Your first chance to retain a user — or lose them without knowing why
Empty states appear when there's nothing to show yet. They're also your first real chance to guide users toward value — or lose them quietly before the product has had a chance to prove itself.
What Empty States Are
An empty state is what users see when there's no content to display yet — a new account with no data, a search that returned no results, a filtered view with no matches, an inbox after archiving everything.
They're almost universally treated as afterthoughts — something handled with a quick "No results found" and a generic icon. That's a missed opportunity, because empty states are encountered right at the moments when users are most likely to disengage.
The Three Types
First-time empty states — when a user opens a feature or page for the first time and there's nothing there yet. This is the highest-stakes variant. If Onboarding UX has gaps, the empty state is where users stall and churn without ever sending a support ticket.
User-cleared empty states — when a user has deliberately emptied a view (completed all their tasks, archived all messages). These are moments of accomplishment. The design response should acknowledge that, not mirror the first-time empty state.
No-results empty states — when a search or filter returns nothing. The most functional type: users want help recovering, not congratulations. Give them a clear path to adjust their search or reset filters.
Why Most Teams Get Them Wrong
The common failure mode is treating every empty state as a neutral dead end — "Nothing here yet" with a small illustration and no follow-up.
What they should be is an invitation. The first-time empty state for a project management tool shouldn't just say "No projects yet." It should say "Create your first project" with a direct CTA. Better still: a quick-start template that moves users to value without friction.
The deeper problem is structural: empty states rarely get designed as part of the primary flow. They get designed at the end of the sprint, if at all. The UX Debt shows.
What Good Looks Like
Three elements make an empty state work:
- A clear explanation — users should immediately understand why the state is empty (not because something broke, but because there's nothing there yet)
- A direct primary action — a CTA that creates the first piece of content or resolves the emptiness. One action, not three.
- Expectation-setting — a brief note on what the user will see once there's content helps them understand what they're working toward
Mailchimp's empty states are frequently cited as a good example — practical guidance with a personality that doesn't feel forced. Notion goes further, offering template suggestions that lower the activation energy of starting.
The goal is simple: no user should hit an empty state and be unsure what to do next. If they are, that's a UX Audit finding waiting to be made.