Qualitative vs Quantitative UX Research

User research provides businesses with much-needed insight into their marketplace. However, when it comes to user research, the data is only as good as the questions you are asking. That is why understanding the difference between qualitative and quantitative UX research methods and when to use them is essential to elevating your next project. 

No matter whether you are a product manager, UX designer, marketer, or researcher, it can be tough to know the right option for you. That is why we thought we would take a closer look at the differences between qualitative and quantitative UX research methods and how you can choose the best solution for your needs. 

We’ll also share how Yasna.ai can help with UX research tasks, offering both quantitative sample sizes and qualitative depth of insight.

User Research: Qualitative vs Quantitative 

Before we start exploring the differences, it is first important to understand what we mean when we talk about user research and qualitative and quantitative UX research methods. These two approaches are designed to ascertain how users engage with a particular product but are focused on finding out different aspects. 

Qualitative UX research focuses on understanding why users behave a certain way. It uses methods like interviews, usability tests, and field observations to gather rich and descriptive insights into the user’s experience. The overall goal of this style of research is to explore the motivations, attitudes, pain points, and mental models in depth, providing valuable multi-dimensional insight to developers. 

On the other hand, quantitative UX research looks at what users do and how often. It relies on data-driven methods like surveys, analytics, A/B tests, and metrics tracking to measure user behavior at scale. This approach helps validate patterns, assess usability, and support decisions with statistically significant findings.

Qualitative UX research methods

Qualitative research methods include:

User interviews

These are one-to-one conversations that allow you to ask more in-depth questions about user experience. 

Usability testing (or usability-lab studies) 

These are typically moderated tasks that are observed before researchers ask follow-up questions to understand where users might struggle. 

Field studies 

These allow you to observe users in their natural environment, such as their workplace, public space and homes, uncovering contextual insights that lab-based usability testing might miss. 

Diary studies 

Diary studies allow users to self-report their experiences over a longer period, providing valuable long-term insight. 

Quantitative UX research methods 

Quantitative research methods include:

Surveys 

These structured questionnaires capture opinions and behaviors in a format that is easy to quantify. 

A/B testing 

This is used to compare two or more versions of a design to see which performs better. 

Analytics 

Analytical tools are able to provide behavioral data such as bounce rates, session length, or click paths. 

Metric tracking 

These tests require users to complete tasks, with success rates and time-on-task insight being automatically recorded. 

Core Differences Between Qualitative vs. Quantitative UX Research 

The core differences between the two lie in whether you are looking to explore user behavior or measure it. Each of these approaches serves a distinct purpose and utilizes different techniques to deliver a different kind of insight. 

Qualitative UX research is used when you are looking to understand the reason behind users taking a certain action, what is motivating their decisions and where they might be encountering issues. The data these research methods collect is more in-depth rather than numerical and is typically gathered using interviews, usability testing, observations, and other open-ended methods. 

Qualitative UX research allows users to express themselves in their own words without limit. This data can be incredibly rich, but the goal of this technique is depth rather than breadth, which is why sample sizes are usually much smaller, sometimes no more than a dozen people. The insight these individuals provide can then be used for exploration: to shape ideas, identify patterns or challenges, and inspire design changes. 

Quantitative UX research is designed to find out more structured information. It is the how many, how often, and how much style questions that are answered through surveys, analytical tools, and task-based metrics. The data gathered is typically numerical and collected from a much larger group of users, often hundreds, which will allow you to detect trends, test hypotheses, and make statistically supported decisions. This insight can be extremely valuable when looking to validate design changes or compare the performance of different aspects. 

When exploring user research and qualitative vs quantitative UX research methods, another key difference is the output being delivered. The detailed research provided by qualitative research offers insights and behaviors that you can study, whereas quantitative research is ideal for creating graphs, percentages, and scores that allow you to track user behavior at scale. 

When to Use Qualitative and Quantitative UX Research Methods 

Both qualitative and quantitative methods can be incredibly useful to pushing your product forward. However, it is essential that you are opting for the right choice depending at what stage you are in the product development process. 

You should be using qualitative methods when you:

— Are in the discovery or ideation phase. 

— Want to explore new features, concepts, and upgrades.

— Are redesigning a core workflow or feature. 

— Need to understand what could be frustrating users or downgrading their experience. 

