Heuristics Audit: AI Skill for UX Design
Heuristics Audit is an AI skill that reviews any UI against Nielsen's 10 usability heuristics. Every finding names the violated heuristic, carries a severity rating, and comes with a concrete fix.
npx skills add Uxcel-Lab/product-skills --skill ux-heuristics-audit
What this skill does
Turns vague usability feedback into a structured audit against Nielsen's 10 heuristics.
- Checks all 10 heuristics, from system status to help and documentation.
- Tags every finding with the heuristic it violates, not a vague opinion.
- Rates severity by frequency, impact, and persistence, so the list is prioritized.
- Gives a concrete, specific fix for every issue.
- Resists over-flagging: a finding must cost a real user time, confidence, or completion.
- Resolves the tension between minimalism and more help toward the primary task.
- Lists what already satisfies the heuristics, not just what fails.
- Ends with the top three fixes ranked by frequency and impact.
When to use it
Use it when you need an AI assistant to:
- audit a screen, flow, or component for usability problems;
- check feedback, error handling, consistency, and user control;
- validate AI-generated UI before it ships;
- prioritize usability fixes by real user cost;
- review error messages for jargon, blame, or dead ends;
- get findings tied to named heuristics instead of taste.
What this audit checks
| Heuristic | What it catches |
|---|---|
| 1. System status | Silent actions, missing loading indicators, unclear location in a flow |
| 2. Real-world match | Jargon, technical error codes, icons and ordering that fight user expectations |
| 3. User control & freedom | No undo, trapped flows, hidden or ambiguous exits |
| 4. Consistency & standards | One action with three names, moving buttons, broken platform conventions |
| 5. Error prevention | No inline validation, rigid input formats, unguarded destructive actions |
| 6. Recognition over recall | Re-typed data, no autocomplete or recent items, invisible features |
| 7. Flexibility & efficiency | One rigid path, no shortcuts or saved workflows for frequent users |
| 8. Minimalist design | Clutter, low-value elements, everything emphasized at once |
| 9. Error recovery | Error codes, ALL CAPS, messages that state the problem but not the fix |
| 10. Help & documentation | Buried help, unskippable onboarding, tips that ignore the current task |
How the skill works
1
Establish context
The skill confirms the platform, audience, and primary task, which set how each heuristic is weighted.
2
Check all 10 heuristics
It works through every heuristic, flagging only issues that cost real users time, confidence, or completion.
3
Prioritize the report
It rates each finding by frequency, impact, and persistence, then names the top three fixes.
Try it with
Related skills
1.0.0
MIT
UX Design
Audits
