User Research Prompts for UX and Product Teams
20 ChatGPT prompts for user interviews, usability testing, surveys, journey mapping, research synthesis, and the UX research that grounds product decisions in user reality.
In short: This page contains 16 copy-paste ready prompts, organized into 4 categories with a description and pro tip for each. The first 5 prompts are free instantly, no signup needed. Hand-curated and tested by the AI Academy team.
Interview + Discovery
4 promptsUser Interview Script
1/16✨ What it does
Writes user interview scripts with non-leading questions.
Write user interview script. Product: [describe]. Research goal: [discovery/validation]. Include: opening (5 min rapport), context questions (10 min), core questions (20 min), current workflow, friction points, closing. Non-leading questions.
Pro tip: User interviews: past behavior > future opinion. "Tell me about the last time you did X" > "Would you use X?" People lie about future; truth about past.
Contextual Inquiry Plan
2/16✨ What it does
Plans contextual inquiry research sessions.
Plan contextual inquiry. User: [describe]. Task to observe: [describe]. Include: observation setup (in their environment), "think-aloud" prompts, note-taking approach, follow-up questions, respect + ethics, debrief.
Pro tip: Contextual inquiry: watch user do task in their environment. Reveals assumptions, workarounds, emotional responses. Lab setting sanitizes. Field reveals reality.
Diary Study Design
3/16✨ What it does
Designs diary studies for longitudinal research.
Design diary study. Topic: [describe]. Duration: [1-2 weeks]. Include: participant selection, daily/weekly entries format, prompts per entry, incentive structure, analysis approach, longitudinal insights expected.
Pro tip: Diary studies reveal patterns across time. Single interviews = snapshot. Diaries = movie. Mood, context, frequency emerge. 1-2 weeks ideal; longer = drop-off.
User Research Plan
4/16✨ What it does
Writes comprehensive user research plans.
Write user research plan. Project: [describe]. Timeline: [X weeks]. Include: research questions, methods mix (interviews, surveys, usability), participant recruiting, timeline per method, deliverables, team responsibilities.
Pro tip: Research plan = 1-2 pager. Research questions first; methods follow. Plan shared with stakeholders before starting — alignment prevents "why did you do that" later.
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Usability + Testing
4 promptsUsability Test Script
5/16✨ What it does
Designs usability test scripts.
Design usability test. Product: [describe]. Tasks: [list 3-5]. Include: task descriptions (goals, not steps), success criteria, think-aloud prompts, observer note template, post-task questions, SUS score adaptation.
Pro tip: Usability test rule: tasks = goals, not steps. "Find a red dress under $50" (goal). Not "click Shop > Dresses > Red > Filter price." Goal reveals paths; steps reveal nothing.
Moderated vs Unmoderated Decision
6/16✨ What it does
Decides between moderated and unmoderated usability testing.
Moderated vs unmoderated test decision. Goal: [describe]. Participants: [describe]. Include: moderated benefits (depth, probing), unmoderated benefits (speed, scale, cost), tool options (UserTesting, Maze), hybrid approach.
Pro tip: Moderated: 5-10 participants, deep insights, qualitative. Unmoderated: 20-100 participants, quantitative + fast, less depth. Start unmoderated for quick signals; moderated for deeper issues.
Usability Issues Prioritization
7/16✨ What it does
Prioritizes usability issues by severity and frequency.
Prioritize usability issues from research. Issues: [list]. Include: severity (0-4 scale: cosmetic to catastrophic), frequency (how many users hit), impact on core tasks, effort to fix. Matrix: severity × frequency for priority.
Pro tip: Nielsen severity scale: 0 (non-issue), 1 (cosmetic), 2 (minor), 3 (major), 4 (catastrophic). Focus on 3-4 first. Perfect usability unrealistic; fix big issues first.
A/B Test Design
8/16✨ What it does
Designs A/B tests for product decisions.
