The usability heuristics were developed by Jakob Nielsen of the NNGroup and describe 10 general principles for interaction design. They are broad rules of thumb and not specific usability guidelines, but are commonly used and accepted. The principles comprise:

1. Visibility of system status
2. Match between the system and the real world
3. User control and freedom
4. Consistency and standards
5. Error prevention
6. Recognition rather than recall
7. Flexibility and efficiency of use
8. Aesthetic and minimalist design
9. Help users recognise, diagnose, and recover from errors
10. General help and documentation