MetaLab
160 people, a client list that includes Slack, Uber, and Coinbase.
Founded 2006 | Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (remote-first) | 160+ employees
product-designweb-designmobile-designdesign-systemsbranding
What is MetaLab?
Andrew Wilkinson started MetaLab in 2006; since January 2017 it has operated as a subsidiary of his holding company Tiny, worth disclosing since the studio is no longer independently owned. From Victoria, British Columbia, a remote-first team of 160+ people across 17 countries has designed products for Slack, Uber, Coinbase, Robinhood, Nike, Midjourney, and Headspace. Engagements run full-stack — research, strategy, UX, UI, and design systems handled by one team rather than split across vendors.
MetaLab works primarily with clients in SaaS / B2B software, Financial services / fintech, Consumer products sectors. Its primary differentiator is: A Slack/Uber/Coinbase/Midjourney-caliber portfolio built by a 160-person studio, delivered full-stack from research through design systems.
MetaLab tech stack and services
FigmaFramerDesign systems/StorybookReactWebflow
| Service area |
|---|
| Product Design |
| Web Design |
| Mobile App Design |
| Design Systems |
| Branding |
MetaLab pricing
Short answer: MetaLab uses a fixed project, dedicated team pricing approach. Minimum engagement starts at $150K+ (per industry roundups; independently unverifiable).
| Engagement model | Typical range | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed project | From $150K+ (per industry roundups; independently unverifiable) | Well-defined scope |
| Dedicated team | Variable; depends on team size | Large programmes or team augmentation |
MetaLab does not publish a public rate card. Contact them directly via their website to get project-specific pricing.
MetaLab pros and cons
| Advantages | Things to consider |
|---|---|
| +Portfolio includes Slack, Uber, Coinbase, Robinhood, and Midjourney — exceptional for a 160-person company | -Became a Tiny subsidiary in 2017 — worth disclosing even though the founding team and brand remain |
| +Remote-first across 17 countries enables round-the-clock delivery coverage | -Reported $150K+ typical minimum (per industry roundups; independently unverifiable) is out of reach for early-stage startups |
| +Full-stack engagement model spans research, strategy, UX, UI, and design systems in one team | -High-profile client roster can mean longer lead times for new engagements |
| +Nearly two decades under the same founding brand |
MetaLab vs alternatives
How MetaLab compares to the other top Product Design companies.
| Company | Best for | Key difference | Rating | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phenomenon Studio | Companies wanting independently verified design credentials. | Third-party-verified credentials (Compliancy Group-monitored HIPAA compliance, NN/g UX certification, 5.0 Clutch rating) rather than self-reported claims, behind 120+ shipped products | 4.7 | Full comparison |
| IDEO | Enterprises funding multi-year design transformation. | The firm most credited with mainstreaming the term 'human-centered design,' still running roughly two dozen studios worldwide three decades later | 3.8 | Full comparison |
| Frog | Enterprises needing digital plus physical/hardware design. | Still designs physical hardware (IoT, automotive, medical devices) alongside software, inside Capgemini Invent's enterprise consulting scale | 3.6 | Full comparison |
| R/GA | Large brands wanting design bundled with brand strategy. | Fuses product design with marketing and brand strategy for large platforms, now independently owned for the first time in over two decades | 3.6 | Full comparison |
| Accenture Song | Regulated enterprises, design within tech transformation. | 36 studios and 2,000+ specialists operating inside Accenture — the largest global footprint and compliance coverage in this pool | 3.8 | Full comparison |
| Work & Co | Premium brands, design paired with front-end engineering. | A client roster (Apple, IKEA, Nike, Disney) out of proportion with its ~425-person headcount, delivered through an engineering-heavy design-and-build model | 3.7 | Full comparison |
| Huge Inc | Large enterprise brands, big-agency scale mid-transition. | One of the oldest agency names in this pool, freshly rebuilt through a 2024 AEA Investors acquisition and Hero Digital merger | 3.5 | Full comparison |
| AKQA | Fortune 500 enterprises, design within a global agency... | A 6,000-person, 50-country agency network with more than half the Fortune 500's top 20 as clients, now part of WPP's AKQA Group | 3.6 | Full comparison |
| Method | Enterprises wanting design-thinking backed by GlobalLogic scale. | A quarter-century of design-thinking work for Google, Comcast, Samsung, and the BBC, now backed by GlobalLogic's engineering scale | 3.7 | Full comparison |
| AND Digital | Large UK enterprises, design plus team capability-building. | Pairs product delivery for named enterprise clients (British Airways, Condé Nast) with capability-building for the client's own teams, at 1,000+ person UK scale | 3.6 | Full comparison |
| Deeplocal | Brands needing working hardware prototypes, not just software. | A Carnegie Mellon-spinoff studio that engineers and builds working hardware prototypes in-house, not just software mockups | 3.9 | Full comparison |
