The article will provide a direct comparison of features and pricing between Validately and UserTesting alongside a review of user feedback to help you select the most suitable user testing tool for your research.
Key Insights
👉 For freelancers and small businesses, Validately (UserZoom GO) is a viable option, while UserTesting better serves larger companies with substantial budgets.
👉 The annual cost of approximately $3000 for Validately (UserZoom GO) may not be justified due to its limited functionality.
👉 Users of UserTesting have expressed concerns about the quality of testers from the panel, potentially affecting the reliability of test outcomes.
👉 UserTesting is known for its feature set, making it a good option for projects with quick turnaround requirements.
👉 UXtweak stands out with its cost-effective pricing and comprehensive toolset, making it an attractive option for budget-conscious users.
👉 UXtweak ensures reliable feedback by providing unmatched services such as study audit by expert or automatic QA of responses included with each recruiting order, addressing concerns often associated with participant quality on other platforms.
🐝 Register for free with UXtweak today!
Validately and UserTesting alternative – UXtweak
UXtweak serves as an alternative to platforms such as Validately and UserTesting, functioning as an all-in-one user research platform.
It provides a range of features that support organizations from the beginning stages of development to the optimization of final products. These features include prototype testing, live interviews, remote usability testing, mobile app testing, tree testing, first-click testing, five-second tests, card sorting, and more.
🐝 Experience UXtweak’s demos for a firsthand look at user interactions and analytics ⬇
Validately and UserTesting: Features and Capabilities
The table provides a detailed comparison of three research platforms: Validately, UserTesting, and UXtweak, focusing on their specific features.
Note: A feature marked with an orange check in the table signifies its availability on certain testing tools, though it might come with an extra fee or be exclusive to a more advanced subscription plan.
Features | Validately | UserTesting | UXtweak |
Website Usability Testing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Mobile Apps Testing | ✓ | ✓ (iOS, Android, and TestFlight, no SDK installation required) | ✓ |
Prototype Testing | ✓ | ✓ (only on the Ultimate plan, Adobe XD, InVision integrations) | ✓ (Compatible with Figma, InVision, Axure) |
Card Sorting | ✗ | ✓ (only available on Ultimate plan or as an add-on) | ✓ (available on all plans) |
Tree Testing | ✗ | ✓ (only on the Ultimate plan or as an add-on) | ✓ |
Preference Testing | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
First Click Testing | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
5 Second Testing | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
A/B Testing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Moderated/User Interviews | ✓ | ✓ (Advanced plan and higher) | ✓ (on Enterprise plans) conduct directly in one platform* |
Session recording | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
Survey | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
Website recruiting widget | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
Branching logic (conditional logic) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
*UXtweak offers built in features to recruit, schedule, conduct, and analyze user interviews or any other moderated studies.
The table shows that all three platforms offer a wide range of features. Notably, UXtweak includes every feature listed, often in a more advanced form or at a more affordable price compared to the other two platforms.
Validately and UserTesting: Participant Recruitment and Management Capabilities
The table shows how Validately, UserTesting, and UXtweak find and manage people for usability studies.
Capabilities | Validately | UserTesting | UXtweak |
Price per participant | Starts at $15 | Starts at $39 | Starts at $10 |
Panel size - country coverage | 100+ countries | 35 countries | 130+ countries |
Advanced Targeting criteria | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (2000+ attributes) |
Automatic QA of responses | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Expert audit | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ (included with each order from User Panel) |
Ability to bring your own users | ✓ | ✓ (for a certain price) | ✓ (for free) |
Participant management solution | ✗ | ✓ (advanced plan and higher) | ✓ (available on all plans) |
Validately and UserTesting: Pricing and Plans Comparison
Choosing a platform requires careful consideration of cost-effectiveness. It’s important to select one that meets all your research requirements while staying within your budget. Let’s explore the affordability aspects of the research platforms we’ve reviewed.
Validately plans and pricing
Validately, now known as UserZoom GO, keeps its pricing details private, which can be tricky for cost comparisons. Here’s what you need to know about their pricing options:
- No Free Plan: Validately/UserZoom GO doesn’t offer a free plan.
- Free Trial: A free trial is available.
- Starting Price: Pricing begins at $250 per month for one researcher (therefore $3000 annually).
UserZoom GO is primarily aimed at freelancers and small businesses.
UserTesting plans and pricing
UserTesting’s pricing details are not publicly disclosed, leading to some frustration for those comparing costs. Their model includes three main plans:
- Essentials: Good for basic feedback without advanced features like card sorting and detailed demographics.
- Advanced: Offers more testing and reporting options, including mobile app support and detailed user analysis.
- Ultimate: The most comprehensive, with additional features for in-depth insights.
Prices are customized; direct inquiry is necessary. Annual costs start around $30,000, with a more typical spend closer to $50,000, varying with additional services and team size.
UXtweak plans and pricing
UXtweak provides a range of pricing options tailored to different testing requirements, including a free plan for smaller projects. Here’s a brief overview:
- Starter Plan: Free of charge,
- Ideal for basic testing needs, offering access to all tools, one active study, and up to 30 responses monthly.
- Plus Plan: Priced at $708 annually,
- This plan is great for individual researchers, with 200 monthly responses, unlimited studies, and data retention for a year.
