The Only 10 Design Books a Business Owner Will Ever Need
Go ahead and search for “best design books.” I'll wait.
You'll find list after list of the same glossy, hardback doorstops. Books filled with beautiful pictures of logos you’ve already seen. Books that look magnificent on a minimalist shelf in an architect's office.
Most of them are utterly useless for a business owner.
They won't help you decide if your website is confusing. They won't help you understand why your marketing materials get ignored. They are decorative objects, and if you're an entrepreneur, you don't have time for decoration. You need tools.
This isn't one of those lists. This is a list of books that are tools. Some are drills, some are scalpels, and one or two are sledgehammers. They aren't all “graphic design” books. But every single one will fundamentally change how you think about communicating with human beings. And that, frankly, is the entire point of design.
- The list focuses on design books that serve as practical tools for business owners, not decorative items.
- Effective design principles help entrepreneurs understand usability and improve user experiences, especially on websites.
- Books on branding clarify the importance of a brand beyond just a logo, emphasising emotional connections.
- Engagement with these texts through note-taking and applying learned principles is crucial for real business impact.
Most “Top Design Book” Lists Are The Same
Before getting to the good stuff, we must clear away the rubbish. Most people think design is some mystical, subjective art form because they're looking at the wrong things. The publishing world is flooded with two types of design books that actively make you less informed.
The Coffee Table Trap: Books for Show, Not for Go
This is my biggest pet peeve. The £50 behemoth that's just “1000 Best Logos from Finland” or “The History of Psychedelic Posters.” They are pure visual indulgence. You flip through, say “ooh, that's nice,” and put it back on the coffee table.
You learn nothing. There's no strategy, context, or explanation of why it worked or what problem it solved. It's the design equivalent of a bag of crisps – momentarily satisfying, but zero nutritional value.
The Software Manual Disguise: Teaching Clicks, Not Concepts
The second offender is the book that promises to teach you “Graphic Design,” but is a thinly veiled manual for Adobe Illustrator version CS4. It teaches you how to use the pen tool or apply a gradient.
Here's the problem: software changes. The buttons move. The company gets bought. What principles make a message clear, compelling, and effective? Those don't change. Ever. Purchasing a book about software is buying a carton of milk. Buying a book about principles is purchasing a wine that improves with age.
My Criteria: Does It Fundamentally Change How You Think?
The ten books on this list earned their place based on a straightforward criterion: after you read them, you will never look at a website, a poster, a product, or a logo the same way again. They install a new operating system in your brain to help you see the world. They teach principles, not prescriptions.
They are for thinkers and doers, not just decorators.
The Definitive List: 10 Books That Will Make You Better at Design
Right. No more preamble. Here is the list. Buy them. Read them with a pen in hand. Argue with them. But for God's sake, don't just let them sit on a shelf.
1. The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
Why it’s on the list: This is the Bible. It’s not even about graphic design. It's about how things work, or more often, how they don't. Norman, a cognitive scientist, explains why we push doors meant to be pulled and can't figure out a new telly remote. He introduces concepts like “affordances” and “signifiers” – a fancy way of saying a thing should look like how you should use it.
- Norman, Don (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 288 Pages – 09/19/2002 (Publication Date) – Basic Books (Publisher)
The lesson for entrepreneurs: This book will make you obsessed with usability. You’ll stop asking “Does my website look pretty?” and ask, “Can a customer buy something without getting a migraine?” It will force you to see your own business from the outside-in, from the perspective of a confused, impatient user. It's the foundation of all user experience (UX) thinking.
2. Don't Make Me Think, Revisited by Steve Krug
Why it’s on the list: If Norman's book is the Old Testament, Krug's is the New Testament for the digital age. It applies the core usability principles directly to websites with brutal, hilarious simplicity. His core rule is in the title. The moment a user has to pause and figure something out, you're losing them.
- Don't Make Me Think, Revisited: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability (3rd Edition)
- Product type: ABIS BOOK
- Brand: Steve Krug
The lesson for entrepreneurs: This is the most practical, actionable book on web design ever written. You can read it in a single afternoon and immediately have a list of 20 things to fix on your website. It teaches you to be ruthless in your pursuit of clarity. Avoid jargon, eliminate unnecessary clicks, and make the most critical actions obvious.
3. How to Use Graphic Design to Sell Things… by Michael Bierut
Why it’s on the list: The title is ridiculously long, but the book is a masterclass in pragmatism. Michael Bierut is a partner at the legendary design firm Pentagram. He's not an academic; he's a working designer solving real problems for real clients. This book is a collection of essays about actual projects. He shows the messy process, the failed ideas, and the final solution, explaining the thinking behind it all.
- How to
- Hardcover Book
- Bierut, Michael (Author)
The lesson for entrepreneurs: This book demystifies the design process. It shows that great design isn't about a mystical flash of inspiration. It's about understanding a problem deeply, trying many things, and articulating a solution with intelligence and wit. It will teach you how to talk to and evaluate a designer, because you'll understand what they should be doing.
