The psychological needs-driven UX approach is a well-explored area in UX researchand a powerful framework for the design of optimal experiences with systems andproducts. However, the transfer from research to practice is slow and this approach is not yet widely used by practitioners. As card-based methods have beenshown to support designers in both the generation of ideas and the evaluation oftheir designs, we created the UX needs cards as a pragmatic tool able to supporta needs-driven UX process. We present the iterative development of the card-setand its associated techniques and report on three use cases, demonstrating thee!ectiveness of this tool for user research, idea generation, and UX evaluation.Our empirical findings suggest that the UX needs cards are a valuable tool able tosupport design practice, by being easily understood by lay users and a source ofinspiration for designers. Acting as a tangible translation of a research framework,the card-set promotes theory-driven design strategies and provides researchers,designers, and educators with a tool to clearly communicate the framework ofpsychological needs.