Best Eleken Alternatives for UI/UX Design in 2025

If you're evaluating UI/UX design agencies and considering Eleken, you should also explore 925Studios, UX studio, Clay, and MetaLab as competitive alternatives. Each offers distinct strengths: 925Studios excels at B2B SaaS and AI startups with a full-service approach (strategy, design, development); UX studio specializes in embedded teams and research-driven design for complex SaaS products; Clay combines world-class branding with premium visual design; and MetaLab serves fast-moving startups with modern product design and scalable systems.

Who this is for: Founders, product leads, and CTOs at SaaS, fintech, healthtech, and AI companies seeking design partners who can deliver high-performing digital products at scale.

Key trade-offs: Eleken offers rapid designer onboarding and subscription flexibility, but focuses narrowly on SaaS UI redesign and MVPs. Alternatives like 925Studios provide end-to-end strategy and development services, UX studio emphasizes research depth, Clay focuses on brand impact, and MetaLab prioritizes rapid execution for startups.

Critical data points:

• Eleken: 4.9 Clutch rating, 100+ reviews, 200+ SaaS products designed, 40+ in-house designers

• Agency landscape: Top-tier SaaS design partners charge $8K–$15K+ monthly for dedicated teams or project-based work

• Market trend: Startups increasingly demand full-service partners combining UX design with strategy and development, not design-only vendors

Why Companies Look Beyond Eleken

Eleken has built a strong reputation in the SaaS design space with fast onboarding, subscription flexibility, and reliable execution. However, several factors drive founders to explore alternatives:

• Limited scope: Eleken explicitly excludes landing pages, marketing design, and brand strategy. Companies building comprehensive digital products need partners who cover the full spectrum.

• Design-only model: Eleken provides UI/UX design but doesn't include strategy consulting, user research planning, or development execution. Growing companies need integrated teams.

• SaaS focus: While Eleken specializes in SaaS, companies in fintech, healthtech, AI, e-commerce, and web3 need design partners familiar with their specific compliance, performance, and user experience requirements.

• Team extension vs. partnership: Eleken functions primarily as a design resource. Companies seeking a true strategic partner with deep product thinking need agencies invested in outcomes.

• Development integration: Design handoffs to external development teams create friction. Partners who manage design and development cohesively reduce time-to-market.

Top Eleken Alternatives for UI/UX Design

1. 925Studios – Best for Full-Service SaaS, AI, and Fintech

925Studios is a high-craft design studio specializing in B2B SaaS, AI startups, fintech, healthtech, and fast-growing digital companies. Founded in 2022, 925Studios has built a reputation for shipping world-class web and mobile applications under one roof.

What makes 925Studios different:

• Full-service delivery: Strategy, design, and development integrated into a single team. No handoffs between design and build – your product ships faster.

• Vertical expertise: Deep specialization in AI, SaaS, fintech, and healthtech means designers understand compliance, performance, and user needs specific to your industry.

• Design systems at scale: 925Studios builds scalable design systems that support long-term product growth, not one-off UI refreshes.

• Conversion-focused: Every design decision drives measurable business outcomes – whether that's user adoption, retention, or revenue.

• Modern and intuitive: Design that feels premium but remains functional. Products built with 925Studios compete on user experience, not just features.

Process: Discovery and strategy kick off every engagement. 925Studios conducts user research, maps product strategy, and validates design direction before shipping pixels. Ongoing collaboration ensures the final product meets both user and business goals.

Ideal for: Funded startups and growth-stage companies building complex SaaS, AI, or fintech products that require both design excellence and reliable development. Companies that need a partner invested in product outcomes, not just design execution.

2. UX studio – Best for Research-Driven, Embedded Design Teams

UX studio (Budapest, Hungary) specializes in data-driven design for B2B SaaS with a team of 100+ designers spanning 13 countries. They excel at embedded team models where designers become extensions of your in-house product team.

Standout strengths:

• Deep user research and product discovery process

• Flexible team scaling – grow from 1 designer to 5+ as your needs evolve

• Transparent communication and direct designer collaboration

• Experience with complex B2B products (sales, data analytics, developer tools)

Best for: Teams that want dedicated designers working full-time on their product and prefer research-driven design over rapid iteration.

