If you already have the perfect platform to build your progressive web app, but you don’t know how to start designing it (or where to get your inspiration from), we’ve got you! Continue reading to discover the best free design resources for your PWA.
When it comes to developing an app, many companies are still under the impression that it is a difficult, expensive and lengthy process. And of course, they are right to a certain extent – this is typically what happens with native app development, especially if the app requirements are complex and go beyond the most basic functionalities.
Fortunately, as technology has evolved, this is no longer the case. Today, we have powerful no-code Drag and Drop app builders that allow people to make apps in the matter of minutes and without the need for any programming skills. These no-code development platforms give companies and end users the opportunity to create application software through graphical user interfaces and pre-built blocks of features, tools and functionalities.
However, while drag and drop app builders give you all the tools that you need to create an awesome app in no time, you will still need to think of the design that you want your app to have so you can personalize it accordingly. This includes images, fonts, corporate colours, and a lot more. For this reason, today we are going to see some of the best free design resources to help you make a beautiful and highly functional progressive web app for your business.
1. Canva
We can’t make a list of free design resources without talking about Canva. Canva is a completely free graphic design platform (although they do have a paid plan as well) with thousands of templates that you can easily personalize with your brand colours. It is also a great tool to create stunning graphics for your app.
For example, let’s say that you have a restaurant app and want to include a beautiful menu with the prices of each dish. Instead of simply uploading a single boring image as a background, you can use any of Canva’s template to really impress with your menu design.
Or, if your no-code app builder already has a built-in feature for creating menus and uploading dishes and prices directly on the app, you can use Canva to create a beautiful header with your brand logo, colours and details. You can then upload your personalized header instead of simply going with the typical Shutterstock image that people might have already seen anyway.
And if you’re using Beezer to build your progressive web app, it gets even easier! Beezer has a built-in integration with Canva that lets you quickly and easily add your Canva designs to your app. Just use the Canva component from our components list when adding elements to your app pages.
2. FlatIcon.com
Next on our list of awesome free design resources for your app is flaticon.com. Icons are an essential part of every website and mobile (or progressive web) application, and this website has the largest database of free icons available in PNG, SVG, EPS, PSD and BASE 64 formats. In fact, they give you access to over 4,196,000 vector icons!
Not all of them are free, but you definitely have enough for any occasion and industry – there is something for everyone, and these icons will look great in any app.
Note: Keep in mind that for free icons, you will have to credit the author in exchange for the free graphic. You also have the option to purchase their monthly subscription, which allows you to use any source either for commercial or personal use without crediting the author. Prices start from just 5 dollars per month.
3. BeFunky
If you are working on your app design, you will probably need a tool that helps you resize and adjust images – this is extremely important because huge and heavy, unoptimized images may end up slowing down your loading times and worsening user experience.
For this reason, next on our list of free design resources is BeFunky, a completely free online editing platform. It allows you to crop, resize and enhance your images easily and without the need to download any heavy software – in fact, you don’t even need to register in order to use it.
As we mentioned previously, optimizing the images that you are going to use within your app is an extremely important part of providing excellent user experience. However, it is especially important when it comes to progressive web apps, and the reason why is simple – Search Engine Optimization. Because PWAs are essentially websites with the look and feel of a native app, and they can be accessed directly through a single URL (without the need for an app store), they are also indexable by search engines.
Loading speed is a key aspect of Search Engine Optimization and gaining more visibility in front of search engines like Google. The ideal loading speed should be around 2 seconds – in fact, according to a study by Akamai research, for every additional second that the app consumes, the conversion rate declines by 7%.
4. Sketch App Sources
Our list of awesome free design resources continues with SketchAppSources.com. It provides both free and premium graphics for Sketch (a digital design tool by Apple). In fact, they have almost 5,000 different graphics which are perfect for more SaaS and tech-oriented businesses.
Although they are originally designed for Sketch, some of them can be used as images as well, and they can be a perfect addition for any progressive web app. Just don’t forget to credit the author!
5. Unsplash
Unsplash is undoubtedly one of the best websites with free high quality, high resolution images that exist on the Internet. They offer photos on multiple themes and topics, including Nature, People, Architecture, Business and Work, Fashion, Film, Street Photography and much more.
Unsplash is a great resource of photos for any progressive web app, and you can search for the most relevant ones through keywords – or just click on the corresponding category. Keep in mind that, since most of these photos have a really high resolution, they will also be very heavy when you download them.
