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What Is a Graphical User Interface (GUI)? Definition and Examples

A graphical user interface (GUI) presents information and controls visually, letting people interact through menus, forms, and on-screen elements.
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A graphical user interface (GUI) is the visual part of an interactive computer system: it presents information and controls on screen so a person can see what is happening and interact with it. GUI stands for “graphical user interface.”

What does graphical user interface mean?

A GUI is one type of user interface. W3C describes a user interface broadly as software components that let people observe and manipulate concepts in an interactive system. A GUI narrows that idea to interaction presented graphically: information rendered for visual consumption, such as text, colors, graphics, images, or animation. W3C’s Multi-Device User Interfaces glossary and its User Agent Accessibility Guidelines glossary describe these terms.

In everyday terms, a GUI is the visual interaction layer between a person and a computer program or device. It shows information relevant to the task and gives the user ways to act on the system.

How do people interact with a GUI?

A GUI can use different visual elements and interaction methods; it does not need to contain one fixed set of controls. Common methods include:

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  • Selecting menus: choosing an option from a list of visible commands.
  • Filling in forms: entering information into fields presented on screen.
  • Direct manipulation: acting on visible elements themselves, such as selecting or moving an on-screen object.

An academic reference entry on graphical user interfaces identifies menu selection, form fill-ins, and direct manipulation as common interaction styles: Wiley, “Graphical User Interfaces”.

How is a GUI different from other user interfaces?

“User interface” is the broader category; a GUI is specifically graphical. A command-line interface is also a user interface, but it primarily presents and accepts text commands. A voice interface is another way to interact, but it is not graphical simply because it lets someone control a system. W3C’s User Interface Domain describes the wider field as concerned with communication between users and computers on the Web.

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What does GUI stand for?

GUI stands for Graphical User Interface, as listed in the NIST CSRC glossary.

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