Fresh eyes and test filters to manage repeat participants

At a glance

Learn how to automatically manage repeat participants with Fresh Eyes, or test filters when you need more control.

P Product: UserTesting

About Fresh Eyes and test filters

Fresh Eyes and test filters work together to manage how often a participant can take your tests.

Key terms
Fresh Eyes
An automatic account setting that limits how often a participant from the UserTesting Network can take your tests, with no setup required on your part.
Test filters
Filters that let you override the Fresh Eyes setting for one specific test. Available for Classic tests only.

How Fresh Eyes works

Fresh Eyes behavior depends on whether you're launching a Classic test type or a New test type.

Test type Fresh Eyes default Can I adjust it? Are test filters available?
Think-out-loud test (Classic) 360 days, at the account or team-member level Yes, contact Support Yes
Live Conversation (Classic) 360 days, at the account or team-member level Yes, contact Support Yes
Think-out-loud test (New) Fixed: 30 days (US), 14 or 7 days elsewhere* No No
Interaction test Fixed: 60 days (US), 14 or 7 days elsewhere* No No
Survey Fixed: 60 days (US), 14 or 7 days elsewhere* No No
Live Conversation (New) Fixed: 30 days (US), 14 or 7 days elsewhere* No No

*Full country breakdown below. Countries that don't support Fresh Eyes: Australia, Belgium, Singapore, and New Zealand.

Classic tests

Classic Think-out-loud tests and Classic Live Conversations use an adjustable Fresh Eyes default of 360 days. You can set it at one of two levels:

  • Account level: A participant can complete only one test created by any team member on your account within your chosen time frame.
  • Team member level: A participant can't retake a test from the same team member but can still take tests created by other team members on your account.

Contact Support to adjust the number of days or change the level.

New tests

New Think-out-loud tests, Interaction tests, Surveys, and New Live Conversations use a fixed, country-based schedule. You can't adjust or turn it off.

Country Survey or Interaction test New Think-out-loud test or Live Conversation
United States

60 days

30 days*

Canada, Germany, India, Mexico, Spain, United Kingdom

14 days

Austria, Denmark, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland

7 days

*The Fresh Eyes period for New tests is set on the account level, which is why it's shorter than the period for Surveys or Interaction tests.

Fresh Eyes takes a few minutes to register after you launch a test. Wait 15–20 minutes between launches to avoid getting the same participant twice.

 

Test filters (Classic tests only)

Two test filters let you override Fresh Eyes for a single test.

Apply a test filter while you build your audience; you can't change it after you launch your test.

Test frequency filter

The Test frequency filter lets you control how many days must pass before a participant who has taken one of your tests becomes eligible to take another. This overrides the account-wide Fresh Eyes default for this one test.

Choosing an interval:

  • If you have a large group of potential participants, use a longer interval to keep feedback varied.
  • If you only have access to a small group of participants, use a shorter interval so they can take your tests more often.
  • A longer interval also means fewer participants are available at any given time, which can slow the rate at which a test fills, especially if you're using strict demographic filters or screeners.

To set the test frequency filter:

  1. In the Audience builder, select Test frequency.

    Test frequency option selected in the Audience builder filters section
  2. Set the number of days since a participant's last completed test on your account.

    Test frequency filter showing the number of days field

Use this same filter for Favorite Contributors and Custom Network audiences, since Fresh Eyes doesn't apply a default for them; this is the only way to control their testing frequency.

Exclude contributors from prior tests filter

Exclude participants who took part in any of your last 10 tests.

Fresh Eyes doesn't apply to Favorite Contributors or Custom Network audiences at all, so this filter is also how you limit repeat participants for those audiences specifically.

!Important

This exclusion applies per network. Excluding participants from your last 10 UserTesting Network tests only affects your next UserTesting Network test. The same applies separately for Custom Network.

To exclude contributors from prior tests:

  1. In the Audience builder, under Filters, select Exclude contributors from prior tests.

    Exclude contributors from prior tests option in the Audience builder Filters menu
  2. Choose which of your last 10 tests to exclude participants from.

    List of the last 10 tests to choose from for excluding contributors
!Important

Test filters aren't currently available for New tests. If a study requires additional filtering, run it as a Classic test instead.

 

Frequently asked questions

Which tests can I use test filters with?

Test filters are available for Classic Think-out-loud tests and Classic Live Conversations. They aren't available for Interaction tests, Surveys, New Think-out-loud tests, or New Live Conversations.

For which tests can I adjust the Fresh Eyes time frame?

You can adjust the Fresh Eyes time frame for Classic Think-out-loud tests and Classic Live Conversations by contacting Support. Fresh Eyes is fixed and can't be adjusted for Interaction tests, Surveys, New Think-out-loud tests, or New Live Conversations.

Does Fresh Eyes apply to Favorite Contributors or Custom Network audiences?

No. Use the Test frequency filter or the Exclude contributors from prior tests filter instead, since Fresh Eyes doesn't apply by default for these audiences.

 

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