# User experience (UX)

Category: [On-Page & Content](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/on-page-content/) › [Internal linking, structure & UX](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/on-page-content/internal-linking-structure-ux/) · Also known as: UX, UX design

**User experience** (UX) covers all aspects of a person's interaction with a company, its services and its products. The Nielsen Norman Group, whose founders Don Norman and Jakob Nielsen defined the term in a 1998 article, puts it this way. According to reports, ISO 9241-210 describes it as a user's perceptions and responses that result from the use or anticipated use of a system, product or service.

## What is the difference between UX, UI and usability?

The user interface (UI) is the part people see and operate, such as buttons and layout. Usability measures whether a system is easy to learn, efficient to use and pleasant. UX is wider than both. The NN/g notes that even a polished interface does not give a good experience if the product lacks the content or function a person needs.

## What does UX mean for SEO?

Google lists a good page experience among the things its ranking systems reward, and says relevance still comes first. Its page experience documentation asks, among other things, whether a page avoids intrusive interstitials, avoids excessive ads and displays well on mobile devices. The three Core Web Vitals give measurable targets: Largest Contentful Paint within 2.5 seconds, Interaction to Next Paint under 200 milliseconds and Cumulative Layout Shift under 0.1. Search Console reports them for a site.

Other UX topics, such as navigation, copy and forms, are not search signals Google has named. They matter because visitors who cannot find what they need leave (opinion).

## Example

A product page loads slowly because a banner image blocks the main content, and a cookie dialog covers the mobile screen. Compressing the image and shrinking the dialog improves Core Web Vitals and the visitor's first impression at the same time.

## FAQ

**What does UX stand for?** User experience.

**What is the difference between UI and UX?** UI is the interface people interact with. UX includes the whole experience before, during and after use.

## Related terms

- [Usability](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/usability/index.md)
- [Page experience](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/page-experience/index.md)
- [Core Web Vitals](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/core-web-vitals/index.md)
- [User signals](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/user-signals/index.md)

## Sources

- [The Definition of User Experience (UX) – Nielsen Norman Group](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/definition-user-experience/)
- [Understanding page experience in Google Search – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/page-experience)
- [Core Web Vitals – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/core-web-vitals)

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Last updated: October 7, 2026
URL: https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/user-experience/