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Balsamiq is an excellent tool for prototyping interfaces, it can be expensive but if you are a not for profit it is usually free
August 08, 2021

Balsamiq is an excellent tool for prototyping interfaces, it can be expensive but if you are a not for profit it is usually free

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Balsamiq

Balsamiq is used in my organisation to assist in the development of systems. Usually in the early stages of development, we will use Balsamiq to mock up screen designs / prototype the UI / UX of the system. We also use it to mock up changes as part of a change request or new screens when the system is in the maintenance phase. It is an excellent product that makes it very easy to quickly produce high quality mock ups and prototypes. It is used in the development team of the IT services department.
  • Easy to use
  • Produces good quality mock ups and prototypes
  • Mock ups are obviously only just mock ups (this is important as if users see mock-ups in HTML, for example, they tend to think the system is ready to use or not far off)
  • Has a good selection of standard shapes that mock real world fields / controls
  • Allows not for profit organisations use it for free
  • Somewhat expensive for full commercial licences
  • Hand drawn style wireframes
  • Easy to use
  • Good selection of shapes that represent real world fields / controls
  • Allows you to build in a little interactivity, for example pressing a button and showing another wireframe
  • Can be expensive but luckily Balsamiq granted my organisation a free licence due to not for profit status
  • Integration with Google Drive as a standard feature, at the moment you have to pay extra
In the past I have just used HTML to mock up UIs, but as I've previously mentioned this can cause problems with user's thinking that the system is already built. Balsamiq is far quicker and easier to create wireframes, it is more collaborative and the resulting wireframes cannot be confused with a real system as they have a hand drawn feel to them.

Do you think Balsamiq delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Balsamiq's feature set?

Yes

Did Balsamiq live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Balsamiq go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Balsamiq again?

Yes

Balsamiq is very well suited for mocking up / prototyping UIs for systems or apps. The really good thing about it is that the wireframes it produces do not look like real screens but all the same do look nice, neat and tidy. This allows you to express and design how your interface will looks and even work, but it also expresses that these are just wireframes. I have had problems throughout my career when I have mocked up UIs with HTML, often users and stakeholders think that the system is ready to be used or not far off, they can't seem to grasp that there is nothing behind it. Balsamiq helps here because the wireframes are in a hand drawn style, so they can't be confused with a near-ready or working system.