Hop to the next level of your design career

Hand-picked design mentors, matched to what you're stuck on. Hop is design mentorship by Design Buddies, a community of 100K+ designers. Every mentor and mentee is reviewed by hand. You describe what you are stuck on in plain language, and the right design mentors surface with a reason why they fit. Sessions are 1:1 or small group, free or paid, and booked directly on Hop.

Many mentors offer free sessions. Some offer paid deep-dives like portfolio reviews or mock interviews, and each mentor sets their own price. You always see the price before you book.

Senior product designers, UX designers, UX researchers, and design leaders from the Design Buddies community. Every mentor is hand-reviewed before they appear in the directory, so you only meet vetted, serious designers.

Portfolio reviews, breaking into the design industry, landing your first design job, interview prep and mock interviews, getting promoted, going freelance, switching specialties, negotiating offers, and working through impostor syndrome.

Apply on the Become a mentor page. Mentoring is free or paid or both, your choice: you set the price, Hop keeps a 10% fee on paid sessions, and you control your own schedule. Every mentor application is reviewed by hand, usually within a day.

Hop is built for the problems that start on day two. Every mentor and mentee is reviewed by hand by a person, so there are no cold DMs and no strangers. You describe what you are stuck on and Hop matches you with a reason why, instead of a directory to scroll. Times show in your timezone everywhere, including chat. Every mentor card shows who replies within a day and who shows up. Notes and next steps are written by your mentor, not generated by an AI. And when a session ends, the next one is two taps away. Mentors can also charge for their time, so serious help stays sustainable.

No. Next steps and session notes on Hop are written by your mentor, so nothing gets invented. AI notetakers are not allowed on Hop calls: they record everyone and email the whole room afterwards.

A group session is a live workshop, AMA, or portfolio teardown hosted by a Hop mentor for several members at once. They are free, run on video, and every member can save a seat. Hop sends the calendar invite and reminders, and you can browse upcoming sessions on the landing page before you join.

The Talent Collective is where Hop members who are open to work get seen. You mark yourself open to work, mentors who have worked with you can vouch for you, and hiring managers browse the collective and reach out directly. Hiring managers can also post roles to the Hop job board.

No. Most members join for mentorship: portfolio reviews, career advice, interview practice, and group sessions. The Talent Collective is optional and off by default. You can turn it on from Settings whenever a job search starts.