You should use quantitative methods when you:

— Want to validate some findings from earlier qualitative work 

— Need to track changes and patterns over time

— Require statistically significant data to support your decisions 

— Are comparing user behavior across different segments or channels

To ensure that you are gathering the strongest insights into your products, you should try to use a blend of the two. For example, you might want to conduct interviews to understand specific user needs before conducting a large-scale survey to validate the most common pain points. Or you can use an AI-powered tool like Yasna.ai for interviewing your users. Yasna bridges the gap between quantitative and qualitative research by offering both rich data and large sample sizes.

How to Choose the Right Approach for Your Project

When it comes to choosing between the two methods, the first step is to ask yourself:

Am I exploring concepts or looking to validate findings?

If it is the former and you are looking to uncover user needs, behaviors, and pain points, then qualitative research is the better fit. This research method is best utilized at the beginning of a project or feature cycle when you are still trying to understand a specific problem. 

However, if you have already identified a pattern or issue and now want to know either how widespread it is or whether a design change can improve it, then quantitative research is the best option. This will allow you to measure outcomes and support your decisions with actual data that you can then use when communicating with stakeholders. 

Of course, when deciding which option is best for you, it’s not just about your desired results. You will also need to consider your timeline and the resources you have available to you. Qualitative methods can take more time to schedule and conduct, especially if you’re doing in-depth interviews or contextual field studies, although the results are often worth the investment. Quantitative methods are easier to scale and quicker to run, but they also require clean and well-structured data and enough respondents in order to generate meaningful results. 

When it comes to qualitative and quantitative UX research methods, the stage of your product is also an important consideration. For example, startups tend to lean heavily on qualitative research as they are still figuring out how their operations fit into the market. A more established brand may prefer quantitative methods to better monitor usage patterns or validate optimizations. 

It is important to remember that you do not always have to choose one or the other. For the best results, blending the two can yield far stronger insights and results. For instance, you might run usability tests to explore why users are dropping off at a certain point in the flow, and then follow up with a large-scale survey to quantify how common those pain points are.

Qualitative and Quantitative UX Research Mistakes to Avoid

When implementing qualitative or quantitative research, it can be very easy to make mistakes that lead to unreliable or weak insights. When starting out and you are developing your questions, be sure to avoid these mistakes:

— Mixed questions. For example, do not ask someone how likely they are to do something and why in the same breath, separate them into two different questions. Keep each questions as concise and to the point as possible.

— Confusing wording. Poorly worded questions can also be a major hurdle to getting reliable and useful data. Be careful with your wording and avoid language that might confuse users (such as highly technical terms, acronyms and abbreviations) or encourage bias. 

— Small samples in quant research. When focusing on quantitative research methods, try to avoid over-relying on small samples. Reach out to a broad range of users to gather statistically significant insights. 

— Not validating qualitative insights on larger samples. For qualitative UX research, make sure that you are validating assumptions by checking the views and opinions gathered against either a larger group or through measurable data.  

Take Your Research to the Next Level with Yasna.ai

Being able to understand the unique advantages of both qualitative and quantitative UX research methods will help ensure you are using the right solutions to maximize your insights and create a comprehensive overview of your users’ needs and behaviors. 

However, creating comprehensive questions for user interviews can be a time-consuming process. Yasna.ai can help you here too. Our in-house research experts developed a set of interview guide templates to speed up your UX research. The library of templates keeps expanding to address our client’s needs.

Currently we offer templates to cover the most common CX/UX and product research tasks: 

— Churn analysis 

— Service or product usage feedback

— Discovery: user journey and pain points 

The questions in the templates are pre-set. All you need to do is fill in the blanks, customizing the templates to your specific needs. Our AI agent will then create a professional interview flow based on the guide and proceed to interviewing your users. As an output, you’ll get full interview transcripts, easy-to-read summaries and AI-powered reporting with qual-quant analysis of the data. Yasna will do all of the heavy lifting for you, allowing you to focus your time on improving your products. 

Don’t just take our word for it, though. Sign up today for your free two-week trial! 

FAQ

What is the main difference between qualitative and quantitative UX research?

Qualitative UX research focuses on understanding user behavior and motivations, while quantitative UX research measures behavior with numerical data. 

Can I start with quantitative research in a new project?

It’s usually better to start with qualitative methods when exploring a new product or idea, as you need to understand the problem before you can effectively measure it.

Is usability testing considered qualitative or quantitative?

Usability testing can be either, depending on how it’s structured. Moderated sessions are typically qualitative, while unmoderated tests with task completion rates are quantitative.