Hire the Best UI Designers
in South Africa

Hello! I’m Mikayla, a Senior UX/UI Designer based in South Africa; focused on building clear, functional, and conversion-driven digital products. I work closely with founders, product teams, and engineers to turn complex ideas into simple, scalable user experiences. I don’t just design screens, I design systems that help products make sense, feel intuitive, and perform better. ✅ Senior UX/UI Designer (Product) ✅ End-to-end SaaS & Digital Product Specialist ✅ UX Strategy ᐧ UI Design ᐧ Design Systems 🎯 Current Focus: SaaS Platforms • Vibe-coding • Conversion-driven Web Experiences - WHAT I BRING TO YOUR PRODUCT AS A UX/UI DESIGNER (PRODUCT): 👩‍💻 UX Strategy & Product thinking: I design with structure first: user flows, journey mapping, information architecture, and experience strategy. My focus is always on reducing friction and improving clarity across the product. I LOVE research. 👩‍💻 UI design for REAL products: Clean, scalable interfaces for SaaS dashboards, mobile apps, and responsive web platforms. Built to be consistent, usable, and easy to extend as products grow. 👩‍💻 Figma Expertise & Design Systems: Advanced Figma workflows including components, auto-layout, variables, and scalable design systems. As a former developer, I create structured files that make developer handoff smooth and reduce back-and-forth. 👩‍💻 Dev-handoff ready design I collaborate closely with developers and provide clear specs, interaction states, and structured Figma files that translate cleanly into code. 📌 SELECTED EXPERIENCE • SaaS Redesigns: Improved usability of complex workflows by simplifying navigation and restructuring core user journeys. • Mobile App UX Overhaul: Streamlined onboarding and key flows to reduce friction and improve task completion. • Web Conversion Improvements: Redesigned landing pages and product flows to improve clarity and user decision-making. • Web & Landing Pages: Website & landing page design Prototypes with Loveable Design with Figma 🧠 HOW I WORK Discovery & Research → understand goals, users, constraints & pain-points. UX Mapping → flows, journeys, structure Wireframes → rapid layout exploration UI Design & Branding → clean, scalable visual system, graphics, custom icons • If possible, this is where I would collaborate with the dev team to ensure the UI is feasible & viable. Prototype → test and refine interactions, use external vibe coding tools if desired Handoff → developer-ready Figma + documentation through HTML or React code documentation. 💡 WHY CLIENTS WORK WITH ME I balance product thinking with strong visual design. My focus is not just making things look good, but making them work better; for users and for the business. If you need a designer who can think, structure, and execute across the full product lifecycle, I can help. Multi-disciplinary designer: I have worn many hats and I'm here to use them to ensure the best possible experience for my clients. "But now Mikayla, why are your rates so low?" - Simple, I live in a third world country when my currency is weaker than anywhere else in the world. Now lets get talking :) [Keywords: Figma Designer, Figma Expert, Figma to Loveable, Figma To Wordpress, Web to Figma, Web Design Expert, SaaS Design, Responsive Web Design, Figma, Figma Prototyping, AI Development, AI Vibe Coding, Design Systems, Web to Figma, App to Figma, Mobile Design, Insurance, Banking, B2B, Product Designer, B2B2C Product Designer, UX Research, UX Design, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, Loveable, Claude, Framer, UX Designer, UI Designer, UX/UI Designer, Interaction design, Landing Page Designer, Mockups, Digital Design]

I help teams design and build engaging and scalable products and experiences. I do this through active collaboration with all stakeholders, balancing business requirements with user goals. To date I've worked with several scaleups to identify and resolve UX problems that were blocking their growth. Three have become bigger players in their markets, and one was acquired by a competitor. Reasons I am a good fit for your project: * Native English speaker * 1 Hour time zone difference with the UK & Western Europe * 4 Hour overlap with the US (East coast) * More than 7 year track record of remote work * More than a decade of UX/UI experience Domain Expertise: Fintech, E-commerce, Edutech, Travel, Enterprise Software Key skills: Interaction Design, Design Systems, UX Analysis, UX Research, UX Strategy, Concept Testing, Prototyping, UX Copywriting, Agile Sprint Support, Design Handover & User Stories, Project Planning & Management I work remotely from Cape Town, South Africa (UTC+2).

