NVivo Reviews

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48 Reviews

- Industry: Internet
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Monthly for 1+ year
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10
NVivo for Qualitative Data Analysis
Reviewed on 2024/05/23
Pros
Light weight.
Value for money.
The learning curve is shallow.
Cons
Might be limited in Visualization.
You might need to clean the text files inputted to provide better analysis quality, which consume time.
- Industry: Research
- Company size: 10,000+ Employees
- Used Monthly for Free Trial
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Overall rating
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
The best qualitative analysis software
Reviewed on 2024/04/07
Pros
User-friendliness, online support, Collaboration Cloud
Cons
It’s not as self-intuitive when it’s your first time using it, but there is a lot of online support that is pretty accessible.
- Industry: Research
- Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 1+ year
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 0.0 /10
Worst software, terrible customer service.
Reviewed on 2024/09/03
This was a horrible experience. NVivo is a poorly maintained software that is extremely overpriced....
This was a horrible experience. NVivo is a poorly maintained software that is extremely overpriced. Once they get you to buy the software, it's like pulling teeth to get help.
Pros
The visualization options are pretty decent and easy to navigate.
Cons
Customer service is atrocious. We spent months trying to get a response out of them. They almost never helped us with anything. It was the most worthless software. Especially the collaborative software. It just doesn't work and was constantly breaking and not syncing. One colleague used it on Mac and there was an unsolvable bug where she could not view the quotes clustered based on the codes, which would take months to fix. So we had to buy her a PC. Then she had a problem again with it not syncing/working and again, no one would help her resolve it. Then the folks said they would give her a month of use for free, but then they took a month to respond. They are very fast to request money, though.

- Industry: Computer Software
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Discovering the Best of NVivo
Reviewed on 2023/01/13
Overall, my experience with NVivo has been positive. I find the software to be a powerful tool for...
Overall, my experience with NVivo has been positive. I find the software to be a powerful tool for organizing and analyzing qualitative data, with advanced coding and text analysis features that make it easy to identify patterns and themes within my data. Despite these cons, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks making it a valuable tool for any researcher or data analyst.
Pros
I really like using NVivo because it makes it easy to organize and analyze qualitative data. With its advanced coding and text analysis features, I am able to quickly identify patterns and themes within my data. The software is also intuitive and user-friendly, making it easy for me to navigate and find the information I need. Additionally, the ability to collaborate with team members on projects is a huge plus. Overall, NVivo is a powerful tool that has greatly improved my research and data analysis process.
Cons
One thing that I dislike about NVivo is that it can be quite expensive, especially for small research projects or individual use. Additionally, the software can be quite resource-intensive, so it may be challenging to run on older or less powerful computers. While the software is generally user-friendly, some of the more advanced features can take a bit of time and effort to master. Additionally, some users may find the software's interface to be cluttered and overwhelming. Finally, the lack of integration with other software tools can be a limitation for some users.

