What is it? A usability test comes under the umbrella discipline of usability research. It is a study with a directed, typically task-based, objective. The focus includes understanding the learnability, efficiency, memorability, error recovery, satisfaction and/or engagement of a specific part of, or sometimes an overall experience end to end. A usability test can be short and focused on one explicit task/question set, or involve multiple tasks/questions. Usability testing can be facilitated by a moderator or take place on an unmoderated platform.

When is it best used? To evaluate a specific aspect of a digital or physical experience, rather than to explore an open/generative topic. It is used when there is an interaction to evaluate, whether it is with a prototype or an existing product/website/app/service/experience. It tests the utility and usability of a specific aspect/portion (e.g. assembly instructions for furniture, setting up a new account, registering for a class, etc.), or the end-to-end experience (e.g. finding and making a purchase on an ecommerce site, downloading and fully using an app, taking a driving test, etc.)

What does it entail? Usability tests can be conducted in person or remotely. Study participants are typically provided with a scenario to contextualize the specific activity they will be asked to perform on whatever is being tested.

A usability test may be observed, may involve the participant thinking out loud as they perform the task, or the participant can be asked questions before, during and/or after each activity, or at various times during the session. Usability tests often measure degrees of task success, time to complete a task, and/or number and nature of steps or pathways involved in achieving the task. In contrast, user experience research tends to be broader, exploring more undirected and contextual information, e.g. alternative options they might consider, prior experience or expectations, and multiple other factors that could impact the overall learnings around the topic (rather than being task-driven). 

Interchangeable term: NA

Related terms: Usability research, usability study, user research, user experience research, prototype, problem identification, click test, contextual inquiry, eye tracking 

Use in a sentence: We are conducting a usability test to measure how efficient and effective our new enrollment process is compared to the existing solution. 

Visual: No

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