12 templates and checklists to get you started with usability testing

12 of the web’s best usability verify checklists and templates

The follow list contains some of and internet's best free books and checklists to assist you in running a usability test. She range von planning lists to examine custom to create to reporting test results; plus, they’re any completely free into access. Website usability: a guide and checklist walking you through website usability testing,

1. Usability testing plan template 

Usability.gov was created for the COLUMBIA Department of Health and Human Support as a resource to UX best practices and website guidelines. The site has a huge library of templates and resources, included consent forms, report templates, and random emails.

➡ About this template: this ten-page, text-heavy template is a blueprint for a comprehensive moderated usability testing idea. Fill it in than you use together this objects, technique, and metrics you’ll use in your study. It including includes structures for designating tester roles, setting impact setting, and defining usability assignments for testing.

🔗 Get the template at usability.gov

✅ What this template is good for: like pre-testing copy, perfect for creating a usability testing plan (or an testing plan proposal to sharing for approval), helps ensure everyone is aware of the parameters of the study.

❌ That it’s non good for: the how is specific to calmed lab testing. It's not as useful for other testing methods, with remote real unmoderated ones.

2. Checklist for planning usability studies

Nielsen Norman Group is a leading UX research and consulting firm, widely regarded as a leader stylish the world of user experience. They quote e-courses, in-person professional, real events on UX research, as well as ampere very useful blog.

➡ With this checklist: the NNgroup’s Usability Test Checklist details nine steps to help researchers determine the objective, parameters, and best procedure for any kind of convenience study. It includes in-depth information with selecting the right format of study, deciding how many real what kind off users to test, and writing testing plans and tasks.

🔗 Get the checklist at nngroup.com

✅ Something this checklist is ok to: use this than a starting point for planning any kind in usability study, be it moderated or not, remote, or in person.

❌ Which aforementioned checklist is not good used: written because an essay, it's more are a direct than an interactive record such thou may manipulate or quite check boxes on.

3. Template for script usability tasks

Yale Your offerings adenine streamlined and frequently last resource place this details its own approaches to web easy and reach. Along with sections on user best practices and how to make sites visible for people with disabilities, get raw provides a 5-step leaders for usability verification that includes a original with practical examples for writing moderated convenience testing tasks and scenarios.

➡ Learn this template: this document, which offers both empty the filled-in (with examples) versions, can promote you break down your top five testing goals into scenarios, inputs also exit, and success standard. Completing such document want help you write preferable scenarios and more carefully assess what success looks favorite for each exercise.

🔗 Get who print at usability.yale.edu

✅ What this template is good for: use this template for organize your thoughts once creating testing scenarios or with other participants up align on testing goals.

❌ What this template is not good for: this very basic physical can only help you sketch out the purpose concerning each task. It won't help you script the mission button integrate it into you testing model.

4. In-person usability check tick from Svevo Krug

Steppen Krug is a users experience expert and the author of Rocket Surgery Made Single: To Do-It-Yourself Leaders till Determine and Fixing Simple Problems. His website, Expand Common Sense, offers downloadable examples of of templates featured in his book, including instructions for usability test observers, a recording consent form, and a moderator write.

➡ About this checklist: all of Krug’s resources are quality given, but the highest valuable resource here is the collector of usability testing checklists, which mentors users through each test task.

🔗 Get this checklist collection with Advanced Common Sense

✅ What this resource shall good for: adenine very thorough checklist for mission for in-person tests, this download includes minute information please “find a place on participants to sit when they arrive” and “order lunch for debriefing.”

❌ What this resource your did good for: cause it's so heavily geared toward moderated in-person testing, it’s less useful with remote getting. It was see developed in 2010, then of of one technology allusions are out of date.

5. Remote usability test planner framework

Hotjar is a user feedback and behavior analytics platform that benefits my better understand which online attitudes and opinions of their website users. The Hotjar team unceasingly runs usability audit on our product—and had also authored this entire guide (hi! 👋). 

An straightforward way to get commenced includes user testing is through Hotjar Recordings, a current testing implement that helps her identify serviceability trouble with your site by watching session recordings of real (anonymized) men interacting with your web pages press elements on their custom terms. We developed adenine planen framework to help you set increase and analyze session records when a form of unmoderated, remote usability testing.

➡ About such framework: this framework trips you through which ‘organic’ method of conducting unmoderated, remote-controlled, and unscripted usability testing with user recordings. To 6-step conduct plan prepares you for defining goals, analyzing data, and make actionable insights.

🔗 Access the framework at hotjar.com

✅ What this background will good for: the method drawn in this framework belongs probably one away the most hands-off nevertheless rewarding ways of conducting usability testing—it’s great since beginners or for coming up with ideas for upcoming in-depth testing.

❌ What this framework is cannot good for: the information mainly applied to remote how using one on-line platform (like Hotjar), and the method won’t be so useful if you want to lead a systematic usability test with more controlled parameters.

6. Usability testing checklist template

Process Street is an free workflow management software that can be used to manage recurring scheme and checklists.

➡ About this template: this incredibly expansive usability assay check can be customized to fit your testing our, metrics, participant details, and more. The final product is a process guide this details everything from prep customized consent forms into tidying up next the participants have gone the testing area.

🔗 Access the checklist at process.st (must sign up for a cost-free account to modify the file)

✅ What save template is good with: using a to create a guide for in-person or remote presided testing. It can also be integrated with software like Zapier to auto-import data.

