Haptic feedback should follow clear design principles to be effective. It should be meaningful, consistent, timely, and subtle to enhance usability, prevent errors, and improve user experience.

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Accessibility

Haptics make experiences more perceivable for users with visual or hearing impairments by providing tactile alternatives to visual or auditory feedback. They can convey critical information and create spatial guidance.

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‍Consistency

‍Use identical haptic patterns for the same meaning throughout the application—for example, the same success vibration for all successful actions and the same error pattern for all failures.

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‍Differentiation & contextual relevance

‍Use different and consistent types of feedback so users can immediately recognize the purpose or meaning of each vibration without relying on visual or auditory cues.

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‍Subtlety over intrusion

‍Haptics should be noticeable but not overwhelming. Keep patterns short, simple, and unobtrusive. Frequent actions (like scrolling) should use very subtle feedback.

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‍User control & preferences

‍Respect system-level settings and allow users to reduce or disable haptic feedback.