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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 5.0 /10
Nvivo was the go-to QDA for graduate students for many years. Still a powerhouse.
Reviewed on 2018/03/31
Nvivo is robustly designed and can handle very large projects that involve text, video and audio. I...
Nvivo is robustly designed and can handle very large projects that involve text, video and audio. I believe AtlasTI or MaxQDA offer better feature sets.
Pros
Nvivo runs on Windows, Mac. This is important for exchanging data on research teams whose members will be using both Windows and Mac computers.
Colleagues have often commented on how Nvivo is easy to use for content and thematic analysis.
By using Nvivo to define codes and tag documents with the codes as you move through the document. This grounded approach will allow users to build an understanding of the underlying themes in the data. Each coded segment in Nvivo called a "node", can have a set of custom properties that include instance-specific values can be either flat, or hierarchically arranged, each of which has certain advantages. Flat coding prevents imposing a structure on data while hierarchical coding can help researchers find patterns in the document, assists with analysis and building models.
Many tutorials can be found online and via the MaxqDA website. The user discussion forum is also a useful place for learning how to use the program and to apply the software to specific research needs. Because good tutorials can be found easily, users will have less trouble learning how to use this powerful program
Cons
It does not offer a portable version that users can use when travelling or in the field on someone else's computer. This is a drawback and restricts use to the user's computer only.
The student license, while cheaper than the other major QDA vendors, is only valid for 12 months. If you are doing a PhD (which could take many years), you'll have to purchase a full version of the software which is really rather pricey.
Nvivo may not be as good as MaxQDA for helping researchers build interrelationships among the data.
- Industry: Research
- Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 1+ year
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 1.0 /10
Fine if you work alone
Reviewed on 2020/10/27
I spend more time troubleshooting than coding because the software (which requires a yearly...
I spend more time troubleshooting than coding because the software (which requires a yearly license, and prevents me from sharing data with teammates) is so buggy.
Frequently crashes, losing unsaved data. The auto-save feature on mac is not reliable. NOTHING on the mac version is reliable - it should never have shipped in the current state.
Pros
Coding stripes and the process of coding is easy and intuitive
Nvivo allows you to code multiple types of data together - great for interdisciplinary or "found"/naturalistic data (as opposed to created or elicited data).
If you are working 100% independently, I would recommend any older/cheaper version of NVivo for the core coding functionality.
Cons
The software is expensive and requires yearly licensing even though the main & best features are essentially the same for the last 10 years. The core features are held hostage by QSR's inability to provide backwards compatibility or to allow for sharing between windows and mac.
If you want to work in a team look elsewhere - QSR essentially locks your data into the version of nvivo you have and if the entire team is not using the exact same version you are out of luck. It's essentially ransomware.
Alternatives Considered
QuirkosReasons for Switching to NVivo
We chose NVivo based on promises made in webinars. It turns out those promises are only true for the Windows version. Even though the Mac version is the same price, there is almost none of the added features.- Industry: Marketing & Advertising
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Monthly for 6-12 months
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 0.0 /10
Extremely upset
Reviewed on 2024/06/10
Worst experience with a software ever, will never recommend it to anyone and I am extremely upset...
Worst experience with a software ever, will never recommend it to anyone and I am extremely upset at the lack of customer support by the NVivo team. To disregard my multiple complaints with a simple automated message that said they would contact me when available and then completely dissapear enraged me, as I have been trying to use this software for the past 2 years.
Pros
Nothing. I was told it would be helpful for University dissertations and trying to use it has been the most difficult thing I have ever tried to do.
Cons
Everytime I tried it said there was a database error and multiple IT technicians have not been able to figure it out, but said it was probably an error caused by Windows 11. I tried contacting customer support through emails and messages but they simply reply with an automated message and do not help customers whatsoever.
- Industry: Research
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 0.0 /10
The worst customer services experience across any industry
Reviewed on 2024/02/05
Terrible. They've basically stolen £2,000 from me and haven't explained anything about why over 5+...
Terrible. They've basically stolen £2,000 from me and haven't explained anything about why over 5+ days of asking. Obviously I can't move to another provider until I get my money back. This is the only internet review I've ever left but I'm furious and just gobsmacked how bad they are.
Pros
Nothing. No pros would outweigh the cons.
Cons
Unbelievably bad customer service. They took an extra £300 on top of the stated licence cost. Added to this, I cannot even access Nvivo. I have been chasing them for days but there is no way to have a direct contact with them. The responses I've had have been automated and don't address my two questions that I have stated again and again.

- Industry: Research
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 2.0 /10
DO NOT UPGRADE to the new version, NVivo R1
Reviewed on 2020/04/16
QSR International and NVivo, please do better.
QSR International and NVivo, please do better.
Pros
I use this software for my research regularly, and appreciate its rich features.
Cons
My university provides a license to NVivo 12, which I was using up till recently, when I upgraded using a free trial of R1 because I was experiencing very slow performance coding PDFs, despite the fact that I double checked that my system requirements were adequate.
DO NOT UPGRADE TO THE NEW SOFTWARE. I repeat: DO NOT UPGRADE. I made a huge mistake upgrading. Not only did it NOT fix the performance issues (it was still VERY slow, almost unmanageably so), but I found out after a couple long days of coding that YOU CANNOT REVERT BACK TO PREVIOUS FORMATS. I tried doing so, and all my coding references and most of my annotations were lost in the process, so I was forced to continue using the new software. Now that the trial has run out, I must purchase a new subscription in order to have access to my project, despite the fact that I do not think the new version is an improvement from the last IN ANY WAY.
NVivo has been unable to support me in solving this issue (they suggested I just use another free trial on a different computer -- like most of us stuck working from home, I do not have a backup computer), and so I am forced to buy, at full cost, a year's subscription to a software which I am thoroughly frustrated with. Upgrading the software on a trial basis should NOT prevent users from reverting to previous versions, this is a very poorly designed update. As a PhD student I do not have extra funding lying around, and this is coming out of my own pocket. Unacceptable.

