elements for mobile devices
- Illustrate an app experiment to approve ideas before developers write the code
- Outline crucial transition patterns and the path between two screens
- Spend less time and resources in development when wireframing reaches a quality prototype
- Apply user flow testing to navigate optimal branding, marketing, and designing
What Are the Key Elements of Wireframes for Mobile Apps?
Also, mobile applications wireframes could act as screenshots to show multiple stakeholders the following elements and components:
- A feature article
- Android and iOS visuals
- Bottom tab bar navigation
- Design elements
- Drag and drop tools
- Dropdown menus
- Home screen layout
- Icons
- Linking patterns
- Reusable content blocks
- Screen sizes
- The final app design
- UI elements/UI components
- User flows (UX Flow)
- User journey annotations
How to Create or Edit a Mobile App Wireframe
Learn how to create or edit a mobile app wireframe in our step-by-step guide below. Here’s a glimpse of the coming steps many developers use to paint a clear picture of the screen and other design elements:
- Conduct user flow/user journey research
- Map the target user flow/user journeys
- Determine the core part of the user flow
- Set the mobile frame screen sizes
- Plan the box layouts
- Implement the design patterns
- Connect the dots for UX flows
- Replace the dummy content with the actual copy
- Check the mobile wireframe scaling potential
- Test assumptions and validate the wireframe
- Create interactive elements for a high-level blueprint
- Apply usability testing on the interactive design
Mobile App Wireframing Tools
An example of wireframe tools for mobile applications is Requiment. The benefits of using Requiment include access to a guided process and a complete guide to creating wireframes.
We have a demo video dedicated to helping you wireframe the requirements for your mobile apps. Requiment also provides planning tools to use before creating an app wireframe.
Learn more about Requiment, or sign up for a free trial to use our online mobile wireframing tool. Also, learn more about Pulsion, our parent company, or the ultimate team of designers.
Furthermore, expert design tools can help you create an example of high-level mobile app mockups, including:
- Adobe XD
- Canva
- Figma
- Illustrator
- Photoshop
- Sketch
Using professional design tools is a crucial part of high-fidelity wireframing. However, Sketch and other tools require some understanding and design skills to create an ideal high-level mockup.
A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating a Mobile App Wireframe
The mobile app wireframe process has ten steps to guide you through the ultimate mobile app wireframing. You’ll also discover mobile app wireframe examples for a food delivery app to guide a wireframe design for a mobile app.
The wireframe examples for mobile app designs offer similar guidance that your wireframe provides to the development team. The step-by-step guide acts like a template to finish the actual process and create wireframes to ensure everyone’s on the same page.
Step 1: Do User Flow and Journey Research
Design a user persona before creating interactions, UI elements, user flow, or user journeys in basic wireframes. The app idea came from business owners and other stakeholders.
However, every design or development process starts with research to structure the ideas toward a specific goal. This wireframe stage collects feedback for the first digital or hand-drawn wireframe.
User experience (UX) research helps to define styles, target users, accessibility, environment, context, user goals, design workflow, user pain points, first impressions, and usability.
Conduct UX research to design the ideal user persona before mapping user flows or journeys. Here is an example of a user persona you could use for multiple personas to add valuable insights.
Also, understand the key differences between quantitative and qualitative research. Qualitative research determines why the user uses an app and quantitative research outlines data or what the person does.
Step 2: Map the Target User Flow and User Journeys
Mapping user flows and user journeys are the second step in mobile wireframing. Journey mapping depicts a goal and purpose for the app wireframe.
Flow charts or list format user flows are ideal before creating a final journey to show what the app must achieve and why. Write the intended user flow in a list at first.
You want a clear picture of page layouts, elements, and flows you’ll need before starting the design process. You’ll also need to know how many screens you need and consider transitions between them.
Alternatively, use a simple flowchart like below. The purple steps are anchor pages, while the pink steps show possible options on each page. Map your target user flow beyond these steps.
Step 3: Visualise the Core Part of the User Flow
Next, visualise the core parts of your user flow with the user journey map before you can create mockups. Multiple designers use a visual project or template to finish multiple journeys.
A journey’s core must depict the app’s purpose and how the app design benefits users. Outline it with a pen and paper sketch before adding templates to gather feedback from other team members.
Here’s an example of a journey map. Use multiple maps until every user flow, goal, and challenge is on paper.
