---
title: Make your shadcn app look less generic
slug: less-generic-shadcn
url: "https://dontmakeitugly.com/collections/less-generic-shadcn"
resources:
  - tweakcn
  - radix-colors
  - origin-ui
  - number-flow
createdAt: "2026-09-02"
updatedAt: "2026-09-03"
---

# Make your shadcn app look less generic

You used the defaults. Everyone used the defaults. Here's how to fix that in an afternoon.

shadcn/ui is a great foundation and a terrible finished look, because every agent-built app ships with the same radius, the same greys and the same Inter. The fix is not more components; it's a theme, a typeface, a colour system and a few well-placed details. In roughly this order.

## Resources, in order

1. [tweakcn](https://dontmakeitugly.com/resources/tweakcn.md) — A visual theme editor that makes a shadcn/ui app stop looking like every other shadcn/ui app.
   Agent: Good.
   The single highest-leverage fix for "my app looks generic". Ten minutes here does more than an afternoon of prompting.
2. [Radix Colors](https://dontmakeitugly.com/resources/radix-colors.md) — Colour scales designed for real UI, with light and dark modes that actually match.
   Agent: Excellent. Install: `npm install @radix-ui/colors`
   The most useful thing about it is the documentation of what each step is for. Once you know step 9 is the solid colour and step 11 is text, dark mode stops being guesswork. Works with any framework; it's just CSS variables.
3. [Origin UI](https://dontmakeitugly.com/resources/origin-ui.md) — Hundreds of polished, practical components built on shadcn/ui conventions.
   Agent: Excellent.
   Quietly one of the most useful component resources around. Less flashy than Magic UI or Aceternity, far more useful for actual product interfaces.
4. [NumberFlow](https://dontmakeitugly.com/resources/number-flow.md) — Animated number transitions that make counters, prices and stats feel expensive.
   Agent: Excellent. Install: `npm install @number-flow/react`
   A tiny detail that makes dashboards, pricing toggles and stat counters feel like a premium product. Use it on numbers that actually change.

Work down the list in order. Each linked page says what the resource is, why it's here and how an agent can use it.