What is Low-fidelity prototype?
A low-fidelity prototype is a rough, simplified representation of a design concept that focuses on structure, layout, and flow rather than visual polish, typically created with paper, whiteboards, or basic digital wireframes.
How it works
Low-fidelity prototypes deliberately omit color, typography, imagery, and detailed content to keep attention on information architecture, user flow, and interaction concepts. They include paper prototypes (sketched screens with movable elements), whiteboard drawings, sticky note flows, and grayscale wireframes. The key advantages are speed (they can be created in minutes), disposability (teams are willing to discard and redo them because investment is minimal), and focus (participants comment on structure and flow rather than visual details). They are most valuable early in the design process when multiple concepts need rapid exploration.
Applied example
A team designing a mobile banking app sketches 3 alternative navigation concepts on paper in 30 minutes. They test all three with users that afternoon using a paper prototype technique. One concept clearly outperforms the others, giving the team confident direction before any digital design work begins.
Why it matters
Low-fidelity prototypes maximize the ratio of learning to effort, enabling rapid exploration of design alternatives at a stage when the cost of change is lowest and the impact of decisions is highest.
