Decode vs. Lyssna: The Complete Comparison for Modern User Research Teams
As product teams scale, usability testing alone is no longer enough. Organisations now need deeper behavioural understanding, faster insights, and a unified research ecosystem that supports continuous discovery.
While Lyssna (formerly UsabilityHub) helps teams run quick usability tests, Decode by Entropik goes further—bringing emotion AI, behaviour analytics, moderated/unmoderated research, and enterprise-ready governance into a single intelligent platform.
This blog breaks down how both platforms compare, helping ResearchOps, Product, UX, and Design teams evaluate the right solution for their maturity and scale.
Decode vs Lyssna: Quick Overview
Lyssna tests usability.
Decode understands behaviour.
Lyssna | Decode (Entropik) |
|---|---|
Usability testing + participant recruitment tool | Emotion AI–powered unified user research platform |
Focused on quick task-based usability tests | End-to-end research: moderated, unmoderated, live website/app testing with emotion & behaviour AI |
UX & design teams validating early concepts | Enterprise UX, Product, Design & ResearchOps teams needing scale + governance |
Decode is built for enterprise-grade research ecosystems, not just usability checks.
Common Challenges Decode Solves
Most modern product teams outgrow traditional usability-testing tools. Decode addresses the gaps that limit research velocity and continuity:
1. Fragmented Research Workflows
Different tools for surveys, prototypes, usability, and interviews slow teams down.
Decode unifies everything in one platform.
2. Limited Insight Depth
Usability tools show where users click—not how they feel.
Emotion & Attention AI reveal cognitive load, friction points, and emotional reactions.
3. Manual Synthesis
Teams spend hours reviewing videos and building reports.
AI Copilot automates summaries, toplines, and full reports instantly.
4. Redundant Tests
Without insight reuse, teams repeatedly test similar concepts.
Decode’s centralised repository connects past studies and prevents duplication.
5. Lack of Governance
Enterprises require audit trails, access controls, and compliance tracking.
Decode offers enterprise-grade governance across global teams.
Decode vs Lyssna: Strengths & Gaps
Decode (Strengths) | Lyssna (Limitations) |
|---|---|
Combines usability, emotion & behavioural research | Limited to usability—no emotion or attention analytics |
AI Copilot accelerates synthesis & reporting | Manual tagging & human synthesis |
Supports live website and app testing | No live website/app testing |
Emotion + Attention AI reveal behavioural context | No behavioural intelligence |
Governance, audit trails, and role-based access | No enterprise-scale governance or reuse frameworks |
Designed for global teams & continuity | Built for quick tests, not large ecosystems |
Decode delivers research depth, speed, and governance that Lyssna cannot match.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Product & Capability Comparison
Feature | Decode | Lyssna |
|---|---|---|
Unified User Research Platform | Surveys, prototypes, websites, videos | Mostly unmoderated usability tests |
Emotion & Attention AI | ✔ Available | ✘ Not available |
AI Copilot (Automated Synthesis) | ✔ Instant summaries & decks | ✘ Manual analysis |
Moderated + Unmoderated | ✔ Supported | Mostly unmoderated |
Live Website & App Testing | ✔ Supported | ✘ Not supported |
Duplicate Detection / Knowledge Reuse | ✔ Built-in | ✘ Not available |
Governance & Audit Trails | ✔ SCIM, RBAC, audits | ✘ Basic |
Participant Panels | Global panel (120M+) + BYOP | ~700K panel, no BYOP |
Pricing / Support | Enterprise plans + dedicated CSM + 4-hour SLA | SMB pricing + community/email support |
Decode is built for enterprise scale.
Lyssna is built for lightweight testing.
How Decode Wins
Decode brings speed, continuity, behavioural depth, and governance into one ecosystem.
1. Speed
What normally takes 6 weeks → 1.5 weeks with Decode’s AI-driven workflows.
2. Continuity
A unified research memory links studies, eliminates repetition, and preserves organisational knowledge.
3. Depth
Emotion & Attention AI enrich usability data with real-world behavioural cues.
4. Compliance
Enterprise audit, SCIM provisioning, and role-based access ensure global governance.
5. ROI
Decode has proven a 60% cost reduction vs agency-led testing.
Key Value for Deriv (Example Use Case)
Decode helps Deriv achieve:
Emotion-led validation of digital experiences
Unified usability, behavioural, and qualitative data
Faster research → release cycles through AI synthesis
Stronger compliance & auditability across teams
Reduced reliance on external agencies
Proof of Impact
Impact Metric | Result |
|---|---|
Time-to-insight | 10× faster |
Research costs | 60% lower |
Knowledge retention | 95% across teams |
Redundant testing | 70% reduction |
Design validation quality | Stronger due to emotional insights |
Final Takeaway
Lyssna helps you test usability.
Decode helps you understand behaviour.
If your teams need depth, automation, emotion analytics, governance, and scale—Decode is the modern choice for enterprise-grade user research.