Guide · Hiring

Hire a UX designer: how to judge portfolio, process and price

A good UX designer shows in their portfolio which problem they solved, how they found out with real users, and what changed afterwards. Beautiful screenshots on their own are UI. In Denmark a freelance UX designer typically charges around DKK 600–750 an hour, and an agency DKK 1,100–1,300. This guide gives you a portfolio checklist, process questions with examples of good answers, an overview of deliverables, prices and a concrete example of a first project.

12 min read · Updated 1 October 2026

The situation is a classic: the app is built and technically works, but users drop off at sign-up, support gets the same five questions every day, and sales say customers find it difficult. The developers did what they were asked. What is missing is someone who has talked to the users and designed the solution around what they need. That is a UX designer’s job. Searches for "hire UI UX designers" run at approximately 35,000 a month globally, so you are not alone. Here is how to find one who fits.

What does a UX designer do, and do you need one?

A UX designer works out what users are trying to achieve and designs the simplest route there. The work starts with research and ends with a prototype that developers can build from and that has been tested with real users. To understand the craft in depth, read what a UX designer does and UX vs UI design. You typically need one when several of these signs sound familiar:

Users drop off at sign-up, checkout or onboarding.
Support gets the same questions again and again.
You are building something new and disagree internally on what it should do.
Developers design the screens themselves as they go.
The solution has grown over years and feels like five systems in one.
You are seeking investment or a grant and need a prototype to show.

UX designer, UI designer or product designer: who should you look for?

The titles overlap a lot. Look at what the person has actually done more than at the title.

Title	Strongest at	Choose when
UX designer	Research, user journeys, wireframes, testing	You are unsure what to build or why users drop off
UI designer	Visual design, components, detail	The structure is in place, and the solution needs to look professional
UX/UI or product designer	The whole way from research to finished design	Smaller businesses that need one person for both
UX researcher	Interviews, testing, analysis	Large organisations with many user groups

For most Danish SMEs, a UX/UI or product designer is the right first choice, because one person can cover research through to finished design. Pure UI designers add most value when someone has already clarified what needs to be built.

What should you look for in a UX designer’s portfolio?

A UX portfolio should tell stories about decisions. Go through three case studies with this checklist and give each point a yes or no:

Is the problem clearly described, with the business goal and the users’ situation?
Does it say what role the designer had and who they worked with?
Is there research: interviews, tests, data or observation?
Can you see sketches and wireframes, or only the finished result?
Does the designer explain which ideas were dropped and why?
Are constraints mentioned, such as time, technology or budget?
Does it say what happened after launch, with numbers or concrete observations?
Is the case from a real project or a self-initiated practice project?

Weak UX portfolio

Many finished screens, no process
No users mentioned
Every case is a redesign of a famous app
The result is "it looks nicer"

Strong UX portfolio

Problem, process, decisions and result
Concrete findings from interviews and tests
Real clients and real constraints
The result is measured or observed

Two portfolios with the same number of beautiful screens.

Bear in mind that many good designers have worked under confidentiality agreements and cannot show everything. In that case they can walk you through a project verbally and show selected, anonymised sketches. That is a fine alternative as long as they can explain their decisions concretely.

Which questions should you ask about the UX designer’s process?

Interview questions and what a good answer typically sounds like. Use them as a meeting agenda.

Question	A good answer typically sounds like
How would you start on our project?	Asks about goals, users and data before talking solutions
How do you find users to talk to?	Has a concrete plan using your customers, a panel or a network
When do you test with users?	Early and several times, on sketches and prototypes
How do you hand over to developers?	Components in Figma, states, edge cases and ongoing dialogue
How do we measure whether the design works?	Proposes concrete measures, such as completed sign-ups or fewer support requests
What do you do when we disagree?	Tests both options with users and lets the result decide

What does a UX designer deliver?

Agree the deliverables before you start. It makes it easier to compare quotes and to know when the job is done. Here are the most common ones and when you need them. We have written more about the difference between wireframe, mockup and prototype and about running a usability test.

Typical UX deliverables. The scope depends on the number of user groups and screens.

Deliverable	What it is	When you need it
UX review	Expert review of an existing solution with prioritised findings	Something works, but users drop off
User interviews	Conversations with 5–8 users and a summary of needs	Before you build something new
User journey and information architecture	A map of steps, screens and content	When the solution has many pages or roles
Wireframes	Greyscale sketches of the screens	To agree on structure before design
Clickable prototype	A realistic model that can be tested and shown	Before development, for tests, investors or grants
Design system	Reusable components, colours, typography and rules	When several products or teams need to look consistent

What does a UX designer cost in 2026?

A freelance UX designer typically charges around DKK 600–750 an hour, freelance web designers more broadly DKK 500–900, and agencies typically DKK 1,100–1,300 an hour, often with research, design and project management combined. Seniors with experience from complex B2B systems sit at the high end. The total price depends mostly on the number of user groups and screens, and on how much research and testing you want included. We have a full guide to what UX design costs per deliverable.

Worked example: a first UX project on a customer portal

A business has a customer portal that many customers phone about instead of using. A sensible first project is a UX review, five user interviews and a clickable prototype of the three most important flows. A freelance UX designer estimates 50–70 hours at DKK 650, that is DKK 32,500–45,500, plus time to recruit users. The outcome is a prioritised list of problems, a tested prototype and a basis the developers can estimate from. If support requests drop noticeably afterwards, the investment typically pays for itself quickly. We offer the same kind of work as a UX audit and a clickable prototype at a fixed price.

Freelance, agency or employed UX designer?

A freelancer suits scoped work such as a UX review or a prototype, especially if you have a developer who can build on it. An agency or studio suits you when design and development must be tightly connected and you want one party responsible. An employed UX designer makes sense when you have a digital product in continuous development and enough work for a full position. Many start with an external project and hire later, once they have seen what the craft can do. We cover the wider trade-off in freelancer vs agency.

Where do you find a good UX designer?

Your network: ask businesses with a digital product you find easy to use.
LinkedIn: search for "UX designer" or "product designer" plus city, and read their cases.
Behance and Dribbble: good for seeing visual level, but rarely show process. Ask for cases.
Jobindex and The Hub for employees, Upwork and Toptal for freelancers internationally.
Danish design and IT programmes, if you want to give a junior a chance with senior sparring.
Design and development studios that have UX and development under one roof.

Which red flags should you look out for?

The designer wants to go straight to polished screens without talking to users.
The portfolio is only redesigns of famous apps, with no real clients.
No plan for how the design is handed over to developers.
Deliverables are described as "UX design" with no concrete files or activities.
The Figma files stay in the designer’s account after the project.
No idea of how you will measure whether the design works.

How to hire a UX designer step by step

Describe the problem

What goes wrong today, for whom, and how can you tell?

Choose a profile

UX, UI, UX/UI or a team with both design and development.

Review portfolios

Use the checklist on three cases from each candidate.

Start with a small project

A UX review or a prototype of one flow shows how you work together.

Agree deliverables and ownership

Concrete files, tests, handover and rights written down.

We are one of the options. At Ceptiv, UX/UI design, user research and development sit in the same senior team, so the design is built by the people who helped create it. For Grundfos we have made customer portals for iGRID, field research and clickable prototypes. If you need one full-time designer in-house, an employee is the better choice. If you need a process from research to finished product at a fixed price, describe the task here and you will have a written proposal within 24 hours.

Questions about hiring a UX designer

What is the difference between a UX designer and a UI designer?

The UX designer works on how the solution works: who the users are, which tasks they need to complete, the order of screens and where they get stuck. Typical deliverables are research, user journeys, wireframes and prototypes. The UI designer works on how it looks and feels: layout, typography, colour, components and detail. Many designers cover both and call themselves UX/UI or product designers. So always ask where they are strongest, and look for evidence of it in the portfolio.

Does a UX designer need to code?

It is a clear advantage when they understand how web and apps are built. A designer who knows the constraints of the browser and of mobile produces designs that are faster and cheaper to build. Ask how they work with developers, whether they use components and design tokens in Figma, and whether they take part in testing the finished solution. The best results come when designer and developer work closely together through the whole project.

How many users should a UX designer test with?

For qualitative usability tests, five users per audience is a widely used starting point, because most major problems typically show up in the first few sessions. Testing with five users three times along the way beats testing with 15 users once at the end. A good UX designer will propose how users are recruited, which tasks they complete and how the results turn into concrete design changes. We have a full guide to running a usability test.

Can AI replace a UX designer?

AI tools can now produce screens, wireframe drafts and copy suggestions in seconds, and many designers use them to work faster. What AI does not do for you is talk to your customers, understand your business and make the trade-offs that decide whether a solution gets used. Feel free to use AI to get quickly from idea to first sketch, and use a UX designer to find out whether the sketch solves the right problem.

How long does a typical UX project take?

A UX review of an existing solution typically takes one to two weeks. A process with interviews, wireframes and a clickable prototype often takes three to six weeks, depending on how many users are involved. Designing a whole app or web app with a design system usually spans several months and often runs in parallel with development. What most often causes delays is access to users, so start recruiting the same day you choose the designer.

Who owns the design files?

You should. Write into the agreement that the rights to design, prototypes and research pass to you on payment, and that the Figma files sit in your own Figma team or are handed over at the end of the project. Also ask for raw research data, such as notes and recordings, if users have consented to them being shared. That makes it possible for another designer or developer to build on the work later, and it protects the knowledge you paid for.

Want us to build it for you?

You get a fixed-price proposal within 24 hours.

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