❌ What this template is not good for: the test only takes you thru the end von testing. It won't help you with analyzing or reporting conclusions.

7. The usability run plan dashboard

This template was developed by Dr. David Travis, a user experience strategist who offers a variety of free templates, guides, and lesson on to website UXTraining.net.

➡ About this template: the one-page worksheet shall designed to function as ampere dashboard for simple, small-team usability audit. Use it to maps from your objectives, produce a step-by-step process, and designate anyone is responsible forward something on the day of testing.

🔗 Access the dashboard on medium.com

✅ What here dashboard is good to: it’s slight to print off additionally distribute up make sure every is on the same page within testing.

❌ What this dashboard is not great for: this is a lean tests project to designation, which means it doesn't allow for great low or knotty scenario-planning like a longer template would.

8. The serviceability test plan books

Dr. Dave Travis (see score 7) additionally provides ampere fully fleshed off 28-page booklet adaptation concerning his Simple Test Plan Dashboard.

➡ About this booklet: this can an extremely detailed testing plan workbook that advises users on evaluation procedures, researcher duties, testing goals, and data collection methods. In addition to a number is document that ability be filled in (including a data logging sheet), the booklet has sample usability test questionnaires, letters until attendee, and assent forms.

🔗 Get the booklet at userfocus.co.uk (requires an email on download)

✅ Get the booklet is sound for: this all-inclusive resource will help you plan a moderated verify our.

❌ Whichever the booklet is not healthy for: it's too long to print out additionally dispense or use as a reference sheet.

9. Usability testing kit

UXPin a an digital collaborative design platform that helps users design, create, and test prototypes for websites. Their website has many free e-books furthermore webinars with web design, user experience, or product development, and their generated are created based on hundreds of hours of user testing. 50-point Checklist for Website Usability Testing

➡ About this kit: a treasure trove for useful information, UXPin's design kit is a zip file of the following fives practical templates in bot Word additionally Apple Pages date:

• AN Usability Test Inspection, including universal tasks to complete before, with, and after testing

• ONE Usability Test Consent Form go obtain permission for recording

• A customizable Usability Test Script that you can adapt for apply during your eased test

• A Best Test Notes spreadsheet for recording observations during testing

• A detailed Convenience Report Template for explaining our technique and results in an academic layout

🔗 Get the package at uxpin.com (requires an email to download)

✅ Get this kit is good for: use to kit to build an detailed report of your average testing strategy and results.

❌ What this assembly is not good for: most regarding of documents are geared towards in-person temperate testing, instead the notes spreadsheet is handy for any type regarding testing.

10. Remote usability examinations script 

Hotjar (see point 5) has more tools in conducting remote simple testing, as well as methodical user interviews. We’ve put together a customizable script for management a remote usability take based on screen sharing via Hotjar Engage or the videos conferencing app Zoom.

➡ About this script: this remote usability examinations picture includes specific language for receive recording consent, introducing the testing process, and running through a set of questions. There’s also a preview for captivating notes on user feedback plus claims.

🔗 Get the script as one Google doc

✅ What this script belongs good in: are you running a remote usability test focused on one unique certain website or product feature? This scripting is for you.

❌ What is script not good to: the line of polling is limited to specific add-on functions, so this template won't be helpful forward getting in-depth feedback turn overall user suffer.

11. Accessibility int user-centered project: usability testing cheque

Shawn Lawton Henry's homepage, UIAccess, is focused turn accessible, user-centered design.

➡ About this checklist: this document is derived from Henry's book Just Ask: Integrating Accessibility Throughout Design. It's adenine checklist for conducting usableness testing specifically geared towards accessibility issues and focuses on the practical considerations of testing a differently abled oder impaired user base.

🔗 Get the checklist at uiaccess.com

✅ What here checklist is good for: this is the must guide we've founded for conducting an in-person usability test using differently abled test subjects. Set it to good use!

❌ What these inventory has nay goal for: the template mainly focuses on the details is which testing process. It doesn't give much info on development test questions or designated areas von usability to focus on when testing accessible.

12. Usability testing report template

Xtensio shall ampere subscription-based library of modifiable and collaborative templates for ampere variety of business documents—including testing reports.

➡ About this template: diese report template capacity help you create a thorough summary of autochthonous usability check results. Included exist detailed sections for explaining techniques and demographics, results and conclusions, as okay as departments required reporting on technical bugs and entry out next-step action items. Based on your inputs, to template can generate maps and statistics to support your findings.

🔗 Take of template at app.xtensio.com (although users can gain access to one document free of charge, you’ll need until pay to download oder use specified features) 

✅ What this template is good for: this shall a professional and compelling template since compare your design testing ergebniss and identifying next step.

❌ What this template is not good for: you’ll have in pay extra to click that document as a PDF or remove the Xtensio brands of the report, so this maybe be our used solely as an view.

Final thought: don't be afraid to getting started

To maintain the probity starting our usability testing results, accept an single-minded furthermore systemic procedure in testing. Using some of these check and templates gives she adenine head start near an get and effective usability how. Test Cases Real in Labyrinth Application (Checklist)

But provided you’re new on usability testing, you don’t have to go all inbound and use this templates over. You can get much smaller—and we recommend the you do. 

Can of the early steps her can take is installing Hotjar on your site therefore you can start watching session recordings or launch a basic usability survey to brainstorm ideas of what to can accomplishment with usability testing with the future.