To help us make an informed decision about the user research tools, I have created a user research service comparison. In this comparison, we will review the most popular user research tools available today, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses, pricing, and key features.
Research Question
What service or combination of services should we use to conduct user research?
Method
I compared 14 user research services that offered qualitative user testing tools (e.g, interview recording and analysis, card sorting), quantitative user testing tools (e.g., surveys), user panels, or a combination thereof. I spoke with representatives and account executives from many of the vendors and compared the services on:
Tool Range
Unmoderated usability testing
Moderated usability testing
In-product intercepts/feedback
Surveys
User Panel
Large B2B panel with active participants
Verified participants (based on social media)
Bonus points for CRE screening questions built-in
Pricing
Ideally cost efficient
Flexible plans (e.g., no min. terms)
Misc. Requirements
SSO
Assumptions Table
Price comparison utilized key assumptions about frequency of testing, and the number of participants per study for approximately ~300 participants/year based on qualitative testing needs (below).
Cost pp (without tools)
Duration (Months)
Participants per project
Projects per month
Moderated tests
Unmoderated Tests
Minimum Seats
Cost pp (without tools)
Duration (Months)
Participants per project
Projects per month
Moderated tests
Unmoderated Tests
Minimum Seats
1
$150.00
12
5
5
60%
40%
5
There are no rows in this table
Annual cost of participant incentives without additional services/panels
$45,000.00
Results
Proposed Solutions
Tools
Participant Pool
~Annual Tool Cost USD
Total Cost USD
Verdict
Tools
Participant Pool
~Annual Tool Cost USD
Total Cost USD
Verdict
1
Existing
Manual recruitment
$0.00
$45,000.00
Most economical but no features, more manual work and more data inconsistency.
User Interviews offers CRE Portfolio Managers as a screener option, but they would need to be supplemented with a usability tool such as Loop11.
5
UserTesting/User Zoom
UserTesting/User Zoom
$41,022.00
$86,022.00
Most widely used in the industry but extremely costly. This quote only includes 3 seats.
There are no rows in this table
Note
Annual Tool Cost reflects the value of the cost of the service after subtracting approximate recruitment fees. Where recruitment fee breakdowns are unavailable, recruitment fees are estimated based on manual recruitment fee costs ($45,000 USD).
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