Navigation task

On this page:

• About Navigation tasks
• Set up a Navigation task
• Set up Continual Flow with Navigation steps
• Navigation task results

About Navigation tasks

• A Navigation task allows you to test metrics such as usability and findability with participants in a URL-based experience.
• The Navigation task is available in the Interaction test and Think-out-loud (TOL) test types, letting you watch screen recordings of how participants interact within that experience.
• Each Navigation task includes a starting URL, clear task instructions for participants, and the option to add a success URL for precise performance tracking.
• With Continual Flow, you can chain multiple Navigation steps into one continuous journey. Each follow-up step picks up from the page the participant is already on, so they stay in a natural flow with no new URL and no page reload. See Set up Continual Flow with Navigation steps.

Set up a Navigation task

1. Choose Create test in the platform, then Interaction test.
   
   
   
   
2. Select + Add, then choose the Navigation task in the panel that opens up.
   
   
   
3. In the starting URL box, define the URL participants need to start at to complete the task defined in the task instructions.
   Note: The starting URL will open automatically when participants begin this portion of the study.
   
   
   
4. Add instructions to each task so participants can interact with your prototype, site, or app in context. If using a prototype, note that not all elements will be clickable. If you use Figma, consider using Figma task.
   
   Provide clear end-points for the task so contributors know when to move on. For example:
   “The following is a prototype – keep in mind not everything will be clickable. Imagine you are interested in understanding your options for a subscription plan. Show us how you would decide between the subscription plans. STOP before enrolling and move on to the next task.”
5. If needed, toggle on Blur recording to protect privacy.
   
   
   
6. If you wish, add the Success URL that participants need to land on to complete the task successfully. Consider using “Contains” versus “Exact match.” Participants can land on the success page, and if there is a slight difference in the URL, UserTesting won’t recognize the participant as successful.
   
   Click to define a success URL.
   
7. Add follow-up questions so you can assess other metrics for the Navigation task. Some examples are adding questions that provide insights into the task's ease of use and ask participants why they rated the task easy or difficult for more insights.
   
   

Set up Continual Flow with Navigation steps

Continual Flow lets you chain multiple Navigation steps into one continuous journey, so each follow-up step picks up from the page the participant is already on. There is no new URL and no page reload, which keeps participants in a natural flow. This is ideal for testing an end-to-end experience such as search to checkout, an onboarding sequence, or a multi-page form.

1. Set up your first Navigation task with a Starting URL and Task instructions as usual.
2. Select + Add step. A follow-up Navigation step appears under Follow-ups. It has no Starting URL because it continues from the page the participant is already on.
   
   
   
3. Add the Task instructions for this step.
4. If you wish, select + Add success URL to track whether participants reach the right page for this step. Each Navigation step can have its own success URL.
   
   
5. To capture feedback, select Add follow-up question and choose a question type.
6. Repeat with + Add step to build out as many Navigation steps as your journey needs.

Note: Only the first step needs a Starting URL. Each Navigation step continues from where the previous one ended, so the page does not reload between steps.

Navigation task results

• Success rate
• Time on task (avg)
• Page view (avg)
• Interactions (avg)
• You can view Success, Non-success, or Undefined results in a bar chart or by responses:
  
• With Continual Flow, each Navigation step generates its own results section, so you can review metrics step by step while still seeing overall journey performance.
  

Related content