Tool profile
Lyssna: cost, fit and limits
Lyssna is a user research platform from the Australian company Lyssna that runs unmoderated tests, surveys and interviews with a recruited panel or a team's own audience. Designers and product teams use it for quick design feedback, navigation tests and prototype checks, and pay for panel participants separately from the subscription.
What to know first
Lyssna works on a two-meter model: a flat subscription for the software and pay-per-use credits for panel participants. The Free plan lets a team of three run unlimited quick studies using its own contacts. Growth adds in-depth studies, AI follow-up questions and an MCP server. The distinction between quick studies and in-depth studies is the limit to read first, because it decides how many research rounds fit in a month.
Lyssna at a glance
| Maker | Lyssna, Australia |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | $166 per month (Growth) |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI User Testing Software in 2026, rank 1 of 10 |
| Website | lyssna.com |
Who Lyssna is best for
Designers validating a layout
Lyssna offers five second tests, first click tests and preference tests that return answers in hours, so a designer can compare two layouts before a developer starts work.
Teams with a customer list
The Free plan allows unlimited self-recruited responses on paid tiers and 15 on Free, which suits a team that already has users it can invite by link.
Students and nonprofits
The pricing page lists 25 percent off subscriptions for students, educators, nonprofits and charities, which lowers the cost for academic and community research projects.
Researchers working with an AI assistant
Growth and above include an MCP server, so study data can be queried from an AI assistant the team already uses without exporting spreadsheets.
Lyssna plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 per month | Unlimited quick studies, three seats and 15 self-recruited responses, with panel access, live chat support and user interviews included at limited scale. |
| Growth | $166 per month | Five in-depth studies a month, five seats, unlimited self-recruited responses, AI follow-up questions, AI summaries and the MCP server. |
| Enterprise | Custom quote | Custom in-depth study volume, unlimited seats and unlimited self-recruited responses, arranged through sales. Pricing and seat counts are agreed in a sales conversation. |
Checked November 2026.
What Lyssna does
- Quick and in-depth studies
- Quick studies cover short single-task tests, while in-depth studies cover longer multi-section research. The plan tables count them separately, which matters because Growth allows unlimited quick studies but caps the longer kind.
- Panel filtering
- The panel is stated at 690,000 plus participants and can be filtered by more than 395 demographic criteria. Credits are bought in bulk, do not expire and carry a volume discount, with no surcharge for filters.
- Method range
- The platform page lists card sorting, first click, five second, live website, mobile, preference, prototype, tree testing, recordings, surveys and user interviews, so one account covers most early design questions.
- Meeting tool connections
- Interviews can be scheduled through Google Calendar and Outlook and held over Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, with Figma used for prototype imports. No other calendar tools were listed.
How Lyssna handles your data
Lyssna's product page states that the platform is SOC 2 compliant and GDPR compliant, and offers Google single sign-on and SAML, a custom password policy and team controls over access and budgets. A trust center is linked from the site. The privacy and security pages could not be read in a browser during this review, so retention periods, hosting regions and whether study data trains any AI model were not checked for this page.
Where Lyssna falls short in practice
- Panel cost is separate. Panel participants are pay-per-use and not part of any subscription, so a study with 30 participants adds a real expense on top of the $166 Growth fee. Budget both lines before approving the plan.
- Free plan is narrow. The Free plan caps self-recruited responses at 15 and does not list AI features. A team that needs transcripts, AI summaries or follow-up questions has to move to Growth.
- In-depth study cap. Growth allows five in-depth studies a month, or 60 a year in the comparison table. A research team running several long studies in parallel will reach this ceiling.
Works with
Alternatives to Lyssna
Lyssna: common questions
Does Lyssna charge separately for panel participants?
Yes. The pricing page says panel recruitment is pay-per-use and not included in any subscription. Credits do not expire, bulk purchases are discounted, and demographic filters carry no extra charge. The subscription covers the software, seats and study counts, so total cost depends on how many participants a team buys.
What does the Lyssna Free plan include?
The Free plan costs $0 with no credit card. It allows unlimited quick studies, three seats and 15 self-recruited responses, and it includes panel access, live chat support and user interviews. AI features were not listed for Free, so summaries and follow-up questions need Growth.
Which AI features come with Lyssna Growth?
The pricing page lists AI follow-up questions and AI summaries on Growth, plus an MCP server on Growth and above. The product page names Research AI, an MCP server and AI skills but gives no detail on what each does, so a trial run is the way to judge them.
Where is Lyssna headquartered?
Lyssna's contact page lists an address in Collingwood, Victoria, Australia. The about page describes the team as working flexibly and remotely across the globe. The page does not name a registered legal entity, so a buyer who needs one for a contract should request it from the vendor.
Does Lyssna offer a discount for education?
Yes. The pricing page states that students, educators, nonprofits and charities receive 25 percent off subscriptions. The page does not describe the verification process, so an organization should ask Lyssna what proof it needs before relying on the discount. Pricing lists no other discounts.