UX Interview Preparation

Conducting interviews with users or clients during UX research is a cornerstone of the user-centered design process. Effective interviews can uncover the motivations, pain points, and behaviors of users, which in turn shape the design decisions that follow. However, interviewing users requires more than just asking questions—it demands careful preparation, active listening, empathy, and the ability to adapt based on the responses.

This guide covers everything you need to know about preparing for user research interviews, including best practices, strategies for crafting insightful questions, and a detailed breakdown of different question categories. We’ll also highlight over 20 questions for each category to ensure you’re well-prepared to dig deep during your interviews.

Why UX Interview Preparation is Crucial

When you're interviewing users or clients, your goal is to understand their needs, challenges, and expectations so that you can design better solutions. Good preparation ensures that you ask the right questions in the right way, stay open to unexpected insights, and navigate interviews with both structure and flexibility. This process is fundamental to gathering meaningful data that will inform design decisions.

Without proper preparation, interviews can become unfocused, and key insights might be overlooked. Structured preparation enables you to ask open-ended, non-leading questions that lead to genuine user feedback, ensuring that you gather actionable insights from your interviews.

Best Practices for UX Interview Preparation

1. Understand the Problem Space

Before conducting interviews, ensure that you thoroughly understand the problem space or context in which the product or service exists. Research the market, industry, competitors, and existing user behavior. This will help you focus on the right questions and dig deeper into the user’s pain points or challenges.

2. Define Clear Objectives

What do you want to learn from the interviews? Whether it’s understanding the user’s workflow, gathering feedback on a prototype, or identifying user pain points, clearly define your goals. This will help you stay on track and gather relevant insights.

3. Develop a Flexible Script

Create a list of questions, but be prepared to deviate based on the user’s responses. Your interview should feel conversational rather than rigid. Start with general questions to ease the participant into the conversation before diving deeper into specifics.

4. Focus on Open-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions allow users to provide detailed responses, often leading to unexpected insights. Avoid yes/no or leading questions, as they can limit the depth of information you gather.

5. Be an Active Listener

Actively listen to the participant, and be mindful of both verbal and non-verbal cues. Don’t interrupt or rush the participant—sometimes, the most valuable insights come when there’s a moment of silence after a response.

6. Create a Comfortable Environment

Whether the interview is in-person or virtual, ensure that the participant feels comfortable. Building rapport at the beginning by introducing yourself, explaining the purpose of the interview, and emphasizing that there are no wrong answers can ease any nervousness.

7. Follow Up and Clarify

If the participant gives an unclear or vague answer, don’t hesitate to ask follow-up questions. Clarification helps ensure that you’re interpreting their responses accurately and gathering meaningful insights.

8. Record (with Permission) and Take Notes

Always ask for permission to record the interview, as this allows you to focus on the conversation without worrying about capturing every detail in real-time. Take notes on key points, but rely on the recording to go back and review the interview for more thorough analysis.

Key Strategies and Tactics for Effective UX Interviewing

1. Use Probing Techniques

Sometimes, users may provide surface-level answers. Use probing techniques like "Can you tell me more about that?" or "Why do you feel that way?" to encourage deeper responses.

2. Frame Questions Around User Behavior

Instead of asking for opinions, focus on the user’s actions and past behavior. This provides more reliable insights than hypothetical scenarios.

Example: Instead of asking "Would you use this feature?" ask "Can you walk me through how you would accomplish [X] with this feature?"

3. Observe as Well as Ask

Pay attention to non-verbal cues, such as hesitation, body language, or enthusiasm. These often reveal more than words alone and can indicate areas for further exploration.

4. Establish Neutrality

Avoid introducing bias by keeping your tone and reactions neutral. If a participant senses approval or disapproval in your response, they may tailor their answers to what they think you want to hear.

5. Use Scenarios and Tasks

If appropriate, present users with a specific scenario or task that mirrors real-world use. This allows you to observe their thought process and uncover usability issues or areas of confusion.

6. Summarize and Validate

At key points during the interview, summarize what the user has said to confirm your understanding. For example: "So, what I’m hearing is that you find it difficult to navigate the settings menu—is that correct?"

Categories of UX Interview Questions

To conduct comprehensive user research, it’s important to ask questions across several categories. Below, we’ve broken down key categories along with 20 sample questions for each.

1. General Background and Contextual Questions

These questions help you understand the user's role, experience, and general behavior. They set the foundation for understanding how the user interacts with the product or service.

• Can you tell me about your role and typical day at work?
• How do you currently use [product/service] in your daily routine?
• What tools or software do you typically use?
• How did you first learn about [product/service]?
• What’s the first thing you do when you encounter a problem at work?
• How do you usually find solutions for the problems you encounter?
• Can you describe a recent situation where you struggled to complete a task?
• How often do you use [product/service]?
• What motivated you to start using [product/service]?
• Can you walk me through a typical use case for [product/service]?
• How do you stay informed about new features or updates in the products you use?
• Can you describe your overall experience with [product/service]?
• Are there any tools you rely on more than [product/service]?
• How do you feel about the current workflow using [product/service]?
• What features of [product/service] do you find most helpful?
• What features do you rarely or never use?
• What do you like most about [product/service]?
• What do you dislike most about [product/service]?
• How do you see yourself using [product/service] in the next year?
• What would make you stop using [product/service]?

