{"site":{"name":"Koji","description":"AI-native customer research platform that helps teams conduct, analyze, and synthesize customer interviews at scale.","url":"https://www.koji.so","contentTypes":["blog","documentation"],"lastUpdated":"2026-06-03T08:07:41.545Z"},"content":[{"type":"documentation","id":"f946b12a-bcd9-41bf-8fcf-7ec7edd3b43c","slug":"koji-vs-ballpark","title":"Koji vs. Ballpark — AI Interviews vs. Unmoderated User Testing (2026)","url":"https://www.koji.so/docs/koji-vs-ballpark","summary":"Ballpark is an unmoderated user research tool for prototype tests, surveys, and recorded tasks; Koji is an AI-native interview platform that runs adaptive voice or text conversations and analyzes every transcript automatically. Ballpark shows what users did in a fixed task; Koji reveals why through real-time AI follow-up probing at survey scale. Choose Ballpark for prototype click-testing and usability tasks; choose Koji for discovery, churn, pricing, and the \"why\" behind behavior. Koji supports 6 structured question types (open_ended, scale, single_choice, multiple_choice, ranking, yes_no) so a single study is both qualitative and quantitative, with auto-generated themed reports. Many teams use both: Koji to discover and learn, Ballpark to validate designs.","content":"## The Short Answer\n\n**Ballpark is an unmoderated user research tool** — surveys, prototype tests, and recorded video tasks that participants complete on their own schedule. **Koji is an AI-native interview platform** — it holds a real, adaptive conversation with every participant by voice or text, asks its own follow-up questions in the moment, and analyzes each transcript automatically.\n\nBallpark tells you *what* people did inside a fixed task. Koji tells you *why* they did it. If you need to watch someone click through a Figma prototype, Ballpark fits. If you need to understand motivations, decisions, churn reasons, or unmet needs from dozens or hundreds of people without scheduling a single call, Koji is the modern, AI-native choice.\n\n---\n\n## Different Jobs, Different Tools\n\n### Ballpark is built for:\n- Recorded **prototype and usability tasks** (\"complete checkout in this Figma flow\")\n- **Quick surveys** with rating and open-text fields\n- **Video/screen capture** of participants performing tasks\n- Lightweight **design feedback** loops\n\n### Koji is built for:\n- **Discovery interviews** — uncovering problems before you design anything\n- **Why-behind-the-behavior** research — churn, adoption, pricing, switching\n- **Adaptive probing** — the AI asks the follow-up a researcher would ask\n- **Mixed qualitative + quantitative** studies via [structured questions](/docs/structured-questions-guide)\n\n---\n\n## Feature Comparison\n\n| Capability | Ballpark | Koji |\n|-----------|----------|------|\n| **Primary method** | Unmoderated tasks + surveys | AI-moderated conversational interviews |\n| **Live follow-up probing** | ❌ Fixed questions | ✅ AI adapts in real time |\n| **Voice interviews** | ❌ | ✅ [Natural voice conversations](/docs/voice-interview-experience) |\n| **Text interviews** | Survey fields | ✅ Conversational chat with widgets |\n| **Prototype click-testing** | ✅ Core feature | ❌ (interview-focused) |\n| **Structured question types** | Basic survey inputs | ✅ 6 types: open-ended, scale, single/multiple choice, ranking, yes/no |\n| **Automated analysis** | Manual review of clips | ✅ [Auto theme extraction + reports](/docs/generating-research-reports) |\n| **Quality control** | Manual | ✅ [Built-in quality gate](/docs/how-the-quality-gate-works) |\n| **Methodology guardrails** | ❌ | ✅ [Mom Test, JTBD, discovery](/docs/mom-test-methodology) |\n| **API + MCP** | Limited | ✅ Full REST API + [Claude MCP](/docs/mcp-overview) |\n\n---\n\n## Why Teams Reach for Koji\n\n### 1. Tasks Show Behavior. Conversations Show Reasons.\n\nA Ballpark task can show that a user hesitated for nine seconds on the pricing screen. It cannot tell you that they hesitated because they could not tell whether the plan included their whole team. Koji's AI surfaces that in conversation:\n\n```\nAI:  \"You paused for a while on the pricing page — what\n      were you thinking about there?\"\nUser:\"I couldn't tell if the price was per person or for\n      the whole team. That matters a lot for us.\"\nAI:  \"What would have made that clear?\"\nUser:\"Just say 'per workspace' instead of 'per seat'.\"\n```\n\nThat is a copy fix you can ship tomorrow — and no heatmap or task-completion metric would have revealed it.\n\n### 2. Survey-Depth at Interview-Quality\n\nUnmoderated open-text fields get 3–8 word answers because nobody is there to ask \"tell me more.\" Koji's AI interviewer probes every interesting response, so average answer depth runs **150–500 words per question** instead of a sentence fragment. You get interview-grade insight at survey-grade scale and speed — platforms like Koji automate the moderation that used to require a researcher on every call.\n\n### 3. Analysis Is Done When the Interview Ends\n\nWith unmoderated tools, the work *starts* after data collection — someone watches clips and tags themes by hand. Koji runs [thematic analysis](/docs/ai-transcript-analysis-guide) automatically: it codes open-ended answers, aggregates structured questions into charts, and drafts a shareable report. What takes days of manual synthesis takes minutes.