Best Practices for Form Design

New Things: Show steps from the easiest; be specific about fields and formatting requirements; use clear labels; breaking down lengthy forms into multiple steps with a clear progress indicator. These approaches simplify the user‘s journey through the form, starting with less demanding tasks to build confidence. Being specific about input requirements reduces user errors and confusion.

Surprised: Fewer columns in a page lead to faster processing.

Good Ideas and Concerns: The use of placeholder text and footnotes for format guidance. This is especially useful for fields where specific data formats are required (like phone numbers or dates). It’s a user-friendly way to provide real-time guidance without cluttering the form. However, I think that using inline labels can disappear as the user starts typing, in some contexts, especially for simple forms or familiar data (like login forms), they can be quite effective and space-efficient.

Example of Best Practice:A form that exemplifies these best practices is the Airbnb. Its booking form starts with simple fields (dates, location) and progresses to more detailed ones. The form uses a single-column layout, making it quick to fill out. Fields requiring specific formats, like dates, are intuitively designed with placeholders and calendar widgets.

Link to the article: Best Practices for Form Design by Salim Ansari