How is the visual hierarchy usually established in mobile-first design?

In mobile-first design, the visual hierarchy is effectively established by prioritizing the most important elements on small screens. This approach focuses on delivering a streamlined and user-centric experience, emphasizing essential content and functionality that can easily be accessed and consumed on mobile devices. Since mobile screens have limited real estate, designers must make intentional choices about layout and prominence of elements, ensuring that key features are immediately visible and easily navigable.

This prioritization helps cater to users who often access websites via their mobile devices, providing them with an optimized experience that facilitates quick understanding and interaction. By establishing a clear visual hierarchy starting with mobile, designers can ensure that when the design scales up for larger screens, the structure remains coherent, and the core message is not lost amidst additional content or features.

The other choices do not align with the principles of mobile-first design. Creating intricate designs for larger screens first goes against the mobile-first philosophy, which advocates for simplicity on mobile. Minimizing content for mobile does not serve to enhance the user's experience but rather limits their access to necessary information. Hiding elements on larger screens can lead to a disjointed experience that may confuse users rather than providing a clear and logical progression from mobile to desktop views.