Run card sorts online — 3 free studies with unlimited responses, no credit card. Upgrade to Starter ($19/mo) for full analytics, AI insights, and unlimited studies — way cheaper than Maze ($99) or Optimal Workshop ($149).
The free plan covers everything you need to run real card-sorting research — up to 3 studies with unlimited responses on each.
All three card sorting types included on free. Let participants create categories, sort into yours, or both.
No caps on participants per study. Share your study link and collect as many responses as you need.
Add your cards, choose your sort type, and share your link. Participants can sort on any device.
Your participants just click the link and start sorting. No accounts, no barriers, no friction.
See responses as they come in. Free includes basic analytics on the first 3 respondents per study.
Beyond card sorts, the free plan also includes tree tests for validating your information architecture.
See which cards participants group together. Identify strong and weak relationships at a glance.
Hierarchical clustering reveals natural category structures and relationships between cards.
Get automated analysis of patterns, outliers, and actionable recommendations from your data.
Need full analytics and AI insights? Try Starter at $19/mo — unlimited card sorts and tree tests, full analysis on every study.
Add your cards and choose open, closed, or hybrid sort. Write optional instructions for participants.
Send your unique study URL to participants via email, social media, or embed it in your site.
Participants drag and drop cards into categories on any device. No account needed for them.
View similarity matrices, dendrograms, and AI insights. Export data for deeper analysis.
Card sorting is the go-to method for understanding how users organize information.
How the free plan compares to other online card sorting tools — and what Starter ($19/mo) adds.
| Feature | Free Card Sort | OptimalSort | Maze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 3 studies, unlimited responses | 1 study, 10 responses | 1 study, limited |
| Open + Closed + Hybrid sorts | — | ||
| Tree tests included | Treejack ($149/mo) | — | |
| No participant sign-up | — | — | |
| Real-time results | — | — | |
| Similarity matrix (Starter $19) | Paid only | — | |
| Dendrogram (Starter $19) | Paid only | — | |
| AI insights (Starter $19) | — | — | |
| Cheapest paid plan | $19/mo (Starter) | $149/mo | $99/mo |
Common questions about online card sorting and the free plan.
Free Card Sort (by ValidateThat) is the best free online card sorting tool because it's the only one with unlimited responses on the free plan: 3 active studies, no participant cap, open + closed + hybrid sort types included. OptimalSort caps the free tier at 1 study and ~10 responses; Maze and UXtweak don't offer dedicated card-sort free plans.
Free Card Sort, OptimalSort, and UXtweak all offer free tiers for online card sorting. Free Card Sort is the only one with unlimited responses on the free plan — OptimalSort limits free tier to ~10 responses per study and UXtweak caps responses by plan. For card sorting online without participant caps, Free Card Sort is the only no-strings option.
Yes. Free Card Sort lets you run online card sorting with no credit card and no signup needed for your participants — they open a link and start dragging. The free plan covers 3 studies with unlimited responses each, plus open, closed, and hybrid sort types. Setup takes about 5 minutes.
Open card sorting lets participants create their own categories — best for discovering how users naturally group your content. Closed card sorting gives participants a fixed set of categories to sort into — best for validating an existing IA. Hybrid card sorting combines both: participants sort into your categories but can also create new ones if your set doesn't fit. Free Card Sort includes all three on the free plan.
Research recommends 15-30 participants per user segment for reliable card sorting results. Open sorts stabilize around 20-30 participants; closed sorts can produce reliable data with 15-25. Most paid card sorting tools cap free tiers at ~10 responses — below what you need for confident results. Free Card Sort's unlimited-responses free tier is specifically designed to clear that statistical threshold.
Join thousands of researchers using Free Card Sort to build better information architectures.
Create Your Free StudyFree plan: 3 studies, unlimited responses. No credit card required. Upgrade to Starter ($19/mo) when you need full analytics.