Step 4: Set Up the Mobile Frame Screen Sizes
Screen sizes differ, and mobile app mockups are also designed for a tablet’s app screen. Choosing the right mobile screen sizes can help you scale or prepare a more responsive design later.
Let’s show you the most common Android and iOS wireframe screen sizes. Set the wireframe screen as per the dimensions below.
Here are the common iOS iPad screen dimensions:
Here are the common iOS iPhone screen sizes:
Here are the common Android screen sizes:
Step 5: Determine Box Layouts
The initial wireframe falls into the low-fidelity wireframes category to give you basic versions. Low-fidelity app mockups offer a basic framework with box layouts, a tab bar, and basic shapes.
Many apps have an initial wireframe that starts with the basics in the early stages. However, this is where you add basic-shape images to a drawing or digital version of your wireframe display.
The layout often uses Latin placeholders, two-fingers symbols, CTAs, logo placeholders, sketching objects, and simplicity in black and white or grayscale to showcase the low-fidelity design.
It must only outline or deliver the most basic functions in a straightforward tap or scroll layout. Here’s an example of a low-fidelity wireframe for a food delivery app:
Step 6: Add Design Patterns
You’ll prepare a more detailed design and start thinking about patterns in this step. Patterns should tap into an intuitive order that shows the ability to transition between pages by clicking on buttons.
The best system to design patterns for multiple journeys is to center the home screen with numerous journeys around it. However, we’ll stick to examples of cyclical user journeys.
Step 7: Connect the Dots for the UX Flows
Now, you’ll start wireframing at the mid-fidelity level to show function, brand style, navigation flows, and detailed copy for the call-to-actions (CTAs) in a visual hierarchy.
A designer must link the interactions users will take between screens to outline the navigation flows, choose appropriate CTAs, and prepare the wireframe style for companies’ brands.
You could use a simple diagram to plan the swipe navigations, sketches, and consistent CTA placement. You can also add user annotations at this point, forming a part of brainstorming sketches.
Step 8: Replace Dummy Content With Real Copy
Next, the essential part of replacing dummy content with the actual copy for the e-commerce, tech, or food delivery app. You’ll upload the actual copy into the CTA and description blocks as a designer.
Control what copy goes into the app because a detailed wireframe app should show how you’ll motivate users to click buttons. Good implemented copy makes a huge difference.
A combination of copywriting, designer research, and user personas can completely change the success of intended mobile applications after wireframing.
Here’s an example of how a wireframe mobile app looks in the mid-fidelity phase:
Step 9: Check Mobile Wireframe Scaling
Choosing the right screens in step four already helped with scaling. However, scalable wireframe screens let you design high-fidelity or interactive prototypes for feedback on multiple platforms.
You hope the mobile wireframe scales well on all screens, but that is a broken reality. Modern screens have differences, especially in pixels and sizes. Instead, you need a wireframe designed for multiple types.
You’ll typically create mobile app wireframes for a medium-sized device. Now, you’ll test and match the different sizes. Upload the wireframe into another device size before you rely on scalable results.
If you notice it doesn’t fit, adapt it to another screen size that fits multiple devices better. Use a pencil to take notice of or finger point the devices that don’t show the designing swipe or details nicely.
Step 10: Test Assumptions and Validate the Mobile App Wireframe Design
Collect initial feedback from stakeholders with your mid-level mobile app wireframe. Collaboration is the key to moving to the top wireframe for mobile apps. Explore feedback for iteration improvements.
All interested stakeholders can identify whether the form, platform, mockups, or capabilities suit the app’s goals. It’s an effective way to improve the blueprints and figure out a switch for a good wireframe.
Step 11: Create Interactive Elements for a Final Product
High-fidelity wireframes come in step 11. A high-fidelity wireframe is more realistic and uses interactive parts and animations to create a mockup of the actual content for an app.
This stage welcomes putting life into the app idea. It’s helpful to take your time to import the final content to the last wireframe. For instance, add a unique icon, realistic content, and images that make the wireframe look usable.
The rest of the designing process is about adding the final touches to your iPhone or other mobile wireframe. You need to create a familiar sense of usability to similar apps.
Use familiar design techniques, forms of highlighted content, an icon that stands out, min-read context where relevant, and browser icons. Expect customers to know how to use the app from the wireframe.
