Mulah App

Mulah App

Mulah is an all-in-one finance app designed to help users budget, save, send money, and manage their financial lives in one simple place.

Mulah is an all-in-one finance app designed to help users budget, save, send money, and manage their financial lives in one simple place.

Mulah is an all-in-one finance app designed to help users budget, save, send money, and manage their financial lives in one simple place.

Services

Visual Design
UI & UX Design

Industries

Finance

Date

October 2024 - May 2025

Oct 2024 - May 2025

Design Process Timeline

Design Process Timeline

Think of this timeline as a map rather than a checklist. It organizes the work into key phases so you can easily explore the project, while the actual design process involved revisiting and refining those phases as the solution evolved.

Overview
Discover
Define
Ideate
Design
Test
Launch

The Problem

The Problem

Overview

Overview

Managing personal finances is overwhelming, especially when tools are scattered.


Problem Statement: If managing money requires juggling multiple accounts and apps, the users can feel stressed, lose track of their finances, and struggle to make informed decisions.


Through this project, I set out to understand how people manage their finances today and identify where confusion or friction occurs. From tracking expenses in one app to checking credit reports in another, users often juggle multiple tools that don’t communicate with each other. This lack of integration leads to poor financial awareness. The challenge isn’t just about having too many tools, it’s about lacking a sense of clarity, trust, and control over one’s financial journey.

Managing personal finances is overwhelming, especially when tools are scattered.


Problem Statement: If managing money requires juggling multiple accounts and apps, the users can feel stressed, lose track of their finances, and struggle to make informed decisions.


Through this project, I set out to understand how people manage their finances today and identify where confusion or friction occurs. From tracking expenses in one app to checking credit reports in another, users often juggle multiple tools that don’t communicate with each other. This lack of integration leads to poor financial awareness. The challenge isn’t just about having too many tools, it’s about lacking a sense of clarity, trust, and control over one’s financial journey.

The Solution

The Solution

Overview

Overview

Create a responsive web app that makes finance easier to manage all in one place.


The design turns complex financial data into digestible, actionable insights, reduces decision fatigue, and encourages confident, consistent engagement, making personal finance easier to understand and manage for users at any stage of their journey.

A Unified Solution for Smarter Money Management.


Create a responsive web app that makes personal finance feel approachable and actionable—providing an intuitive and engaging experience.

Competitive Analysis

Competitive Analysis

Phase 1: Discover

Phase 1: Discover

The competition lacks consolidating aspects.


I kick started my research with a competitive analysis of 4 popular apps that aimed to help users manage their finances. It quickly became clear that while each app addressed parts of financial management, none offered a truly all-in-one seamless experience. This discovery became the foundation for my proposed solution.

The competition lacks consolidating aspects.


I kick started my research with a competitive analysis of 4 popular apps that aimed to help users manage their finances. It quickly became clear that while each app addressed parts of financial management, none offered a truly all-in-one seamless experience. This discovery became the foundation for my proposed solution.

User Interviews

User Interviews

User Interviews

Phase 1: Discover

Phase 1: Discover

Insights revealed a clear opportunity to reduce the time users spend managing money.


After initial research, I concluded that a deep-dive needed to occur to really gather insights on user behaviors, emotions, and thoughts. This led me to conduct my first round of user interviews with three participants at different levels of financial expertise. I’ve asked them the questions below to pinpoint common frictions, trends, frustrations, and methods to money management.


Research Questions:


  1. How do you manage your finances?

  1. How do you feel about the current tools or resources you use for financial management?

  1. What challenges do you face when organizing your finances? Why?

  1. In what ways do you think money management could be improved for you?

  1. How do you typically handle unexpected expenses?

Insights revealed a clear opportunity to reduce the time users spend managing money.


After initial research, I concluded that a deep-dive needed to occur to really gather insights on user behaviors, emotions, and thoughts. This led me to conduct my first round of user interviews with three participants at different levels of financial expertise. I’ve asked them the questions below to pinpoint common frictions, trends, frustrations, and methods to money management.


Research Questions:


  1. How do you manage your finances?

  1. How do you feel about the current tools or resources you use for financial management?

  1. What challenges do you face when organizing your finances? Why?

  1. In what ways do you think money management could be improved for you?

  1. How do you typically handle unexpected expenses?

The Main Insight

The Main Insight

The Main Insight

Phase 1: Discover

Phase 1: Discover

All participants have an organizational system for money.


Based on the common trends in my affinity map, it became clear that all the participants had the same approach and experience when managing their finances. All participants needed to sign-in to multiple apps to collect the necessary data to check their financial standing.

All participants have an organizational system for money.


Based on the common trends in my affinity map, it became clear that all the participants had the same approach and experience when managing their finances. All participants needed to sign-in to multiple apps to collect the necessary data to check their financial standing.

The Target Audience

The Target Audience

The Target Audience

Phase 2: Define

Phase 2: Define

User Personas outline who we design for and why.


In this case study, I developed detailed user personas of Maria and Jeremy to better understand the target audience, align design decisions with real needs, and guide the overall user experience strategy..

User Personas outline who we design for and why.


In this case study, I developed detailed user personas of Maria and Jeremy to better understand the target audience, align design decisions with real needs, and guide the overall user experience strategy..

Early Ideation

Early Ideation

Early Ideation

Phase 3: Ideate

Phase 3: Ideate

User flow charts helped define efficient navigation and task completion.


Using insights from the two user personas, I designed user flows that map out their core interactions within Mulah. This helped refine key touchpoints and ensure a seamless, user-centered experience across essential financial tasks.

User flow charts helped define efficient navigation and task completion.


Using insights from the two user personas, I designed user flows that map out their core interactions within Mulah. This helped refine key touchpoints and ensure a seamless, user-centered experience across essential financial tasks.

User flow charts helped define efficient navigation and task completion.


Using insights from the two user personas, I designed user flows that map out their core interactions within Mulah. This helped refine key touchpoints and ensure a seamless, user-centered experience across essential financial tasks.

Design

Design

Design

Phase 4: Design

Phase 4: Design

Hypothesized features targeting core user needs to create a successful experience.


Initially, I spent a week trying to decide which of the following approaches to streamlining financial management was most effective: AI financial chat bot assistance, in-app educational micro content, or a personalized financial health dashboard. Ultimately, I chose the dashboard because it best supports the goal of consolidating and simplifying how users interact with their money while letting users feel in control. The following features were designed to consolidate key financial information and reduce confusion for users:

Hypothesized features targeting core user needs to create a successful experience.


Initially, I spent a week trying to decide which of the following approaches to streamlining financial management was most effective: AI financial chat bot assistance, in-app educational micro content, or a personalized financial health dashboard. Ultimately, I chose the dashboard because it best supports the goal of consolidating and simplifying how users interact with their money while letting users feel in control. The following features were designed to consolidate key financial information and reduce confusion for users:

Improvements

Improvements

Improvements

Phase 4: Design

Phase 4: Design

Three major design improvements


Based on various feedback from my tutor, mentor, peers, and participants I constantly iterated my design over the span of 2 months, with the following major improvements:

Three major design improvements


Based on various feedback from my tutor, mentor, peers, and participants I constantly iterated my design over the span of 2 months, with the following major improvements:

User Testing

User Testing

User Testing

Phase 5: Test

Phase 5: Test

Usability Test Report


Initially, I spent a week trying to decide which of the following approaches to streamlining financial management was most effective: AI financial chat bot assistance, in-app educational microcontent, or a personalized financial health dashboard. Ultimately, I chose the dashboard because it best supports the goal of consolidating and simplifying how users interact with their money while letting users feel in control.

Usability Test Report


Initially, I spent a week trying to decide which of the following approaches to streamlining financial management was most effective: AI financial chat bot assistance, in-app educational microcontent, or a personalized financial health dashboard. Ultimately, I chose the dashboard because it best supports the goal of consolidating and simplifying how users interact with their money while letting users feel in control.

Full Test Report

Learnings + Next Steps

Learnings + Next Steps

Learnings + Next Steps

Phase 5: Test

Phase 5: Test

I really enjoyed working on this project, even though participant recruitment was limited and I was only able to conduct testing with five users. The feedback gathered from the usability sessions provided valuable insights that helped me develop an effective strategy to address the key issues uncovered during my research. I prioritized resolving the following critical errors:


✓ Prototype the section to automatically close if a user wants to open another one.


✓ Make input boxes more distinct by thickening the border and changing the box fill.


✓ Fix the favorited recipients by making the entire tab a clickable button.


✓ Pin the top navigation menu to follow the user while scrolling.


✓ Add a background to the back of the icons so clicking them is easier.


These improvements not only enhanced the overall usability of the design but also created a more intuitive and satisfying experience for users.

I really enjoyed working on this project, even though participant recruitment was limited and I was only able to conduct testing with five users. The feedback gathered from the usability sessions provided valuable insights that helped me develop an effective strategy to address the key issues uncovered during my research. I prioritized resolving the following critical errors:


✓ Prototype the section to automatically close if a user wants to open another one.


✓ Make input boxes more distinct by thickening the border and changing the box fill.


✓ Fix the favorited recipients by making the entire tab a clickable button.


✓ Pin the top navigation menu to follow the user while scrolling.