- Industry: Research
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10
Very good tool for qualitative analysis, MAC version is poorer than WIndows version
Reviewed on 2018/11/09
I am using both Mac and Windows versions of NVivo (NVivo 11).
As a researcher who conducts...
I am using both Mac and Windows versions of NVivo (NVivo 11).
As a researcher who conducts empirical research, I often need to analyse interview transcripts/records/videos. In NVivo, I find the functionalities that I've ever needed for such analyses, for example coding and visualising results. It really makes my life as a researcher easier.
Pros
- This is a sophisticated Quality Data Analysis program which provide a wide range of functionalities and supports that make researcher's life easier.
- NVivo supports many inputs including text, PDF, survey, audio, video and graphical files.
- It has a lot of built-in functions for coding, retrieving, analyzing, visualizing and exporting.
- Qualitative analysis is not an easy task and sometimes requires team-effort - That's great that QSInternational realized it and provided a good supports for team work.
Cons
- The biggest problem with NVivo for our team was incompatibility between NVivo versions. As a team, we used different versions of NVivo on both Windows and Mac, and it turned out that exchanging the data was not so easy (for example, an Nvivo project exported from Windows cannot be properly imported to Mac version and vice versa).
- Some functions are not intuitive and therefore take time to learn by reading the manual or by viewing the online tutorials. I understand there is always learning curves to be expected when it comes to using a new tool, but I would expect more build-in example, guideline within NVivo for that.
- Industry: Education Management
- Company size: 51–200 Employees
- Used Monthly for 1+ year
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10
It's definitely needed...with a cost
Reviewed on 2023/11/15
Pros
I truly like the accessibility of features of NVivo. I primarily perform qualitative analysis and it truly does make the process more smooth
Cons
Its features and ergonomic components can be a bit confusing. For example, I feel there are too many procedures just to upload a document
- Industry: Research
- Company size: 10,000+ Employees
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 6.0 /10
Strong tool for qualitative data analysis, poor customer service
Reviewed on 2023/06/26
Pros
NVivo is versatile and useful for working with data in both text and audio formats. The query and tabulation tools are particularly useful for analyzing relationships in data.
Cons
Customer service is very slow at responding to technical glitches in the software and billing mistakes. The coding tools to highlight portions of text in pdfs is difficult to work with and there is not an easily available option to rotate view for pdf documents. The concept map creation tool is useful, but does not produce as visually high quality diagrams.
- Industry: E-Learning
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
Great tool for researchers
Reviewed on 2023/02/04
Great after organizing data
Great after organizing data
Pros
Ability to create a workflow for the entire project, data management, paperless literature review and many more
Cons
Navigation and features are not intuitive, you should be trained in using the tool
- Industry: E-Learning
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
NVivo Review
Reviewed on 2021/02/25
NVivo is a cloud-based Data analysis software developed by QSR International. It has multiple...
NVivo is a cloud-based Data analysis software developed by QSR International. It has multiple features and a well-designed interface that makes data categorising less tedious. The interface contains a customisable navigation view and context-specific ribbons. It supports different data including textual, PDF, survey, audio, audio, video, images, Outlook emails, and spreadsheets. My students and use NVivo as our main data analysis software. It allows us to manage data in large projects and many languages including character-based languages like Mandarin. We also use NVivo NCapture, a browser add-on, to capture webpages from social media like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. We Create mindmaps, project and concept maps to show data and idea associations. NVivo's audio transcription also saves us a lot of time and money when dealing with recorded audio interviews. I recommend NVivo as a personal, business, academic, and professional data analysis software.
Pros
NVivo allows researchers to find correlations and relationships between themes, people, and places in one software. It is easy to import data from other programs, including Survey Monkey, EndNote, RefWorks, Zotero, Mendeley, MS Outlook, EverNote, OneNote. NVivo Integration allows Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook files to imported to NVivo, using free add-ins. NVivo integrates with bibliographic and referencing software like Endnote and Mendeley for easy citations and references. NVivo auto-codes and identifies themes and sub-themes, regardless of data volume and complexity.
NVivo also allows Cloud collaboration through small teams of up to 5 members. This means a group of 5 or fewer members can work in collaboration with one project. The Windows version allows bigger groups. Since NVivo is cloud-based, team members do not have to worry about losing their project. Team members can use the multi-level ‘undo’ function whenever a need arises.
Cons
NVivo offers three packages, Plus, Pro, and Mac. The student license is not as expensive as a full license but after a year, they are required to buy a license at the retail price.
- Industry: Mental Health Care
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 3.0 /10
Customer Support
Reviewed on 2021/08/31
Overall, NVivo is an excellent tool, but I do not feel it is worth it when no computer software...
Overall, NVivo is an excellent tool, but I do not feel it is worth it when no computer software support is immediately available.
Pros
I enjoy the features such as the ability to download data, graphics overall data collection function
Cons
I was recently informed (August 19, 2021) that my College will no longer purchase the license to use NVIVO. I had to purchase the software myself. I am experiencing difficulty with download the NVIVO software. I do not know nor do I know how to obtain the license to my currently active NVIVO from my university. I have sent three requests for help (August 25 2x and August 30, 2021), and three days later, I still have not received any response. There isn't a phone number to contact a live person. I am now 7 days away from losing all of my information, and NO ONE HAS HELPED. I am completing the final steps of my dissertation, so you can imagine how stressful this situation is. I have paid for my subscription, but I can not access the download. I believe that it is totally unacceptable to run a company with NO access to software support.
Response from Lumivero
Hi Kimberly, sorry to hear you had trouble getting in touch with our Support Team, I believe they have since been able to resolve your issue. Good luck with your dissertation!
- Industry: Higher Education
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used Daily for Free Trial
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 6.0 /10
Great tool for beginner in qualitative research, but not the best option
Reviewed on 2020/11/03
I tried the free trial version of NVivo 12 for a qualitative research project in my university. It...
I tried the free trial version of NVivo 12 for a qualitative research project in my university. It provides all functionality to help with qualitative data analysis. I think this software is great for beginners in qualitative research. But in terms of value for money, I think this software doesn’t come with the best offer.
Pros
It works with various type of data, whether it’s text document, voice recording, and video recording. This software enables you to code, transcribe, and visualize the data. There is no functionality limit on the free trial version, only the 14-days period limitation. Worth to try before buying the full version.
Cons
After the free trial ends, the cost for the license is pretty expensive. There are various software options on the market that provide better value for money especially if you’re working in short-term projects and plan not to use the software for a long time. This software also can be slow and frustrating at times, but I didn’t know if it was because of my computer or the software, and I found a lot of people facing the same problem. p.s. I was running NVivo 12 in macOS mojave.
- Used for 2+ years
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
The best software for qualitative data analysis
Reviewed on 2018/03/14
1. saves time of qualitative data analysis and reporting
2. easy to use
3. helps to document...
1. saves time of qualitative data analysis and reporting
2. easy to use
3. helps to document interviews in different format
4. helps to document interviews in more organized way (including by thematic topics, respondent characteristics and geography)
Pros
1. best for qualitative interview documentation
2. can work with pictures and audio in addition to text
3. uses respondent characteristics (age, gender, employment and others) during the analysis
4. auto coding has minimize time of data coding. I have used the older version of Nvivo when coding was done manually and with auto coding life become easier
Cons
1. More expensive for individual users
2. not much user group discussions and documentation
3. expensive training cost and very limited to some countries (USA, EU and south africa)
- Industry: Education Management
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 7.0 /10
A Good Software for Data Analysis
Reviewed on 2022/07/26
Pros
The overall integration of all data in one place, visualization, and analysis of qualitative data are so easy to use it. It is so easy to use Nvivo, there are various sources to learn how to use it effectively.
Cons
Supported languages can be enhanced, many improvements can be done, and visualizations might be enhanced.
- Industry: Education Management
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 6.0 /10
Good software, but hard to maintain and collaborate
Reviewed on 2022/09/06
It is a great qualitative analysis software but requires a lot of coordination with collaborators...
It is a great qualitative analysis software but requires a lot of coordination with collaborators to keep the same license. If you are going to do a simple analysis there are other more affordable tools in the market that have limited functionality but can get the job done.
Pros
It has a lot of functionalities. I really liked how you can write memos and do cross analyses.
Cons
The learning curve is steep. It is complicated to collaborate with other users. If you do not own the same Nvivo version it makes it really difficult (sometimes impossible) to collaborate.

