Essential User Interview Questions [20+ Examples Included]

Creating effective user interview questions is crucial for uncovering valuable insights in UX research. 

Whether you're writing user research interview questions for the first time or looking to improve your existing user researcher interview questions, this guide will help you craft better conversations with users. 

We'll explore how to create UX user interview questions that get to the heart of user needs and behaviors, along with practical examples you can use in your next research session.

How do you prepare for a UX interview?

Setting clear research goals

Before writing your user interview questions, define what you want to learn. Start with 2-3 clear research objectives. For example, if you're researching a new feature, your goals might be understanding current user workflows and pain points.

Creating your discussion guide

Build a discussion guide that flows naturally from broad topics to specific details. Break your user experience interview questions into clear sections. Start with easy warm-up questions before diving into more complex topics.

Practical prep checklist

• Test your recording equipment
• Review participant background information
• Have your consent forms ready
• Prepare backup questions
• Set up your note-taking system
• Book a quiet space for the interview

Tips for scheduling and logistics

Send calendar invites with clear instructions and reminders. Schedule buffer time between interviews for notes and breaks. For remote interviews, send platform links and backup contact methods.

What are good user interview questions?

Good user interview questions enable participants to share detailed stories about their experiences. These questions should be open-ended and focused on specific situations rather than abstract concepts. The most effective questions encourage users to describe real events instead of hypothetical scenarios.

The best user interview questions follow several key principles. They use simple, clear language that participants can easily understand. They focus on one topic at a time to avoid confusion. Most importantly, they give users space to reflect and share comprehensive responses.

Timing also matters when asking user experience interview questions. Start with easier questions that help participants feel comfortable. Save more challenging or sensitive topics for later in the interview when you've built rapport. This approach helps users open up and share more meaningful insights.

Build the perfect interview discussion guide with Looppanel’s free template.

Types of user interview questions

Each type of user interview question serves a specific purpose in your research. Let's explore the different types and when to use them effectively.

Background questions

Background questions help establish rapport and gather essential context about your user's experience. Rather than collecting dry demographic data, these questions reveal workflow patterns and pain points. Here are effective user experience interview questions to start with:

1. Walk me through what a typical workday looks like for you, starting from when you first open your computer
2. Tell me about your role and how you collaborate with different teams in your organization
3. What tools and software do you use most frequently throughout your day?
4. How long have you been working in this field, and how has your workflow evolved?
5. Describe the main responsibilities in your role that involve using our product

Behavioral questions

Behavioral questions focus on specific experiences rather than hypotheticals. These user research interview questions help you understand how people actually use your product, not how they think they might use it. For example:

1. Take me through the last time you tried to export data from our platform - what steps did you follow?
2. Tell me about a recent time when you had trouble completing a task in the software
3. Show me how you typically organize your dashboard when starting a new project
4. Walk me through your process for sharing reports with your team
5. Describe the most recent time you had to onboard a new team member to the system

Read: Definitive guide to usability testing questions (Question bank included)

Opinion/attitude questions

Opinion questions gather subjective feedback while keeping users grounded in their actual experiences. The best user interview questions in this category avoid leading users to specific answers:

1. What aspects of the current workflow are most challenging for you and your team?
2. Tell me about features in similar tools that you find particularly helpful
3. How does this process compare to your previous ways of working?
4. What would make this task easier for you to complete?
5. Which parts of the system do you rely on most heavily?

Task-specific questions

Task-specific questions dig into particular workflows and uncover detailed insights about user behavior. These UX user interview questions focus on concrete actions:

1. Walk me through your process for creating a new project from start to finish
2. Show me how you typically handle urgent requests when they come in
3. Describe what happens when you need to collaborate with someone outside your team
4. Tell me about the last time you had to modify settings in the system
5. Take me through how you organize and tag your files

Context questions

Context questions help you understand the bigger picture surrounding user interactions. These user experience research interview questions reveal important environmental factors:

1. Tell me about who else is involved in this process and how you coordinate with them
2. What other tools or systems do you need to use alongside our product?
3. Describe any compliance requirements or regulations that affect how you work
4. Walk me through how this task fits into your broader workflow
5. Tell me about any deadlines or time constraints that impact this process

Future-focused questions

Future-focused questions explore opportunities for improvement while staying grounded in real needs:

1. Based on your experience, what changes would make this process more efficient?
2. Tell me about features you've seen in other tools that would be helpful here
3. How would your workflow change if you could automate parts of this process?
4. What would it look like if this task took half the time it currently takes?
5. Describe your ideal way of handling this type of situation

Find more user interview questions to add to your discussion guide here.

