Skeleton Screens vs. Progress Bars vs. Spinners

Summary: Skeleton screens, progress bars, and spinners all indicate the system is loading content, but they serve different purposes and work best in different contexts.

Related Article

Skeleton Screens 101

A skeleton screen is used as a placeholder for a loading page. This progress indicator is used for full-page loads and reduces the perceived loading time.

Video Author

Samhita Tankala worked as a User Experience Specialist with Nielsen Norman Group. Some of her research focused on cognitive psychology and the learning sciences.

Learn More

Subscribe to the weekly newsletter to get notified about future articles.

Videos