What Are Usability Tests?

Usability tests are a research method that seeks to understand how real people interact with a digital product—such as a website, application, or software—and, based on that, identify points of friction, barriers, or confusion that may affect the user experience.

In a typical session, a group of participants representing the actual target audience is recruited. While they perform specific tasks, such as completing a registration or finding a product in an online store, researchers record qualitative metrics (such as comments, expressions, and frustrations) and quantitative metrics (execution times, success rates, task abandonment), which allow them to see where users stop, what they don’t understand, and what improvements could be made.

Why are they important?

The interesting thing about this approach is that it reveals problems that are not always obvious from within a development team: no one, better than a user with no prior context, can demonstrate whether an interface is intuitive or confusing.

Beyond approving or disapproving a design, usability testing helps improve business metrics: if users better understand how to use a product, they are more likely to buy, register, or return. That’s why these tests have become a strategic investment for those seeking to design successful products. By gaining direct insights from real people, UX, product, and marketing teams can make data-driven decisions rather than rely on assumptions.

Top 5 companies offering usability testing in the USA

Here is a selection of five relevant companies and platforms recognized for their usability testing and user experience services in the U.S. market:

UserTesting

UserTesting is one of the most globally recognized usability testing platforms, headquartered in the United States. It allows companies to quickly connect with real users to obtain feedback through video, audio, and real-time interaction metrics. Its approach combines technological tools with human insights to validate designs, detect problems, and improve the user experience before major launches.

QAlified

QAlified – view service offers, test with real users, and observe interactions to uncover usability issues and specific opportunities for improvement before going live, helping digital products work more intuitively and efficiently.

UX Firm

UX Firm offers comprehensive usability testing services, from early user research to in-depth behavioral analysis. The company works with structured methodologies to identify experience issues and propose clear solutions for design and product teams.

UX24/7

Although it operates worldwide, UX24/7 has a significant presence in the US and offers both remote and in-person testing services with experienced moderators. Its team designs customized studies based on business objectives and user profiles and delivers reports with actionable conclusions to improve the digital product.

Trymata (formerly Ethnio/WhatUsersDo)

Trymata is known for its usability testing solutions that allow you to recruit suitable participants and run tests on multiple devices. Its platform helps product teams understand how users interact with web and mobile interfaces, providing data for more informed design decisions.

How to choose a usability testing company?

When evaluating providers, it is helpful to consider several key factors:

• Methodologies and scope: Do they offer moderated, unmoderated, remote, or lab testing?
• User panel: Can they recruit participants who accurately represent the target audience?
• Analysis and reporting: Do they deliver clear and actionable reports?
• Experience and success stories: Do they have proven experience with similar products?

Different companies may specialize in various types of testing or industries, so it’s essential to review examples of previous projects and how they organize their processes.

Conclusion

Beyond metrics, reports, and recordings, usability testing reflects how people interact with digital products in real-life situations. Even technically sound software can fail if users have difficulty completing basic tasks; that’s why many digital products prioritize simplicity, clarity, and frictionless user flows from the very first contact.

In competitive markets such as the United States, where users constantly compare options, these types of evaluations reduce risks before launching or scaling a product. Detecting navigation errors, confusion in flows, or early abandonment points can mean the difference between a tool that is adopted and one that is quickly discarded.

Ultimately, usability testing does not seek to validate whether a product “works,” but whether it works well for those who use it. Incorporating it helps create experiences that are clearer, more efficient, and aligned with real user expectations, which is key for any company that wants to grow sustainably in the digital environment.