Design A/B test. Hypothesis: [describe]. Metric: [describe]. Include: variants (A = control, B = variant), sample size (power calc), duration, segmentation, significance threshold, decision criteria.
Pro tip: A/B test mistakes: too small sample, too short duration, too many tests in parallel, no hypothesis. Need proper sample size (usually 1000+ per variant) + clear hypothesis + 1-2 week minimum.
Journey + Personas
4 promptsJourney Map
9/16✨ What it does
Builds user journey maps.
Build user journey map. User: [persona]. Scenario: [describe]. Include: stages (awareness, consideration, purchase, use, retention), actions per stage, thoughts/feelings per stage, pain points, moments of delight, touchpoints, opportunities.
Pro tip: Journey maps reveal end-to-end experience. Individual screens optimized but journey broken = users lost. Map end-to-end; find where users drop or suffer. Emotional lows = opportunities.
Service Blueprint
10/16✨ What it does
Builds service blueprints.
Build service blueprint. Service: [describe]. Include: customer actions, front-stage (customer sees), back-stage (employee actions), support processes, touchpoints, physical evidence, service time metrics.
Pro tip: Service blueprints extend journey maps to include back-stage. Reveals operational disconnects. "Customer sees fast checkout; back-stage hand-coded mess" = fragility waiting to break.
Persona Research Synthesis
11/16✨ What it does
Synthesizes research into personas.
Synthesize personas from research. Data sources: [describe]. Include: 2-3 persona profiles, demographic data, goals + motivations, pain points, behavioral patterns, quotes from interviews, anti-goals (what they don't want).
Pro tip: Personas grounded in research >> fabricated ones. Real quotes > made-up ones. 2-3 personas optimal (not 7). Anti-goals ("don't want salesy emails") often more actionable than goals.
Mental Model Diagram
12/16✨ What it does
Creates mental model diagrams for product design.
Create mental model for user. User: [describe]. Domain: [describe]. Include: how user conceptualizes domain, key concepts, relationships, metaphors used, misconceptions, implications for product interface.
Pro tip: Mental model ≠ reality. User thinks inbox is "folder for important mail" but technically it's database query. Design to mental model, not backend reality. Users win when product matches mental model.
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Synthesis + Delivery
4 promptsResearch Synthesis Workshop
13/16✨ What it does
Plans research synthesis workshops.
Plan research synthesis workshop. Team: [describe]. Data: [describe]. Include: affinity mapping, theme identification, insight ranking, prioritization, action items, 2-4 hour workshop structure.
Pro tip: Synthesis in team > synthesis alone. Different perspectives reveal patterns. Sticky notes + wall + 2 hours = themes emerge. Remote: Miro/FigJam work equivalent.
Insight Generation
14/16✨ What it does
Generates actionable insights from research.
Generate insights from data. Data: [describe]. Include: surface observations vs deep insights, patterns across users, unexpected findings, "so what" articulation, business implications, actionable next steps.
Pro tip: Insight formula: [user group] [does X] [because Y] [because Z motivation]. "We observed X" = observation. "Users do X because Y" = insight. Push 3 "why" layers deep.
Research Findings Report
15/16✨ What it does
Writes compelling research reports.
Write research findings report. Audience: [stakeholders]. Length: [short]. Include: executive summary, methodology, key findings (3-5), quotes + evidence, recommendations, limitations, appendix. Story arc (not data dump).
Pro tip: Research reports as stories. "We studied X. Here's what we found. Here's what it means. Here's what to do." Data dumps fail; narratives land. Tell the "so what."
Research Presentation
16/16✨ What it does
Designs compelling research presentations.
Design research presentation. Audience: [executives/team]. Duration: [20 min]. Include: compelling opening (surprising finding), key insights (3-5), user quotes, clear recommendations, supporting data. Story > slides.
Pro tip: Research presentations: open with surprising insight (hook). Key findings middle. Recommendations end. Show user quotes (emotion). Data tables bore; stories stick. One slide = one idea.
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