Getting Started
PrototypeTool is a prototyping platform built for product teams that need to validate ideas through interactive experiences before committing to implementation. You create screens, connect them with interactions, and share the result with teammates or test participants.
This guide walks you through workspace setup, your first prototype, and sharing it for feedback — all within your first session.
What PrototypeTool solves for new teams
Product teams build prototypes to answer questions before writing code. "Does this onboarding flow make sense?" "Can users find the settings they need?" "Does the checkout flow convert?" Static mockups answer some of these questions, but interactive prototypes answer them with higher confidence because they test actual user behavior, not just comprehension.
PrototypeTool focuses on the gap between static design and production code. It provides enough interactivity to test real workflows — conditional logic, API connections, device testing — without requiring engineering resources to build.
Teams that previously relied on coded prototypes or live staging environments for validation can use PrototypeTool to test ideas in hours instead of weeks, with zero risk to production systems.
Your first prototype in PrototypeTool
- Create a workspace if you do not have one. The workspace is your team's container for all projects, components, and settings. Invite team members after setup so they can access projects you create.
- Create a new project and name it after the feature or flow you want to prototype. Choose a device frame (mobile, tablet, desktop, or custom) that matches your target platform.
- Add your first screen. Use the template gallery for a starting point or start with a blank canvas. Drag elements from the component panel — text, buttons, images, containers — to build the layout.
- Add a second screen and connect the two with a trigger. Select a button on the first screen, add a tap trigger, and set the response to navigate to the second screen. You now have an interactive two-screen flow.
- Preview the prototype by clicking the play button. Walk through the flow and verify that navigation and layout work as expected. Make adjustments in the editor and preview again.
- Share the prototype by generating a share link. Choose whether reviewers can comment, interact only, or view a static snapshot. Send the link to teammates or stakeholders for feedback.
New user mistakes to avoid
- Spending too long on visual polish before the flow is validated. Build the interaction structure first using simple shapes, then add visual detail after the flow is confirmed.
- Creating separate projects for each screen variation instead of using layer states within a single project. This leads to unmanageable project counts and duplicated effort.
- Not setting up a device frame before building screens. Changing the frame later can break layouts that were designed for a different screen size.
- Skipping the template gallery when building common patterns. Templates for login forms, dashboards, settings pages, and onboarding flows save significant setup time.
- Sharing prototypes without testing the full flow first. A broken interaction in the middle of a stakeholder review undermines confidence in the prototype and the team.
Measuring early adoption success
- Time to first shared prototype: How long it takes from workspace creation to the first prototype shared with a teammate or stakeholder. Aim for under one day.
- Screens per project: The average number of screens in early projects. Too few (one or two) suggests the team is not building connected flows. More than fifteen suggests scope creep.
- Feedback response rate: The percentage of shared prototypes that receive at least one piece of feedback. Low rates indicate sharing is happening but review workflows are not established.
- Weekly active projects: How many projects are edited at least once per week. Growing weekly activity indicates the team is integrating prototyping into their workflow.
Which project to start with
- A feature your team is about to build where key usability questions are unanswered and the cost of getting the implementation wrong is high.
- A workflow that receives frequent user complaints or support tickets, where prototyping improvements and testing them can produce a measurable impact.
- An onboarding or first-session flow where you suspect users are dropping off but lack data on why. A prototype test can reveal the friction points.
- A cross-functional project where product, design, and engineering need a shared artifact to align on scope and behavior before implementation begins.
Key concepts
- Workspace: The top-level container in PrototypeTool that holds all projects, components, and team settings for an organization.
- Project: A collection of screens, components, and interactions that together form a prototype for a specific product or feature.
- Screen: A single view in a prototype that users navigate to and interact with during testing.
FAQ
- How long does it take to create my first prototype? Most teams have a basic interactive flow within thirty minutes. Start with one screen and add interactions incrementally.
- Do I need design skills to use PrototypeTool? No. Start from templates and adjust for your use case. The tool is built for product teams, not just designers.
- Can I import existing designs? Yes. Import from Figma, Sketch, or image files to use existing visual work as the starting point for interactive prototypes.
Next steps
Create your first prototype using the quick-start workflow above. Invite one team member to review it and leave structured feedback. This first cycle establishes the working pattern you will use for all future projects.