Lean UX, Design Thinking, and Google’s Design Sprint are three distinct yet complementary design approaches—each suited for different stages and goals. Design Thinking is broad and exploratory, Lean UX is fast and iterative, and Design Sprint is a focused 5-day test-and-learn framework.
At first glance, Lean UX and Design Thinking appear to be two flavors of the same thing. Both focus on solving real user problems.
Both emphasize collaboration, testing, feedback, and iteration.
And both seem to frown upon designing in isolation (or creating in a vacuum and hoping for the best).
But when you dig deeper, they each carry a slightly different mindset—and understanding that difference might save you from misusing one where the other fits better.
Let’s unpack it. Slowly. Thoughtfully.
Where They Both Start: People, Problems, and Uncertainty
If you’ve worked in product teams—or just attended one too many design workshops—you’ve likely encountered both terms.
They both exist because real-world problems are messy. Requirements change. Users behave unpredictably. Teams disagree. And there’s rarely a straight path from idea to solution.
Rather than pretending we know everything upfront, both Lean UX and Design Thinking invite us to learn as we progress through research, collaboration, and continuous iteration.
But here’s where they begin to split.
Design Thinking: A Broader Creative Framework
Design Thinking is, in many ways, a philosophy of problem-solving. It’s often used at the start of a project—or even before a project begins—to explore new ideas and reframe the problem entirely.
It usually flows through five non-linear phases:
- Empathize – Understand users deeply, often with interviews, observation, and qualitative research.
- Define – Synthesize findings into a clear problem statement.
- Ideate – Brainstorm potential solutions, often without worrying too much about feasibility at this stage.
- Prototype – Create quick, low-fidelity models to explore ideas.
- Test – Validate with real users to gather feedback and refine.
It’s like taking a wide-angle lens to a messy problem. You slow down, zoom out, and question everything—even the problem itself.
Used well, Design Thinking helps generate breakthrough insights. But… It’s not always fast. Or lean. And in a fast-moving product cycle, that can be an issue.
Lean UX: Focused, Fast, and Embedded in the Product Cycle
Lean UX, on the other hand, was born out of frustration with heavy UX deliverables in Agile teams.
It says: “Hey, maybe we don’t need 50-page wireframe decks or polished mockups just to move forward.”
Instead, Lean UX prioritizes collaboration, experimentation, and learning fast. It’s deeply inspired by the Lean Startup methodology, where the emphasis is on building the smallest thing possible to test a hypothesis, learning from that, and adjusting quickly.
A typical Lean UX cycle might look more like this:
- Assumption Mapping – What do we believe? What’s risky? Let’s make it explicit.
- Hypothesis Framing – Turn assumptions into testable statements.
- Experimentation – Build just enough to test the hypothesis.
- Feedback & Iteration – Use real data to decide what to change or keep.
It’s not about designing the perfect product. It’s about learning the fastest way possible if something is worth building at all.
Lean UX lives inside the product team. It integrates tightly with developers, product managers, and data folks. Less polish, more momentum.
So… Which One Should You Use?
Honestly? That depends.
If you’re in the early discovery phase, where the problem space isn’t well understood yet, Design Thinking helps you open up. Ask better questions. Explore without pressure.
But if you’re mid-flight, building and shipping in rapid sprints, and need to make fast, informed decisions—Lean UX helps you stay aligned, avoid waste, and validate ideas quickly.
They’re not enemies. Many teams blend them.
- Use Design Thinking to explore what’s possible.
- Use Lean UX to determine what’s viable and testable at this stage.
That said, don’t be surprised if your team thinks they’re doing one, but behaving like the other. It’s common. I’ve seen design teams deep in prototyping while calling it Lean UX, but without a single hypothesis in sight. Or product managers claiming they’re “running Design Thinking” by jumping straight into solutions without empathizing at all.
It’s messy. That’s okay. These are tools, not commandments.
A Quick Analogy (Because Why Not?)
Imagine you’re trying to invent a better umbrella.
Design Thinking would have you observe people in the rain, sketch wild new forms (collapsible, hands-free, drone-controlled?), and test prototypes made from paper or string. You might even realize the problem isn’t the umbrella—it’s how people carry them when wet.
Lean UX, meanwhile, would ask: “What’s the smallest version of this feature we can test this week?” Perhaps it’s a minor modification to the handle or fabric, tested with a small group, and with a clear success metric.
Different mindsets. Same goal: solve a real problem.
The Different Models of Design Thinking (And Why There’s No One “Right” Way)
If you’ve ever Googled “Design Thinking process,” you’ve probably run into a neat five-stage diagram that ends with “Test” and starts with “Empathize.”
Looks tidy. Almost too tidy.
The truth is that Design Thinking doesn’t have a single, universal model. It’s more of a mindset, and over the years, various organizations and educators have developed their versions of the process to suit their specific goals.
Let’s walk through the most influential ones and how they approach creative problem-solving in a slightly different way.
1. The Stanford d.school Model
The most widely recognized (and quoted) version.
Phases:
- Empathize
- Define
- Ideate
- Prototype
- Test
This is the classic “double diamond squished into a circle” that most UX designers and product teams reference. It focuses heavily on understanding users and emphasizes quick prototyping to validate ideas early.
It’s accessible, intuitive, and flexible—perfect for students and generalists.
✅ Best for: cross-functional teams, early-stage product ideas, design workshops.
2. IDEO’s Human-Centered Design Model
Less linear, more fluid—like real life.
Phases:
- Inspiration
- Ideation
- Implementation
IDEO, one of the pioneers of modern Design Thinking, intentionally keeps things broad. Their model encourages jumping between phases and staying open to change.
It’s grounded in real-world observation, not theoretical steps. The goal? Find desirability first, then feasibility and viability come later.