2. Task-Oriented Questions

These questions explore how users perform specific tasks and their pain points while interacting with a product or service.

• Can you walk me through how you accomplish [specific task]?
• What part of this process do you find the most time-consuming?
• What tools do you use to complete [specific task]?
• What challenges do you encounter when performing [specific task]?
• Have you ever used another method to complete this task? If so, how was it different?
• How do you prioritize this task compared to other responsibilities?
• What’s the most difficult part of this task for you?
• What’s the most satisfying part of this task?
• Can you describe a time when you struggled with this task?
• How do you decide when to use [product/service] for this task versus another tool?
• How often do you have to repeat this task?
• What would make this task easier for you?
• What’s your ideal workflow for completing this task?
• What information do you need to complete this task successfully?
• How do you feel after completing this task?
• Have you ever felt frustrated during this task? Why?
• Do you collaborate with anyone when performing this task?
• How do you track progress on this task?
• How important is this task in your overall job?
• Is there anything you wish you could change about the way you do this task?

3. Pain Points and Challenges

These questions dig deeper into the frustrations and difficulties users face, providing insight into areas for improvement.

• What’s the most frustrating aspect of [product/service]?
• Can you tell me about a time when you were particularly frustrated with [product/service]?
• What do you think is the biggest challenge in using [product/service]?
• Have you ever stopped using [product/service] because of an issue? If so, why?
• What part of your workflow feels the most inefficient?
• What workarounds have you created to deal with [specific problem]?
• What do you wish was easier when using [product/service]?
• How do you currently manage or mitigate [specific pain point]?
• Can you recall an instance where [product/service] didn’t work as expected?
• Are there any tasks that you avoid doing because of the difficulty?
• How do you typically troubleshoot when something goes wrong?
• What’s the most difficult issue you’ve faced with [product/service]?
• Have you ever needed to ask for help when using [product/service]? What was that experience like?
• Can you describe a situation

where you felt confused while using [product/service]?

• What’s your biggest frustration when using [product/service] on a daily basis?
• What information do you struggle to find within [product/service]?
• Have you ever encountered a situation where [product/service] didn’t meet your expectations? What happened?
• Is there anything that takes too long or is unnecessarily complicated?
• Have you ever had to switch to a competitor product? What was the reason?
• What specific issues have led you to consider alternatives to [product/service]?

4. Motivations and Goals

These questions explore the user’s underlying motivations for using the product or service and what they hope to achieve.

• What are your primary goals when using [product/service]?
• What do you hope to achieve by completing [specific task]?
• How does [product/service] help you achieve your goals?
• What was the key factor that led you to start using [product/service]?
• How does [product/service] fit into your larger workflow or process?
• What long-term outcomes do you hope to achieve with [product/service]?
• What do you value most in [product/service]?
• What would make [product/service] indispensable to you?
• How do you measure success when using [product/service]?
• What personal or professional goals does [product/service] help you reach?
• How does [product/service] support your daily responsibilities?
• What are your short-term vs. long-term goals with [product/service]?
• What motivates you to keep using [product/service]?
• How has [product/service] helped you improve your workflow?
• What keeps you from switching to a competitor product?
• How does [product/service] align with your company or personal values?
• What changes in your job or routine would lead you to stop using [product/service]?
• Are there any features that help you accomplish your personal or professional goals faster?
• How does [product/service] fit into your overall strategy for [task or goal]?
• How does your experience with [product/service] affect your overall job satisfaction?

5. Feedback and Suggestions

These questions focus on gathering feedback to inform future improvements or iterations of the product.

• What’s the one thing you would change about [product/service]?
• What’s missing from [product/service] that would make it more useful for you?
• If you could add one new feature, what would it be?
• How would you improve the usability of [product/service]?
• Can you describe a feature that you wish [product/service] had?
• How do you think we could make [product/service] more valuable to you?
• What part of [product/service] do you feel is unnecessary or redundant?
• What’s your least favorite part of [product/service]?
• How does [competitor product] compare to [product/service]?
• What advice would you give to the team developing [product/service]?
• Have you ever had a suggestion for improving [product/service]? What was it?
• What’s the best way we could help you get more value out of [product/service]?
• What’s something that we could simplify within [product/service]?
• What would encourage you to use [product/service] more often?
• What changes would make your experience more enjoyable?
• How could we make [product/service] more intuitive?
• Are there any features you’ve seen in other products that you wish were in [product/service]?
• How could we better support your workflow with [product/service]?
• What would make [product/service] stand out compared to competitors?
• What feedback would you give to help improve [product/service] for future users?

Preparation is the key to conducting insightful and effective user research interviews. By understanding the goals of the research, asking the right questions, and practicing active listening, you’ll uncover meaningful insights that can drive better design decisions. The strategies, best practices, and categorized questions provided here will help you navigate client and user interviews with confidence, allowing you to gather rich, actionable data.