Social media apps are attention capture machines. Love them or hate them, they've refined certain UI patterns to an extreme degree. If you're building anything social, you need to understand what works and why.
This guide covers the core patterns. What I won't tell you is whether building another dopamine slot machine is a good use of your time. That's your call.
The core loop
Every social app runs on the same basic loop:
- Create - User makes content
- Distribute - Content reaches other users
- React - Others engage (like, comment, share)
- Notify - Creator learns about engagement
- Return - Creator comes back to check and create more
Design decisions affect how fast and frequently this loop spins. More cycles = more engagement = more time spent.
Get started fast: Generate your social app's screens with feeds, profiles, and engagement patterns — describe your concept and see it come to life.
Feed design
The feed is the heart of any social app. Users spend most of their time here.
Infinite scroll
The pattern everyone uses because it works.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Post 1 │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Avatar Name • 2h │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ Post content here... │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ ♡ 234 💬 45 ↗ Share │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ Post 2 │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ ... │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ [Loading more...] │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Why it works: No pagination friction. Content just keeps appearing. Users don't have to decide to see more—it happens automatically.
The dark pattern debate: Infinite scroll is designed to keep people scrolling longer than they intended. Some apps now add "You're all caught up" breaks. Others lean into the infinity.
Pull to refresh
Standard pattern for checking new content.
↓ Pull down
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ↻ Release to refresh │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Posts... │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Details that matter:
- Satisfying animation and haptic feedback
- Clear threshold before refresh triggers
- Show what's new after refresh (new post count or visual indicator)
Algorithmic vs. chronological
A constant tension in social feed design.
Algorithmic: Shows content the system thinks you'll engage with. Higher engagement, but users feel manipulated and miss things.
Chronological: Shows content in order posted. Feels fair, but quality varies and heavy users dominate.
Most apps now offer both:
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ For You │ Following │
├───────────┴─────────────────────────┤
│ Feed content... │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Twitter/X made this famous. "For You" is algorithmic; "Following" is chronological (mostly).
Content types in feeds
Modern feeds mix content types:
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Text post │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Image post │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Image] │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Video post (autoplay muted) │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ ▶ [Video] │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Link preview │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Image] Article Title │ │
│ │ source.com │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Shared post (retweet/repost) │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ 🔁 Name reposted │ │
│ │ ┌───────────────────────┐ │ │
│ │ │ Original post... │ │ │
│ │ └───────────────────────┘ │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Design each type consistently. Users should recognize what they're looking at instantly.
Profile pages
Where users present themselves and others evaluate them.
The standard layout
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ← Back ⋮ Menu │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Cover Image │ │
│ └────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ ┌─────┐ │
│ │Avatar│ Name │
│ └─────┘ @username │
│ Following ✓ │
│ │
│ Bio text goes here. Links and │
│ hashtags are tappable. │
│ │
│ 📍 Location 🔗 website.com │
│ 📅 Joined March 2024 │
│ │
│ 142 Following 3.2K Followers │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Posts │ Replies │ Media │ Likes │
├────────┴─────────┴───────┴─────────┤
│ │
│ User's posts... │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Anatomy:
- Cover image (optional branding/personality)
- Avatar (consistent across the app)
- Name and username (distinct—name can change, username is identity)
- Follow state (am I following them?)
- Bio (self-description, often with links)
- Stats (following/follower counts)
- Content tabs (different views of their activity)
Verification and badges
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Name ✓ │
│ @username │
│ Verified Account │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Verification started as identity confirmation. Now it's become complicated—paid subscriptions, creator programs, etc. Whatever your verification system, make what it means clear.
Edit profile flow
Users care deeply about how they present themselves.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Edit Profile │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Cover Image │
│ ┌────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Tap to change] │ │
│ └────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ Avatar │
│ ┌─────┐ [Change Photo] │
│ └─────┘ │
│ │
│ Name │
│ [________________] │
│ │
│ Bio │
│ [________________] │
│ [________________] │
│ 42/160 characters │
│ │
│ Location │
│ [________________] │
│ │
│ Website │
│ [________________] │
│ │
│ [ Save Changes ] │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Show character limits. Bios have constraints. Let users see them.
Preview changes. Show what the profile will look like before saving.
Creating content
The post composer. Getting this right affects how much content gets created.
Minimal friction
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Cancel [ Post ] │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ │
│ │ You │ What's happening? │
│ └─────┘ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 📷 🎬 📊 📍 @mention #tag │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Principles:
- Keyboard opens immediately
- Post button always visible
- Media and extras accessible but not distracting
- Character count visible when approaching limit
Multi-image and media
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ┌───────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │
│ │ Image 1 │ │ Image 2 │ │
│ │ ✕ │ │ ✕ │ [+] │
│ └───────────┘ └───────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Allow removing individual images. Show a clear way to add more.
Drafts and recovery
Social apps should save drafts automatically. Users type long posts and accidentally close the app. Losing content frustrates users and reduces posting.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Drafts (2) │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ "That thread about startup..." │
│ Yesterday • Edit • Delete │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ "Hot take: the best way to..." │
│ 2 days ago • Edit • Delete │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Engagement mechanics
How users interact with content.
Reactions
The like button changed social media. But it's evolved.
Single reaction (Twitter, Instagram):
♡ Like (simple, clear)
Multiple reactions (Facebook, LinkedIn):
👍 ❤️ 😂 😮 😢 😡 (more expressive, more data)
One-tap vs. long-press: Some apps require long-press for reaction options. Others show them on tap.
