Research
User research methods and best practices — usability testing, interviews, surveys, contextual inquiry, and how to turn findings into decisions.
37 articles
A/B Testing for UX Designers
Running controlled experiments to validate design changes—the difference between data-driven and guessing.
Cohort Analysis: Retention Explained for Designers
Cohort analysis groups people by signup date and tracks their retention. How to read the table, what the curve shape says, and which mistakes mislead you.
Competitive Analysis
Learn how to conduct a Competitive Analysis in UX to understand the market, identify opportunities, and make strategic, informed design decisions.
Concept testing: validating an idea before building it
Concept testing checks whether a product idea resonates with users before you design or build it. What to show, what to ask, and which mistakes to avoid.
Contextual Inquiry
Observing users in their natural environment while they work—reveals context that interviews and surveys never capture.
Desk research: investigating without talking to users, step by step
Desk research means investigating with information that already exists: studies, internal data, and outside sources. Learn when to use it and its limits.
Diary Studies
Asking users to document their behavior over days or weeks—captures patterns you'll never see in a single-session study.
Ethnography in UX: Observing Users in Their Real Environment
What ethnography in UX is, how it differs from contextual inquiry and interviews, when it is worth its cost, and which biases appear when observing in context.
Eye Tracking
Using eye-tracking technology to measure where users look and for how long—revealing visual attention patterns invisible to observation.
First-Click Testing: The First Click Predicts Success
First-click testing measures where a person clicks first on a task. How to set it up, what to measure, how many people it needs, and when it does not fit.
Five-Second Test: What It Measures in a Design's First Impression
A five-second test shows a screen briefly, then asks what the person understood. How to run one step by step and what it cannot tell you about usability.
Focus Groups in UX: Why They Are Rarely the Answer
What focus groups are, why they are a poor way to evaluate usability, which group biases distort their answers, and when they are still worth running.
Funnel Analysis for Designers: Where People Drop Off and How to Read It
A funnel analysis measures what share of users completes a sequence of steps and where they leave. How to define steps, set the window, and read the results.
Generative vs. evaluative research: when to explore and when to validate
Generative research finds which problem is worth solving; evaluative research checks whether a solution works. Differences, methods and when to use each.
Guerrilla testing: fast, cheap research in public places
Guerrilla testing runs short sessions with people in public spaces for quick feedback. How to prepare, how many to run, and why it is not a formal test.
Heatmaps and Session Recordings: What They Show and What They Don't
Heatmaps aggregate clicks and scroll; session recordings show single visits. What they tell you, how to read them without fooling yourself, and data privacy.
How Many Users Do You Need? Sample Size in UX Research
Sample size in UX depends on the method: five participants can find usability problems, but they cannot measure rates. How to decide for each method.
Jobs to Be Done Framework
Understanding what users are trying to accomplish (not what feature they want) reveals design opportunities others miss.
Mobile usability testing: how to run it without losing data
Mobile usability testing evaluates an app on the user's real device. How to recruit, prepare the session, record it and pick tools without losing data.
Moderated vs. unmoderated testing: when to sit with the user
In a moderated test a facilitator guides and can ask questions; in an unmoderated one the user goes alone. Differences, risks and when to choose each per NN/g.
NPS, CSAT, and CES: What Each Measures and When to Use It
NPS measures loyalty, CSAT satisfaction with one interaction, and CES effort. How each is calculated, when to use it, and why they cannot be converted.
Participatory Design and Co-Design: When Users Decide With You
What participatory design and co-design are, their Scandinavian origins, how to run co-creation sessions, and when participation is only symbolic.
Preference Testing: When It Works and When It Misleads
A preference test shows two or more designs and asks which people prefer. When it helps, which biases it brings, and why it can't predict real use.
Recruiting Research Participants
Finding and recruiting the right users for research—the foundation of valid, actionable research results.
Remote User Research
Conducting user research without travel or location constraints—fast, scalable, and accessible to global participants.
Research Bias in User Research: How It Creeps In and How to Curb It
Bias distorts what users say and what the team concludes. Learn the most common biases, how to spot them, and the practical steps that reduce them.
Research Repository: Keeping Findings From Getting Lost
What to store in a research repository, how to tag and search it, who maintains it, and why most repositories end up abandoned, according to NN/g.
Research Synthesis: From Notes to Actionable Insights
Research synthesis turns interview notes and test observations into themes and insights. The step-by-step process, how to name themes and how to avoid bias.
ResearchOps: Scaling User Research Without Losing Quality
What ResearchOps is and its areas (participants, governance, knowledge, tools, competency), how to start without solving it all at once, and when to skip it.
Stakeholder Interviews: Aligning Goals Before You Research
How to run stakeholder interviews with internal teams: what to ask, when to run them, how to analyze answers, and which mistakes to avoid in decision meetings.
Strategic research: research that shapes the roadmap
Strategic research decides which problems are worth solving; tactical research checks whether what we build works. How to balance them and feed the roadmap.
SUS (System Usability Scale): how to apply and read it
The System Usability Scale is a ten-item questionnaire that rates perceived usability from 0 to 100. How to calculate it, what 68 means and what its limits are.
Triangulation: combining methods to trust a finding
Triangulation combines several methods to answer one research question. Its types, how to mix qualitative and quantitative data, and when it is not worth it.
Usability Metrics: Task Success Rate, Time on Task, and Error Rate Explained
Usability metrics show whether people complete a task, how hard it is, and where they go wrong. How to calculate them, read the SUS, and size your sample.
Usability Testing
Discover what Usability Testing is and how this UX research technique helps you find and fix problems in your design by observing real users.
User Interviews
Learn how to conduct User Interviews, a fundamental UX research technique for understanding your users, building empathy, and designing better products.
User Surveys
Learn how to design and use User Surveys, a powerful UX research tool for collecting quantitative data at scale and validating your hypotheses.