Hick's Law
Design Principles
The more choices you offer, the longer people take to decide.
In practice
Hick's law states that decision time grows with the number and complexity of options — logarithmically, so each additional choice costs a little less than the last, but the cost never stops. It is the principle behind progressive disclosure, simplified navigation and the discipline of removing options nobody uses. It does not say fewer is always better; it says every choice has a price you should be aware of.
Questions
What is Hick's Law?
Hick's law is a model of decision time that increases with the number of equally probable choices presented.
Why do you use Hick's Law?
Every option you add slows every decision that passes it. Knowing that makes 'just add another menu item' a deliberate trade rather than a free one.
How do you use/apply Hick's Law?
Reduce visible options to what matters now, group and categorise the rest, highlight the recommended path, and defer advanced choices with progressive disclosure.
When do you use Hick's Law?
In navigation, menus, forms, pricing pages and onboarding — anywhere a person is asked to choose.
Who uses Hick's Law?
Product and interaction designers, and information architects.
