Mobile app onboarding examples
Building a mobile app and deciding between a welcome screen, account creation and a first useful action? Study captured screens from Duolingo, Headspace and Airbnb, compare their choices, then outline your own onboarding. Read the examples without an account; create a free account to keep your references together.
Leave with a plan for your onboarding
Copy this outline into your project notes. Replace each item in brackets, then connect references to your decisions in a collection.
Onboarding plan for [my app] First useful action: [the outcome someone should reach]. Before this action, we ask for: [information], because [reason]. We can ask later for: [nonessential information]. An account becomes necessary at: [step and reason]. A returning user signs in through: [visible action]. After an error, refusal or exit: [alternative and way to resume]. References to compare: [saved screens and workflows]. Hypothesis to test: [change and outcome observed with users].
Plan your app’s onboarding with references to support each decision.
Create your free account with GitHub to save references, organize collections and compare screens side by side.
One preview workflow per app, with up to 4 visible screenshots. A free account includes 3 complete workflow unlocks per calendar month. No payment card needed.
- Open the workflow that addresses your question.
- Bookmark useful references from it.
- Group screens in a collection, compare them and record your decision.
After signing in, you will return to these examples to save your first reference.
References to explore
Explore these references and follow each app’s available workflows.
Start with the first useful outcome
Onboarding is more than a sequence of welcome screens. It connects an app’s promise to a first action: completing a lesson, choosing a workout, creating a list or finding relevant content. Define the outcome your own app should make accessible before comparing interfaces.
Open a captured workflow at its first screen and follow the steps in order. Note what someone knows about the product at each point, what information is requested and which steps can be skipped. An individual screenshot shows a layout; the sequence explains its role.
Compare the decisions screen by screen
Two apps can use similar forms at very different moments. Look at the context before account creation or a permission request. Separate information that is essential for a first action from information your product can request later.
