Usability

How easily and effectively people can accomplish their goals using a product or system, while having a positive experience.

Usability refers to the measurement of how easily a user can accomplish their goals when using a service. This is usually measured through established research methodologies under the term “usability testing,” which includes success rates and customer satisfaction. Usability is one part of the larger user experience (UX) umbrella. While UX encompasses designing the overall experience of a product, usability focuses on the mechanics of making sure products work as well as possible for the user.

21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA) and M-23-22

21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA) and M-23-22

Resources on Usability

  • An introduction to content

    Best practices for creating clear, useful, digital content for federal websites and digital services.

  • Usability Testing with Steve Krug

    Get started making usability fixes to your website or product.

  • Department of Homeland Security: Usability Testing Kit

    A resource with four approaches to help federal employees perform usability testing.

  • 18F Methods

    A collection of tools that describe how teams can put human-centered design into practice.

  • Usability Starter Kit

    Here are some tools and templates to help you create better user experiences.

  • Fueleconomy.gov – Extended Case Study

    Like any valid business decision, User Experience work should produce results and demonstrable impact. To see a list of screenshots from websites we’ve improved, visit the rest of our Usability Case Studies. Or see a more complete case study below. Case Study: Fueleconomy.gov Mobile Site In December of 2012

  • Government Usability Case Studies

    This list of government usability case studies shows how government sites, mobile apps and other products become more effective, more coherent and more usable by focusing on the User Experience of their customers. Want to be featured here? Just email us. National Cancer Institute Persona

Join a Community of Practice

  • Web Analytics and Optimization

    Make better decisions using web analytics and other optimization strategies.

  • Web Managers

    Create a better online experience for the public alongside government web content managers.

Usability events

Annual Gathering

Spring 2024 Community Summit

Digital service experts across the federal government will share case studies and best practices on delivering a digital-first public experience.
2024

Usability news

10 years of the U.S. Digital Service: Transforming government for the digital age

Over the past decade, the U.S. Digital Service (USDS) has collaborated with more than 30 federal agencies to create user-friendly, reliable, and seamless digital experiences. Their work prioritizing human-centered design and engineering includes improving services for veterans with Veterans Affairs, launching the Internal Revenue Service Direct File Pilot, and supporting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Looking ahead, USDS remains committed to building trust, fostering innovation, and scaling digital capacity across the federal government, ensuring better service for all Americans.— via The White House

whitehouse logo
Aug 13, 2024

Developing an easier way to recruit user research participants

USA.gov and 10x recently partnered to develop a new user research recruitment page. The page launched in February 2024 and has attracted hundreds of sign-ups. It allows participants to assist in testing government websites for compensation, and helps teams find participants that match needed demographics. By simplifying the process and expanding recruitment of diverse populations, the initiative aims to support and streamline user research. It plans to add recruitment opportunities in additional languages and recruit more specific audiences for future studies.— via USA.gov

usagov logo
Aug 06, 2024

Designing for people with disabilities

The User Experience (UX) team at USA.gov’s Public Experience Portfolio recently conducted a study to analyze the experiences of individuals who access USA.gov through assistive technology. The team partnered with a local organization to gather insights from a diverse group of participants, many of whom are blind or deaf. The study revealed various habits and challenges faced by these users, such as a preference for mobile sites, difficulty with website carousels, and a reliance on clear headings and action-oriented descriptions. These findings can guide improvements in accessibility, such as clever link labeling and better navigation aids for assistive technology users.— via USA.gov

usagov logo
Jul 16, 2024

Resources on Usability

  • An introduction to content

    Best practices for creating clear, useful, digital content for federal websites and digital services.

  • Usability Testing with Steve Krug

    Get started making usability fixes to your website or product.

  • Department of Homeland Security: Usability Testing Kit

    A resource with four approaches to help federal employees perform usability testing.

  • 18F Methods

    A collection of tools that describe how teams can put human-centered design into practice.

  • Usability Starter Kit

    Here are some tools and templates to help you create better user experiences.

