About Apple & Banana - Pragmatic UX research resources. Backed by theory, tested in reality.

Created by ex-Meta, ex-Slack, & ex-Best Buy alum

To educate & excite the next wave of UX researchers

Welcome!

We started Apple & Banana because I was always looking for a resource that was more advanced than beginner content and the “you must have a PhD to do this job” content. One place to help me go from Day 1 doing research and beyond.

After years of working with 100s of researchers around the world, Apple & Banana has become the trusted source I wish I had when I started. We have readers and supporters from the world’s biggest companies and many, many teams-of-ones.

It’s been a wild ride. And we’re just getting started.

Varun M.

Cofounder, head of research & content

We want to help the UXR community:

Goal #1

Bridge the gap between pragmatic and theoretical experience research

Goal #2

Level up the skills of junior researchers to research managers and beyond

Goal #3

Run fruitful research (i.e., fewer, more effective studies that drive a real impact)

We believe you don’t need fancy tools or an infinite research methods to conduct research that matters. That’s why all of our resources are purposefully tool-agnostic and method-agnostic.

We've been fortunate to work together with some of the leading brands in the space.

“So crisp, goes beyond methods and is a clear voice in an industry where most materials are 10+ years old.”

Simone R.

UX Research & Strategy @ Google

"Strikes a balance between academic rigor and accessibility — a rare achievement in UX research content.”

Cara M.

Senior UX Researcher @ Atlassian

“A source of credible knowledge that can push my team forward. The tone, the content, the consolidation, the visual design, all of it cut through the noise and it felt like it was talking to me.”

Heather H.

Lead, Customer Feedback Program @ Rivian

“I have all the info and resources I need, all in one place.”

Regina E.

UX Researcher @ Code for San Francisco

“They make UX research really tangible and applicable, something missing from other companies out there.”

Braden T.

Founding UX Researcher @ Datadog (Chicago)

“Very clear and helpful. It's all approached with helpful frameworks that are actionable.”

Michele H.

Author of "Deploy Empathy"

We're so humbled to receive support, love, and praise from our community all around the world! Thank you all for supporting us in our mission.

Why are we called Apple & Banana?

Research is packed with complex topics so we wanted something simple to share via characters. We thought “Maybe use human characters?” but that felt too restricting. We looked around the room and saw...a bowl of fruit. We asked ourselves: “Why don't we use fruits?"

Fruits are recognizable

Fruits are simple

Fruits are for everyone

Practicing what we write, we decided to test it out. A few quick sketches made us smile and a few visual mock-ups made us laugh. Apple & Banana was born and we haven’t looked back since.

Meet the team:

Varun M.

Cofounder, head of research & content

Varun (ex-Meta, ex-United Health Group, Ex-SeatGeek) has backgrounds in psychology, applied statistics, and data analytics. He loves making research approachable.

Rishi M.

Cofounder, head of design

Rishi (Tubi, ex-Best Buy, ex-CHG) has backgrounds in design, engineering, and physics. He focuses on making brands accessible.

Sibi M.

Cofounder, head of product & Growth

Sibi (ex-Slack, ex-Techstars, ex-Calm Fund) has backgrounds in product, marketing, and operations. He obsesses over crafting better products for users.

Dana K.

Head of Illustration

Dana (Landscape, The Working Assembly, Perky Bros) has backgrounds in design and illustration. She marvels when sharing stories without words.

A toolkit for doing Fruitful UX research.

400+ pages of UXR content, built for your device. Packed with templates, diagrams, & more.

Buy Fruitful See a Sample First ↗