Tips to finalise the last wireframe include adding a task the user can accomplish, a feature they can use to achieve their goals, and intuitive data to simplify how they’ll finish a mobile app task.
Here’s an example of a final mobile application wireframe:
Step 12: Apply Usability Testing on the Interaction design
User testing is pivotal to gather feedback before an app goes into development. Decide how you’ll convey the app’s functions in a formal mockup before welcoming users to test it.
Communicate testing with the stakeholders, and use your drawing samples to cover how the UI prototype works. Convey your intended testing techniques and scratch for feedback.
The life of your mobile app wireframe ends once you identify usability challenges and iterate the design to fix them. Save time and money by designing app wireframes with online gadgets for multiple versions.
You’ll increase design speed and easily create mockups for Windows or other websites with our Requiment gadget. Communicate user testing results with a stakeholder before you cover more iterations or integrate improvements on a complex design.
Summing Up Mobile App Development Wireframes
Mobile wireframing outlines interactions for mobile websites and apps, which could even focus on improving the desktop wireframe designs for integration projects.
However, the platforms used, space available, and design link process are essential steps toward mobile wireframing. Mobile websites, device-specific measurements, and element placement also matter.
Let us help you design the pages, webpages, interaction elements, detail, and images for your project. Every project idea deserves a bigger team to interact, collaborate, and place real content for created wireframes.
Sign up for your free Requiment trial to begin web, webpage, or phones wireframing. Lose the paper, and detail interaction before you develop phones and web software or apps with an automated gadget.
Mobile App Wireframe FAQs
What Is the Best AI Tool to Start Creating Wireframes?
Ideate app wireframes with Chat GPT 4. Chat GPT4 is ideal for high-level wireframing ideation and inspiration. It won’t provide a wireframe template or design the elements and components for you. However, it inspires min-read sections, icons, patterns, and an idea for a better blueprint.
What Are the Disadvantages of the Wireframing Process?
Some mobile wireframing disadvantages include:
- It could be time-consuming
- Needs an in-depth understanding of the app’s purpose
- Requires user interface and experience design skills
- Clients don’t always see the patterns like the designer
- Forces an early focus on content
Are App Wireframes Still Relevant?
Wireframes start with simple planning but let users interact with mockups in the high-level stage. Created wireframes also let the dev team understand the project’s precise specifications in visual form.
What Are the Parts of an App Wireframe?
Some parts of a mobile app wireframe design include:
- A feature article
- Bottom tab bar navigation
- Design elements
- Custom fonts
- Feature links
- Home screen layout
- Reusable content blocks
- UI elements/UI components
- User annotations
Does Wireframing Require Coding?
A mobile website wireframe is a graphical representation of how users experience and interact with the intended design and doesn’t require writing code.
How Can I Ensure My Wireframes Meets User Needs?
Here are top tips on incorporating user research and feedback into the wireframing process:
- Plan and conduct extensive user research on similar apps
- Analyze the research to find potentially unique components or features
- Iterate the wireframes for a mobile app, adding the unique elements
- Test and gather feedback from users to improve the designs
What Are the Common Pitfalls in Mobile App Wireframing?
Here are the most common challenges in wireframing and ways to avoid them:
- Overlooking research – Place greater attention on competitor and user research.
- Overcrowding the wireframe – Only add the necessary elements in lower-fidelity wireframes.
- Unresponsive designs – Finish the steps to start with low-level and end with interactive designs.
- A lack of feedback – Use prototyping strategies to gather feedback for improvements.
Can Wireframes Evolve Into High-Fidelity Prototypes?
A working prototype begins with a great wireframe. Stitching wireframes together creates a low-fi version to map flows better. However, stitch more detailed wireframes and mockups together to evolve your design project into a high-level prototype.
How Does Wireframing Facilitate Communication Among Team Members?
Annotated mobile wireframing ensures effective communication in the development team. Everyone can understand the early stages of product design with clear annotations to keep the team on the same page, reduce mistakes, and save money and time.
Is it Necessary to Have Design Skills to Create a Wireframe?
Having some design skills is good for creating a wireframe template. Wireframing is a crucial step in UX/UI design, for which the majority of designers in 2023 had at least a Bachelor’s Degree. Most skilled designers rely on wireframing tools like Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, Axure, Illustrator, and Photoshop.