Work · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to Design Thinking

Hand cards for learning design thinking

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Design Thinking launched in 2016; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1. 1
   Drawing Ideas: A Hand-Drawn Approach for Better Design▲64

   A guide for drawing to creatively share ideas

   2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

2. 2
   Resource Cards▲150

   Collection of curated free resources for designers.

   2016 · resourcecards.com · its alternatives →

3. 3
   The Tarot Cards of Tech▲80

   A tool that gives designers a fun way to ask hard questions

   2018 · artefactgroup.com · its alternatives →

4. 4
   Circular Design Guide▲168

   Toolkit that brings design thinking full circle

   2017 · ellenmacarthurfoundation.org · its alternatives →

5. 5
   Designlab▲168

   Learn design by doing, with hands-on projects & mentorship

   2014 · designlab.com · its alternatives →

6. 6
   Call to Idea▲149

   Get design inspiration organized by visual components

   2015 · calltoidea.com · its alternatives →

7. 7
   brain.cards▲77

   A beautiful and intuitive flashcards app to help you learn.

   2015 · play.google.com · its alternatives →

8. 8
   Designspiration▲135

   Discover and share design inspiration

   2014 · designspiration.com · its alternatives →

9. 9
   Design for Humans▲231

   An email course about emotional design

   2015 · paulaborowska.gumroad.com · its alternatives →

10. 10
    Concepts▲125

    A smarter sketching, design and visual thinking app for iPad

    2015 · concepts.app · its alternatives →

11. 11
    Articulating Design Decisions▲64

    Learn to explain your design decisions so people agree!

    2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

12. 12
    Frame Innovation▲63

    Create New Thinking by Design

    2016 · mitpress.mit.edu · its alternatives →

13. 13
    Sketch Tricks▲145

    Articles for Sketch

    2015 · its alternatives →

14. 14
    Shape Design Question Cards▲45

    Creative cards to spark ideas when designing or critiquing.

    2019 · shape.co · its alternatives →

15. 15
    Learn from Great Design▲62

    An in-depth look at great design through "masterclasses"

    2015 · its alternatives →

16. 16
    Designing for Touch▲88

    A guide for designing touch interfaces

    2015 · abookapart.com · its alternatives →

17. 17
    Product Snacks▲144

    Bite-sized learning cards for product managers

    2015 · productsnacks.com · its alternatives →

18. 18
    Design Movies▲80

    Movies & talks about design

    2016 · designmovi.es · its alternatives →

19. 19
    Thinkertoys▲76

    A handbook of creative thinking techniques

    2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

20. 20
    Discover Design▲135

    Study design trends on your phone

    2014 · its alternatives →

21. 21
    The Sketch Handbook▲84

    Everything you wanted to know about designing with Sketch

    2016 · its alternatives →

22. 22
    Sketching User Experiences: Getting the Design Right and the Right Design▲75

    Sketching and early prototyping design methods

    2016 · amazon.co.uk · its alternatives →

23. 23
    Paul Rand: Conversations with Students▲69

    Paul Rand's words and thoughts on varied topics

    2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

24. 24
    Mobile Design Course▲112

    8 practical lessons to make you better at mobile design

    2015 · mobiledesignbook.com · its alternatives →

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →