Von Restorff Effect

When several similar items are shown together, the one that differs is the one remembered.

How to apply it

Make the one thing that matters different, and keep everything around it quiet and alike.

Where Von Restorff Effect comes from

The effect is named after Hedwig von Restorff, a German psychiatrist and paediatrician, who reported in a 1933 study that when a list of similar items contained one that was different, people remembered that item better. It is also called the isolation effect. Distinctiveness can come from colour, size, shape, spacing or meaning.

How to apply Von Restorff Effect, step by step

1. Decide the one thing you most want noticed or remembered on the screen.
2. Make it different from its neighbours: a distinct colour, size, border or position.
3. Keep everything around it quiet and alike, so the difference is clear.
4. Add a label or shape as well as colour, so the cue works for everyone.
5. Check contrast, and check that you picked only one thing.

Von Restorff Effect in practice: a concrete example

The pricing plan that is different

A pricing page shows three plans with identical cards, and most visitors pick the cheapest. Give the recommended plan its own colour, a border and a Most popular label, while the other two stay quiet, and it becomes the card people notice and remember. The same idea makes a single primary button stand out among secondary ones, or a notification badge stand out on a plain icon.

Common Von Restorff Effect mistakes

• Highlighting several things at once, so nothing stands out and the effect is cancelled.
• Making something stand out for no reason, which sends people to the wrong place.
• Relying on colour alone. People who cannot see the colour miss the cue, so add a label, shape or position as well.
• Making the highlight so loud it looks like an advert, and people learn to ignore it.

When Von Restorff Effect doesn't apply

When several items matter equally, picking one to stand out adds false emphasis and can send people the wrong way. It also fades if used everywhere: screens full of badges and banners teach people to skip them. Keep it for the one thing you really want noticed.

How to tell you got it right

Look at the screen for two seconds, then look away and say what stood out. If it is the thing you chose, it is working. If it is something else, or nothing, reduce the competition.

Von Restorff Effect: common questions

What is the Von Restorff effect?

When several similar items are shown together, the one that differs from the rest is the one people notice and remember best.

Is the Von Restorff effect the same as the isolation effect?

Yes. The isolation effect is the other name for the same finding, from Hedwig von Restorff's 1933 study.

What is an example of the Von Restorff effect in UI?

A recommended pricing plan that is a different colour with a Most popular label, a single primary button among secondary ones, and a notification badge on a plain icon.

Can you use colour alone to make something stand out?

You can, but you should not rely on it. People with colour-blindness or low vision can miss a colour-only cue, so add a label, shape or position as well.

What is the difference between the Von Restorff effect and visual hierarchy?

Visual hierarchy ranks everything on the screen by importance. The Von Restorff effect is about picking out one item so that it stands apart. Hierarchy decides the order, and the effect makes the top item memorable.

Practise it on a real challenge

Pricing Page — three plans that look the same

A pricing page shows three plans with identical cards. Most visitors pick the cheapest, even though the middle plan fits most teams best.

More UX laws

• Law of Proximity
• Visual hierarchy
• Law of Common Region
• Token Layering
• Law of Continuity
• 8-pt Spacing Scale