View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Growth A/B Testing |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When content only makes sense internally and users can't find the structure again, card sorting exposes their mental order. Terms, groups, and naming are then aligned with the target group's expectations. | 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 two variants compete, discussions quickly decide by taste rather than effect. A/B Testing checks behavior under controlled conditions and separates real improvement from chance or expectation effects. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 1-3 Wochen | 1-4 Wochen |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 1-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Experiment results, Decision log, Learning summary |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | UX researchObservationContext | ExperimentsGrowthAnalyticsValidation |
Often compared together
Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.
