About Us

Usability.gov is the leading resource for user experience (UX) best practices and guidelines, serving practitioners and students in the government and private sectors.  The site provides overviews of the user-centered design process  and various UX disciplines. It also covers the related information on methodology and tools for making digital content more usable and useful.

Site Management

Content for this site is managed by the Digital Communications Division in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs.  HHS actively collaborates with many federal agencies and other individuals in the public and private sector interested in UX to produce content and share industry trends and ideas.

Linking to and Sharing Usability.gov Information

We welcome and encourage website managers to link to Usability.gov and its related information. When linking to or sharing Usability.gov content, please be aware of the following:

• Unless otherwise noted, text, documents, and images on the Usability.gov website are in the public domain, are not copyrighted, and therefore may be copied and distributed at no cost.  We ask that you please credit Usability.gov as the source of the material. 
• Linking does not constitute an endorsement or partnership by Usability.gov and that we do not engage in reciprocal linking.
• Some templates and resources are available in PDF, DOC, and other formats so you can easily adapt and use for your planning and development needs. If you adapt or modify the materials in anyway, all Usability.gov and federal branding and logos must be removed. If copyrighted content, documents, images, or other materials appear on Usability.gov, it will be noted, and you must contact the copyright holder before you can reproduce that material.

Citing The Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines

HHS developed The Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines, Enlarged/Expanded edition in partnership with the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). The most recent version was released in August 2006; it had originally been released in 2004.  To cite this publication in your article or research, we recommend using the following format:

U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. The Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines, Enlarged/Expanded edition. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2006.

Giving Feedback and Contacting Us

Usability.gov is always looking for ways to improve.  We have provided a few ways for you to send us feedback:

• Page-level Survey: At the bottom of content you will find a survey asking whether you found the content on the page helpful. We review your comments and make improvements based on what we learn.
• Site-level Survey: You can also tell us how your overall experience was on the site by completing the site-level survey. You have the opportunity to tell us what you found useful and provide suggestions for what we can do better.

You may also reach out to us through:

• Twitter: @Usabilitygov 
• E-mail: info.usability@hhs.gov
• Mail: Attention HHS Digital Communications Division
  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  200 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC 20201