GOODREADS
ROLE:
UX Researcher and UX/UI Designer
SECTOR:
Book Review and Community
COLABORATORS:
Solo Case Study & Marzieh Nadali as mentor
DATE & DURATION:
2025
1+ month
Why Redesign Goodreads?
This case study explores a redesign of Goodreads to improve its outdated usability and design. It focuses on simplified navigation, smarter book discovery, and an improved search experience, aiming to create a cleaner, more user-friendly platform for modern readers.
Goal #1
Navigation
Simplify and declutter the interface.
Goal #2
Book Discovery
Create a more engaging and personalized way for users to find new books based on their interests and reading history.
Goal #3
Search Functionality
Simplify and declutter the interface.
Desk Research
Advanced Search Like IMDB
Before diving into primary research, I analyzed public reviews, forum posts, and community questions related to Goodreads. This research revealed widespread dissatisfaction with the platform's search functionality, discoverability, and outdated design.
Key Insights:
Search system struggles with typos, plot-based queries, and flexible filters
Users want advanced search like IMDb
Platform seen as outdated and lacking innovation
“Goodreads has the worst, buggiest search bar I’ve ever seen on the internet.”
-Reddit user
“It’s not possible to search books by plot. That’s a major limitation.”
-Goodreads Help Forum
"Goodreads interface is outdated. It honestly hasn't changed much since 2015."
-Threads user
UX AUDIT
Lost in Navigation, Stuck in Search
Key Issues:
Outdated Visual Design: Lacks hierarchy, white space, and consistency; feels cramped and overwhelming.
Poor User Experience: Key actions like finding books or writing reviews are buried and inconsistent.
Ineffective Search Function: Poor ranking, limited filters, and no support for plot or metadata searches.
Blank
Search box is not easy to find. It is not placed in a usual place for users to find.
Too many links on the home page
Random user generated lists without showing what lists are
Useful empty space that is left with nothing
Useful empty space that is left with nothing
Competitive Analysis
Learning from the Ecosystem
To assess Goodreads’ market position and identify improvement opportunities, a competitive analysis was conducted on Amazon, Kobo, Audible, and The StoryGraph.
Amazon
Powerful, intelligent search engine with typo tolerance and suggestions.
Robust filtering and sorting options (price, reviews, genre, language).
Recommendations driven by purchase and browsing history, not just reviews.
Kobo
Clean, modern UI
Better personalization for eBooks based on user behavior.
Weaker community features.
Audible
Exceptional discoverability for audio content through curated themes, moods, and series.
Doesn’t support traditional reading experiences or deep community involvement.
The StoryGraph
Purpose-built as a Goodreads alternative with modern design and UX.
Rich filtering and discovery tools
Insightful reading stats and goal tracking, highly appreciated by users.
Limited social/community features compared to Goodreads but growing.
Takeaways for Goodreads Redesign:
Needs smarter search and filtering (closer to Amazon and StoryGraph).
Market seem to go to a modernized and simplified design to have a better clarity.
Most giant companies are implementing AI in their products to help users
Usability Testing
Users Missed the Genres and Filters While Searching
Moderated usability testing with six participants was conducted to validate UX audit and desk research findings. Participants performed common tasks like searching by title, author, tag, series, or partial info to evaluate the interface’s intuitiveness and functionality.
Key Findings:
Search Inaccuracy:
Users struggled with incomplete titles, tags, or keywords; relevant results were often missing.
Poor Filtering and Sorting:
Lacked genre, rating, date, and tag filters, making search refinement difficult.
Inconsistent Query Support:
Series, language, and list-based searches often failed or returned inconsistent results.
High Cognitive Load:
Cluttered layout and weak hierarchy made it hard to identify relevant books.
Frustration with Discovery:
Users found it difficult to explore or discover books without knowing exact titles.
“I gave up and used Google instead. Goodreads just doesn’t help when you’re unsure of the exact title.”
“I couldn’t search by series name. I had to go find the book, click on it, and then try to trace the series from there.”
“It feels like the site punishes you if you don’t know the exact spelling or full title.”
“It doesn’t suggest anything unless you type the exact thing, it’s not smart at all.”
"Where the hell is the search box??"
Sorting and Analysing Data
Turning User Voices into Personas
Catherine
The book savvy
Age: 35
I want to search for a book by title and immediately see all available editions (paperback, Kindle, audiobook),
so that I can choose the one that suits my current reading preference.
Goals:
To find specific book by title and their editions (e.g., Kindle versions) easily.
To access a comprehensive list of an author’s works in an organized manner.
Pain Points:
Difficulty finding correct book editions and languages due to lack of search system.
Confusing search results order, particularly for editions and authors.
Advanced search options and filters are not intuitive or visible.
Needs:
Find list of an author’s works easily, where she can access all editions and relevant details in one place.
advanced and intuitive search system.
Alex
The new reader explorer
Age: 28
I want to get book recommendations based on what I’ve liked or rated before, or what the community with same taste is reading,
so that I can discover new reads that actually match my taste.
Goals:
To discover books similar to ones already enjoyed.
To explore popular or highly-rated books
Find genres that he is interested in.
Finding books without knowing exact titles and with partial information and keywords.
Pain Points:
Misspelled queries return unrelated or no results.
Recommendations for similar books are unhelpful.
Search by genre lacks subcategories or better filters for narrowing options.
Alex struggles with irrelevant recommendations and feels disappointed when he can’t find the right book quickly.
Needs:
Apply filters in different aspects.
Specific recommendations to him based on his favorites.
Quickly access book information.
1.
The new "short story" feature was added to promote engaging more with the community
2.
A better filter system is added to the feed section so that users can easily filter and sort what they want to see.
3.
More options are provided, to let users know what they can do with the post; as well as, a visually better post. A better organization of data.
4.
Organizing user's "shelves" for better reach, control, and adjustments. Users now can easily access their previous or on-going books without going into different sections.
Improved Hierarchy, Simplified Actions, Smart Filtering, and Visual Breathing Room
The original design was cluttered and hard to navigate, with buried actions and scattered information. The redesign improves clarity with better layout, visible buttons, and smart filters
A more organized navbar
AI Implementation To Help Users Find Books
Interactive Components
Search Is More Than a Box, It’s an Experience:
Users don’t just search for titles; they search for feelings, fragments, and vibes. Designing for flexibility in intent unlocks a better discovery experience.
Personalization Without Overwhelm Is Key:
Readers crave recommendations that feel tailored, but they also want control. Balancing smart suggestions with manual filters makes exploration feel empowering, not intrusive.
Design Should Support Uncertainty:
Many users don’t know what they’re looking for. Good UX should meet them in that ambiguity and guide them gently toward discovery, not punish imprecision.
Modern Readers Expect Intelligent Systems:
Whether through typo-tolerance, smart filtering, or AI assistance, users today expect systems that adapt to them, not the other way around.
Retention and Engagement Measurement
Goodreads currently offers limited features to keep users engaged beyond basic tracking and reviews. If this redesign were implemented, it would’ve been valuable to measure retention and re-engagement metrics before and after—seeing how much the new discovery tools improved daily usage, time on site, and even book completion rates.
How AI Would Behave
Implementing AI is easy to say, but it is hard to know how the AI would behave under a massive collection of book data, and different users' behavior. However, both ChatGPT and Gemini were able to answer all book related quarries during the usablity test phase.
Community as a Feature, Not a Footnote
There was untapped potential in turning Goodreads’ existing community features (like Listopia or friends’ shelves) into more active, smart discovery tools. I would have loved to prototype a feature where community-curated lists or themed shelves could evolve based on shared moods or seasonal trends.
