{"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":"2026-09-21T05:02:15.459Z"},"content":[{"type":"blog","id":"295a7345-0e16-44fc-ad82-6585ca622c12","slug":"lyssna-pricing-2026","title":"Lyssna Pricing in 2026: Why the $165 Plan Is the Small Number","url":"https://www.koji.so/blog/lyssna-pricing-2026","summary":"Lyssna offers Free ($0, 3 seats, 15 lifetime self-recruited responses), Growth ($165/mo billed annually or $199 monthly, 5 seats, 5 in-depth studies per month), and custom Enterprise plans. Panel recruitment is billed separately at 1 credit per minute of test length per participant, credits at roughly $1 each, plus 2 credits for a screener and 2 for recording. A 50-participant screened, recorded 10-minute study costs about $700 in panel credits.","content":"# Lyssna Pricing in 2026: Why the $165 Plan Is the Small Number\n\n**TL;DR:** Lyssna (formerly UsabilityHub) publishes clean, honest subscription pricing — **Free at $0, Growth at $165/month billed annually ($199 monthly), and custom Enterprise**. That is not the number that determines your budget. Panel recruitment is billed separately at **1 credit per minute of test length, per participant**, with credits at roughly **$1 each**, plus **2 extra credits for a screener** and **2 extra credits for recording**. A single 50-participant, 10-minute study with a screener costs about **$600 in panel credits** — nearly four times your monthly subscription. If you recruit your own participants, Lyssna is inexpensive. If you rely on its panel, the subscription is a rounding error.\n\n## Lyssna's published plans\n\nCredit where it is due: Lyssna is one of the few research platforms in this category that puts real numbers on a public page. Here is the 2026 structure from [Lyssna's pricing page](https://www.lyssna.com/pricing/).\n\n| | Free | Growth | Enterprise |\n|---|---|---|---|\n| Price | **$0** | **$165/mo** billed annually (**$199** monthly) | Custom |\n| Seats | 3 | 5 | Unlimited |\n| Self-recruited responses | **15 total** | Unlimited | Unlimited |\n| Quick studies | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |\n| In-depth studies | — | **5 per month** | Custom |\n| Panel recruitment | Pay-per-use | Pay-per-use | Pay-per-use |\n\nTwo limits do the real work here. The Free plan's **15 self-recruited responses is a lifetime total, not monthly** — it is a trial in everything but name. And the Growth plan's **5 in-depth studies per month** is the cap that pushes growing teams toward an Enterprise conversation, since \"unlimited responses\" sounds generous right up until you hit the study ceiling.\n\n## The panel credit system is where the money goes\n\nLyssna's panel is priced per participant, per minute — a model that quietly penalises exactly the research you most want to run.\n\n**The credit formula:**\n\n- **1 credit per minute of test length, per panelist response**\n- Credits cost approximately **$1 each**, less in bulk\n- **+2 credits per participant** if you enable a screener\n- **+2 credits per response** if you enable recording (and recording also extends the estimated test duration, which raises the base credit count)\n\nPanel cost also varies with audience: broad consumer samples are cheaper per response than niche B2B segments, and detailed screening criteria narrow the pool and raise the rate.\n\n### What that actually costs\n\n**Study A — a modest, realistic test.** 50 participants, 10-minute test, no screener, no recording:\n\n- 50 × 10 credits = **500 credits ≈ $500**\n\n**Study B — the same test, run properly.** 50 participants, 10 minutes, with a screener (because you need the right people) and recording (because you want to see what they did):\n\n- Base: 50 × 10 = 500 credits\n- Screener: 50 × 2 = 100 credits\n- Recording: 50 × 2 = 100 credits\n- **Total ≈ 700 credits ≈ $700**\n\nAdding a screener and recording — the two things that turn a raw response count into usable research — increased the cost by **40%**.\n\nNow set that against the subscription. A growth-stage team running **three studies a month at 50 panel participants each** pays **$165/month for the platform** and somewhere between **$1,500 and $2,100/month in panel credits**. The subscription is under 10% of the bill. Any evaluation that compares Lyssna to competitors on the $165 figure is comparing the wrong number — the same trap we documented in [Maze pricing](/blog/maze-pricing-2026) and across [user research tool pricing in 2026](/blog/user-research-tool-pricing-2026).\n\n### The per-minute meter punishes depth\n\nThis is the structural problem with per-minute panel pricing, and it deserves to be stated directly: **every additional minute of research costs you money linearly, per participant.**\n\nA 5-minute test with 50 people costs ~$250. A 20-minute test with the same 50 people costs ~$1,000. You have not recruited a single extra person — you have simply asked deeper questions. The pricing model therefore creates a standing incentive to keep studies shallow, which is precisely the opposite of what produces good qualitative insight.\n\nThat is fine for what Lyssna is genuinely built for: fast, unmoderated, comparative design tests — five-second tests, preference tests, first-click tests, card sorts. It is a poor fit for understanding *why* someone did what they did, because \"why\" takes conversational time, and conversational time is metered per participant.