Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
74 Evil Designers That Made Everyone Suffer Because Of Their Badly-Made Products
Every day we use a wide range of apps, devices, and products without even thinking about where they really come from. In reality, some designer probably spent a ton of time figuring out how to create the best item, which is how it eventually landed in your hands.
The problem is that some products clearly aren’t made properly, or maybe it’s that the person creating them just wanted to watch the world burn. That’s why we filled this list with crazy design fails that show just how bizarrely some things are created, so that you know what to avoid in the future.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Felt Like This Sub Would Appreciate This Statement
Janissary35680 5 days ago
This "Maybe later" bullshit really pisses me off. Every time that's presented as an option I'm reminded of that old New Yorker cartoon and want to shout: "How about never? Does never work for you?"
RELATED:
#2
Both Weigh 500g But The Green One Is In A 30% "Bigger Bag More To Share"
#3
1001 Stickers And 768 Of Them Are Useless Squares. Thanks Disney
Designing something people can use starts with figuring out how it should look, feel, and function. According to Miro, a collaborative platform for working with AI, whether someone is creating a virtual or physical product, they need to understand consumers and align the item’s design with the company’s objectives.
Before writing any code or even inventing anything, businesses must bring together User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) specialists to conduct research, perform business analysis, marketing, and eventually to define all the design elements. This last step matters because even the most innovative ideas can fall flat if users find the product absurd, weird, or hard to use.
#4
Hellofresh. If I Don’t Need To Call To Make Orders, I Shouldn’t Need To Call To Unsubscribe
Lily bloom 6 days ago
It's annoying but if you call and just say you want to cancel because you simply can't afford it (even if you can) they realize pretty quickly they aren't getting a commission on your call and will cancel your plan easily
#5
The Amount Of "Disposable" Plastic That Comes In A Toy Case With 4 Dolls.
#6
I Chose The Bottle Because A Tube Wasn't Enough! This Trojan Trickery Is An Offence Coming From A Brand With Recognition
The most important element of any product is its visual appeal because it shapes a consumer’s first impression, builds trust, and communicates the brand's identity. That’s why innovators should focus on layout, colors, and typography, as that can draw people in at first glance.
Another essential part of product design is its functionality, which demonstrates how well it works. Every invention should be intuitive, reliable, efficient, and smooth to use, or customers might not want to try it again. That’s why designers need to spend a lot of time researching, prototyping, and testing every bit of the item before rolling it out to the public.
#7
Arguably The Most Infuriatingly Designed Chocolate Boxes
#8
Trashy Company
#9
This Mcdonalds Menu
Good product design is about creating things that are usable and delight consumers. People need to keep coming back to the invention, either because it's intriguing or because it's easy to use. That’s why UX and UI researchers spend a lot of time on trials and tests, or else they might end up with something atrocious.
According to Cambridge Design Technology, a good product should empathize with the user’s needs and solve their problems in an uncomplicated way. A good example is when Coca-Cola changed its smooth bottle to one with contours so people could grip it better, and it also looked aesthetically pleasing.
#10
Cup Design That Makes The Drink Look Like It Has Actual Fruit
#11
Shrinkflation Used By Cadbury To Literally Cut Corners. The Bottom Chocolate Bar Is More Than 8 Percent Smaller
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
I bet their official reasoning was 'aesthetically more pleasing', rather than 'let's assume our customers don't know geometry'.
#12
You Have To Pay To Unsubscribe From This Terrible Company
BarkingSquirell 6 days ago
I am becoming more disturbed as I read. It's my own fault for thinking society isn't going to h@ll in a hand basket.
The world is full of amazing products that have been adapted and reinvented to keep fulfilling consumers' needs. According to Analogy, a hardware design studio, a classic example is the Heinz Ketchup bottle, which used to be heavy and resulted in messy, slow pours.
Eventually, many frustrated customers pushed the company to change the packaging to an upside-down squeeze bottle that let the ketchup come out faster and more smoothly. This simple change let gravity do the work, so users didn't have to do more to get what they wanted.
#13
This Hotel Thermostat Turns Off The AC When No Motion Is Detected. Guess What I Am Not Doing When Sleeping?
Barbara Turner 4 days ago
Now I'll have to travel with one of those plastic birds that tilt on the edge of a glass of water.
#14
Keurig Sensor Blocks Your Brew Unless It's "K-Cup Compatible", AKA Has Scannable Foil. Slap On An Old Foil To A 3rd Party Cup And Suddenly No Issue
#15
Designed For Dissuading The Homeless. Literally Just Uncomfortable For Everyone Else
Sometimes the smallest changes lead to the best product design, and Dyson understood this, which is why they completely changed their vacuum bags. Their founder realized the machine’s suction weakened as the dust bag filled, so he set out to fix it.
Instead of changing the bags, Dyson created 5,127 prototypes and eventually decided to remove the receptacle completely. Instead, the company began using cyclone technology that separated dirt without blocking airflow, and that redesign completely changed the consumer experience.
#16
Natural My Foot
#17
Labelling Wipes That Are Toxic For Aquatic Life And Non-Degradable As ‘Flushable’
#18
It Was A Free Trial Plan
When it comes to perfecting a product, it’s important to forget the old saying ‘don’t judge a book by its cover.’ According to Tekglide, a consulting firm, people almost always choose a digital or physical item based on its appearance, which is why designers need to make sure consumers are drawn to their inventions.
The best way to do this is to use clean, neat elements that help people feel calm and intrigued. Too much messiness or chaos can feel overwhelming, so even with fonts and colors, designers should opt for sleek, streamlined ideas. People also respond well to simple elements or drawings rather than products with walls of text.
#19
Unremovable Ads On My $2,500 Samsung Smart TV
#20
Ea Decided To Add Full-On Commercials In The Middle Of Gameplay In A $60 Game A Month After It's Release So It Wasn't Talked About In Reviews
#21
Chipotle Goes All-Out Advertising That For The Next Week Delivery Is Free, And Then Casually Makes The Delivery Menu Priced Higher Than The Regular One
As you may have noticed from this list, some designers expect consumers to roll with the punches and accept the weirdest ideas ever. Unfortunately, this attitude won’t work in the long run because people want smooth, efficient, quick-working inventions.
Anything that makes an individual’s day better without requiring many steps is exactly what they’ll choose over anything flashy. With digital products especially, designers need to make sure their invention works on any device without lag, or users will drop like flies.
#22
Completely Covering Your Only Menu With Ads
#23
My Age Preferences Are There For A Reason, Tinder
A major part of good product design is accessibility, which means an item should be made with different types of people and their capabilities in mind. For digital products, inventors need to consider font size, contrasting colors so nothing fades into the background, and adjustable text.
Physical products should be easy to manage, hold, and use, not complicated or bulky. The best way for designers to assess an item's accessibility is to run multiple tests with a variety of people and keep making prototypes until something fits.
#25
They Replaced Half The Mirrors In My Local Shopping Mall's Bathroom With Advertising Boards!
#26
The Fact That I Can't Uninstall Facebook
Billo66 5 days ago (edited)
You have to run debug mode on your phone (hidden setting) plus a couple other settings. Then download and install ADM platform-tools-latest-windows(android) in windows. then you can access every app with a command line, get rid of it, and not risk rooting/bricking your phone. You can undo and if worse cones to worse a factory reset fixes it all.
#27
We Can't Even Pump Fuel Anymore Without Holding A Digital Billboard (Netherlands)
Bill Swallow 5 days ago
I carry a small piece of cardboard and duct tape in my car specifically for gas pumps.
Being a designer isn’t easy, but it can be fulfilling if you make a product everybody likes. Unfortunately, some inventors are so chaotic they might be playing tricks on people with terrible products, as you can see in the photos in this list.