\n\n---\n\n## When Ballpark Is the Better Choice\n\nBallpark wins when:\n\n- You have a **prototype to test** and need click-through and task-success data\n- You want **video recordings** of people performing a specific flow\n- You need **fast, lightweight design feedback** on an existing screen\n- Your question is fundamentally *\"can users do this?\"* rather than *\"why do users want this?\"*\n\n---\n\n## When to Choose Koji\n\nChoose Koji when:\n\n- You are in **discovery** — before designs exist — and need to understand real problems\n- You need to know **why** users churn, convert, or switch\n- You want [customer interviews at scale](/docs/user-interview-guide) without moderating each one\n- You need **voice or text** conversations that adapt to each person\n- You want [automated qualitative analysis](/docs/understanding-themes-patterns) instead of a folder of clips to watch\n- You want methodology guardrails like the [Mom Test](/docs/mom-test-methodology) or [Jobs-to-be-Done](/docs/jobs-to-be-done-interviews)\n\n---\n\n## The Strongest Workflow Uses Both\n\nMany teams run a simple loop:\n\n1. **Koji first (Discover):** AI interviews reveal the real problem and the words customers use\n2. **Design:** build the flow informed by what you heard\n3. **Ballpark (Validate):** unmoderated task tests confirm the design is usable\n4. **Koji again (Learn):** post-launch interviews explain adoption and friction\n\nDiscovery and the \"why\" come from Koji; task-level usability validation comes from Ballpark.\n\n---\n\n## A Note on Structured Questions\n\nOne reason teams consolidate on Koji is that a single study can be both qualitative and quantitative. Koji supports six [structured question types](/docs/structured-questions-guide) — open_ended, scale, single_choice, multiple_choice, ranking, and yes_no — so you can ask an NPS scale, a feature-priority ranking, and an open-ended \"why\" in the same conversation. Reports chart the quantitative answers and theme the qualitative ones together, no separate survey tool required.\n\n---\n\n## Pricing at a Glance\n\n| | Ballpark | Koji |\n|---|---|---|\n| Entry point | Free tier + paid plans | Free tier — 10 credits to start |\n| Paid plans | Per-seat / usage | Insights €29/mo, Interviews €79/mo, Enterprise custom |\n| Cost model | Per study / seat | Credits: text = 1, voice = 3, report refresh = 5 |\n| Quality protection | — | Only interviews scoring 3+ consume credits |\n\nKoji's [credit model](/docs/structured-questions-guide) means you only pay for usable conversations — low-effort responses that fail the quality gate are not billed.\n\n---\n\n## Getting Started with Koji\n\n1. **Create a free account** — 10 credits, no card required\n2. **Describe what you want to learn** — Koji drafts the interview brief and questions\n3. **Pick a methodology** — discovery, JTBD, or Mom Test guardrails\n4. **Share one link** — voice or text, on any device\n5. **Read the auto-generated report** — themes, quotes, and charts in minutes\n\n---\n\n## Related Resources\n\n- [Structured Questions Guide](/docs/structured-questions-guide) — the 6 question types that make Koji studies both qualitative and quantitative\n- [Koji vs. Maze](/docs/koji-vs-maze) — AI interviews vs. rapid usability testing\n- [Koji vs. UserTesting](/docs/koji-vs-usertesting) — AI interviews vs. enterprise user testing\n- [AI Interviews vs. Surveys](/docs/ai-interviews-vs-surveys) — why conversation beats static forms\n- [Generating Research Reports](/docs/generating-research-reports) — how Koji turns transcripts into shareable insight\n- [Voice Interview Experience](/docs/voice-interview-experience) — what a Koji voice conversation feels like","category":"Comparisons","lastModified":"2026-06-03T03:14:58.702147+00:00","metaTitle":"Koji vs. Ballpark: AI Interviews vs. Unmoderated Testing (2026)","metaDescription":"Compare Koji and Ballpark for user research. Ballpark runs unmoderated prototype tests and surveys; Koji runs AI-moderated voice and text interviews with automatic analysis. See which fits your team — and how to use both.","keywords":["koji vs ballpark","ballpark alternative","unmoderated user testing","ai user interviews","ballpark vs koji","ai research platform","prototype testing alternative"],"aiSummary":"Ballpark is an unmoderated user research tool for prototype tests, surveys, and recorded tasks; Koji is an AI-native interview platform that runs adaptive voice or text conversations and analyzes every transcript automatically. Ballpark shows what users did in a fixed task; Koji reveals why through real-time AI follow-up probing at survey scale. Choose Ballpark for prototype click-testing and usability tasks; choose Koji for discovery, churn, pricing, and the \"why\" behind behavior. Koji supports 6 structured question types (open_ended, scale, single_choice, multiple_choice, ranking, yes_no) so a single study is both qualitative and quantitative, with auto-generated themed reports. Many teams use both: Koji to discover and learn, Ballpark to validate designs.","aiPrerequisites":["Basic familiarity with user research methods","An idea of whether you need usability testing or discovery interviews"],"aiLearningOutcomes":["Understand the difference between unmoderated testing and AI-moderated interviews","Know when Ballpark is the right tool and when Koji is","See how Koji combines qualitative and quantitative questions in one study","Learn a combined Discover-Design-Validate-Learn workflow"],"aiDifficulty":"beginner","aiEstimatedTime":"9 minutes"}],"pagination":{"total":1,"returned":1,"offset":0}}