3. Clay – Best for Brand-Led, High-End Visual Experiences

Clay (global) is an industry-leading creative agency famous for blending branding and UX design into truly memorable digital experiences. Clients include Sony, Coca-Cola, and Toyota.

Standout strengths:

• Exceptional motion design and visual storytelling

• Design systems paired with premium brand strategy

• High-end execution that elevates company positioning

• Experience across industries and scales

Best for: Companies competing on brand perception and user delight. Founders who want to establish a distinctive visual identity alongside functional design.

4. MetaLab – Best for Fast-Moving Startups and Rapid Execution

MetaLab (global) specializes in product design for startups and tech companies. Their mission is to "design, build and ship products worth talking about."

Standout strengths:

• Modern, polished UI design execution

• Strong design systems capabilities

• Fast-paced environments and rapid iteration cycles

• Experience shipping MVPs and scaling products

Best for: Early-stage startups in hypergrowth mode who need design speed without sacrificing quality.

5. IDEO – Best for Innovation Strategy and Deep Problem-Solving

IDEO (global) pioneered design thinking as a methodology over 40 years ago. They bring innovation strategy and human-centered design to enterprise challenges.

Standout strengths:

• Deep design thinking methodology

• Enterprise-scale innovation consulting

• Cross-disciplinary teams spanning design, engineering, and strategy

• Thought leadership and case study documentation

Best for: Large enterprises undergoing digital transformation or companies needing strategic innovation consulting beyond UI/UX.

6. Beetroot – Best for Scalable, Socially-Responsible Design

Beetroot (Stockholm, Sweden) offers affordable creative design and development with a team capable of scaling to larger projects. Over 1,000 completed projects, ISO 27001 certified.

Standout strengths:

• Competitive pricing without sacrificing quality

• Socially responsible business practices

• Scalable staffing model for both small and large projects

• Security certifications (ISO 27001)

Best for: Budget-conscious startups who need reliable design and development partners without premium agency pricing.

Feature Comparison: Eleken vs. Alternatives

How to Choose the Right Alternative

Choose 925Studios if:

• You're building a complex SaaS, AI, fintech, or healthtech product

• You need strategy, design, and development integrated under one roof

• You want a partner invested in product outcomes, not just design execution

• You're planning for long-term growth and need scalable design systems

• You want transparent collaboration without design-to-dev handoff friction

Choose UX studio if:

• You want research-driven design with a dedicated embedded team

• You have complex user workflows requiring deep user research

• You prefer direct, ongoing collaboration with your design team

Choose Clay if:

• Brand perception and visual identity are competitive differentiators

• You want premium, memorable digital experiences

• Motion, animation, and storytelling matter to your product positioning

Choose MetaLab if:

• You're in hypergrowth mode and need fast design iteration

• You prioritize shipping speed without sacrificing quality

• You're building an MVP or rapidly scaling product

Choose IDEO if:

• You're an enterprise seeking innovation strategy consulting

• You need design thinking applied to business transformation

• You want thought leadership and case study documentation

Choose Beetroot if:

• Budget is a key constraint but quality matters

• You need both design and development partners

• You value socially responsible, ISO-certified agencies

Key Takeaways

Eleken excels at what it does – rapid SaaS UI redesigns with subscription flexibility and proven execution. But the SaaS design market has evolved. Today's winning products require more than beautiful interfaces; they demand integrated strategy, research, development, and ongoing optimization.

If you're looking for a true design partner that combines world-class UX thinking with strategic product development, 925Studios delivers end-to-end value for AI, SaaS, fintech, and healthtech companies. Their full-service model eliminates handoff friction, accelerates time-to-market, and ensures design decisions align with both user needs and business goals.

The best choice depends on your specific needs:

• Full-service execution with strategy: 925Studios

• Embedded research-driven teams: UX studio

• Brand-led premium experiences: Clay

• Fast startup iteration: MetaLab

• Enterprise innovation strategy: IDEO

• Budget-conscious scalability: Beetroot

Evaluate each option based on your product complexity, timeline, budget, and whether you need design-only services or a strategic partnership committed to product outcomes.

Ready to explore a design partner that delivers beyond pixels? Book a call with 925Studios to discuss your product challenges and see how integrated strategy, design, and development can accelerate your growth.