If you’ve ever come across something that’s been horribly designed, we’d love to see it. So please share your photos and experiences so we can all know what to avoid.
#28
Self Checkout In The Airport Prompts You For A Tip
#29
I Canceled My Account Immediately After Getting This Email
#30
Nice, Big Bottle Of Herbs Of Prov... Whaaa?
#31
Bmw New Patented Screw-Head Designed To Limit Repairs To Authorized Dealers And Prevent Independent Servicing
#32
Food Delivery Service That Tells You “Someone Is At The Door! Okay We Lied 🙈”
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
Right, this is super likely to make me want to pick them for my next takeaway 🙄
#33
I Love Ads On My £250 Console That I Continue To Pay £6 A Month To Play On
BarkingSquirell 6 days ago
I accepted Netflix with ads due to the price differential. They are almost all provincial gambling ads.
#34
I Firmly Believe That Tesla Is Anything But Jerks, And Can Even Think Of A Couple Of Reasons Why They Added This Feature
#35
Phone Ad That Was Glued To Our Car
Bill Swallow 5 days ago
One more reason to install a DashCam. That way, you have a chance to see who did it and track them down.
#36
Canon Inkjet Printer Doesn’t Allow You To Scan Papers When The Ink Cartridges Run Out
Janissary35680 5 days ago
Canon's marketing unit obviously believes that an "All-in-one" printer is an "All-or-nothing" printer.😄
#38
I Guess Apples Have Advertisements On Them Now
#39
Dave & Busters Spin Game Landed On The 500 And It Only Gave Me 4 Tickets. Showed To Manager And Said It Needed To Be In The Middle
#40
My $200 Textbook Won’t Let Me Copy Paste More Then 84 Words To Make A Study Guide
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
If this was me, I'd probably end the day a) very annoyed at both the document and myself, but b) very good at estimating the length of 84 words.
#41
Transparent Salmon Package Tinted Pink
StumblingThroughLife 5 days ago (edited)
I'd rather go to fresh fish/meat counters than it being pre-packaged, esp regarding seafood.
#42
Dislikes Helped You Know If A Video Was A Scam, Misleading Or Had False Information
#43
Spending $175 On A Textbook Only To Receive A 2 Inch Stack Of Unbound Papers. Binder Sold Separately!
Brier Random 6 days ago
This is actually good, you can carry a chapter at a time instead of hauling the whole 10 lb. book. And a three-ring binder costs a dollar at any thrift store.
#44
Paying A “Digital Delivery Fee” For A Rented Pdf Textbook 🤨
#45
Unsubscribe Button Only Pauses Emails For 2 Days
#46
Walmart Employee Here. We Were Given These Shirts Today. Walmart Profits Billions Off Of This Pandemic, Then Compares Their Sacrifice To Ww2 Veterans
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
'Scientists, Doctors, Nurses, Walmart'? I'm not sure what's weirder - the comparison to WWII vets, or that line-up.
#47
Sony Was Granted A Patent To Make A TV That Will Only Stop Showing A Commercial Once You Stand Up And Say The Brand Name Out Loud
#48
Yesterday It Is Announced At$t Got Hit With A $60 Million Fine. Today I Get This On My Account
#49
Literal Hell For Budget Flyers.(Standing Seats)
#50
Apparently My Samsung Fridge Has Ads Now
#51
I Paid $55 To Remove The Company Watermark They Put On The Face, Just To Have Them Put Their Logo On The Printed Copy
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
Somewhat unfortunate name, given that 'prestige' officially means 'the respect and admiration someone or something receives because of high quality, success, or importance'. This is not a practice to be admired.
