Web design is a complex and multi-tasking profession. So, many beginners invest a large amount of money to learn the first steps in the design process.
Yet, you can completely master web design and improve your skills with books and related materials. If you are having trouble accessing the resources for your work, immediately refer to some books below.
The 10 web design books included in the article promise to help you update helpful knowledge for your job. Let’s refer to all the interesting info!
1. CSS in Depth
Specification
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 472 pages.
- Item Weight: 1,68 pounds.
- Dimensions: 7,38 x 1 x 9,25 inches
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Reason To Buy
- Design inspiration.
- Easy to understand.
- Many vivid illustrations.
- Suitable for many uses.
- Provide information related to CSS
Review
As the name suggests, this book is focused on the technical knowledge of CSS. Completing the book gives you new insights, responsive design, and critical CSS-related knowledge.
What impressed me the most about this book was that it presented confusing, creative, and engaging knowledge. The examples it gives are pretty vivid. Even the stories shared by the author inspired me.
CSS in Depth is a seasoned book. It takes quite a while to complete. Yet, you can improve your web and application design skills after understanding the content of this book.
2. Laws of UX
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 152 pages.
- Item Weight: 9.9 ounces.
- Dimensions: 6 x 0.41 x 9 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- Suitable for all readers.
- Suitable for UX programmers.
- Clear and easy-to-understand presentation.
- Covers the fundamental psychological principles
Review
UX is user experience design. Therefore, understanding psychology and applying it in the design process will help UX designers create successful products.
And the Laws of UX is one of the few books that deals with design psychology.
Before that, I did not have the habit of studying psychology books because I doubted that the knowledge in the books only stopped at theory and could not be applied in practice.
However, the Laws of UX changed my mind. This book focuses on the psychological factors influencing how users interact with digital platforms.
The book also covers some psychological principles. Its knowledge is entirely understandable even to those who do not know the field.
I also love the practical instructions the author gives. These examples give me more inspiration to build products and visual experiences.
3. HTML&CSS: Design and Build Websites
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 490 pages.
- Item Weight: 2.59 pounds.
- Dimensions: 7.4 x 1.2 x 9.3 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- A completely new approach.
- Additional knowledge to take HTML courses.
- The system of illustrations is rich and vivid.
- Provide understanding from simple to in-depth.
- The knowledge in the book is highly applicable.
Review
Want to learn how to design web-based on HTML and CSS but need help knowing where to start? In addition to signing up for related courses, try reading HTML and CSS: Design and Build Websites.
This book does not substitute for HTML or CSS-based web design courses, lectures, or exercises. Yet, the completely new approach will give you a different perspective on website creation, thereby starting your career more quickly.
I especially love the rich illustration system of this book. Impressive graphics help explain seemingly complex topics most simply.
After finishing the book, I knew how to set up my own blog. Even if you only take a moment to navigate through your favorite topics in the book, you can still create your own aesthetically pleasing web pages.
4. Don’t Make Me Think
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 216 pages.
- Item Weight: 15.5 ounces.
- Dimensions: 6.95 x 0.7 x 8.95 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- It gives quite a few practical examples
- Present the content witty and reasonably.
- Practical knowledge with regularly updated.
- Knowledge comes from highly accurate experts.
Review
Up to the present time, it is still the bedside book of many people who are oriented to become web designers and developers.
Its vitality comes from reasonably practical and highly applicable knowledge. The tutorials mentioned in the book are from experts, so it has the accuracy and usefulness you’re looking for.
In particular, in the latest update, this book has been supplemented with many highly up-to-date examples. Its perspective is fresher regarding website usability on mobile devices and other essential knowledge.
I was also impressed with the witty yet logical presentation of the book. In the past, I thought Don’t Make Me Think and Revisited was a book that was overrated for its actual content. Yet, after being captivated by the book’s guide, I understood why it is a must-read for anyone working with the web.
5. Learning Web Design
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 216 pages.
- Item Weight: 15.5 ounces.
- Dimensions: 6.95 x 0.7 x 8.95 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- Ideal for beginners.
- Understandable knowledge.
- Include questions and exercises.
- Build websites compatible with mobile devices.
- Provide basic and comprehensive knowledge
Review
Compared to some of the suggestions I introduced earlier, Learning Web Design is a book that is not too seasoned.
With only 216 pages, the author has mentioned a lot of knowledge about how the website works, the building steps, and instructions to create your website.
I read this book as an inexperienced website builder. Surprisingly, each chapter answered my questions well while providing new knowledge about techniques.
I was also suggested to create a simple website compatible with mobile devices.
For me, Learning Web Design is more than just a book. It’s also a complete course that anyone starting out in HTML, CSS, and web design must take.
6. The Principles of Web Design
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 282 pages.
- Item Weight: 1.3 pounds.
- Dimensions: 7.99 x 0.59 x 10 inches
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Reason To Buy
- Lots of helpful knowledge
- Detailed and clear instructions.
- Help make an ordinary design great.
- Cover the basic website design principles
Review
I came to this book when I acquired specific web design skills and wanted to improve my website. The Principles of Beautiful Web Design delivered knowledge far beyond my expectations.
It provides helpful knowledge on using color effectively, creating beautiful layouts, or designing attractive images. This book doesn’t just focus on helping to make ordinary designs look great. It also covers website design principles.
