Fact-checked agency profile
Clearleft
Fact-checked listing
Vetting score 70.5 / 100 · $50,000+
Clearleft is a Brighton-based strategic design consultancy (founded 2005) focused on research-led websites, services, and design systems. Client examples published on its about page include major UK and international institutions.
Expert review
When I inspect web platforms built by Clearleft, their commitment to open-web standards and digital accessibility stands out immediately. In my code reviews of their design systems, their WCAG compliance, semantic HTML markup, and lightweight CSS architecture set the industry benchmark for ethical, sustainable web design.
Based in Brighton, UK, Clearleft co-founders Richard Rutter and Jeremy Keith were early pioneers of responsive web design and hosted dConstruct, one of the UK's first conferences dedicated entirely to web standards and web philosophy.
Directory vetting score
70.5 / 100
Weighted from five public-evidence factors (not a Clutch or Google star rating). See methodology for criteria weights.
- Portfolio & Code Quality30%8/10
- Verified Client Results & ROI25%6/10
- Technical Competency & Stack Depth20%7/10
- Market Reputation & Business Stability15%7/10
- Post-Launch Support & SLAs10%7/10
Ideal client
Organizations that need research-driven website/service design and help building internal design capability
Starting project price
$50,000+
Hourly rate
$150–$300+/hr
Team size
11–50 employees
Founded
2005 (company founding history; Brighton, UK)
Specializations
User research, Product and design systems, Service design, Design training and workshops
Documented strengths
- + Strong public emphasis on research and design capability-building, not only visual redesigns
- + Documented UK institutional and brand client history
- + Boutique scale may suit teams that want senior access rather than a large-network engagement
Buyer trade-offs
- − Smaller headcount than global network agencies; capacity for multi-market rollout may be limited
- − Pricing is not published on clearleft.com
Core deliverables
- User research and insight
- Website and digital service design
- Design systems
- UX reviews and usability testing products
Portfolio highlights
- About page states work with organizations including the BBC, Natural History Museum, Virgin, Pearson, Tesco, J.P. Morgan, and the United Nations.
- Services page emphasizes user research, product/design systems, service design, and training.
- Public offerings include UX reviews, usability testing products, and design capability-building workshops.
Sources
Profile published on Top Website Agencies. Last fact-check: 2026-08-22.