✅ Best for: social innovation, creative industries, systems-level design.
3. The Double Diamond Model (by the British Design Council)
Structure lovers, this one’s for you.
Diamonds:
- Diamond 1: Discover → Define
- Diamond 2: Develop → Deliver
It visually represents two key phases:
- The first diamond is about opening up to explore the problem (divergent thinking), then narrowing it down to define the real challenge (convergent thinking).
- The second diamond repeats the process, but for the solution.
It’s systematic, which helps when you need buy-in from stakeholders who prefer structure.
✅ Best for: agencies, consultants, policy makers, enterprise-level projects.
4. IBM’s Enterprise Design Thinking
Scaled for enterprise. Quantified. Repeatable.
Looped system:
- Observe
- Reflect
- Make
IBM’s approach focuses on “The Loop”, a continuous cycle of creating and learning. It’s paired with three core principles:
- Hills (clear goals),
- Sponsor Users (real humans who guide design),
- Playbacks (regular feedback loops).
It’s built for agile, fast-moving product teams—but also fits in massive enterprise contexts.
✅ Best for: large organizations, enterprise UX teams, design operations.
5. Frog Design’s Model
More abstract. Emotionally rich.
Modes:
- Understand
- Make
- Test
- Scale
Frog emphasizes storytelling and emotional resonance. Their version integrates business goals, cultural context, and feasibility earlier in the process.
It often overlaps with service design, not just digital product design.
✅ Best for: branding, service design, customer experience innovation.
Why So Many Models?
Because no two problems are exactly alike.
And no two teams think or work the same way.
Some projects need speed and gut instinct. Others require deep reflection and stakeholder alignment. Some are about building a working prototype by next Friday. Others focus on rethinking public transportation or climate policy.
So while the principles of empathy, iteration, and user-centered design stay constant, the path you take can (and should) shift.
What is a Design Sprint?
A five-day shortcut to building and testing ideas—before writing a single line of code.
Created by Jake Knapp at Google Ventures, the Design Sprint is essentially a pressure-tested framework to answer critical business questions through design, prototyping, and user testing—in just five days.
Think of it like a fast-forward button. Instead of months of debates, meetings, roadmaps, and endless revisions… You compress the entire decision-making and design process into one focused week.
It’s intense. Structured. And weirdly fun.
Why Was the Design Sprint Created?
GV has worked with numerous startups. Time and money were tight. And they noticed a pattern: teams kept spending weeks or months building things only to realize—wait, users don’t even want this.
So instead of “move fast and break things,” they flipped it:
Think deeply, test fast, and learn early—before you build.
The Design Sprint is about reducing risk without killing momentum.
The 5-Day Breakdown: How a Design Sprint Works
Each day has a specific focus. No guesswork. No open-ended wandering.
Day 1: Understand & Map
The team aligns around a shared goal. You bring in experts—product managers, customer support, marketing, engineers—and unpack everything you know: the user, the problem, the context.
Then, you create a customer journey map to visualize the challenge.
“Where are we now? And what does success even look like?”
Day 2: Sketch Solutions
No group brainstorming (thankfully). Everyone works solo to sketch solutions. But it’s not about artistic skills—just clear ideas on paper.
You might use a format called “Crazy 8s” to generate variations. Then refine your best one into a detailed concept.
“What could we do to solve this?”
Day 3: Decide
Time to make tough choices. You review everyone’s ideas, vote silently, and choose the strongest one to move forward.
The goal is a single, testable prototype. You also storyboard what that prototype will look like—screen by screen.
“Which idea is most promising, realistic, and testable right now?”
Day 4: Prototype
Now the makers (designers, but also anyone else) build a high-fidelity illusion of the product—something clickable or explorable.
The trick? It just needs to look real enough for users to react to. Tools like Figma, Keynote, or InVision are great here.
“Build just enough to fake it.”
Day 5: Test with Users
Five real users. One-on-one interviews. You observe silently, take notes, cringe at the flaws, and get excited when something clicks.
This is where everything pays off. You learn if your idea works—or flops—before a single dev sprint begins.
“Did this solution solve the right problem? Are we on the right track?”
What Makes Design Sprints Different?
- Time-boxed: Five days. That’s it.
- Collaborative: Everyone’s involved—design, product, business, tech.
- Decisive: You don’t “keep all ideas on the table.” You pick one.
- Risk-reducing: You fail (or succeed) before investing months of development.
- Structured: There’s a clear agenda every single day. No vague “ideation sessions.”
When Should You Run a Design Sprint?
- You’re launching a new product or significant feature.
- You’re stuck in decision paralysis.
- You need to align stakeholders with very different perspectives.
- You’re entering uncharted territory (a new market, new technology, or a new user group).
- Or honestly—when you want to build smarter, not faster.
But Be Real—Does It Always Work?
Not every sprint ends in a perfect solution. Some reveal that your idea doesn’t work at all. But even that’s a win—you didn’t spend months building the wrong thing.
That said, design sprints are intense. They demand complete focus, a clear schedule, and buy-in from decision-makers. No half-in, half-out teams.
And no, they’re not right for every problem. Sometimes you need deep research. Sometimes you need time. Sometimes it’s just… not a sprint.
In the end
This article examines the nuanced distinctions between Lean UX, Design Thinking, and Google’s Design Sprint—three popular yet often conflated approaches to problem-solving in design.
While Design Thinking offers a broad, human-centered framework for understanding and reframing problems, Lean UX emphasizes speed, collaboration, and continuous learning within Agile teams.
Google’s Design Sprint, on the other hand, compresses decision-making, prototyping, and user testing into a focused five-day process.
Together, these models reveal that there’s no one-size-fits-all method—just different mindsets for different stages of the product journey.