\n\n## Lyssna vs Koji: what the meter is measuring\n\n| | Lyssna | Koji |\n|---|---|---|\n| Core method | Unmoderated design tests | AI-moderated interviews (voice + text) |\n| Participant recruitment | Panel billed separately, on top of the subscription | Included, per-respondent quote in credits, no platform fee |\n| Subscription | $165/mo annual ($199 monthly) | Plans from **€199/mo**, or no subscription at all (pay as you go) |\n| Panel cost | **1 credit/min/participant** + 2 for screener + 2 for recording | Credits per interview, not per minute |\n| Cost of a longer study | Rises linearly with every minute | **Flat — 3 credits per voice interview regardless of length** |\n| Follow-up probing | None — tests are fixed | Adaptive AI follow-ups based on each answer |\n| Analysis | Manual review of clips and results | Automatic thematic analysis |\n| Report | You assemble it | One-click, shareable |\n| Pay for weak responses? | Yes | **No — only conversations scoring 3+ consume credits** |\n\nThe pricing difference that matters most is the last structural one: **Koji bills per interview, not per minute.** A voice interview starts as low as **€3** and a text interview **€1** at the annual rate: voice is 3 credits and text 1 credit, with credits at €2 pay as you go down to €1.00 on an annual plan. A 20-minute conversation costs exactly the same as a 5-minute one. The incentive to keep research shallow disappears.\n\nRun the numbers on Study B — 50 participants, screened, recorded, 10 minutes. On Lyssna that is ~$700 in panel credits, and you are left with 50 recorded sessions to watch and code yourself. On Koji, 50 qualified voice interviews start from **€150**, and that includes the AI moderator asking adaptive follow-ups, full transcripts, automatic thematic analysis, and a one-click report. There is no screener surcharge and no recording surcharge. Recruitment is built in too: if you have your own audience, share the link, import a list so each person gets a personalised link, or have Koji call them; if you do not, open Panel recruit, describe who you want, and you see the price per completed interview in credits before you launch, with no platform fee on top. Study-level screening questions run before the interview either way.\n\nKoji also runs **six structured question types** — open_ended, scale, single_choice, multiple_choice, ranking, and yes_no — inside a single conversation, so you get the quantitative distribution *and* the qualitative reasoning behind it in one study. On an unmoderated testing platform those are two separate studies, metered twice. Our guides to [AI-moderated interviews](/docs/ai-moderated-interviews) and [AI voice interviews](/docs/ai-voice-interviews) explain how that works.\n\n### Where Lyssna genuinely wins\n\nLyssna is a good tool used for the right job, and it is worth saying so:\n\n- **Rapid unmoderated design comparisons** — preference tests, five-second tests, first-click testing. Fast, cheap, and Lyssna's core competence.\n- **Information architecture work** — card sorting and tree testing on a self-recruited audience.\n- **Teams with their own participant list**, where \"unlimited self-recruited responses\" on the Growth plan makes $165/month excellent value with no panel spend at all.\n\nThat last case is the strongest argument for Lyssna. If you never touch the panel, the pricing is genuinely good. For a wider view of the category, see [the 9 best Lyssna alternatives in 2026](/blog/lyssna-alternatives-2026), [Maze vs Lyssna](/blog/maze-vs-lyssna-2026), and [Koji vs Lyssna](/blog/koji-vs-lyssna-2026).\n\n## How to budget for Lyssna without surprises\n\n1. **Separate the two budgets.** Subscription and panel credits are different line items with different drivers. Never quote the $165 as your Lyssna cost.\n2. **Model panel spend as *minutes × participants*.** This is your real number. Multiply by ~$1.\n3. **Add the surcharges.** Screener +2 credits per participant, recording +2 credits per response — and remember recording also lengthens estimated duration.\n4. **Check the in-depth study cap.** Five per month on Growth. If your roadmap needs more, you are heading for Enterprise pricing that is not published.\n5. **Count your self-recruited share.** Every participant you bring yourself costs zero credits. The more of your own audience you use, the better Lyssna's economics get.\n\nFor method-level cost comparisons, our [user research cost calculator](/docs/user-research-cost-calculator-2026) models AI interviews against traditional approaches, and [how to do user research on a budget](/docs/user-research-on-a-budget) covers the lean end.\n\n## Frequently asked questions\n\n### How much does Lyssna cost in 2026?\n\nLyssna's Growth plan is **$165/month billed annually** or **$199/month billed monthly**, with 5 seats, unlimited self-recruited responses, and 5 in-depth studies per month. There is a Free plan at $0 with 3 seats and 15 lifetime self-recruited responses, and a custom Enterprise tier. **Panel recruitment is billed separately.**\n\n### How does Lyssna panel pricing work?\n\nPanel responses cost **1 credit per minute of test length, per participant**, with credits at roughly **$1 each**. A screener adds **2 credits per participant** and recording adds **2 credits per response**. So 50 participants on a screened, recorded 10-minute test costs about **700 credits ≈ $700**.\n\n### Is Lyssna's free plan actually usable?\n\nOnly as a trial. The **15 self-recruited responses are a lifetime total, not a monthly allowance**, so a single small study exhausts it.