4. The Brand Gap by Marty Neumeier
Why it’s on the list: This is the shortest, most powerful book on branding you will ever read. Neumeier defines a brand not as a logo or an identity, but as “a person's gut feeling about a product, service, or company.” He then lays out, in whiteboard-simple terms, how to bridge the gap between your business strategy and the customer's experience.
[lasso asin=”0321348109″ box=”0321348109″ classname=” lasso-ll-do-not-delete-69397″ id=”312112″ link_id=”69397″ look=”box” ref=”amzn-brand-gap-the-revised-edition-aiga-design-press”]The lesson for entrepreneurs: Stop thinking your “brand” is your logo. This book will force you to answer the hard questions: Who are you? What do you do? Why does it matter? It connects the dots between what you say you are and what you do, and shows you that design is the tangible evidence of that connection. It’s the best £20 on brand strategy you will ever spend.
5. Grid Systems in Graphic Design by Josef Müller-Brockmann
Why it’s on the list: Okay, this one looks intimidating. It's classic Swiss-style text full of geometric diagrams. It looks like a maths textbook. But don't be scared. You don't need to become a grid fanatic. You just need to understand the why. A grid is not a creative straitjacket; it's a tool for creating clarity. It brings order to information, so the reader isn't working so hard.
- Modern Typography
- Graphic Designers
- Typeface Alphabets
The lesson for entrepreneurs: You'll learn the power of structure. You'll understand why some layouts feel calm and professional, while others feel chaotic and cheap. It will teach you to appreciate alignment, spacing, and hierarchy. You won't look at a brochure or a webpage the same way again. You’ll start seeing the invisible structure that holds good design together.
6. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Why it’s on the list: This is the curveball. It is not a design book. A Nobel Prize-winning psychologist wrote it. And it might be the most critical design book on this list. Kahneman explains the two systems that run our brains: System 1 (fast, intuitive, emotional) and System 2 (slow, deliberate, logical).
- A good option for a Book Lover
- It comes with proper packaging
- Ideal for Gifting
The lesson for entrepreneurs: Design is almost entirely about appealing to System 1. People don't logically deduce their way through your website; they have a fast, gut reaction. This book explains the cognitive biases and mental shortcuts that govern those reactions. You'll understand why a simple, bold “Buy Now” button works better than a paragraph of text, and why social proof (testimonials) is so powerful. It's a user manual for your customer's brain.
7. Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon
Why it’s on the list: This is the antidote to “creator's block.” It's a quick, motivating read that permits you to start. Kleon argues that nothing is wholly original. All creative work builds on what came before. He encourages you to find heroes, study their work, and then remix their ideas into something new and your own.
- 10/01/1779 (Publication Date)
The lesson for entrepreneurs: It removes the pressure to be a “visionary genius.” It makes design and creativity accessible. If you're a business owner who thinks “I'm not the creative type,” this book is for you. It reframes creativity as collecting, curating, and combining – something anyone can do.
8. Draplin Design Co.: Pretty Much Everything by Aaron Draplin
Why it’s on the list: If Michael Bierut represents the slick, New York agency world, Aaron Draplin is the blue-collar, get-your-hands-dirty, Midwestern heart of design. The book is part portfolio, part memoir, part rant. It’s packed with practical projects, stories from the road, and a fierce belief in making good work for good people – whether it's a logo for a friend's plumbing business or a poster for a major band.
- Hardcover Book
- Draplin, Aaron James (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
The lesson for entrepreneurs: Passion and practicality can coexist. Draplin shows a design process that is both highly skilled and completely unpretentious. He celebrates the beauty of humble, functional design. It's a massive injection of enthusiasm and a reminder that design should serve a purpose, not just an ego.
9. Logo Modernism by Jens Müller
Why it’s on the list: I know what I said about coffee table books. This is the one, glorious exception. Why? Because it’s not just a collection of pretty pictures; it’s a taxonomy. It’s a visual encyclopaedia of logos from the modernist era (1940-1980), meticulously categorised by form – circles, squares, lines.
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Müller, Jens (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
The lesson for entrepreneurs: This isn't for flipping through; it's for studying. It's a pattern library of how simple geometric forms can create memorable, timeless marks. When thinking about a logo, you can see hundreds of examples of how it's been done before. It trains your eye to see the underlying structure in identity design. It’s a reference tool of the highest order.
10. Thoughts on Design by Paul Rand
Why it’s on the list: Paul Rand was the master. He designed the iconic logos for IBM, UPS, ABC, and NeXT. This book, first published in 1947, is his manifesto. It's a short, dense collection of his thoughts on the fusion of beauty and utility. He argued that for a design to be memorable, it must first be understood.
The lesson for entrepreneurs: This book teaches you the timeless design philosophy. Rand’s core idea is that the power of a logo comes from its simplicity and ability to act as a vessel for a company's meaning. He rails against trends and novelty for novelty's sake. Reading it is like getting a direct download from the mind of a master about why substance is more important than style.
