The tech landscape has changed so much over the past few years that it may be confusing to anyone starting in 2025. Imagine telling a developer or designer in 2020 that you can create functional apps or websites with “vibes”.
Vibe coding is a creative, AI-assisted approach to software development. Instead of hand-coding every element or following a rigid development plan, you let ideas flow, describe what you want in natural language, and rely on AI to generate most of the code. You then tweak and adjust it as needed.
When you understand how code works, you can use AI tools like ChatGPT or GitHub Copilot to bring your ideas to life faster — with less technical overhead.
I had my first frontend developer interview in 2021. While waiting in the lobby, a fellow applicant asked me what my “stack” was.
It was my first time being asked that question, after only one year in tech. When I started during the pandemic, I was told by the tech influencers Twitter (now X) brought my way, to learn “HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.” I did just that — but soon, another wave of influencers told me I needed to use frameworks or libraries. At the time, Bootstrap and jQuery were in front of me.
During the interview, I was asked if I knew WordPress — a CMS (Content Management System). I wasn’t expecting that because the influencers didn’t say I needed that to be a dev. One more thing to learn, I guess. I learned how to use WordPress to create simple sites/blogs and discovered other CMS like Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify. It was an e-commerce company, and I never heard back from (or of) them again.
That day, my stack was HTML, CSS, and JavaScript plus Bootstrap and jQuery. Today, there are more options. There’s Tailwind, React, Vue, Angular, and so on. We now have headless CMS options besides traditional (headed?) ones.
The bottom line — stacks have evolved. There are even specialized groups like MERN, JAMstack, and MEAN.
I think it’s unrealistic to expect someone to master every tool in a given stack and build web apps offhand. But if you understand how things work — even just the basics — you can vibe.
It’s not a yes or no question. Arguments exist on both sides.
The primary objective of a UX designer is to create a plan for the arrangement of elements on a digital product. They often work closely with frontend developers, whose task is to bring the design to life. However, translating design-to-code can be frustrating because they don’t speak the same language.
One argument supporting the idea is that designers would understand whether their designs are realistic if they knew how to code. This will help their relationship with the developers and shorten the delivery time.
However, if learning to code interferes with their primary objective, it’s not worth the time or effort. Designers shouldn’t learn to code if they don’t practice enough for it to be a valuable skill.
The solution? There are too many web development stacks, and we shouldn’t expect a designer to master any one. However, it is advisable to gain a basic understanding of HTML, CSS, and possibly JavaScript, if you have the time.
HTML is beginner-friendly and will help you see how content gets structured. CSS is fairly straightforward, but advanced concepts, such as animation, can be challenging.
Vibe coding can be a valuable bonus skill for a designer, and understanding how to write frontend code will help. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are the most basic and simplest tech stack with which to vibe.
Vibe coding as a designer has several benefits:
Designers don’t have to wait for developers to implement their designs. You can use AI to build functional prototypes quickly from static mockups. It will reduce the amount of back-and-forth between designers and developers.
Use tools like Codepen and Webflow while vibe coding to test the code in a browser. Having working examples will help you test and communicate your ideas.
You can write better and more accurate natural language prompts when you understand how to code. LLMs can lead you astray when you don’t know how to communicate with them properly.
It helps to break down requests into small, specific steps. You vibe better when you and the devs speak the same language. As a result, the LLM can generate useful code.
Vibe coding can help you understand how your designs translate into code. You’ll have a better understanding of technical constraints, which will inform your design decisions.
As we’ve established, you don’t need to learn complex syntaxes and structures; just a basic understanding of HTML/CSS and some JS is enough to explore your ideas.
With vibe coding, designers can have a more hands-on involvement in a project beyond creating wireframes and mockups.
For example, you can build web components for a project using a code-to-design or design-to-code UX workflow. It will ensure that developers can accurately translate your vision into the final product.
Vibe coding gives you creative freedom, but despite its several benefits, there are several downsides. Relying on vibes alone is a bad idea. Like I said, the LLM will lead you astray.
LLM stands for Large Language Model, a machine learning model for natural language processing. The keyword here is “learning.” They learn from existing information, so despite their awesomeness, they only produce solutions for problems humans have already solved. Several sci-fi movies show AI evolving to become autonomous, often ending badly for humans, but the technology hasn’t reached this stage in reality — thankfully!
Some of the downsides of vibe coding include lost context, messy code structure, overengineering because LLMs like to be extra for no reason, inconsistent quality, and outdated code.
With this in mind, there are some important caveats for designers who want to try vibe coding:
Plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are great, but have limits, especially when building complex web projects. Frontend development, at the production level, requires a deep understanding of scalability, browser compatibility, accessibility, performance optimization, state management, and more.
You can test user flow and build quick prototypes to check out the layout, but the devs will likely use a framework that requires frontend expertise you can’t replicate with vibes.
Vibe coding doesn’t replace your expertise as a designer, it won’t improve your designs. You still need to understand and follow fundamental design principles.
A designer should solve user problems, which means understanding their needs and focusing on both pleasing aesthetics and usability. Even when vibe coding, the overall user experience will ultimately determine the success of your product.
Your design skills should matter more than coding. Vibe coding is a bonus, something in addition to what is expected from you as a designer. It’s doing more harm than good if it pulls your focus away from your primary objectives.
Yes — if it excites you. No — if it overwhelms you.
You don’t need to code to be a great designer. But vibe coding can be a powerful way to explore ideas, learn how your designs get built, and improve collaboration with developers. It won’t make you a developer overnight, and it won’t turn wireframes into fully accessible, scalable code on its own. But it’s a compelling addition to any UX designer’s toolkit — especially if you’re curious, experimental, and collaborative.
Just don’t force it. If you’re curious, play. If you’re not, skip it. The only rule is that you respect the vibe — and the user.
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