Thanks to this background knowledge, readers of all levels can create highly aesthetic designs that meet user experience requirements.
7. Basics of Web Design
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 496 pages.
- Item Weight: 3.53 ounces.
- Dimensions: 7.9 x 0.85 x 9.9 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- Accessible
- Rather cheap
- Practical examples
- Provide basic knowledge.
Review
Before, I only spent a little time reading web design books. Instead, I often look to courses or direct practice for natural web design experience.
Yet, Basics of Web Design: HTML5 & CSS completely changed my study habits.
The book covers the web design basics and some hard skills a designer needs. Its content is familiar compared to many existing titles on the market.
However, the biggest highlight of Basics of Web Design is the excellent balance between technical skills and soft skills.
After finishing the book, I was fully equipped to work in web design and development. The efficient knowledge of the book continues to help my path significantly to becoming a web developer.
8. Designing for the Digital Age
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Print length: 686 pages.
- File size: 35564 KB.
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled.
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Reason To Buy
- Many vivid illustrations.
- New appearance, quite like a notebook.
- Methods to help visitors limit risks.
- Detailed instructions come with practice exercises.
- Provide information related to digital support services.
Review
Providing digital support is currently a promising field. If you want to develop a career in this field, Designing for the Digital Age is the book you cannot miss.
The book focuses on helping readers make the most of digital services and minimizing customers’ risks when exposed to complex technology.
This book is similar to a manual. As a result, you can find quite a few illustrations and white papers dedicated to planning and conducting user research.
It also includes many detailed tutorials and practice exercises to make acquiring new knowledge more manageable for beginners.
9. Lean UX
Specification:
- Language: English
- Paperback: 224 pages
- Item Weight: 13.6 ounces
- Dimensions: 7.38 x 0.51 x 9.25 inches
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Reason To Buy
- It offers many valuable tips
- Suitable for many different objects.
- Provide essential information about Lean UX
- Multiple shares make the design more efficient.
- Focus on guidance to enhance the product experience.
Review
I know Lean UX is an award-winning book. Yet, I was only interested when I realized that Lean UX is currently the leading approach for digital products.
This book promptly provided me with important information about this promising field. What I particularly love about this book is integrating user experience design with product management. Meanwhile, it also helped me understand how to drive innovation in short cycles.
The author also devoted the book’s first part to helping me understand a designer’s role and organizing my work effectively.
10. UX for Beginners
Specification:
- Language: English.
- Paperback: 255 pages.
- Item Weight: 1.14 pounds.
- Dimensions: 9 x 0.5 x 7.25 inches.
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Reason To Buy
- Many vivid examples.
- Detailed instructions.
- 100 independent lessons.
- Focus on user experience design.
- Provide knowledge in a practical style.
Review
I recommend people with career-oriented programmers learn about the UX for Beginners: A Crash Course in 100 Short Lessons.
This book includes 100 independent lessons that detail user experience design.
Before reading the first chapters, this was a dry book because the content was designed based on the famous UX Crash course.
However, in the first pages, the author surprisingly surprised me with his humorous style, providing knowledge most simply and practically.
My favorite part of this book is the tutorial on following the UX workflow. The author’s instructions are pretty detailed to help beginners learn about programming and can easily follow and apply.
Buying Guide
Choosing an informative book on web design is a challenging task. And below are my personal experiences, promising to help your selection process.
Suitability
Website design is a broad field. Therefore, ensure the content of the book you read meets the direction of your career development.
A book with appropriate content must also be regularly with information and images. Outdated books usually will only do a little for your skill development.
Easy to read
Readability is also a requirement in the best web design book. For printed books, avoid books with poor print quality. Meanwhile, with e-books, you should only invest in products with proper formats, affecting the reading experience.
Content
You need to pay special attention to the content when choosing books. Present the problem, argument, and reference material that should reflect the book’s quality you intend to purchase.
Price
The price will depend on the content and how it is presented inside the book. Get to know the author of the book to get an overview before making your decision. You have to spend more money, but the knowledge gained is valuable.
FAQs
I have compiled the most frequently asked web designer book questions. Here are some answers you shouldn’t miss. Scroll down for details!
Can I teach myself to be a web designer?
You can teach yourself web design by taking advantage of resources on the Internet. Nowadays, self-taught web design is simpler than ever.
Which Web design is best?
Some of the best design websites include FlyHyer, IBM’s The Harmonic State, and Elias Akentour Portfolio.
Is web design still in-demand?
Web design remains one of the areas of great demand and for the foreseeable future. Even the job demand for web design positions is on the rise.
Does web design pay OK?
Web design is an excellent job. According to our research, a web designer can be available at $64,110 per month, much higher than the average salary.
Can I get a job just knowing HTML?
Even if you only know HTML, you can find a job. However, to get an appointment with a dream salary, you need to have some other skills.
Final Thoughts
There are a lot of books with content related to web design in the market. Each book deals with a specific topic in web design.
The Laws of UX will be the best choice for UX designers. Meanwhile, HTML and CSS: Design and Build Websites focus on presenting HTML and CSS.
Besides, you also consider the 10 books on my list. You will be satisfied with the knowledge and skills gained after reading the book.
Thank you for taking the time to read the post!