What Indian Startups Get Right About Product UX

There’s a quiet UX revolution happening in India.

 

While much of the global UX conversation is centered around Silicon Valley, Indian startups are leading innovation in areas shaped by their unique cultural, linguistic, and infrastructural challenges.

 

Multilingual users, varied connectivity, and diverse user behaviors have pushed Indian teams to rethink what great product UX looks like! What emerges isn’t just adaptation; it’s UX innovation at its best.

 

We’ve partnered with varied businesses over the years. And we’ve seen firsthand how Indian startups are no longer mimicking Western design playbooks!

 

Instead, they’re building UX foundations tailored to the unique needs of India’s next billion users.

 

We’ll support this argument with actual UX design case studies on what Indian startups are getting right about product user experience (and what brands and product managers today can learn from them!)

 

1. Localization for Culturally Diverse Users

Indian startups deeply understand the opportunity in serving first-time internet users, many of whom are non-English speakers or unfamiliar with digital interfaces.

 

For instance, Edtech app Kutuki uses regional rhymes and characters to teach preschoolers, while e-commerce platforms like Meesho localize content end-to-end for “Bharat” users.

 

→ Case Study: Meesho – E-commerce

 

Where most apps assume digital familiarity, Meesho designs for the unfamiliar. It tailors the UX for tier-2 and tier-3 cities with vernacular onboarding and intuitive, culturally aware category layouts for stress-free online shopping

 

• Icon-led navigation using universal visuals lets users navigate effortlessly without relying too much on text.
• In 2022, Meesho added support for 8 vernacular languages like Tamil, Telugu, and Marathi, swiftly removing cultural barriers. Users can now browse, shop, and interact with the app entirely in their preferred language.
• Its AI-Powered Voice Bot offers human-like support in Hindi and English. It’s designed to expand to more regional languages for broader accessibility.
• Culturally relevant micro copy, multilingual voice, or localized search inputs to recognize colloquial terms are wins of its product UX. For eg: Try searching for “chasma” instead of sunglasses on Meesho, and you’ll get what we’re talking about!

 

Indian startups like Meesho are redefining what accessibility and inclusivity can mean today for a wider, diverse audience. It’s a sign of good product UX in India, and how design truly becomes inclusive.

2. Mobile-First Product UX

With the majority of users accessing the internet via smartphones, Indian startups now design for mobile-first realities—prioritizing speed, clarity, and performance.

 

→ Case Study: Phone Pe – Fintech Mobile App

 

PhonePe, a fintech startup in Bangalore, delivers a fast and seamless user experience optimized for mobile, even on low bandwidth. The app is thoughtfully designed to make high-frequency actions (like recharging or money transfer) intuitive and quick.

 

• Progressive loading and low-data usage interfaces that allow for smooth transitions on poor connections.
• Minimalist visual hierarchy that highlights key actions like Pay, Send, and Scan.
• Mobile-only workflows using adaptive UI patterns that work seamlessly across screen sizes and device capabilities.

3. Designing for Trust in Digital Transactions

With millions of new users to digital payments, Indian fintech startups are placing trust-building at the center of their product UX

 

→ Case Study: Razorpay – Fintech

 

Razorpay is another one of the popular fintech startups in Bangalore. It builds transactional trust by layering visual and interactive cues into their payment experience.

 

• Loading states and confirmation toasts provide real-time feedback, so users always know what’s happening.
• A streamlined checkout UI reduces decision fatigue while keeping the process transparent and reassuring.
• Refund trackers and payment status UIs further ease post-transaction anxiety by offering clear, visual updates.
• Personalized labels like “Your Trusted Payment Partner” and clutter-free interfaces remove friction and cognitive overload.

 

Designing well for trust is how fintech apps can stand out from the competition, and differentiation is one of the top reasons why UX design brings value to startups.

 

4. Gamification That Drives Engagement

Gamification, when baked into the product journey (not slapped on top), becomes a powerful behavioral growth lever, and Indian startups are getting it right. Early players like Cred set the tone early by rewarding users with Cred Coins for every rupee paid in bills.