- Business Plan: At $1,812 annually,
- It caters to small and medium-sized businesses, offering unlimited studies, 1,000 responses per month, and enhanced support.
- Enterprise Plan: Begins at $5,000 a year,
- Customizable for larger clients with unlimited responses and access to real users, along with personalized support.
These plans are generally based on annual billing, but a monthly option is available for added flexibility. Users can change or cancel plans at any time. For more in-depth information on each plan’s features, visit UXtweak’s pricing page.
Validately and UserTesting: Customer Reviews
To ensure an unbiased assessment of the three platforms discussed, we’ve incorporated a table compiled using data from capterra.com. Similar to G2, this website aggregates user reviews of various platforms.
(!) Please note that since Validately (also known as UserZoom GO) has been acquired by UserZoom, it no longer has an individual rating on the site. As a result, we’ve substituted the UserZoom GO rating with the UserZoom rating in this section.
Validately UserZoom | UserTesting | UXtweak | |
Overall Score | 4.4/5 | 4.5/5 | 4.8/5 |
Ease of Use | 4.5/5 | 4.4/5 | 4.7/5 |
Customer Service | 4.7/5 | 4.3/5 | 5/5 |
Value for money | 4.6/5 | 4.5/5 | 4.8/5 |
Source: capterra.com
Note: The Overall Score presented is independently assessed by reviewers on the Capterra website and is NOT a calculated average of the other criteria such as Ease of Use, Customer Service, and Value for Money.
UserZoom
- Pros:
- Offers quick and informative surveys: A/B testing (useful for determining conversion rates), unmoderated usability testing, and click surveys.
- Intuitive Platform: The platform’s user-friendly design makes starting usability tests straightforward.
- Responsive Customer Support: Provides a highly accommodating customer support team that responds swiftly when needed.
- Participant Recruitment: Facilitates fast acquisition of enough participants for quantitative benchmarking usability studies.
- Cons:
- Pricing Model: Considered prohibitive, limiting the ability to widely distribute ‘specialist’ seats within a company for test creation.
- High cost: UserZoom is perceived as expensive, posing a challenge for users with budget constraints.
- Inflexible Research Sessions: Limitations in combining devices into a single study, resulting in the need for more studies than necessary.
- Limited Features in UserZoom Go: Lacks advanced options such as transcription in the base cost.
- Adding Users to Studies: It’s challenging to add extra users to an ongoing study, as it necessitates direct communication with support.
- Automated System Inconsistencies: Occasional failures in the automated system, affecting test success approximately 1 in 10 times.
Source: G2.com
UserTesting:
- Pros:
- Fast responses from the panel
- SUS scale evaluation available
- Sentiment analysis in Advanced plan and higher
- Cons:
- Low-quality respondents
- According to customers on Capterra, sometimes the platform glitches during tests
- Quite expensive tool
Source: G2.com
UXtweak:
- Pros:
- A large variety of tools with top features (eliminates the need for multiple tools)
- Friendly price
- High-quality respondents
- Cons:
- Getting familiar with the dashboard may require a bit of time
- The platform’s frequent addition of complex features may pose a challenge for users
- UXtweak note: To address this, new tutorial videos are being produced.
Source: G2.com
Validately and UserTesting: Support options
When facing usability issues, having access to excellent support options from your selected platform is crucial. Let’s now examine the support solutions provided by each platform in this comparison.
Validately
UserZoom GO includes an Email/Help Desk as a primary support option, offering straightforward assistance for user inquiries and issues. This service is designed for efficient and professional resolution of any platform-related questions.
UserTesting
UserTesting provides various support options tailored to different user needs:
- Basic Support: Open to all users, offering 24/7 email support on weekdays, from Sunday 3 pm to Friday 10 pm PT, excluding major holidays.
- Enhanced Support: Available for mid-tier plans, includes Basic Support plus live chat and phone support during the same hours.
- Premier Support: For top-tier subscribers, it extends Enhanced Support to 24-hour weekday coverage, including most holidays, priority response in all channels, one-hour email response time, and exclusive Premier Support Power Sessions for comprehensive help.
- Additional: Non-customers can schedule consultations, and Premier Power Sessions are bookable from Sunday 5:30 pm to Friday 4 pm PT.
UXtweak
At UXtweak, we extend beyond traditional support options by providing consulting services and audits conducted by our in-house team of expert UX researchers. Our commitment to excellence is highlighted by our perfect 5/5 rating on Capterra. For more information, feel free to explore our UX research consulting services.
🐝 Interested in enhancing your website’s customer experience? Join UXtweak today!
Validately vs UserTesting: Conclusion
Validately (UserZoom GO) targets freelancers and small businesses but lacks the range of features found in UXtweak or UserTesting. Despite its limited functions, the platform’s annual cost is around $3000. Consequently, both in terms of functionality and cost, this platform may not present the best value.
UserTesting is known for its wide range of features and fast results, ideal for projects that need quick completion. This makes it a good choice for big companies with larger budgets, as it’s more expensive. However, there are some concerns from users about tester quality, potentially affecting the outcomes of the tests.
UXtweak’s toolset, coupled with its affordable pricing, makes it a practical alternative, especially in areas where Validately and UserTesting have higher costs. Additionally, UXtweak’s access to real users ensures reliable feedback, addressing the feedback quality issues often encountered with other platforms.
