GoodReads Redesign
UI/UX Design
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Timeline
Spring 2025
Role
UI/UX Design Fellow
Design Tools
Figma
Problem
For years, Goodreads has been one of the most widely used platforms for readers, yet it struggles to provide a seamless and engaging experience. The platform’s outdated design, cluttered navigation, and limited personalization make it difficult for users to track their reading, discover new books, or connect meaningfully with other readers. Existing features often feel overwhelming or underdeveloped, leaving both casual readers and avid book lovers without a clear, intuitive way to share their interests and explore recommendations.
Goal
The goal of the Goodreads redesign is to transform the platform into a modern, intuitive space that makes reading, tracking, and discovering books effortless. By streamlining navigation, updating the visual design, and personalizing recommendations, the redesign addresses long-standing frustrations with clutter and outdated features. The project was centered on user needs, with the aim of creating a cleaner, more engaging experience that supports both casual readers and avid book lovers in finding, organizing, and sharing the books they enjoy.
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Research
Our research goals focused on understanding user frustrations with the current Goodreads platform, particularly around usability and visual design. We set out to investigate how readers discover, track, and share books within the app, and to uncover the challenges they face when navigating features or looking for new books. By examining these pain points, we aimed to identify opportunities to simplify the interface and modernize the design.
Visual Theme & Layout
Goodreads combines a modern yet classic theme, primarily using earthy green and cream tones, paired with black text for clarity. This color palette creates a warm and inviting feel, reflecting the platform’s focus on making reading, tracking, and sharing books more engaging and approachable for all types of readers.
The landing page opens with a bold headline and streamlined navigation, welcoming readers to track their books and explore new recommendations. Beneath this, featured book collections and trending titles encourage users to start discovering right away.
Clicking on “My Books” takes readers to a simplified bookshelf layout where they can easily organize books into categories such as “Currently Reading,” “Want to Read,” and “Finished.” Each book card displays the cover, title, and rating, with quick options to update progress or add personal notes. Similarly, the “Discover” page highlights personalized recommendations at the top, followed by curated lists that users can browse based on genres, trends, or community reviews.
To strengthen the social aspect, the redesign also introduces a “Community” section where users can view discussions, share reviews, and follow friends’ reading activity in a cleaner, less cluttered format. The profile page gives readers a personalized hub to showcase their shelves, favorite genres, and reviews, creating a space that feels both functional and engaging. These features come together to modernize Goodreads, making reading, tracking, and connecting with other readers more intuitive and enjoyable.
Final Design
The final design brings together a simplified structure and refreshed visuals that make Goodreads feel modern, clean, and intuitive. The homepage presents a refined hero with clear calls-to-action, followed by featured collections and trending titles that welcome users to dive deeper. The “My Books” section offers a streamlined layout where users can easily view, filter, and manage their shelves — each card shows cover art, title, and progress, with inline controls for updating status or leaving notes. The “Discover” page highlights personalized recommendations and curated lists in a grid, while a community feed keeps social interaction visible but unobtrusive.
Throughout the design, consistent typography, subtle color accents, and spacious layouts guide readers’ attention without feeling cluttered. The result is a cohesive experience where tracking, exploring, and sharing books feels intuitive, visually pleasing, and tailored to each reader’s interests.
Conclusion & Takeaway
The final redesign transforms goodreads into a platform that feels intuitive, approachable, and motivating. readers can focus on what matters most—discovering, tracking, and enjoying books—without being bogged down by outdated systems.
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