The art of follow-up questions

Follow-up questions often reveal the most valuable insights in user interviews. Here's how to master them.

Techniques for diving deeper

When users mention something interesting, use these follow-up approaches:

• Echo their words: You mentioned this was 'frustrating' - tell me more about that
• Ask for examples: Can you share a specific time when that happened?
• Explore impact: How does that affect your ability to complete your work?
• Investigate frequency: How often do you encounter this situation?
• Understand context: What typically leads up to that happening?

Active listening cues

Active listening helps users feel heard and encourages deeper sharing:

• Use encouraging phrases: That's interesting, tell me more about that
• Maintain comfortable eye contact
• Nod to show understanding
• Take brief notes without breaking engagement
• Allow for natural pauses in conversation

Read: Using ChatGPT for UX Research Questions (with Prompts)

When to probe further

Key moments that warrant follow-up questions:

• When users mention workarounds: You said you 'found a way around that' - could you show me?
• If they express emotion: I noticed you smiled when mentioning that feature - what makes it particularly enjoyable?
• When they use vague terms: Could you help me understand what you mean by 'user-friendly'?
• If they reference past experiences: How does this compare to your previous solution?
• When they mention unexpected uses: That's an interesting way to use that feature - how did you discover that?

Questions to avoid

Leading questions

Leading questions push users toward specific answers. Instead of asking "Wasn't that feature difficult to use?" ask "How would you describe your experience with this feature?" Leading questions can bias your research results and should be avoided.

Binary questions

Yes/no questions limit the depth of user responses. Questions like "Did you like using this product?" prompt short answers. Instead, ask "What stands out to you about using this product?" This encourages users to share detailed experiences and opinions.

Multiple questions at once

Asking several questions together overwhelms users and leads to incomplete answers. Break complex topics into individual questions. This helps users focus on one aspect at a time and provide thorough responses.

Hypothetical scenarios

Questions about imaginary situations produce less reliable data than questions about real experiences. Rather than asking "What would you do if this feature existed?" ask "How do you currently handle this task?"

Technical jargon

Industry terminology can confuse users and create barriers to communication. Replace technical terms with plain language. This helps users feel comfortable and share more authentic responses.

Best practices for asking user interview questions

• Practice active listening during your interviews. Focus completely on what users are saying instead of thinking about your next question. With tools like Looppanel, you can record and transcribe your sessions automatically, freeing you to engage fully with participants.
• Give users time to think and respond. Silence isn't awkward - it's valuable processing time. While users are thinking, you can use Looppanel's live note-taking feature to mark important moments without disrupting the flow.
• Build questions around specific examples. Instead of asking about general preferences, ask about recent experiences. This provides more accurate and detailed responses that you can later analyze using Looppanel's AI-powered insights feature.
• Structure your questions to flow naturally. Start broad, then narrow down to specifics. Looppanel's automatic interview note organization helps you maintain this structure while capturing every important detail.

Want to streamline your user interview process? Try Looppanel to automate transcription, note-taking, and analysis of your user interviews. Focus on asking great questions and building rapport with participants instead of worrying about documentation. 

Book a free Looppanel demo to know more!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What questions to ask in a UX interview?

User experience interview questions should focus on understanding real behaviors and experiences. Start with context-setting questions about their role and typical workday. Then move into specific experiences with your product or similar tools. End with questions about pain points and desired improvements. The best user interview questions encourage detailed stories rather than brief answers.

What are the 5 elements of user experience?

The five key elements of user experience include strategy (user needs and business goals), scope (functional requirements), structure (information architecture), skeleton (interface design), and surface (visual design). These elements build upon each other to create a complete user experience. Understanding these elements helps researchers craft more targeted interview questions.

What are the 7 key factors of user experience?

The seven factors of user experience include usefulness, usability, findability, credibility, desirability, accessibility, and value. Each factor contributes to how users perceive and interact with a product. User experience research interview questions should address these factors to gather comprehensive feedback about the product experience.

What topics are on user interviews?

Effective ux research user interview questions cover several key topics: user background and context, current behaviors and workflows, pain points and challenges, goals and motivations, and desired improvements. Questions should progress from general to specific, building on user responses to explore relevant areas more deeply.