The Honourable Mentions Shelf
A few books are excellent, but didn't make the top 10 for entrepreneurs.
- Making and Breaking the Grid by Timothy Samara: A more modern take on grids than Müller-Brockmann. More of a “how-to” and less of a “why.” Read Müller-Brockmann first.
- Designing Brand Identity by Alina Wheeler: A comprehensive, almost textbook-like guide to the entire branding process. It’s brilliant, but it’s a dense reference book. Neumeier's The Brand Gap is a better starting point for a busy business owner.
- Thinking with Type by Ellen Lupton: The best book out there if you want to go deep on typography. For most entrepreneurs, however, the core lessons are covered by applying the principles in the top 10 list.
Reading Isn't a Spectator Sport. Here's How to Use These Books.
Don't just read these books and nod along. That's passive and pointless. To extract any real value, you have to engage.
- Read with a Pen: Underline, scribble notes in the margin, write down questions. Argue with the author. “Krug says to remove this, but what if my customers need it?” Good. Now you're thinking.
- Pick One Principle: After reading a book, apply one core idea to your business this week. After reading Don't Make Me Think, find the three clunkiest processes on your website and fix them. After reading The Brand Gap, write your brand's purpose in a single sentence.
- Become a Critic: Use these books as a lens to critique the world. Why is the layout of that menu so confusing? Why is that banking app so easy to use? Why does that logo feel so authoritative? Once you start seeing the principles in action, you can't unsee them.
Design isn't magic. It's a series of deliberate choices. These books don't give you all the answers, but they teach you how to ask the right questions. And for a business owner, that's far more valuable.
This kind of direct, principle-based thinking is what we apply to every project. Look at our other articles if you're tired of vague advice and want to build a brand based on clarity and purpose. If you're ready to apply these ideas directly to your business, that's what our graphic design services are for. Get in touch when you’re prepared for a serious conversation.
Frequently Asked Questions about Design Books
I'm a complete beginner. Which book should I start with?
Start with Don't Make Me Think, Revisited by Steve Krug. It's the most accessible, immediately practical book on the list, and its lessons apply to almost everything, not just websites.
I'm not a designer and never will be. Why should I read these?
To become a better client and a smarter business owner. These books teach you the principles behind effective communication. This allows you to judge design work based on its effectiveness, not just your taste, and to give clear, intelligent feedback to any designer you hire.
Aren't some of these books, like Grid Systems, really old? Are they still relevant?
100% relevant. Books based on principles are timeless. The technology for laying out a page has changed, but the human eye's need for order and hierarchy has not. Grid Systems is about organising information, a more critical problem today than in the 1960s.
Why isn't a colour theory book on the list?
For an entrepreneur, understanding user psychology (Thinking, Fast and Slow) and brand strategy (The Brand Gap) is vastly more important than memorising the colour wheel. Good colour choices flow from a strong plan, not from abstract theory.
I need to design a logo. Which book is best for that?
Read The Brand Gap first to determine what your logo needs to say. Logo Modernism can then be used as a visual library to understand how simple forms can be used to say it. That combination is more powerful than any show when designing a logo book.
What's the difference between UI and UX design, and which books cover them?
UX (User Experience) is a user's overall feeling when using your product or service. The Design of Everyday Things is the foundational UX book. UI (User Interface) is the specific layout of screens, buttons, and visual elements. Don't Make Me Think is a brilliant bridge between UX principles and practical UI advice.
Are there any good design blogs I should follow?
Many! But start with the books. Blogs are great for tactics and trends, but the books provide the foundational strategy that never changes. Once you have the foundation, you'll be better equipped to judge the quality of the blogs you read.
Is Steal Like an Artist just telling me to copy other people's work?
No. It’s telling you to deconstruct the work of people you admire to understand how they do it. It's the difference between tracing a drawing and studying anatomy to learn how to draw yourself. It's about learning from the best to find your voice.
Why is a psychology book (Thinking, Fast and Slow) on a design list?
Because design isn't about arranging pixels; it's about influencing human behaviour. You cannot design effectively if you don't understand how people think, make decisions, and perceive the world. It’s the ultimate user manual.
How long will it take to see results from reading these?
The change in your thinking will be immediate. You'll start noticing things you never saw before on day one. The results in your business will appear as soon as you begin applying the principles—fixing a confusing form on your website could improve conversions overnight.
Are digital or physical copies better?
For these specific books, physical copies are often better. They encourage you to slow down, and you'll want to scribble notes in the margins and easily flip back and forth. They are reference tools to keep on your desk, not just files to archive on a hard drive.
I run a service-based business, not a product company. Is this list still relevant?
Absolutely. Your “product” is the entire customer experience, from your website to your proposals and invoices. Every single one of those is a piece of design that can be made more transparent, professional, and effective using the principles from these books.
Last update on 2025-09-30 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
