Press Play on These 25 Design Podcasts
by Kelsey Arrington on Sep 27, 2022 Where do you find your design inspiration? How do you stay up-to-date on the latest trends in the design industry? Whether you need to fuel your creative process or stay connected to the design community; subscribing to a design podcast or two may help! Not sure where to find design podcasts that fit your needs or niche? You’re in luck! Below, we’ve curated a list of 25 design podcasts that cover topics ranging from industry experts, new technology, and human-centered design to product design, UX writing, how design impacts our everyday lives, and everything in between! Keep reading!
In this post, you’ll find podcasts about:
- How to Run A Design Business
- Design Thinking & Advice On How to Thrive in the Industry
- UI/UX Design & Other Inclusive Design Practices
- Sustainable Design for A Better Future
- Design Education, Web Design, & Graphic Design
Design Business Podcasts
Want to run a successful design business? Listen to the podcasts below for insights from business leaders, fellow designers, and other creative professionals.
The Design of Business | The Business of Design– Jessica Helfand and Michael Bierut
Whether you want to learn the ins and outs of running a successful design business or you’re searching for a source of inspiration; you should consider tuning into The Design of Business | The Business of Design podcast hosted by the founder of Design Observer, Jessica Helfand, and Pentagram partner and design critic, Michael Bierut.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Season 10 Episode 3.5 A Minisode on Branding
- Season 9, Episode 7 Interview with Coursera Creative Director Lotenna Enwonwu
Practice Disrupted – Gabl Media
Ready to take your design practice to the next level? Tune into Practice Disrupted, a podcast co-hosted by architect and design strategist Evelyn Lee and architecture business strategy consultant, Je’Nen Chastain. Together. In each episode, they unpack business insights with the assistance of an industry leader.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 087: Designing New Workplace Policies
- Episode 089: Entrepreneurship in Practice: Taking Risks to Create Value
Design Nerds Anonymous – ThinkLab
Everyone’s design process looks a little different and Design Nerds Anonymous explores just that! In each episode, a different design or business-centric topic is tackled – covering a variety of talking points such as the impact of technology on the design industry and more.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- The Future of Events in the Design Industry
- The Future of NeoCon Shows & Hot Topics in the Design Industry
The Unmistakable Creative – Srinivas Roa
Need a boost of inspiration? Having a creative block? Listen to a few episodes of The Unmistakable Creative podcast hosted by Srinivas Roa. The show aims to inspire its listeners to forge forward with their respective creative processes – with each episode featuring insights from artists, designers, and other creative professionals.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- How to Build an Unbeatable Business One Crazy Idea at a Time with Jim McKelvey
- How Being A Professional Troublemaker Helps You Get What You Want with Luvvie Ajayi Jones
Scratching the Surface – Jarrett Fuller
Need advice on design, art, or business? Scratching the Surface is geared toward designers, artists, and entrepreneurs who are ironing out the details of their creative process. In each podcast episode, Jarrett Fuller interviews a different creative professional – covering a wide variety of topics such as industrial design, how social issues impact design education, and more.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 216. Maria Nicanor, director of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
- Episode 213. Nicole Killian, graphic designer, and educator
Design Thinking Podcasts
Want to improve your design skills? Need advice from other designers and creative professionals? Tune in to the shows listed below to draw a bit of inspiration.
Design Matters – Debbie Millman
Whether you’re new to the design world or you’ve been in the industry for a long time; Design Matters is worth listening to. What started as a broadcast via telephone modem in 2005 has expanded into one of the largest platforms for discussions around design, art, and music. Their website describes the podcast as “the world’s first podcast about design and inquiry into the broader world of creative culture through wide-ranging conversations with designers, writers, artists, curators, musicians, and other luminaries of contemporary thought.”
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
Monocle on Design
If you want to stay up-to-date with all things design, Monocle on Design is the podcast series for you. Covering a wide range of topics, their website touts that they cover “everything you need to know about the world of design, from furniture to fashion and craft to architecture.” So, expect to find fresh perspectives from all areas of the design world.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Special Episode: Issey Miyake Remembered
- Episode 570: Design in Paris, Habitare, and Frama x Hender Scheme
Creative Confidence Podcast – IDEO
Searching for candid conversations between industry leaders? Creative Confidence is an IDEO podcast series that highlights the most impactful change makers, design thinkers, and innovators to discuss the intricacies of creativity.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- How to Build Workplace Rituals: author Erica Keswin
- Lead by Empowering Others: IDEO’s Lauren Collins & Harvard Business School Professor Frances Frei
Design Thinking 101 – Dawan Stanford
Want to learn more about design thinking and how to put it into practice? Design Thinking 101, hosted, by Dawan Stanford, teaches designers and other pros how to learn, lead and apply design thinking to their creative process.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Want Better Outcomes? Find Better Problems.
- Language + Design Research + Researcher Self-Care with Abby Bajuniemi
Design Mind frog cast – Frog Design
Want to know what the future holds for design? Subscribe to Design Mind for valuable insights into the latest trends and technologies that impact the world of design.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
Human-Centered & Inclusive Design Podcasts
UI/UX design is all about bringing the user into the design process and creating a human-centered product. Do you want to learn more about human-centered design and other inclusive practices? Tune into the podcasts listed below.
The Big Question – IDEO
IDEO coined the term design thinking, so it’s no surprise that they cover that and other accessibility-related topics on their podcasts, Creative Confidence, and its counterpart; The Big Question. In this auditory series, professionals discuss how design can solve dynamic issues for humanity.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- What Happens If We Don’t Ask Big Questions? With David Kelley, IDEO co-founder, and Stanford professor
- How Might Leaders Embark On A Journey of Diversity, Inclusion & Transformation in A Radically Transparent & Collaborative Way? With Frances Frei, Harvard professor, and Lauren Collins, IDEO chief of staff.
Design Time – Domino Magazine
What does a good design make you feel? It’s hard to describe – but that’s exactly why Domino started the Design Timepodcast. To inspire others, this show has a light-hearted approach that covers human-centered design hacks and features interviews with designers and creative entrepreneurs.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Molly Baz and Ben Willet on Their Food-Themed Home, Working Together Creative, and the Wacky Way Baz Fills a Dishwasher
- Interior Designer Tiffany Howell on Using Playlists as Mood Boards, Vintage Britney Spears Music Videos, and Collaborating with Celebrity Clients
Awkward Silences – User Interviews
Ready to geek out on all things related to user experience design and research? The professionals at User Interviews created Awkward Silences for folks just like you! On this platform, users take center stage as hosts Erin May and JH Forster discuss UX research methods, how qualitative data can be used to solve problems and how users can help product designers shape the future.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 103: Ethical Design and Respectful UX Research with Kat Zhou of Epidemic Sound
- Onboarding UX: How to Research and Design a Great First Impression with Pulkit Agrawal of Chameleon
UX Cake
User experiences can be layered as each user has dynamically different needs. Do you agree? If so, you may like UX Cake – a podcast specifically for those who work in UI/UX design. Here, you’ll hear practical advice for designing with accessibility and inclusion in mind.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Designing for Accessibility with Chimmy Kalu
- Influencing Without Authority with Hana Nagel, Ashby Hayes, and Reality Canty
UI Breakfast – Jane Portman
What began in 2013 with one episode has expanded into a robust series of conversations around user interface and user experience design (UI/UX). On this platform, Jane Portman interviews a different creative professional for each episode; diving deep into the design community to excavate a wealth of knowledge on UI/UX and product strategy.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 247: Self-Audit for Designers with Rajeev Subramanian
- Episode 244: Employee Experience with Jen Briselli
Sustainable Design Culture Podcasts
Looking to learn more about sustainable development and design practices? Just tune into these podcasts on sustainable design and the eco-friendly culture surrounding it.
