---
title: "Prototype fidelity"
description: "Prototype fidelity is how close a prototype is to the finished product, from paper sketch to coded build. What each level shows, and what it hides."
canonical: "https://goodtogrid.com/glossary/prototype-fidelity"
updated: "2026-10-02"
---

# Prototype fidelity

> Prototype fidelity is how close a prototype is to the finished product, from paper sketch to coded build. What each level shows, and what it hides.

URL: https://goodtogrid.com/glossary/prototype-fidelity · Glossary · Updated: 2026-10-02

A sketch, a clickable mockup and a coded build are all prototypes. They answer different questions, and choosing the wrong level is how a design looks right in review and wrong in someone's hand.

- **Term:** Prototype fidelity
- **Backed by:** 2 case studies · 2 concepts
- **Updated:** 2026-10-02

## What “Prototype fidelity” means

How closely a prototype matches the finished product in looks, behaviour and data, from a low-fidelity sketch to a high-fidelity build that runs on the real device.

## In practice

We keep exploration on the canvas, where layouts and type are quick to push around. Anything with motion, real data or input, such as search, filters, forms and onboarding, gets built in code early.

Where it matters, we prototype in the medium we'll ship: a web prototype for web products, a real build on a real phone for apps. For app concepts like the Clinic Queue App and Travel Planner, that means a React Native build on a phone from the first weeks.

The best review question we know is whether you can try it on your phone. A prototype that already runs there leaves far fewer surprises for the build.

## Related work

_Studio concepts: designed and built by the studio to show the approach, not client work._

- **[Clinic Queue App](https://goodtogrid.com/work/clinic-queue-app)** — Patient booking and a live queue for a clinic network. _Studio concept · Health · iOS · Android · 2026_
- **[Travel Planner](https://goodtogrid.com/work/travel-planner)** — Trip itineraries, bookings and offline maps. _Studio concept · Travel · iOS · Android · 2025_

## Frequently asked questions

### Is high fidelity always better?

No. Early layouts, type and colour move faster on a design canvas, and nobody should get attached to code in week one. Fidelity should rise with the questions you're asking.

### What can only a coded prototype show?

How a list feels with forty items instead of four, what happens on a slow connection, and whether a transition helps or just makes people wait.

### What do clients review at each stage?

Layouts and flows on the canvas first, then clickable prototypes, then builds on their own phone or browser for the parts people touch most.

## Read next

- [Design system](https://goodtogrid.com/glossary/design-system) (Glossary) — The shared rules and components a product is built from, so new screens match the old ones.
- [React Native development](https://goodtogrid.com/technology/react-native) (Technology) — One codebase for iOS and Android, and when we'd choose native instead.
- [UI/UX design](https://goodtogrid.com/services/ui-ux-design) (Service) — Research, flows, prototypes and design systems, from the people who build them.
- [Prototype in the medium you ship](https://goodtogrid.com/blog/prototype-in-the-medium) (Note) — When a static mockup hides too much, and what we build in code before we build for real.

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