Product designers have it pretty good when it comes to the internet: there’s no shortage of blogs, online magazines, and websites dedicated to showcasing the latest and greatest in the world of design.
Whether you’re into consumer products, industrial design, engineering, or software, there are plenty of sites out there for you to sink your teeth into.
And that presents a little problem. How do you find the best sites? How do you wade through the sea of image-heavy, well-designed websites to find ones that actually have useful content?
Well, we’ve done some of that for you, and while this is hardly an exhaustive list, here are the 10 design blogs and websites that we enjoy the most.
Started by the magazine Fast Company, Fast Co. Design offers the same forward-thinking, edgy, innovative outlook as its parent publication – just oriented toward the design world. You’ll find pieces on everything from industrial design to urban planning to design careers, as well as the occasional think piece. Right now we’re loving “Welcome to the City of Trump.”
This beautiful online magazine is devoted to the latest and greatest in product design, design technology, architecture, and automotive design. The images here are huge and impressive, and will give designers plenty to look through – but note that Yanko doesn’t score as many points for text. However, if you just need a visual break to fuel your creativity, you can’t go wrong here.
Design Taxi is kind of like the PopSugar of the design world. It’s full of fun, random articles on things like floating soup ladles shaped like swans, urban electric bikes, and the latest IKEA commercial for a new stool. It’s the perfect site for browsing aimlessly while you wait for inspiration to strike.
Core77 is one of the most truly useful sites on this list. It’s got plenty of informative articles, like an interview with the founder of the nonprofit design firm Design That Matters, and resources like a job board, a list of contests and awards, and a yearly Core77 design conference. The site’s design is clear and easy to follow, and there’s plenty to keep you busy – whether you’re an amateur design enthusiast, or a professional.
This international online design magazine got its start in Milan, and you can tell – it’s got a cosmopolitan outlook, featuring plenty of products and design projects from Europe as well as Asia and the United States. Like Core77, this is a site full of rich content. You’ll find lengthy interviews, videos, and reports from major design events like the Biennale Interieur.
If it’s weird, futuristic, or innovative, you’ll find it in Wired magazine. Wired‘s website is just as impressive as the print publication, and features long-form journalism, in-depth interviews, and investigative pieces that will make you remember why real magazines are so excellent. Wired‘s design section is a mixture of first-look videos, like this one on Google’s new Daydream VR goggles, image-heavy lists, and product reviews and features.
If you’re looking for advice on building a design career, 99U is for you. It’s a magazine, conference, and website devoted to helping creatives of all stripes develop their careers and execute ideas. Articles you’ll find on the site include “The Upside to Being a Designer Outside of New York City and “How to Fix Design, and there are also tons of interviews with industry experts and top designers. The “Talks” section features videos of talks given at previous 99U conferences, and there are some real gems – take Oliver Burkeman’s “The Negative Path to Happiness and Success“ or Tobias Frere-Jones’ “Break Things Deliberately.”
These are just a few of the many great product design and engineering websites out there. And if you’re still in need of inspiration, check out our post “5 Tips to Increase Your Creativity and Silence Your Inner Critic.”
