Sandstorm Design, Inc.
Sandstorm® is an accessibility-certified, digital experience design agency for purpose-driven brands that leverages advanced UX principles to uncover actionable insights and reduce bias. From brand strategy and user research to inclusive UX design and enterprise web development in Drupal, Acquia, WordPress, and Kentico; a deep understanding of human behavior is at the core of everything we do. With over 4,400 hrs of in-depth UX research under our belts, we transform the subjective to the objective so we can make better business decisions together.
Sandstorm® is an accessibility-certified, digital experience design agency for purpose-driven brands that leverages advanced UX principles to uncover actionable insights and reduce bias. From brand strategy and user research to inclusive UX design and enterprise web development in Drupal, Acquia, WordPress, and Kentico; a deep understanding of human behavior is at the core of everything we do. With over 4,400 hrs of in-depth UX research under our belts, we transform the subjective to the objective so we can make better business decisions together.
Performance snapshot
Sandstorm Design is a Chicago-area web design and development agency with a strong track record across nonprofit, healthcare, and financial services verticals. The majority of its 12 reviews reflect consistent satisfaction, with recurring praise for partnership quality, project ownership, and UX capabilities. Ratings skew heavily positive, though isolated cost concerns and early-stage communication issues prevent a uniformly Strong profile across all categories.
Performance breakdown
Technical expertise
StrongReviewers consistently highlight expertise in UX/UI design, Drupal development, CMS integration, SEO, and accessibility compliance. A food distributor reported a threefold increase in daily website users following a UX refresh, and multiple clients cite rescue of complex data design and app architecture challenges.
Project management & delivery
StrongSchedule sub-ratings across reviewed engagements are predominantly 4.5–5.0, with clients noting timely delivery even under tight deadlines and evolving requirements. One nonprofit reviewer gave a 4.0 on schedule, reflecting minor variability, but no pattern of missed milestones was identified.
Communication & collaboration
StrongMultiple reviewers describe Sandstorm as feeling like an extension of their internal team, with strong transparency and responsiveness highlighted across recent engagements. One older review noted initial communication friction, but this appears isolated and not reflected in more recent feedback.
Reliability
StrongClients across long-term engagements consistently report stable deliverables, bug resolution, and proactive support. A health system reviewer cited strengthened regulatory readiness and streamlined workflows, while a nonprofit noted successful resolution of previously broken CRM integrations.
Client satisfaction & outcomes
StrongTangible outcomes include tripled daily website users, increased organic traffic, improved accessibility compliance, reduced bill-processing time, and boosted member growth for a credit union rebranding. Willingness-to-refer sub-ratings are predominantly 5.0, underscoring strong overall client satisfaction.
Best for
Sandstorm Design is best suited for mid-sized nonprofits, health systems, and financial services organizations seeking comprehensive website redesigns, UX strategy, and CMS-based development with a collaborative, long-term partnership model.
Clients info
Sandstorm Design primarily serves nonprofit organizations, healthcare systems, financial services firms, and business associations. Client sizes range from small startups to large enterprises with over 1,000 employees. Documented project budgets include engagements in the $50,000–$199,999 and $200,000–$999,999 ranges, with several clients keeping budgets confidential. Primary industries represented include Nonprofit, Healthcare, Financial Services, Business Services, Information Technology. Typical client size bands include 1–10 Employees, 11–50 Employees, 51–200 Employees, 201–500 Employees, 501–1,000 Employees, 1,001–5,000 Employees. Common project budget ranges include $50,000 to $199,999, $200,000 to $999,999.
Review strength
The assessment is based on 12 reviews sourced from a single platform. The majority of reviews are recent, with eight published between 2024 and 2026. However, four reviews date from 2019, which are more than five years old and may not fully reflect current capabilities or team composition. Review date range: Jan 10, 2019 - Feb 23, 2026.
Performance breakdown
Technical expertise
StrongReviewers consistently highlight expertise in UX/UI design, Drupal development, CMS integration, SEO, and accessibility compliance. A food distributor reported a threefold increase in daily website users following a UX refresh, and multiple clients cite rescue of complex data design and app architecture challenges.
Project management & delivery
StrongSchedule sub-ratings across reviewed engagements are predominantly 4.5–5.0, with clients noting timely delivery even under tight deadlines and evolving requirements. One nonprofit reviewer gave a 4.0 on schedule, reflecting minor variability, but no pattern of missed milestones was identified.
Communication & collaboration
StrongMultiple reviewers describe Sandstorm as feeling like an extension of their internal team, with strong transparency and responsiveness highlighted across recent engagements. One older review noted initial communication friction, but this appears isolated and not reflected in more recent feedback.
Reliability
StrongClients across long-term engagements consistently report stable deliverables, bug resolution, and proactive support. A health system reviewer cited strengthened regulatory readiness and streamlined workflows, while a nonprofit noted successful resolution of previously broken CRM integrations.
Client satisfaction & outcomes
StrongTangible outcomes include tripled daily website users, increased organic traffic, improved accessibility compliance, reduced bill-processing time, and boosted member growth for a credit union rebranding. Willingness-to-refer sub-ratings are predominantly 5.0, underscoring strong overall client satisfaction.