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 Usability Testing |  UX Research Surveys |  Innovation Design Thinking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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 a product is built but people get stuck on tasks, usability testing shows the friction at concrete points. Observed use instead of self-report makes visible where orientation, understanding, or interaction breaks down. | When a topic needs to be validated broadly and many people can answer the same question, surveys gather structured feedback in a scalable form. Answers become comparable and segmentable instead of remaining merely anecdotal. | For complex user problems with an uncertain cause, the method connects observation, interpretation, and experiment into a learning cycle. It keeps the focus on real needs and avoids premature solution language. This produces robust decisions for product and service. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 1-2 h je Session | 3-14 Tage | 1 Tag bis mehrere Wochen |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | Based on research question | 50+ | 4-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Usability Issues, Severity List, Recommendations | Survey Results, Charts, Segment Insights | Problem Statement, Prototype, Test Learnings |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | ValidationUXPrototype | QuantitativeResearchValidation | InnovationPrototypeResearch |