Learn it beforeclients notice.
Bad Design Academy is our free school for the stuff that makes or breaks a business: interfaces, graphics, packaging, words, social and sales. Short lessons, a game that trains your eye, and tools you'll actually use.
- 6
- tracks
- 134
- short lessons
- 32
- game levels
- 10
- free tools
What's inside
A product, not a PDF
Everything runs in your browser. Nothing is gated, nothing is emailed to you.
Five minutes, one idea.
Every lesson has why it matters, how to apply it, common mistakes and quick answers. No 40-minute videos.
The gameFix the Bad Design.
Spot the better screen, guess pixels, beat Fitts's and Hick's laws, catch contrast fails. Earn XP, stars and a certificate.
Daily practiceFive questions a day.
The same five for everyone, mixed across tracks. Anything you get wrong comes back later, so it sticks.
Insane modeThree lives. Trick questions.
Drag and drop, product thinking and double points. Most people don't finish it.
Free toolsTen, no email wall.
Contrast checker, palette generator, type scale, spacing tokens, dieline builder, readability checker and more.
TemplatesBriefs, checklists, calendars.
Downloadable starting points per track, plus a printable cheat sheet.
How it works
Read. Play. Use.
The same loop on every track, so nothing you learn stays theoretical.
- 01
Read
A five-minute lesson with do and don't examples you can copy straight into your work.
- 02
Play
The matching game level locks it in. Get it wrong and the explanation tells you why.
- 03
Use
A free tool or template applies it to your real project, today.
Six tracks
Pick your poison
- 34 lessons · 7 levels
UI/UX Design
UX laws, heuristics, colour, type, accessibility and forms.
- 20 lessons · 5 levels
Graphic Design
Visual principles, colour, typography, layout and print-ready production.
- 20 lessons · 5 levels
Packaging Design
Shelf impact, dielines, print production, compliance and sustainable packs.
- 20 lessons · 5 levels
Content Writing
Clarity, structure, persuasion and editing that people actually read.
- 20 lessons · 5 levels
Social Media Marketing
Strategy, hooks, platform specs, algorithms, community and measurement.
- 20 lessons · 5 levels
Sales
Prospecting, discovery, qualification, objection handling and closing.
Learning paths
Start where you are
Not sure where to begin? Pick your role and the UI/UX track puts the lessons in the right order for you.
The honest bit
Why it's free
We're a new studio. Nobody knows us yet, and a cold email is a terrible first impression. So we teach the thing we're good at, and if your website needs more than a checklist, you already know who to ask.
- No sign-upYour progress lives in your browser, not our database.
- No email wallEvery tool, template and cheat sheet opens straight away.
- No lock-inEmbed any piece on your own site, or print the cheat sheets.
- One link backA single mention of the studio, and this page. That's the deal.
Academy FAQ
Questions about the Academy
Something else? Email admin@baddesign.io. The founder replies.
Is it really free?
Yes. No sign-up, no email wall, no trial. It's how most people meet the studio, and we'd rather be useful first.
Do I need an account?
No. Your progress, stars and XP are saved in your browser. There's a link you can generate to carry progress to another device.
How long does a track take?
Each lesson is about five minutes, so a 20-lesson track is a couple of hours if you binge it. Most people do a lesson or two a day with the daily practice.
Can I use it with my team?
Please do. Share the link, or embed any lesson, game or tool in your own site or Notion from the embed builder.
Will you try to sell me something?
There's a link to the studio and one free-roast offer. No sequences, no pop-ups, no retargeting you for a month.
Who made it?
Bad Design, a studio in Mumbai. The lessons come from the same audit framework we use on client websites.
Train your eye. Free.
Start with the first lesson, or jump straight into the game and see how much bad design you can spot.