What’s Wrong With – SOUR
Want to hear the world’s most pressing design problems being discussed? SOUR, an architecture, and design studio introduced the What’s Wrong With podcast to do just that. In their series, they talk with creative leaders and innovators to discuss issues plaguing various design fields. Their end goal is to create a resource of knowledge so that more sustainable solutions, to various issues, can be brought to fruition.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Building Structural Belonging for Inclusive Environments ft. Dr. Meagan Pollock
- Urban Sensemaking through Science & Technology ft. MIT Senseable City Lab
Package Design Unboxd – Evelio Mattos
Do you find packaging design fascinating? Think most product packaging could stand to be a bit more sustainable? If you answered yes to either of those questions, stream Package Design Unboxd. On this podcast, pros discuss design, manufacturing processes, materials, and how we could save the planet with more sustainable packaging.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- EP 107 Is Sustainable Packaging A Scam? What Materials to Avoid
- Ep 100 Top Packaging Design Trends for 2023
Build Green Live Green – CaraGreen
Want to lead a greener life? Listen to Build Green Live Green for tips on how to do that. In each episode, you’ll hear tips on how to implement more sustainable practices and insights on the latest eco-friendly trends.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Living Walls, Green Roofs, and Biophilic Design with UrbanStrong’s Lily Turner
- Breathe Easier: Silica Free Surfaces & Safety
The Digital Supply Chain – Tom Raftery
Across industries, supply chains can stand to be more sustainable. In his podcast, The Digital Supply Chain, Tom Raftery discusses the technological advances that make a sustainable supply chain possible at every stage – from designing to planning and manufacturing to product delivery.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- 5G and Supply Chains – A Chat with Fraunhofer Institute’s Karin Loidl
- The Rise of the Robots in Supply Chain – A Chat with Richard Kirker
Design the Future- Lindsay Baker & Kira Gould
Want to learn from industry professionals who are leading the way towards sustainable design that has a positive social impact? Tune into Design the Future, a podcast hosted by social impact leader Lindsay Baker & communications strategist, Kira Gould.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 63: Arathi Gowda, architect, and leader of ZGF’s East Coast Sustainability Practice
- Episode 60: Gina Ciganik, CEO of Healthy Building Network
Web & Graphic Design Podcasts
Design Is Everywhere – Design Museum Everywhere
Want to dive deep into the impact design has on the world today? Listen to Design Is Everywhere, a podcast hosted by Sam Aquillano, the founder and executive director at Design Museum Everywhere, and co-hosted by Liz Pawlak, the executive director of Friends of Prescott. Together, they tackle topics such as design education, social impact, civic innovation, data visualization, entrepreneurship, diversity in design, and more!
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Designing a Design Community with Stephen P. Anderson
- The Convergence of Music, Technology, and Design with Haig Armen
The Futur – Chris Do
Want to learn more about where design, marketing, and business practices intersect? Chris Do explores that and much more on his show The Futur! In this series, he sits with other creative professionals to discuss branding, finding inspiration, and creating award-winning and awe-inspiring visuals.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
The Reflex Blue Show: A Graphic Design Podcast – 36 Point
Desire to learn more about graphic design, specifically? Tune into The Reflex Blue Show, a podcast that follows the latest trends, tech, and topics shaking the industry.
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
The Style Guide – Anna Debenham and Brad Frost
Searching for more web design-focused content? Anna and Brad bring just that with their podcast, The Style Guide, where they interview leading professionals about the vast world of web design – everything from UI pattern libraries to design systems and more!
Episodes to Add to Your Queue
- Episode 16: Micah Godbolt, senior design developer at Microsoft
- Episode 14: Mina Markham, senior engineer at Slack
The Design Details – Bryn Jackson and Brian Lovin
Looking for a weekly podcast to keep you informed on all things design-related? The Design Details, hosted by Bryn Jackson and Brian Lovin, explores the design industry in a series of interviews with leading professionals from large companies like Instagram, Stripe, and many more!
Episodes to Add to Your Queue