View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
Selected:Affinity DiagrammingARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)Software Architecture CanvasEmpathy Mapping
| Criterion |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |  Architecture Software Architecture Canvas |  UX Research Empathy Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When research notes, feedback, or observations sit unconnected side by side, affinity diagramming sorts the raw material into solid themes. Many individual points turn into patterns that make decisions and opportunities clearer. | ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification. | The Software Architecture Canvas reduces a system to the most important architecture decisions, constraints, and interfaces. It is useful when teams need a resilient overall picture quickly. | When a lot is assumed about a target group but little is seen jointly, empathy mapping makes knowledge and gaps directly comparable. The picture also shows which assumptions hold up and where evidence is missing. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 45–90 min | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional | 1-2 h | 30–60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation | 3-10 | 4-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions | Architecture Canvas, Goals, Constraints, Quality Attributes | Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research Gaps |
Tagsno overlap | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks | CanvasArchitectureAlignmentWorkshop | SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop |