Doherty Threshold

⚡️

Doherty Threshold

Slow interfaces bore people.

Featured in 8 UX Bites

Similar psychology:

Likely impacts:

Discomfort & Frustration

Happiness & Enjoyment

Last updated: 23/09/2026

How to utilise this in your designs

To stay within the Doherty Threshold, you could load a few items, then fetch more the moment someone swipes, so the next piece of content never makes them wait.

Example from

ChatGPT

If a device search runs past a few seconds, you could try showing a link to the instructions, giving users a way forward once the wait breaks the Doherty Threshold.

Example from

SmartLife

When a query is slow to load, you could experiment with teaching users how to speed up their results, turning a wait beyond the Doherty Threshold into something useful.

Loading bar in orange showing query progress with text "Reticulating spines" crossed out to "spines...". Suggestion box advises reducing date range and enabling 10% sampling.

Example from

Posthog

For long loading screens that break the Doherty Threshold, you could try showing a rotating set of riddles, giving people something to think about while they wait.

Example from

Gojek

During unavoidable waits, e.g., a router restart, you could explain what's happening behind the scenes, so a delay past the Doherty Threshold feels easier to sit through.

Progress bar at 73% on a pale turquoise background with black text: "Checking to see if there’s a WiFi channel your neighbour’s aren’t using. This can boost your speeds."

Example from

Possible impacts

Keeping response times under the Doherty Threshold could help reduce churn, as users tend to tolerate a little latency but may drop off rapidly once waits drag on.

As seen in:

SmartLife Is this taking too long?

Faster interfaces might help hold users' attention and interest, since waits beyond the Doherty Threshold of roughly 400ms can leave people feeling disinterested.

As seen in:

Gojek How much luggage can you bring?

Pinterest Pinterest's drag and hold menu

Cutting delays at tense moments, e.g., just after payment, may lower user frustration, as waits past the Doherty Threshold can make people worry something went wrong.

As seen in:

ChatGPT A loading trick

SmartLife Is this taking too long?

Filling unavoidable waits with riddles or progress explanations could increase users' enjoyment, softening the dip in mood when a wait crosses the Doherty Threshold.

As seen in:

ChatGPT A loading trick

Gojek A riddle while you wait

Written by Peter Ramsey

Consultant to 100+ companies

Published: 31/08/2023

How to utilise this in your designs

To stay within the Doherty Threshold, you could load a few items, then fetch more the moment someone swipes, so the next piece of content never makes them wait.

Example from

ChatGPT

If a device search runs past a few seconds, you could try showing a link to the instructions, giving users a way forward once the wait breaks the Doherty Threshold.

Example from

SmartLife

When a query is slow to load, you could experiment with teaching users how to speed up their results, turning a wait beyond the Doherty Threshold into something useful.

Example from

Posthog

For long loading screens that break the Doherty Threshold, you could try showing a rotating set of riddles, giving people something to think about while they wait.

Example from

Gojek

During unavoidable waits, e.g., a router restart, you could explain what's happening behind the scenes, so a delay past the Doherty Threshold feels easier to sit through.

Example from

Possible impacts

Keeping response times under the Doherty Threshold could help reduce churn, as users tend to tolerate a little latency but may drop off rapidly once waits drag on.

As seen in:

SmartLife Is this taking too long?

Faster interfaces might help hold users' attention and interest, since waits beyond the Doherty Threshold of roughly 400ms can leave people feeling disinterested.

As seen in:

Gojek How much luggage can you bring?

Pinterest Pinterest's drag and hold menu

Cutting delays at tense moments, e.g., just after payment, may lower user frustration, as waits past the Doherty Threshold can make people worry something went wrong.

As seen in:

ChatGPT A loading trick

SmartLife Is this taking too long?

Filling unavoidable waits with riddles or progress explanations could increase users' enjoyment, softening the dip in mood when a wait crosses the Doherty Threshold.

As seen in:

ChatGPT A loading trick

Gojek A riddle while you wait