\n\n### Why does a longer Lyssna study cost so much more?\n\nBecause the panel meter is per minute, per participant. Doubling test length doubles panel cost even with the same number of people — which structurally discourages the deeper research that produces the most useful findings.\n\n### Is Lyssna cheaper than an AI interview platform?\n\nFor short unmoderated design tests on your own audience, yes. For depth, no. Fifty AI-moderated qualified voice interviews on Koji start from **€150**, with a report refresh on top, and that includes moderation, transcripts, and thematic analysis, against roughly **$700** in Lyssna panel credits for a screened, recorded 10-minute test that you still have to analyse yourself. Koji bills per interview, so length does not change the price, and recruitment is included in the quote rather than metered on top.\n\n### What is Lyssna best used for?\n\nFast unmoderated comparisons — preference tests, five-second tests, first-click tests — and information-architecture work like card sorting and tree testing, especially if you recruit your own participants and never touch the panel.\n\n## The bottom line\n\nLyssna's subscription pricing is transparent and, for teams with their own participant list, genuinely good value. But the published $165 is the small number. The panel meter — per minute, per participant, plus surcharges for the screener and recording you actually need — is what determines your budget, and it charges you more precisely when you try to go deeper.\n\n**Koji inverts that incentive.** Interviews are billed per conversation, not per minute, so depth is free. An AI moderator asks adaptive follow-ups instead of running a fixed test, six structured question types capture the numbers and the reasoning in one study, thematic analysis runs automatically, and reports are one click. Only conversations scoring 3+ consume credits, so weak data never bills.\n\n**[Start with 10 free credits](https://www.koji.so)** — no annual commitment, no screener surcharge, and no meter running while your participants think.","category":"Comparisons","lastModified":"2026-09-20T15:18:17.179963+00:00","metaTitle":"Lyssna Pricing 2026: Plans, Panel Credits & What You Actually Pay","metaDescription":"Lyssna Growth costs $165/mo annually, but panel recruitment is metered at 1 credit per minute per participant plus screener and recording surcharges. Full 2026 cost breakdown with worked examples.","keywords":["lyssna pricing","lyssna cost","usabilityhub pricing","lyssna panel credits","lyssna growth plan","how much does lyssna cost","lyssna vs koji"],"aiSummary":"Lyssna offers Free ($0, 3 seats, 15 lifetime self-recruited responses), Growth ($165/mo billed annually or $199 monthly, 5 seats, 5 in-depth studies per month), and custom Enterprise plans. Panel recruitment is billed separately at 1 credit per minute of test length per participant, credits at roughly $1 each, plus 2 credits for a screener and 2 for recording. A 50-participant screened, recorded 10-minute study costs about $700 in panel credits.","aiKeywords":["lyssna pricing","panel credits","unmoderated testing cost","usabilityhub pricing","AI moderated interviews"],"aiContentType":"comparison","faqItems":[{"answer":"Lyssna's Growth plan is $165/month billed annually or $199/month billed monthly, with 5 seats, unlimited self-recruited responses, and 5 in-depth studies per month. There is a Free plan at $0 with 3 seats and 15 lifetime self-recruited responses, and a custom Enterprise tier. Panel recruitment is billed separately.","question":"How much does Lyssna cost in 2026?"},{"answer":"Panel responses cost 1 credit per minute of test length, per participant, with credits at roughly $1 each. A screener adds 2 credits per participant and recording adds 2 credits per response. So 50 participants on a screened, recorded 10-minute test costs about 700 credits, roughly $700.","question":"How does Lyssna panel pricing work?"},{"answer":"Only as a trial. The 15 self-recruited responses are a lifetime total, not a monthly allowance, so a single small study exhausts it.","question":"Is Lyssna's free plan actually usable?"},{"answer":"Because the panel meter is per minute, per participant. Doubling test length doubles panel cost even with the same number of people, which structurally discourages deeper research.","question":"Why does a longer Lyssna study cost so much more?"},{"answer":"For short unmoderated design tests on your own audience, yes. For depth, no. Fifty AI-moderated qualified voice interviews on Koji start from €150, with a report refresh on top, and that includes moderation, transcripts, and thematic analysis, against roughly $700 in Lyssna panel credits for a screened, recorded 10-minute test you still have to analyse yourself. On Koji, recruitment is included and quoted per completed interview in credits before you launch.","question":"Is Lyssna cheaper than an AI interview platform?"},{"answer":"Fast unmoderated comparisons such as preference tests, five-second tests, and first-click tests, plus information-architecture work like card sorting and tree testing, especially if you recruit your own participants.","question":"What is Lyssna best used for?"}],"relatedTopics":["lyssna pricing","unmoderated testing","panel recruitment cost","research budgeting","AI moderated interviews"]}],"pagination":{"total":1,"returned":1,"offset":0}}