The 5 best tools for prototyping and wireframing

Developing an app or a website can often be chaotic. Too many persons involved, e.g. investors, clients, media, designers and developers, require tools to display the communication and transparency in the best possible way. Only this way and of course through clearly defined objectives and milestones, delays and misunderstandings during the product development can be avoided.

Who nowadays still works with Word and Excel should have a closer look at the following listed tools. With their help it is possible to create in shortest time a much better presentation and experience during the product development. These tools allow particularly persons without technical background to develop a clear understanding of the processes and to give feedback.

Here are, according to our opinion, the best 5 tools on the market.

Invision: www.invision.com

The probably most important and impressive tool with which one can work in the app and on the website development. Designs can be inserted in an uncomplicated way and can be commented by third persons. Companies like UBER, Twitter, Shopify or Hubspot use Invision on a daily basis.

The use is free of charge, unless one wants to develop several prototypes at the same time; then a premium account is necessary. Invision has many features and is, compared with Word files and screenshots, a real enrichment in regards to communication.

One of the most impressive features is called “Hotspot”. Several screenshots can be placed next to each other and can be converted into a clickable prototype that can be sent as an app.

This leaves an impression and therefore is our number one of the best tools for website and app development.

Axure: www.axure.com

Especially professional designers will enjoy working with Axure. In comparison to Invision, Axure counts less on simple handling, but on more extensive tools that fulfill any design wish.

The many functions have their price, as only the basic license costs 289$. Therefore this tool is actually rather for design freelancer who already have an established client base with which they generate revenue.

Beginners should start with the first mentioned Invision. Only when further extended features are required, one should change to Axure.

Flinto Lite: www.flinto.com/lite

Flinto Lite is a tool that accompanies a prototype’s complete development process. For some projects the prototyping is only done at the end when already a majority of the scores has been programmed, for other projects the prototyping starts already in the conception phase.

Flinto Lite allows updating, reorganizing or deleting screenshots of the prototype anytime. Particularly for long projects Flinto Lite is an enormous help to keep the overview of what has already been done and what still needs doing.

Also the basic license at 20 $ per month is not too expensive as an initial hurdle.

Protoshare: www.protoshare.com

In regards to design features Photoshare is just as good as the above mentioned alternatives. It allows the different stakeholders of a project a simple cooperation on technology level. As a result the organizational risk and the communicative complexity of the project can be reduced massively.

Protoshare’s prices between 29 and 59 $ per user per month are within an acceptable range. Like for other tools a free 30-day version is available.

Pen and paper

The fastest, cheapest and simplest way to create prototypes is with pen and paper. It is always useful to put ideas on paper. Although one does not consider themselves as artistically talented, ideas can be very well expressed and outlined this way.

Pen and paper are always a useful first step to visualize any idea for an app or a website.

PoP (Prototyping On Paper) (www.popapp.in) comes very close to pen and paper. For this purpose one takes pictures of their paper prototypes and can transfer them into a clickable app.

Conclusion:

For website and app development it is at all times important to progress continuously. During the development new products have to be constantly adjusted and changed in order to match the important product-market-fit. Therefore tools that simplify and present feedback, design and UX in a clear manner are a huge help.

With a good prototype or wireframe tool one can communicate in a better way with all stakeholders and consequently the set targets can be achieved quicker.