Peak-End Rule
People judge an experience largely based on how they felt at its peak and at its end, rather than the total sum or average.
Key Takeaways
Pay close attention to the most intense points and the final moments of the user journey, as these disproportionately shape how the experience is remembered.
Identify the moments when your product is most helpful, valuable, or entertaining — and design to amplify those peaks.
Remember that people recall negative experiences more vividly than positive ones, so minimizing frustration at peak moments is critical.
Origin
The Peak-End Rule was demonstrated in a landmark 1993 study by Daniel Kahneman, Barbara Fredrickson, Charles Schreiber, and Donald Redelmeier. In the experiment, subjects were exposed to uncomfortable cold temperatures in two different trials. Participants consistently preferred to repeat the longer trial that ended with a slightly warmer temperature over the shorter, more uniformly cold trial — showing that the memory of the experience's ending shaped preference more than the actual total duration of discomfort.