Comparison updated October 2026
Side by side
Key data on both agencies. The accent dot marks where one leads.
| Crafton | UX&I GmbH | |
|---|---|---|
| Editorial score | 81/100 | ●85/100 |
| Hourly rate | ●€40-90/hr | €150-199/hr |
| Team size | ●50-99 | 10-49 |
| Location | Warsaw, Poland | Berlin, Germany |
| Founded | 2010 | 2014 |
| Tier | Premium | Premium |
| Last reviewed | ●Oct 7, 2026 | Jul 1, 2026 |
What we said about each
What we said about Crafton
"Of 28 published case studies, the deepest show the research behind the design: ENEA's redesign documents 8 user interviews, 4 staff focus groups and two usability-test rounds, and Santander Consumer Bank's covers 16 test respondents. Santander is the one case with results the design can claim—20% shorter loan applications and 45% higher user satisfaction; elsewhere the figures are platform usage or the client's own business numbers, such as Najiz's 57,000 weekly court cases. The weaker fit is…"
— UXAgencies editorial team, reviewed Oct 7, 2026
Read full review →What we said about UX&I GmbH
"Nine published success stories follow one pattern: UX&I builds the client's internal UX capability—a discovery program, a UX-writing practice, a design-system governance model—then hands it off, several ending with the client's own team taking over. The methods are real (continuous discovery, story mapping, heuristic evaluation) and a few stories quantify effort (d. velop: 100+ user interviews, 4."
— UXAgencies editorial team, reviewed Jul 1, 2026
Read full review →Best for
Where each agency measurably leads — on pricing, team capacity, declared specializations, and editorial scoring. Use these to match an agency to your project priorities.
Choose Crafton if you need
- •a more cost-effective engagement (~63% lower rate)
- •larger team capacity for multi-stream or enterprise-scale programs
- •disclosed specialization in EdTech / E-commerce
Choose UX&I GmbH if you need
- •closer collaboration at a smaller team scale
- •disclosed specialization in AI/ML / Automotive
- •a higher overall editorial score
Strengths and watch-outs
Both upsides and risks, straight from our editorial assessments.
Crafton
✓ Strengths
- •Long-running enterprise accounts—LOT Polish Airlines since 2019, plus 6 projects over 3 years for STC—suit buyers who need a partner for years, not one launch
- •Accessibility is documented, not just listed: the Poznań University of Economics site was tested with blind, low-vision, dyslexic, deaf and motor-impaired students against WCAG 2.1 AA
- •Aviation work covers both sides of a trip—LOT's booking engine and Manage My Booking, plus Riyadh and Jeddah airport portals with indoor wayfinding and flight tracking
⚠ Watch-outs
- •Ask how the published numbers were measured: SAB Invest's 92% digital registration is a bank-wide figure and Najiz's 57,000 weekly court cases is platform usage, so neither shows what the redesign changed
- •Budget for project totals, not just the €40-90/hr rate: Crafton quotes websites at tens to hundreds of thousands of złoty and says it recommends other agencies to smaller companies with simple needs. If your budget is fixed, share it up front—the agency offers to scope a smaller MVP to fit it
- •Several of the deepest case studies—ENEA, TEB Edukacja, Poznań University of Economics—are published in Polish only; ask for English write-ups if you can't read them
UX&I GmbH
✓ Strengths
- •Ranked the most-recognized UX firm in Germany (2025 German UPA report), backed by 37 staff across five offices since 2014 and TÜV Rheinland certification—an established, low-risk vendor.
- •Works at the top of the German enterprise market—10 of the country's 15 largest companies per the agency's published client list, including Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Allianz—so large-organization procurement and complexity are familiar ground.
- •Structured for multi-year transformation over one-off projects: engagements like One Data and METRO ran three or more years.
⚠ Watch-outs
- •No product-level UX metrics (conversion, task completion, adoption) in published work—ask for outcome evidence if that's how you'll judge success.
- •The website and published case studies are in German, though the client base includes US tech firms—request English-language case studies if you need to evaluate the work yourself.
- •The model centers on strategy and enablement at €150-199/hr—if you need hands-on production of a fixed screen set, clarify who executes and the scope up front.
Service coverage
Where each agency overlaps and where each is unique.
Only Crafton
None.
Both
Only UX&I GmbH
None.
Industry coverage
Where each agency overlaps and where each is unique.
Pricing math
Estimated cost of a typical 12-week senior engagement (~480 hours), at each agency's published rate.
Crafton
Rate: €40-90/hr
€19,200–€43,200
UX&I GmbH
Rate: €150-199/hr
€72,000–€95,520
For most general product engagements, Crafton delivers better ROI per hour. For AI/ML-specific work, UX&I GmbH's premium is justified by their declared specialization.
Frequently asked questions
- Which is cheaper, Crafton or UX&I GmbH?
- Crafton is cheaper by roughly 63% — €65/hr median vs €175/hr at UX&I GmbH. The premium reflects either brand or specialization — see the editorial pull quotes for context.
- Which has more FinTech experience, Crafton or UX&I GmbH?
- Both agencies publish FinTech case studies. UX&I GmbH has the broader industry stack overall, with disclosed experience in AI/ML, Automotive, Healthcare beyond their shared focus.
- Which scores higher overall, Crafton or UX&I GmbH?
- UX&I GmbH scores 85/100, 4 points higher than Crafton at 81/100. See our methodology for how scores are calculated.
- Which is faster to engage, Crafton or UX&I GmbH?
- UX&I GmbH is typically faster to engage — smaller team, fewer procurement gates. Crafton runs a larger team and more procurement steps, which usually means longer lead times. Kickoff availability is the number that actually varies, so ask both for their current start date before signing.
- When should I consider both Crafton and UX&I GmbH?
- Consider running parallel discovery briefs with Crafton and UX&I GmbH if your project spans multiple workstreams, you want competitive proposals to compare scope and approach, or you're undecided between the specialization angles each brings (see the Best for cards above). Most engagements ultimately go with one — but the parallel-brief phase is a low-cost way to validate fit.
Read the full reviews
Side-by-side comparison is a starting point. The full editorial reviews include portfolio analysis, case studies, and the buyer-strength / watch-out detail behind the bullets above.