Taking good user interview notes can make or break your research insights. Whether you're a seasoned researcher or just starting out, having a solid user interview notes template is crucial for capturing valuable feedback. But many researchers struggle with organizing their user interview notes effectively, missing key insights while trying to keep up with the conversation.
Taking user research notes is harder than it looks
Most researchers learn the hard way that taking notes during user interviews isn't as simple as jotting down what people say. You're trying to listen actively, think of follow-up questions, watch for non-verbal cues, and capture everything important – all at the same time. And if you mess any of it up, it complicates things when you run user research analysis later.
Traditional note-taking methods often fall short because they don't account for the dynamic nature of user interviews. You might miss crucial quotes while writing down an observation, or fail to capture the context that makes an insight meaningful.
How to organize user interview notes?
Good organization starts before your first interview. Create a consistent structure that you'll use for every session. A discussion guide can really help with this, especially if you’re using a repository tool. This makes it easier to compare answers to user interview questions across interviews and spot patterns in your research.
Start with basic participant information at the top of your notes. Include:
- Date and time
- Participant's role or relevant demographics
- Key characteristics (like user type or experience level)
Next, organize your notes by research questions or interview sections. This helps you track whether you're getting answers to your core research questions. Create clear sections for:
- Initial observations
- Key quotes
- Follow-up questions
- Action items
- Outstanding questions
When possible, link your notes to interview recordings. This lets you revisit moments you might have missed and verify your understanding of what participants said.
How to format interview notes?
Formatting isn't just about making your notes look pretty – it's about making them useful. Use clear hierarchies with headers to separate different parts of the interview. Include timestamps if you're recording the session (you should be!).
Make it obvious what's a direct quote versus your observation. Many researchers use different colors or symbols – for example:
- "Quote marks for direct quotes"
- [Square brackets for observations]
- {Curly braces for follow-up questions}
Add context markers to help you remember why something was important. For example: "User struggled with navigation - spent 2 minutes looking for the settings menu."
The ultimate user interview note-taking template
We've created a template in Figjam/Miro that makes note-taking more structured and efficient.
The template uses color coding for different participants, so you can identify the user as you cluster and find insights.
View Looppanel’s note-taking template on Figma
Read: The Ultimate Collection of User Interview Templates [2025]
A speedier solution for interview note-taking
While templates are helpful, modern research demands more efficient solutions. Manual note-taking has clear limitations – you can't be fully present in the conversation while trying to capture everything perfectly.
This is where AI-powered solutions like Looppanel come in. Instead of struggling to take notes in real-time, Looppanel automatically captures and organizes your interview content. It creates an accurate transcript, generates AI-powered notes organized by interview question, and even helps identify key themes across multiple interviews.
See it in action, book a Looppanel demo.
Best practices for better interview notes
- Plan your note-taking approach before the interview starts
- Use consistent shorthand for common terms or themes
- Focus on listening – don't try to write everything down
- Mark important moments for later review
- Clean up your notes immediately after the interview
- Share notes with team members within 24 hours
- Include context about why something was significant
- Link insights to your research questions
Common note-taking mistakes to avoid
- Trying to capture every single word
- Forgetting to note non-verbal cues
- Waiting too long to review and clean up notes
- Not marking which insights relate to which research questions
- Missing important quotes while writing other notes
- Failing to distinguish between quotes and observations
- Not having a clear organization system
- Keeping notes siloed instead of sharing with the team
Conclusion
Good note-taking is a skill that develops with practice. Start with a solid user interview notes template, whether it's our Figjam template or an AI-powered solution like Looppanel. Focus on capturing the most important insights rather than trying to write everything down.
Remember that the goal isn't perfect notes – it's capturing meaningful insights that help you understand your users better. With the right tools and approach, you can spend less time wrestling with note-taking and more time gaining valuable user insights.
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