 

→ Case Study: Jar – Fintech Mobile App

 

Jar, a micro-savings app, turns financial discipline into a game for an engaging user experience. It encourages users to save small amounts of money in gold (sometimes as little as ₹10) by making the experience fun, interactive, and rewarding:

 

• Daily spin rewards: Every day, users get a chance to spin a wheel and win extra savings or bonuses, adding a gamified incentive to keep logging in.
• Saving streaks: The app tracks how many consecutive days a user saves and rewards consistency with celebratory prompts and occasional perks.
• Progress bars & nudges: Visual cues like progress bars show users how close they are to their monthly or personal saving goals, nudging them to complete the loop.
• “Level up” messages: Users are notified when they hit a new milestone or unlock a new level in their savings journey, turning habit formation into a sense of achievement.

By embedding these elements into the core savings journey, Jar turns what could be a mundane habit into something motivating and sticky. This helps users build long-term financial habits through small, rewarding actions.

 

5. Streamlined Onboarding Experiences

Indian startups are rethinking first impressions in app development. With users who may be new to digital services or switching from offline habits, the goal is clear: remove friction, simplify entry, and let value shine through—fast.

 

Instead of long forms or overwhelming interfaces, the top saas companies in India now lead with quick access and progressive disclosure.

 

→ Case Study: Jupiter – Digital Banking Mobile App

 

Jupiter streamlines onboarding with a mobile-first, Aadhaar-enabled eKYC process that lets users open an account in minutes, without the paperwork marathon that traditional banks demand.

 

• Minimal initial input: Users can start with just a phone number and PAN—no friction, no fatigue.
• Visualized progress: A clean 3-step indicator helps users know exactly how far they are in the setup.
• Smart defaults: Based on input, the app pre-selects account settings and nudges users forward.

 

By offering a breezy, guided start, Jupiter reduces drop-offs and ensures users hit that “aha” moment fast. In a market of high churn, onboarding is make-or-break, and startups like Jupiter are designing it right.

 

6. Personalized Experiences at Scale

As users demand more relevance and value, personalization has become the heart of good product UX. Indian startups aren’t just tailoring content—they’re building adaptive products that respond to each user’s behavior, goals, and preferences.

 

→ Case Study: HealthifyMe – Health & Fitness Mobile App

 

One of the top companies in India, HealthifyMe, transforms generic wellness tracking into personalized coaching. This is done through its AI assistant, Ria, along with real human experts—all wrapped in a clean, modular interface.

 

• Ria gives custom nudges like “Try reducing your carbs today” based on user goals and food logs.
• Personalized dashboards adapt to whether a user’s goal is weight loss, muscle gain, or tracking sugar levels.
• Even daily reminders (hydration, meals, workouts) are timed and tailored based on usage patterns.

By treating each user as a journey, not a profile, HealthifyMe shows how scalable personalization can drive good product user experience and thus, retention.

 

Key Takeaways –

Indian startups are proving that world-class UX doesn’t require Silicon Valley budgets or a large company size! It just needs sharp user empathy and contextual creativity.

 

From solving hyperlocal issues to building frictionless experiences, they’ve turned UX into their secret weapon.

 

Here’s why this matters for business decision-makers & product managers today:

 

• UX should no longer be considered just “aesthetics”; it’s a major revenue growth engine! Our 2025 UX trends report found that companies that allocate even 10% of their development budget to UX could see an 83% rise in conversions!
• Designing for constraints often breeds innovation. Startups operating in tough conditions often build more inclusive and scalable design solutions.
• What works in India today will define global UX tomorrow. These UX playbooks are becoming blueprints for other emerging and developed markets.

 

The message for stakeholders is clear: the next frontier of competitive advantage lies in contextual, user-first product design.

 

As a UI UX design agency, we work closely with global product teams to turn such complexities into clarity, building user experiences that are not just beautiful but highly innovative and impactful.

 

If you’re building for scale and want your product to be a win with real users, let’s craft experiences that are impossible to ignore!

 

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