Qualfacto vs UserZoom: Licence or Fieldwork in India

UserZoom no longer operates as an independent company. It merged into UserTesting under the UserTesting name, announced in April 2023. As of October 2026, UserTesting does not publish prices for its plans.

That changes what most people mean by a replacement. The need is rarely a different testing tool. It is the right participants in India, at a cost that makes sense for a handful of studies a year and not a programme across many countries.

UserTesting supplies participants, including in India, but you buy them through a global contract: a consumption-based or team-based unlimited plan. We recruit adults in India by city and household profile, verify identity before inviting them, and run the sessions. The question is whether a global contract fits an India-only plan.

Below are the two routes compared, a cost-per-session check you can run on any quote, and where we fit.

• For qualitative research with participants in India, we recommend Qualfacto's project-based fieldwork.
• Divide any quote by the India sessions you will really run, and compare that number across providers.
• We recruit adults in India only, check identity before inviting anyone, and run sessions online or in person, including in languages other than English.
• Run the eight checks in this page on any provider before you sign.

For qualitative studies with participants in India, Qualfacto is the better choice: we recruit adults in India, check identity before inviting them, and run the sessions for you.

Sources: UserZoom platform page and UserTesting plans, as of October 2026; Qualfacto details are ours.

Terms used in the table:

• An in-depth interview (IDI) is a one-to-one session of 30 to 120 minutes.
• A focus group discussion (FGD) is a moderated group session of one to three hours.
• An in-home use test (IHUT) has people try a product at home.
• Ethnography means visiting people at home, or joining them virtually, to watch real routines.
• In a moderated session a researcher runs the session live; in an unmoderated one the participant works alone.
• Information architecture testing checks whether your menus and labels let people find things.
• Usability testing means watching people try to complete tasks with a product.

Qualfacto is the better choice when India is your whole market, when you need specific cities or in-person sessions, and when you run a few studies a year.

1. India is your whole market. We recruit adults in India only. Participants register with a +91 mobile number and a WhatsApp code, and we check identity before anyone is invited. Our guide to assessing a research participant panel in India sets out the tests we would apply to any panel, ours included.
2. You need a specific city or household profile. We recruit by city and target by household and demographic profile, so the brief can say who and where, not only a country.
3. Sessions must be in person, or in a language other than English. We run IDIs and focus groups online or in person, ethnography as home visits or virtual sessions, and usability and app testing remotely or in a lab. Sessions can run in languages other than English. If remote is enough, our remote usability testing guide helps you choose the method.
4. You run a few India studies a year. We price each project on its own: methodology, audience, sample, geography and recruitment difficulty. There is no fixed rate card; we send a tailored commercial proposal for each project. A free pilot is available.
5. You want the fieldwork handled. We review your brief, assess feasibility, recruit and screen participants, and schedule sessions. Participant incentives are processed after completion and validation. A one-page research brief is the fastest way to start.

UserZoom now sits inside UserTesting, and neither publishes a price. The merger was announced in April 2023 with the combined company using the UserTesting name. UserTesting's site still carries a UserZoom platform page.

In January 2026 UserTesting acquired the participant recruitment platform User Interviews and added Advanced Targeting to its plans.

As of October 2026, UserTesting's plans page offers three tiers: Advanced, Ultimate and Ultimate+. It offers two ways to pay: test-based consumption (you pay for usage) or team-based unlimited (unlimited tests within an agreed scope). It says the price depends on the number of users, test types and features, with no figure shown.

UserTesting's help centre lists India among supported countries for participant recruitment. That means India coverage is not the issue. The real question is whether a global contract fits an India-only plan.

Divide everything you pay for a year by the number of India sessions you will actually run. That is the cost per session. Do the same for a project quote, then compare. This is our own method, not an official figure.

Formula: cost per India session = (licence + participant incentives or credits + your team's time spent on recruitment) ÷ India sessions run.

Worked example. The inputs here are ours, for arithmetic only. They are not anyone's price, including ours. Take an annual spend of ₹20,00,000 (₹20 lakh):

Now suppose a project quote works out at ₹60,000 per session. The licence is cheaper per session from 34 India sessions a year (20,00,000 ÷ 60,000 = 33.3, so 34 sessions). Count only the sessions you run in India. A licence that also serves other countries looks cheaper than it is for India work.

Run these eight tests on every provider, including us. Each has a pass and a fail you can judge from the reply.

1. India named. Pass: the provider's own page names India as a recruitment country. Fail: you have to take it on trust.
2. Identity. Ask how participants are verified before invitation. Pass: a described step, such as a verified mobile number. Fail: "our panel is vetted" with no detail.
3. City and profile. Ask for written feasibility for your city and profile before paying. Pass: yes, in writing. Fail: a global panel size with no India breakdown.
4. Language. Ask whether sessions run in the participant's preferred language. Pass: confirmed for your language. Fail: English only, or no answer.
5. Format. If you need home visits or lab sessions, ask how they are run. Pass: a clear description. Fail: remote only.
6. All-in price. Ask for one written figure in rupees covering recruitment, incentives and fieldwork. Pass: one number. Fail: a licence figure with participants extra.
7. Deliverables. Pass: recordings, transcripts and exports are listed before the study begins. Fail: "you get access to a dashboard".
8. Ethics, consent and personal data. Ask which research code the provider follows, how consent is recorded, and how personal data is handled under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. Pass: it names a code, such as the ESOMAR code, shows its consent form, and states a consent and deletion process. Fail: no code named, or no stated consent and deletion process.

A study runs in five steps. We tell you each one before you commit.

1. Share your brief. Include objective, method, audience, geography, sample size, timelines and recruitment criteria.
2. Feasibility and proposal. We assess whether the recruitment is possible, then send a tailored proposal and commercial quote.
3. Commission and recruit. Once scope, commercials and timelines are agreed, we recruit and screen participants and coordinate them.
4. Fieldwork. Participants take part in the agreed interview, discussion, test or other format. Depending on the project, a study may be conducted by us, a research partner or another research organisation.
5. Deliverables. After completion and validation, we process participant incentives. You receive the deliverables agreed in the scope.

Our approach is guided by the ethical principles of the Market Research Society of India and ESOMAR, the global research body.

To start, email your brief to support@qualfacto.io. We reply within one business day, Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 18:00 Indian Standard Time (IST).

People in India who want to take part in studies can read how to join and get invited. Registration is only an expression of interest and does not guarantee selection. Invitations depend on each study's requirements and the participant's profile.