- Industry: Higher Education
- Company size: 51–200 Employees
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Great Qualitative Data Analysis Tool
Reviewed on 2019/04/25
NVIVO is essential in my research as social scientists. With NVIVO, I am able to code interviews...
NVIVO is essential in my research as social scientists. With NVIVO, I am able to code interviews and other qualitative data, thus able to draw conjectures from the codes easily.
Pros
NVIVO is great to conduct data analysis for qualitative research. It allows users to code the qualitative data, making it easier for users to perform content analysis with the data. NVIVO's interface is very user-friendly and requires minimal time investment to learn the application.
Cons
Perpetual license for NVIVO is expensive for early career academics. There should be a price scheme for this category of users.
- Industry: Higher Education
- Company size: 201–500 Employees
- Used Monthly for 1+ year
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Overall rating
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
One of the best for qualitative analysis
Reviewed on 2022/06/08
Overall, NVivo has definitely met our needs as a university research lab. Has been a tremendous...
Overall, NVivo has definitely met our needs as a university research lab. Has been a tremendous asset for all of our qualitative data analysis needs.
Pros
Still one of the best, if not the best, programs for qualitative data analysis. Transcription service is one we use the most, and it performs excellently and meets our needs. Appreciate the quality of display graphics and visualizations. Effectively stores data in easy-to-find locations(s). Easy to create subgroups of data. Good support and training options.
Cons
Fairly steep learning curve if unfamiliar with software. Single license is expensive, best used as an organization or university department. Difficult to collaborate efficiently on projects.
- Industry: Defense & Space
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
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- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
fantastic research aid
Reviewed on 2019/12/06
allows me to organise lots of research material into one database
allows me to organise lots of research material into one database
Pros
makes qualitative research a breeze. Helps to keep all research topics and associated evidence organised
Cons
no ability, that I am aware of for correcting typos in material associated with nodes i.e. if your documents are scanned then you may get typos showing up which you cannot correct