So, don’t forget to resize them and adjust their size before uploading them to your app! Considering how large their image library is, the chances are that you will definitely finding something suitable for your business.
6. Image Color Picker
Our list of free design resources continues with something that you might not have expected on the list – however, it can be extremely useful when you are coming up with the right design and colors for your app.
Image Color Picker is a tool that allows you to upload any image and extract the colour scheme and codes from it. Let’s say that you don’t have a brand or a website yet, and you don’t have any corporate colours that are already selected and established for your new brand. In many cases, you may have a certain idea in mind, or an image that represents exactly the colours that you would like to go for.
With Image Color picker, you can directly upload an image that contains the colours that you’ve liked, and it will return you the whole palette, with all of its distinct colours, codes, and RGB details. With this information, you can easily go to your app builder (or a tool like Canva), and directly paste the corresponding color instead of trying to figure it out during the development process.
7. UnDraw
Next on our list of awesome free design resources that you can use for your progressive web app (or any app, of course) is UnDraw. UnDraw is an amazing platform created by Katerina Limpitsouni, and it provides a library of open source illustrations so you can visualize any idea that you may have in mind for your app. It is a constantly updated design project, and although you can use it completely for free without any attribution, we highly recommend that you credit the author as well.
Another awesome thing about UnDraw is that you can use a simple, but powerful functionality to automatically adjust all of the images with your own corporate colours:
And you can directly download them as a png file, without having to download any additional software or make extra adjustments. Remember the tool that we just saw – Image Color Picker? You can use the color codes that you extracted from it in this platform as well. Additionally, you can also download the images as SVG for your projects.
8. Photo Creator by Icon8
Another mind-blowing tool on our list of free graphic design tools is Photo Creator, an amazing platform created by Icon8. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it revolutionizes stock photos – instead of using the same stock photos that everyone uses, you can create them yourself, and add the personalizing touches that will make you stand out. How awesome is that?
Once you’ve created your unique photos and images, you can upload them easily to your progressive web app to really make an impact and stand out from your competitors.
And the best part is, these images are more personalizable than you would ever imagine. You can even change the people’s faces on some of the images! We highly suggest that you try this awesome tool for your progressive web app, and go beyond the traditional use of stock images. It will help you create a really unique app.
9. Google Fonts
Now that we’ve covered the more visual part of our progressive web app, it’s time to move to a more subtle, but not less important one – fonts. Selecting a beautiful font that’s easy to read and perceive, and is aesthetically pleasing to the eye. should be a must-have for any app and website.
Having said this, another tool that you can definitely add to your list of free design resources is Google Fonts. It’s an open source, intuitive and robust collection of fonts and icons created by a community of designers from all around the world.
And the best part is, they are designed to make your web or app faster. Using the code generated by Google Fonts, the platform’s servers will automatically send the smallest possible file to every user based on the technologies that their browser supports. This makes the web (or PWA) faster for all users – particularly in areas where bandwidth and connectivity are an issue.
It works in a similar manners as progressive enhancement technology in progressive web apps, which allows the app to first load the basic content and functionality before delivering an enhanced version – for those users that have a faster Internet connection, additional features in their browser, or greater bandwidth.
When it comes to selecting a font from the library, you can filter by Category, Language, Font Properties, and even type your own sentence to see how it will look like with each font. This can really help you visualize and select the right fonts for your progressive web app.
Additionally, Google Fonts also has a section with minimalistic, but awesome icons that you can use completely for free:
You can filter by category or even by the style of each icon – outlined, filled, rounded, sharp and two tone.
10. Coverr
And last on our list of free design resources – but not the least important, of course – is Coverr. Coverr is a collection of beautifully shot stock videos that you can download completely for free for both commercial and non-commercial use, no attribution required.
You can download videos for a wide range of themes and topics – Business and Work, Nature, People, Fitness, Lifestyle and Wellness, Food and Drink, and much more. They also have additional, niche-specific collections such as “meditation time”, “coffee lovers”, “wheel lovers” and more – with the idea of helping people easily find the videos that are the most relevant for their bsuiness.
They even have free virtual background videos for Zoom! Definitely check them out if you want to make your progressive web app more dynamic.
Don’t have a progressive web app yet? You can check Beezer’s no-code drag and drop builder to start making awesome apps today, and have them up and running in no time!