  • Fueleconomy.gov – Extended Case Study

    Like any valid business decision, User Experience work should produce results and demonstrable impact. To see a list of screenshots from websites we’ve improved, visit the rest of our Usability Case Studies. Or see a more complete case study below. Case Study: Fueleconomy.gov Mobile Site In December of 2012

  • Government Usability Case Studies

    This list of government usability case studies shows how government sites, mobile apps and other products become more effective, more coherent and more usable by focusing on the User Experience of their customers. Want to be featured here? Just email us. National Cancer Institute Persona

More News and Events on Usability

141 posts

10 years of the U.S. Digital Service: Transforming government for the digital age

Over the past decade, the U.S. Digital Service (USDS) has collaborated with more than 30 federal agencies to create user-friendly, reliable, and seamless digital experiences. Their work prioritizing human-centered design and engineering includes improving services for veterans with Veterans Affairs, launching the Internal Revenue Service Direct File Pilot, and supporting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Looking ahead, USDS remains committed to building trust, fostering innovation, and scaling digital capacity across the federal government, ensuring better service for all Americans.— via The White House

whitehouse logo
Aug 13, 2024

Developing an easier way to recruit user research participants

USA.gov and 10x recently partnered to develop a new user research recruitment page. The page launched in February 2024 and has attracted hundreds of sign-ups. It allows participants to assist in testing government websites for compensation, and helps teams find participants that match needed demographics. By simplifying the process and expanding recruitment of diverse populations, the initiative aims to support and streamline user research. It plans to add recruitment opportunities in additional languages and recruit more specific audiences for future studies.— via USA.gov

usagov logo
Aug 06, 2024

Designing for people with disabilities

The User Experience (UX) team at USA.gov’s Public Experience Portfolio recently conducted a study to analyze the experiences of individuals who access USA.gov through assistive technology. The team partnered with a local organization to gather insights from a diverse group of participants, many of whom are blind or deaf. The study revealed various habits and challenges faced by these users, such as a preference for mobile sites, difficulty with website carousels, and a reliance on clear headings and action-oriented descriptions. These findings can guide improvements in accessibility, such as clever link labeling and better navigation aids for assistive technology users.— via USA.gov

usagov logo
Jul 16, 2024

Case study: Removing barriers to applying for a presidential pardon

At the Department of Justice, Access DOJ and the Office of the Pardon Attorney (PARDON) partnered to simplify and streamline the presidential pardon application process. By conducting usability testing and gathering feedback, they identified key issues with the existing application, such as its complexity and length. See how redesigning the forms to be more accessible and understandable led to a more efficient process for both applicants and staff.— via Department of Justice

doj logo
Jun 06, 2024

One year with the new USAGov

It has been a year since USA.gov and USAGov en Español were relaunched using human-centered design principles. Using task backlog, the USAGov team has addressed content gaps, improved discoverability, and implemented technical updates. Through usability tests, visitor comments, and click behavior the team was able to unravel and respond to user feedback and unmet needs, leading to noticeable increases in visitor satisfaction and task accomplishment. Moving forward, the focus will shift to enhancing public engagement with the government, improving the search for benefits-related content, and exploring interactive and personalized user experiences.— via USA.gov

usagov logo
May 14, 2024

Progress towards delivering a digital-first public experience

Each year, more than 400 million individuals, families, businesses, organizations, and local governments get information and services from about 430 federal agencies and sub-agencies. The Biden-Harris administration is driving a bold vision for how government agencies serve their customers digitally with OMB’s ten-year roadmap for a modern digital experience. Agencies have already made significant strides. Learn about recent successes by the IRS, CDC, NASA, and FEMA, and how OMB will continue to collaborate with agencies to ensure ongoing improvement in digital government services.— via The White House

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Apr 17, 2024

18F at ten

We’re celebrating all the ways we continue to realize our founding vision: bringing technologists into government, launching shared digital services, and helping partner agencies build user-centered technology.— via 18F

18f logo
Mar 19, 2024

Search.gov year in review: 2023 report

Learn what types of information people searched for on federal websites in 2023, see emerging trends the team is exploring to improve customers’ search experience in 2024, and check out three new updates. The data tab provides insightful summaries for 13 popular topic areas—and lists the public’s top 25 search terms, in their own words, for each.— via Search.gov

searchgov logo
Mar 15, 2024
Annual Gathering

Spring 2024 Community Summit

Digital service experts across the federal government will share case studies and best practices on delivering a digital-first public experience.
2024

Why the American People Deserve a Digital Government

OMB released new policy guidance for government that includes a variety of actions and standards to help federal agencies design, develop, and deliver modern websites and digital services. Memo M-23-22, Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience, will make it seamless for the public to obtain government information and services online, and help agencies fully implement the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (21st Century IDEA).— via The White House

whitehouse logo
Sep 22, 2023