View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
| Criterion |  Agile Affinity Estimation |  UX Research Diary Study |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Agile Bucket System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When many tasks need to be classified quickly, it sorts them by perceived effort and similarity. It reduces the effort of fine-grained estimation for large volumes. | When experiences build up over days or weeks and a single session cannot capture them, Diary Study records the course of everyday life. Recurring triggers, moods, and habits become visible this way, beyond the sharpness of memory. | When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise. | When a large batch of work needs a fast, rough estimate, it sorts items into predefined size buckets. It sorts work by value, risk, and delivery ability. The result is captured as a Bucketed Backlog, Relative Estimates, and Split Candidates. |
Complexitysame | Medium | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 1-4 Wochen | 1-3 Wochen | 30-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 3-12 | 5-20 | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 3-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Affinity Size Map, Grouped Estimates, Unclear Items | Diary Entries, Longitudinal Patterns, Experience Timeline | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Bucketed Backlog, Relative Estimates, Split Candidates |
Tagsno overlap | EstimationBacklogRelative sizing | UX researchTrackingBehavior | UX researchObservationContext | EstimationBacklogRelative sizing |