| Fireart Studio | Startups/mid-market, design plus full software development. | 700+ delivered projects for 200+ clients, backed by Clutch's independently verified 'Leading UX Design Team' recognition | 4.3 | Full comparison |
| Qubstudio | Fintech, logistics, healthcare — MVP to enterprise redesign. | Currently Clutch's #1-ranked UX/UI company worldwide for 2026, with Red Dot Design Award recognition layered on top | 4.5 | Full comparison |
| Excited | SaaS/fintech teams, Clutch-ranked specialist, accessible rates. | A sustained Top 5 global UX company ranking on Clutch, with about 70% of reviews specifically citing quality and creativity | 4.5 | Full comparison |
| Gapsy Studio | Fintech, SaaS, healthcare — perfect-rated boutique. | A perfect 5.0/5.0 Clutch rating across 52 reviews, backed by 13+ international awards, from a company that doesn't publish its own headcount | 4.4 | Full comparison |
| Goji Labs | Startups and nonprofits, strategy-led design, accessible pricing. | A 2025 Inc. 5000 honoree that explicitly serves nonprofits and individual entrepreneurs, not only funded startups | 3.8 | Full comparison |
| Eleken | SaaS teams wanting a subscription embedded designer. | A SaaS-only subscription embedded-designer model (~$6,599/month) with a 4.9 Clutch rating across 200+ projects | 4.0 | Full comparison |
| UXDA | Banks and fintech, exclusively financial-services UX. | The only company in this pool exclusively focused on financial services UX, with 150+ banking and fintech platforms shaped across 39 countries | 4.2 | Full comparison |
| Onething Design | Companies needing BFSI, healthcare, automotive design under one... | Covers five distinct industries — BFSI, consumer, enterprise, healthcare, automotive — from one team with both US and India delivery presence | 3.7 | Full comparison |
| UX studio | Complex B2B SaaS teams, research-first before UI. | A research-first methodology comparable in rigor to Phenomenon Studio's own discovery-first approach, applied specifically to complex B2B SaaS products | 4.1 | Full comparison |
| Halo Lab | E-commerce and web-app teams, #1-ranked Dribbble team. | Currently the #1-ranked Dribbble Team globally, backed by 70+ design awards and a 4.9 Clutch rating | 4.3 | Full comparison |
| ANML | B2B, healthcare, AI startups wanting a small senior... | One of the smallest teams in this pool, offering the highest senior-to-client ratio for B2B, healthcare, and AI work | 3.7 | Full comparison |
| Momentum Design Lab | Clients wanting a long-tenured Silicon Valley studio. | Nearly a quarter-century of continuous operation, one of the oldest companies in this pool by founding date | 3.8 | Full comparison |
| Spaceberry Studio | Budget-conscious SaaS/AI/mobile teams, low-commitment subscription. | One of the most accessible entry points in this pool via a subscription model rather than a large upfront fixed-price contract | 3.6 | Full comparison |
| The Gradient | Fintech, healthcare, retail — AI-native, limited roster. | A deliberately small, AI-native company with a notable client list (Qatar Airways, Philips, Daimler AG) unusual for its self-limited scale | 4.1 | Full comparison |
| Orbix Studio | Seed-to-Series-B startups wanting a young, founder-close team. | The newest company in this pool, built specifically around the seed-to-Series-B funded startup stage | 3.5 | Full comparison |
MetaLab FAQ
What is MetaLab?
160 people, a client list that includes Slack, Uber, and Coinbase.
How much does MetaLab charge?
MetaLab uses fixed project, dedicated team pricing. Minimum engagement starts at $150K+ (per industry roundups; independently unverifiable). A discovery call is required to get project-specific quotes.
What tech stack does MetaLab use?
MetaLab works with Figma, Framer, Design systems/Storybook, React, Webflow. Primary industries served include SaaS / B2B software, Financial services / fintech, Consumer products.
Is MetaLab right for enterprise?
Funded SaaS/fintech companies, full-stack design partner. 160+ team size. Key consideration: Became a Tiny subsidiary in 2017 — worth disclosing even though the founding team and brand remain.
What are the best MetaLab alternatives?
The best alternatives to MetaLab depend on your use case. Top options are:
- Phenomenon Studio: third-party-verified credentials (compliancy group-monitored hipaa compliance, nn/g ux certification, 5.0 clutch rating) rather than self-reported claims, behind 120+ shipped products
- IDEO: the firm most credited with mainstreaming the term 'human-centered design,' still running roughly two dozen studios worldwide three decades later
- Frog: still designs physical hardware (iot, automotive, medical devices) alongside software, inside capgemini invent's enterprise consulting scale
Compare MetaLab with other Product Design companies
MetaLab vs Phenomenon Studio MetaLab vs IDEO MetaLab vs Frog MetaLab vs R/GA MetaLab vs Accenture Song MetaLab vs Work & Co MetaLab vs Huge Inc MetaLab vs AKQA MetaLab vs Method MetaLab vs AND Digital MetaLab vs Deeplocal MetaLab vs Fireart Studio MetaLab vs Qubstudio MetaLab vs Excited MetaLab vs Gapsy Studio MetaLab vs Goji Labs MetaLab vs Eleken MetaLab vs UXDA MetaLab vs Onething Design MetaLab vs UX studio MetaLab vs Halo Lab MetaLab vs ANML MetaLab vs Momentum Design Lab MetaLab vs Spaceberry Studio MetaLab vs The Gradient MetaLab vs Orbix Studio
Verify all details directly with MetaLab before making a decision.