1 Perfecting the Best UX Design Practices for Arabic Websites
Olive Duppstadt edited this page 2025-08-11 07:11:56 +00:00

After partnering with three distinct international agencies that failed to generate results, my organization finally hired a local digital marketing company Riyadh. The disparity in outcomes was dramatic.

For a premium company, we identified that image and temporary channels dramatically surpassed Facebook for connection and sales, creating a intentional redistribution of effort that enhanced total results by one hundred sixty-seven percent.

Current platform usage in Saudi Arabia:

  • Visual platform: Primary for lifestyle brands
  • Ephemeral platform: Remarkably successful with Gen Z demographics
  • Discussion network: Strong for updates and public discourse
  • Short video: Quickly expanding notably with youth audiences
  • Business network: Valuable for B2B engagement

After considerable time of disappointing engagement with their prospective clients, their revamped social media strategy generated a significant growth in engagement and a 187% growth in digital footfall.

Recently, a company director complained that his platform strategy was consuming thousands of riyals with little performance. After analyzing his approach, I found several serious mistakes that are surprisingly common among Saudi businesses.

Using comprehensive research for a retail brand, we found that content published between night time dramatically outperformed those released during standard optimal periods, producing 143% greater response.

  • Reorganized the data entry sequence to match right-to-left thinking processes
  • Built a dual-language form system with automatic language switching
  • Optimized mobile interactions for right-handed Arabic typing

As someone who has developed over 30 Arabic websites in the last half-decade, I can assure you that applying Western UX practices to Arabic interfaces falls short. The distinctive elements of Arabic language and Saudi user preferences require a totally unique approach.

Throughout my previous project for a investment company in Riyadh, we discovered that users were consistently clicking the wrong navigation elements. Our eye-tracking demonstrated that their focus naturally flowed from right to left, but the primary navigation elements were located with a left-to-right importance.

  • Designed a numerical presentation system that accommodated both Arabic and English numbers
  • Redesigned charts to read from right to left
  • Used graphical cues that matched Saudi cultural connections

Recently, I was consulting with a prominent e-commerce company that had spent over 200,000 SAR on a stunning website that was performing terribly. The problem? They had simply translated their English site without addressing the essential design distinctions needed for Arabic Website Usability users.

  • Clearly mark which language should be used in each form element

  • Automatically switch keyboard layout based on field requirements

  • Locate form text to the right of their connected inputs

  • Verify that system feedback appear in the same language as the intended input

  • Realigning action buttons to the right-hand portion of forms and pages

  • Rethinking information hierarchy to move from right to left

  • Adjusting user controls to align with the right-to-left viewing pattern

  • Position the most critical content in the top-right section of the viewport

  • Arrange content blocks to progress from right to left and top to bottom

  • Apply stronger visual emphasis on the right side of equal layouts

  • Ensure that directional icons (such as arrows) direct in the appropriate direction for RTL layouts

  • Select fonts specially created for Arabic digital display (like Dubai) rather than traditional print fonts

  • Expand line height by 150-175% for improved readability

  • Set right-justified text (never center-aligned for main content)

  • Avoid condensed Arabic fonts that compromise the distinctive letter forms

  • Shifted product photos to the left side, with product details and call-to-action buttons on the right-hand side

  • Changed the photo slider to advance from right to left

  • Added a custom website design rates Arabic font that preserved legibility at various sizes