What is Material Design?

Material Design is Google's comprehensive design system combining flat design with subtle depth cues. Uses elevation (layered shadows), bold color, grid-based layouts, responsive animations, and physics-based motion. Provides detailed specifications for every UI element.

When Should You Use This?

Use Material Design for Android apps, Google ecosystem products, enterprise web apps, or when you need a complete design system out-of-the-box. Great for teams without dedicated designers. MUI (Material-UI) makes it easy to implement.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• •Generic appearance—everyone uses Material; customize colors, typography, and components
• •Over-elevation—not everything needs shadows; reserve higher elevation for modals and dialogs
• •Ignoring guidelines—Material has specific spacing, typography, and motion specs; follow them
• •Wrong platform—Material is Android-first; iOS users expect iOS conventions, not Material
• •Outdated version—Material Design 3 (2021+) looks different from Material Design 1; use latest

Real-World Examples

• •Google Products—Gmail, Drive, Calendar all use Material Design consistently
• •Asana—project management tool uses Material Design with custom brand colors
• •Airtable—database tool implements Material components with heavy customization
• •Notion—early versions used Material-inspired design (now more custom)