In the fast-evolving world of web design, it sometimes feels like there’s a flashy new AI tool popping up every week, each promising to be the next big thing. But if you’re working on real projects with real deadlines, you’ve probably noticed that most of these tools don’t live up to the hype. After months of testing various AI tools on actual client work, I’ve found that about 90% of them are just a quick “wow” moment before they fade into oblivion.
That’s why I want to share with you five underrated AI tools that have genuinely made a difference in my workflow. These are not the usual suspects like ChatGPT, Midjourney, or Claude — those you’ve likely heard about already. Instead, these tools are practical, free (or have free tiers), and available online right now. They help you save time, improve your designs, and avoid burnout, especially if you’re a freelancer, small agency, or designer working with limited resources.
Why Designers Need Practical AI Tools
Web design is more than just creativity; it’s about managing client expectations, juggling multiple projects, and meeting deadlines without sacrificing quality. One of the biggest challenges is dealing with incomplete client assets — missing logos, unclear brand guidelines, or vague feedback. This often leads to scope creep and wasted hours trying to fill in the blanks.
AI tools can be a game changer here, but only if they actually work for your process. The tools I’ll cover today do just that: they help you create faster, communicate better with clients, and streamline repetitive tasks without gimmicks or unnecessary complexity.
1. Designs AI: Your Go-To for Quick Branding and Content Creation
If you’ve ever built websites for small businesses, you know how often clients come with zero branding assets. No logos, no social media graphics, no polished color schemes — and suddenly, you’re the one responsible for creating all of that just to get the site live.
Designs AI is a lifesaver in these situations. It’s a versatile platform that lets you generate logos, social media banners, explainer videos, and even voiceovers with just a few clicks. While it’s not a full replacement for a professional branding process, it’s perfect for spinning up basic landing pages, pitch mockups, or first drafts for client presentations.
The Design Maker alone offers over 20,000 templates that you can easily tweak to fit your client’s style. The logo and speech maker tools are polished enough to create placeholders or semi-final assets that look professional. This means you can deliver something tangible to your clients fast, without spending hours in design software.
How Designs AI Can Save You Time
- Generate quick logos when clients don’t provide any branding.
- Create social media banners to complement your website design.
- Produce simple explainer videos or voiceovers to enhance client presentations.
- Use templates to speed up the design process without starting from scratch.
In short, Designs AI takes a lot of the grunt work out of early-stage branding and content creation, letting you focus on the website itself.
2. Magic Brief: Build Your Idea Library from Real Ads
When designing landing pages, ads, or promotional banners, inspiration is key — but staring at a blank screen hoping for a creative spark isn’t efficient. That’s where Magic Brief comes in. This tool acts like a personal idea generator and archive, helping you collect and analyze real ads that are already working.
By installing a Chrome extension, you can instantly save ads you spot on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and more. But Magic Brief doesn’t just save screenshots; it breaks ads down into clean storyboards, separating headlines, layouts, and structures for you to study and remix.
Why Magic Brief Works for Client Work
- Build a library of winning ad structures and headlines.
- Use proven layouts as a foundation for landing pages and hero sections.
- Speed up the creative process by remixing existing ideas instead of starting from scratch.
- Focus on what’s actually working in the market, not just what looks cool.
Magic Brief is especially useful when you want to base your designs on data-driven inspiration, avoiding the trap of aimless creativity. It’s like having a swipe file of high-performing ads at your fingertips.
3. Uizard: Turn Rough Sketches into Clean UI Designs
Clients sometimes struggle to explain what they want, often sending blurry screenshots or hand-drawn wireframes that leave you guessing. Uizard is a wizard in the truest sense — it lets you upload rough sketches, hand-drawn wireframes, or screenshots from other websites and automatically transforms them into full UI designs.
While Uizard won’t produce perfect, client-ready designs instantly, it’s fantastic for rapidly turning messy ideas into clean drafts. This can save you hours in the wireframing phase and reduce the back-and-forth with clients who can’t articulate their vision clearly.
How to Use Uizard Effectively
- Upload a hand-drawn wireframe or blurry screenshot.
- Generate multiple UI design options quickly.
- Use these drafts to guide client discussions and finalize requirements faster.
- Speed up MVP creation for early-stage projects.
This tool is a perfect fit for working with non-technical clients or when you want to accelerate the early design phase without wasting time on guesswork.
4. Khroma: The AI Color Palette Generator That Gets You
Choosing the right color palette is one of the biggest time sinks in web design. Randomly scrolling through Pinterest or using basic color generators often leads to palettes that don’t quite fit the project or feel generic.
Khroma changes the game by learning your personal taste. You start by showing it a few colors you like, and Khroma instantly generates endless color palette combinations tailored to your style. The best part? You can test these palettes live on text, backgrounds, gradients, and images to see how they look in real scenarios.
Benefits of Using Khroma
- Generate personalized color palettes that reflect your design style.
- Test colors live on different website elements before committing.
- Save time by avoiding endless scrolling or indecision.
- Enhance the visual appeal and coherence of your designs.
Khroma is a smart, efficient way to handle one of design’s most subjective and tricky aspects. It helps you find subtle, unique color combinations that elevate your projects.
5. GitHub Copilot: Your AI-Powered Coding Assistant
Even if you’re not a hardcore developer, chances are you touch code when building WordPress sites, tweaking themes, or customizing front-end elements. GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered assistant that suggests code snippets, small fixes, boilerplate code, and even full sections of CSS or JavaScript as you type.
Imagine typing the first few words of a function and having Copilot predict the rest. It’s like having a coding partner who never needs coffee breaks, ready to speed up your workflow and reduce errors.
Why GitHub Copilot is a Productivity Booster
- Suggests quick fixes and code snippets to save time.
- Helps with front-end animations, styling, and bug fixes.
- Speeds up repetitive coding tasks without sacrificing quality.
- Allows you to focus on higher-level design and development work.
Of course, you still need to review its suggestions carefully, but for day-to-day coding, Copilot can be a serious productivity enhancer.
Bonus: Airlift – Speed Up Your WordPress Sites
Before wrapping up, a quick shoutout to Airlift, a free speed optimization plugin for WordPress. It handles all the technical, boring stuff behind the scenes to keep your sites light, fast, and client-ready. If you’re looking to triple your site speed with minimal effort, it’s definitely worth checking out.
Link: Airlift Performance Plugin
Final Thoughts: Work Smarter, Not Harder with AI
Not every AI tool is a gimmick. These five tools—Designs AI, Magic Brief, Uizard, Khroma, and GitHub Copilot—have proven themselves in real-world web design projects. They help you speed up your workflow, create better client deliverables, and avoid the dreaded scope creep that comes with missing assets or unclear client instructions.
You don’t need to use all of them. Pick the ones that fit your workflow and client needs best. The key takeaway is this: the faster and smarter you work, the more value you can provide without burning out. AI tools, when chosen wisely, are powerful allies in delivering high-quality web design efficiently.
If you found this guide helpful, consider exploring these tools and integrating them into your next project. Your clients—and your sanity—will thank you.