#52
My Brother Bought A 20000mah Powerbank It Couldn't Fully Charge His Phone So My Mom Opened The Powerbank And They Found This... Only 3 Batteries Are Connected To The Powerbank And The Rest Are Dummies
#53
Dolly Parton’s Instagram Page The Day After Her Passing
#54
Norton Security After Canceling Subscription
BarkingSquirell 6 days ago
I've got some sort of McAfee lesser virus which constantly pops up in BP. Tried removing it by deleting the *exe file to no avail. Pandas?
#55
My Car Is Getting Advertisements Now?
#56
States "Supreme Cotton" But Has Zero Cotton
#57
Microsoft Reveresed The Scale To Catch Users Instinctively Clicking Left For A Low Rating
#58
Twitch Will Now Pause Ads When Switching Tabs
StarCrossedFriday 6 days ago
I've just decided I'll treat every ad break as time for a quick mini workout. I imagine I'll look like Terry Crews by November.
#59
Making You Buy A Coca-Cola Product By Hiding The Water
#60
Does This Go Here? It Feels Like A Jerk Move
Janissary35680 5 days ago
The Angry Birds game had something like this at one time. You had to purchase something to complete a series of steps for earning a reward of some kind.
#61
Oven Air Fryer Function Refuses To Work Without WiFi Connection. Ge Profile Pts700sn. Do Not Buy
#62
Some TikTok Searches Trigger A Location Pop-Up That Cannot Be Closed, Only Accepted
#63
For Some Recaptchas You Need To Have To Camera To Gesture Your Hand To Complete
#64
Ok This Is Really Funny
Lily bloom 6 days ago
Why are stars 2 & 3 censored? New terribly offensive 2~3 reference I'm unaware of?
#65
No Duolingo, You May Not Put An Ad For Your Subscription On My Lock Screen
Heir of Durin 6 days ago (edited)
Is this a push notification? If so, the app was prob given permission to do this. Though I’m sure and ad wasn’t the kind of popup OP wanted.
#66
Minimum 20% Tip And You Don’t Bring Me The Bill
#67
Lenovo Falsely Tells Users They're Almost Out Of Storage To Get Them To Click The Notification For A Dropbox Ad
#68
Can't Order Food Without Accepting To Receive "Marketing Materials"
#69
The Packaging Of This Drink
#71
My Printer Just Did A Firmware Update And No Longer Recognizes My Third-Party Ink
#73
This Packaging Gotta Be Illegal, Right?
#74
This Black Lodge Ass Floor Tiling That Supermarkets In My City Have Now
Add New Image
Explore more of these tags
What do you think ?
BarkingSquirell 6 days ago
See, to me, this is dystopian come to life. All we as consumers can really do is: 1) take our business elsewhere and, 2) use valuable time complaining. We can't let these guys win yet how are we supposed to not lose?
nottheactualphoto 5 days ago
I take my business elsewhere. But that only works so long as there exists an "elsewhere" that doesn't pull this shit.
Load More Replies...
Adam Benson 6 days ago
This is why I've been spending more time reading books and watching DVDs. They don't need charging or Wifi access and I know that random ads won't pop up from nowhere.
Rudie Cant Fail 5 days ago
Precisely. Perfectly happy with my dumb car and my dumb house. I can fire up my DVD player anytime, and my old CD stereo system still rocks
Load More Replies...
BarkingSquirell 6 days ago
See, to me, this is dystopian come to life. All we as consumers can really do is: 1) take our business elsewhere and, 2) use valuable time complaining. We can't let these guys win yet how are we supposed to not lose?
nottheactualphoto 5 days ago
I take my business elsewhere. But that only works so long as there exists an "elsewhere" that doesn't pull this shit.
Load More Replies... Adam Benson 6 days ago
This is why I've been spending more time reading books and watching DVDs. They don't need charging or Wifi access and I know that random ads won't pop up from nowhere.
Rudie Cant Fail 5 days ago
Precisely. Perfectly happy with my dumb car and my dumb house. I can fire up my DVD player anytime, and my old CD stereo system still rocks
Load More Replies... 
Related on Bored Panda