- Industry: Research
- Company size: 501–1,000 Employees
- Used Weekly for 6-12 months
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Best qualitative and mixed-methods research tool
Reviewed on 2019/07/18
Nvivo 10 has been a great tool for me especially in managing qualitative data that is in text...
Nvivo 10 has been a great tool for me especially in managing qualitative data that is in text format, also it came in handy for the transcription. while loading data can be slow, the rest of the process is smooth except for coding which will probably get worse if there are more than two of you, but that is a people problem. So far so good NVIVO is the go-to software for qualitative and mixed methods analysis.
Pros
Good for storing and organizing qualitative data.
You can easily share data with SPSS and it has intuitive visualization options.
It has good transcription which does most of the work for you if you have good audio.
Cons
Feeding data into the system is a little challenging and it is important for you to learn how to use it before you start analyzing your data with it. Also, you will need a set of code, coding can be tedious especially for beginners.

- Industry: Higher Education
- Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
- Used for 2+ years
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Overall rating
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10
NVivo: Great tool for analyzing qualitative data
Reviewed on 2019/12/13
I have used this software to analyze qualitative data for my research projects. My research...
I have used this software to analyze qualitative data for my research projects. My research involves interviewing participants and then coding the resulting data, and this software allows for this.
Pros
It is pretty straightforward to learn to use it and to code data. There are helpful tutorials that walk you through the process and it doesn't take long to learn.
Cons
Working in a group was possible with the software, but it wasn't totally straightforward to do this and did require a time investment.
- Industry: Health, Wellness & Fitness
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for Free Trial
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Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10
Intuitive and easy to use
Reviewed on 2022/07/22
Very good experience! I would like the trial where 30days instead of 14
Very good experience! I would like the trial where 30days instead of 14
Pros
It was easy to start working with NVivo and there are a lot of different features that we can use to save us time and to make our work easier
Cons
Easy videos showing how to work with available features where better that a “manual” Visualizing how to do stuff it is easier to learn