Comments and replies
Threaded conversations need clear visual hierarchy.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Original post... │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Comments (23) │
│ │
│ User A: First comment │
│ ├─ User B: Reply to A │
│ │ └─ User A: Reply to B │
│ └─ User C: Another reply │
│ │
│ User D: Second top-level comment │
│ └─ User E: Reply │
│ │
│ [Show more comments] │
│ │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Add a comment... │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Design decisions:
- How deep do threads go? (2-3 levels is usually max before it gets confusing)
- Show all replies or collapse after a threshold?
- Sort by time or by engagement?
Sharing and reposting
Different mechanics for amplification:
Repost/Retweet: Shares to your feed with attribution Quote post: Shares with your added commentary Copy link: For sharing outside the app Share to DMs: Send directly to someone
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Share │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 🔁 Repost │
│ 💬 Quote │
│ 📤 Send via DM │
│ 🔗 Copy link │
│ 📩 Share to... │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Notifications
The hook that brings users back.
Notification types
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Notifications │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ All │ Mentions │ Follows │
├───────┴──────────┴─────────────────┤
│ 🔴 @sarah liked your post │
│ 2m ago │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 🔴 @mike replied: "Great point..." │
│ 15m ago │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ @team started following you │
│ 1h ago │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Grouping matters. "Sarah and 47 others liked your post" beats 48 separate notifications.
Unread indicators. Red dots, bold text, background color—users need to see what's new.
Notification settings
Users need granular control. Some want every notification. Others want near-silence.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Notification Preferences │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Likes │
│ ○ All ● People I follow ○ Off │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Comments │
│ ● All ○ People I follow ○ Off │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ New followers │
│ ○ All ● People I follow ○ Off │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Direct messages │
│ ● All ○ People I follow ○ Off │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Discovery
How users find new people and content.
Search
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 🔍 Search │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Recent │
│ @sarah_codes 🕐 │
│ #TechTwitter 🕐 │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Trending │
│ 1. #AI │
│ 2. WorldCup │
│ 3. iPhone16 │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Search should handle:
- People (by name and username)
- Hashtags and topics
- Content (if your app supports it)
Show recent searches for quick access.
Recommendations
"People you might know" or "Suggested for you."
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Suggested for you │
│ Based on who you follow │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ @designer_alex │
│ │ │ UX Designer at Company │
│ └─────┘ 12 mutual followers │
│ [ Follow ] │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ @techwriter_sam │
│ │ │ Writing about startups │
│ └─────┘ 8 mutual followers │
│ [ Follow ] │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Explain why. "12 mutual followers" or "Followed by @friend" helps users decide.
Direct messages
Private conversation layer.
Conversation list
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Messages [+] │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ Sarah Chen │
│ │ │ Sure, that works for me │
│ └─────┘ 2m ago • 🔵 │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ Mike Johnson │
│ │ │ You: Sounds good │
│ └─────┘ Yesterday │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌─────┐ Team Chat (5) │
│ │ │ Alex: Let's sync tomorrow │
│ └─────┘ 3d ago │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Unread indicators clear. Blue dot, bold text, or similar.
Preview last message. Users shouldn't have to open each conversation to remember context.
Your own messages marked. "You:" prefix for messages you sent.
Message thread
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ← Sarah Chen ⋮ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ ┌─────────────────┐ │
│ │ Hey, quick │ 2:34 PM │
│ │ question about │ │
│ │ the project │ │
│ └─────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ┌─────────────────┐ │
│ 2:35 PM │ Sure, what's up │ │
│ └─────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ┌─────────────────┐ │
│ │ Can we push the │ 2:36 PM │
│ │ deadline? │ │
│ └─────────────────┘ │
│ │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ [Message... ] 📷 Send │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
Visual distinction between sent and received. Different sides, colors, or shapes.
Timestamps but not on every message. Group messages within a time window.
Read receipts. Optional and controversial. Some users want them; others find them stressful.
Building social apps with AI
AI tools like GenDesigns' AI UI generator can generate social app interfaces quickly. The patterns are well-established.
Example prompt:
Design a social media app for sharing book recommendations.
Screens needed:
1. Home feed with book review posts (image, rating, review text)
2. User profile with their reviews and reading stats
3. Book detail page with all reviews for that book
4. Post composer for adding a new review
Style: Clean and literary. Warm colors, serif fonts for book titles.
Think Goodreads meets Instagram.
Include engagement (likes, comments) but keep it tasteful—not attention-grabbing.
Then iterate on specifics like notification design, search behavior, and discovery features.
Ethics of social design
I'd be negligent not to mention this.
Social apps are designed to be addictive. Infinite scroll, variable rewards (will this post do well?), social validation (likes as approval)—these are powerful psychological mechanisms.
You can build social features without maximizing engagement at all costs. Consider:
Respect users' time. Add "You're all caught up" breaks. Show time-spent metrics.
Give control. Let users mute, block, and customize what they see.
Be transparent. Explain how the algorithm works. Let users choose chronological if they want.
Design for wellbeing. Not every feature needs to maximize time spent.
This isn't just ethics—it's increasingly regulation. Laws around addictive design and teen safety are coming.
Conclusion
Social app design is a well-mapped territory. The patterns exist because they work. Feed, profile, create, engage, notify, discover, message — plus solid onboarding — these are the building blocks.
What you do with these patterns is the question. You can build another engagement machine, or you can build something that connects people without exploiting their attention.
The UI patterns are the same either way. The intent is up to you.
Related reading:
- Mobile UI Patterns 2026 - Feed and navigation patterns
- App Onboarding Design Examples - Social app onboarding
- How to Design a Mobile App with AI - Build social apps with AI