I'm a young UX/UI designer with certifications from the University of Michigan, Meta, and Google. I began my career as a freelancer for a SaaS startup. Since then, I have been working as a freelancer professionally, both on my own and on several websites like Freelancer, Braintrust, and now Upwork. I love working for companies all around the world and would love to join your team! • I follow the "empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test, repeat" process • I believe in making good UX and UI affordable • I specialize in all things UX and UI - from start to finish. • Regular communication is the key to success • I bring what YOU want to life

High-End Web Layouts & Interactive Digital Experiences I bridge the gap between premium visual aesthetics and clean, high-performance front-end code. Whether you need an editorial corporate website, a luxury web application interface, or an interactive, browser-based game experience, I design and build it from scratch with pixel-accurate precision. Core Expertise: Premium UI/UX Design: Crafting clean typography, generous whitespace, and luxury visual architecture that commands attention and elevates your brand. Front-End Development: Writing efficient, lightweight code structured for blazing-fast page load speeds, clean semantic layouts, and flawless responsive design across mobile and desktop. Web Games & Interactive Components: Engineering responsive mechanics, dynamic front-end UI animations, and immersive user flows that keep visitors deeply engaged. My focus is entirely on minimizing cognitive load for your users while maximizing brand impact. Let's turn your vision into a stunning, functional reality.

I've been consulting as a Product Designer on and off for the past few years, working on a range of products from travel software (operational and customer-facing tools) to building out e-commerce platforms for small and also very large businesses. I've helped these businesses understand what their industry is doing online and off in order to help them find their place and transition from where they are right now, to where they want to be in the smoothest way possible. I've adopted the Zero to One approach and this has been a real winner for my clients (the outcome) and also my process (iterative product development). One of my core strengths is my dedication to deeply understanding a problem from all angles - the business, the user, the industry, and the product in question. I am a firm believer that we all have a problem-solving bone within us and sometimes it takes the right person with the right set of tools to help bring those skills to the forefront. Half of what I do is educate clients and stakeholders on how to effectively think like a designer, and in some cases through valued interactions, assisting them to build out a culture of design amongst contributing members. Thus, leaving them more empowered to make decisions they previously might not have been comfortable making. As I continue to build experiences both online and off I roll with the narrative that what we do as designers is no secret science. We have in our arsenal a set of tools, available to everyone - there is no perfect process, instead, our experience helps us make decisions on which tools are right to use in context to solve the unique (or not so unique) problems we encounter. So, we turn to our toolbox, again and again, to achieve the best outcome. "Our assumptions are wrong until our users show us otherwise, so we design what we think will work for them and iterate until we find what does."

Hi there! I'm a UX/UI Designer & Immersive Motion Designer specializing in crafting digital experiences that feel intuitive, dynamic, and visually alive. By blending thoughtful user experience strategy with immersive motion design, I create interfaces that not only function beautifully but move with purpose — guiding users, telling stories, and deepening brand connection. From app interfaces and product dashboards to cinematic product launches and AR-inspired visuals, my work bridges design and motion to deliver experiences that are modern, cohesive, and emotionally resonant. ✨ What I Can Help You With: • UX/UI Design: Wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity interfaces that balance usability with strong visual hierarchy. • Motion for Interfaces: Animating transitions, interactions, and gestures to create fluid, user-centered motion. • Cinematic Product & Brand Videos: Bringing digital products to life through stylized motion and narrative flow. • AR & Spatial Design: Designing and animating interfaces and experiences that feel immersive and forward-thinking. • Design Systems & Visual Consistency: Establishing scalable systems that unify brand, UI, and motion across all touchpoints. 💡 Why Clients Work With Me: • Hybrid Skillset: A rare blend of UX/UI precision and cinematic motion sensibility. • Experience-Driven Design: Every animation, layout, and interaction is grounded in enhancing usability and emotional impact. • Modern Aesthetic: A clean, refined, and future-forward visual style that fits tech, SaaS, and creative brands. • Collaborative Process: Clear communication, strategic thinking, and design decisions aligned with your product goals. Let’s craft an experience that looks stunning, feels intuitive, and tells your brand’s story in motion. Reach out — I’d love to hear about your project!