✓ Add a background to the back of the icons so clicking them is easier.


These improvements not only enhanced the overall usability of the design but also created a more intuitive and satisfying experience for users.

The Final Product

The Final Product

The Final Product

Phase 6: Launch

Phase 6: Launch

Mulah's Final Design


This prototype showcases the improved user flow, streamlined navigation, and enhanced interactions that make completing core tasks more efficient and enjoyable. It represents a well-rounded solution that not only solves the problems uncovered in earlier stages but also elevates the overall user experience.

Mulah's Final Design


This prototype showcases the improved user flow, streamlined navigation, and enhanced interactions that make completing core tasks more efficient and enjoyable. It represents a well-rounded solution that not only solves the problems uncovered in earlier stages but also elevates the overall user experience.

View Mobile Prototype

Design with Figma

Design with Figma

Design with Figma

Phase 6: Launch

Phase 6: Launch

Mulah UI Style Guide


A complete component library focused on maintaining visual consistency and streamlining the interface accross Mulah's design system.

Mulah UI Style Guide


A complete component library focused on maintaining visual consistency and streamlining the interface accross Mulah's design system.

View Style Guide

Conclusion + Reflection

Conclusion + Reflection

Conclusion + Reflection

Phase 6: Launch

Phase 6: Launch

What I'd do differently next time.



This was my first full-cycle UX project, where I had the opportunity to explore the complete design process. I genuinely loved the UX design process—from research to prototyping. This experience has made me even more excited to learning and growing in the field. On that note, here are a few things I’ve learned:


  1. User research is the foundation of a successful design. Though I spent a good amount of time gathering qualitative and quantitative data, I’d dedicate even more time to early-stage research to ensure the design truly reflects a range of user needs and pain points. Looking back, I would invest additional time in conducting broader and more diverse interviews, with sharper interview questions to uncover deeper insights.

  1. Constant iteration is key. Although I made multiple iterations throughout the entire design thinking process, looking back at the project I would have liked to see more of a growth in UI development, showing significant improvement. Keeping in mind WCAG standards and Nielsens 10 usability heuristic guidelines that I’ve learned, I can now spend less time making sure the app meets design standards, and more time on user-centered design reflection.

  1. Sketch first, stress later. In the beginning of the iteration process, I found myself overthinking every design choice. Later in the design process I realized these design choices were fine-tuned, which made me realize more time was spent than needed during the early stages of iteration.

What I'd do differently next time.


This was my first full-cycle UX project, where I had the opportunity to explore the complete design process. I genuinely loved the UX design process—from research to prototyping. This experience has made me even more excited to learning and growing in the field. On that note, here are a few things I’ve learned:


  1. User research is the foundation of a successful design. Though I spent a good amount of time gathering qualitative and quantitative data, I’d dedicate even more time to early-stage research to ensure the design truly reflects a range of user needs and pain points. Looking back, I would invest additional time in conducting broader and more diverse interviews, with sharper interview questions to uncover deeper insights.

  1. Constant iteration is key. Although I made multiple iterations throughout the entire design thinking process, looking back at the project I would have liked to see more of a growth in UI development, showing significant improvement. Keeping in mind WCAG standards and Nielsens 10 usability heuristic guidelines that I’ve learned, I can now spend less time making sure the app meets design standards, and more time on user-centered design reflection.

  1. Sketch first, stress later. In the beginning of the iteration process, I found myself overthinking every design choice. Later in the design process I realized these design choices were fine-tuned, which made me realize more time was spent than needed during the early stages of iteration.

What I'd do differently next time.


This was my first full-cycle UX project, where I had the opportunity to explore the complete design process. I genuinely loved the UX design process—from research to prototyping. This experience has made me even more excited to learning and growing in the field. On that note, here are a few things I’ve learned:


  1. User research is the foundation of a successful design. Though I spent a good amount of time gathering qualitative and quantitative data, I’d dedicate even more time to early-stage research to ensure the design truly reflects a range of user needs and pain points. Looking back, I would invest additional time in conducting broader and more diverse interviews, with sharper interview questions to uncover deeper insights.

  1. Constant iteration is key. Although I made multiple iterations throughout the entire design thinking process, looking back at the project I would have liked to see more of a growth in UI development, showing significant improvement. Keeping in mind WCAG standards and Nielsens 10 usability heuristic guidelines that I’ve learned, I can now spend less time making sure the app meets design standards, and more time on user-centered design reflection.

  1. Sketch first, stress later. In the beginning of the iteration process, I found myself overthinking every design choice. Later in the design process I realized these design choices were fine-tuned, which made me realize more time was spent than needed during the early stages of iteration.