DoorDash Usability Testing
Role: UX Researcher
Tools: DoorDash App, Zoom (remote sessions), Google Forms
Participants: 5 users
Timeline: January to May 2025
Project Overview
This usability test aimed to assess how real users navigate key ordering flows on the DoorDash app. Each participant was asked to complete three tasks while thinking aloud, followed by a post-test survey. Findings were synthesized across both qualitative and quantitative data to form actionable design insights.
Objective
To evaluate the usability of core features within the DoorDash mobile app — including multi-store ordering, product filtering, and cart editing — and identify pain points, task success rates, and opportunities for UI improvement.
Problem Statement
While the DoorDash app offers a wide range of features for food delivery and ordering, users often encounter friction in completing multi-step tasks such as ordering from multiple stores, applying filters, or editing their cart. These features, while available, suffer from poor discoverability, unclear interaction cues, and inconsistent filter logic, which can lead to confusion, errors, or abandonment. The usability test aimed to uncover these specific pain points and identify opportunities for improvement within the existing interface.
Methodology
n=5
Type: Moderated remote sessions (Zoom)
Duration: 30 minutes per participant
Recording: Screen + audio
Post-test survey: Likert ratings + open responses
Data Analyzed: Task success rate, error rate, average time on task, and qualitative observations
Tested Tasks
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Add Items from Multiple Stores
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Search & Filter for Dog Food
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Checkout and Cart Editing
Task 1
Add Items from Multiple Stores Using "Add to nearby store" Function
Success Rate: 40%
Avg. Time: 3.3 minutes
Error Rate: 50%
Key Issue: Only 2 of 5 participants discovered the “Add from Nearby Store” feature. Others restarted or used manual navigation.
“I didn’t even realize you could add from multiple places. That should be more obvious.”
Task 2
Search & Filter for Dog Food
Success Rate: 40%
Avg. Time: 3.3 minutes
Error Rate: 50%
Key Issue: Only 2 of 5 participants discovered the “Add from Nearby Store” feature. Others restarted or used manual navigation.
“I set the price filter but still got items over $20. That was frustrating.”
Task 3
Checkout & Cart Editing
Success Rate: 100%
Avg. Time: 2.9 minutes
Error Rate: 40%
Key Issue: Users struggled to find the quantity edit feature in the cart.
“Editing the cart was confusing—I didn’t know where to tap at first.”
Design Recommendations
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Improve Discoverability of the “Add from Nearby Store” feature with visual cues or in-cart prompts
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Add Price Filters (slider or brackets) to improve product filtering
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Clarify Quantity Controls in the cart UI
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Show ‘No Results’ states instead of unrelated products when filters yield nothing
Results + Reflections
Conducting this test deepened my understanding of how small UX gaps in mobile flows can lead to friction and confusion. Even a highly functional app like DoorDash can benefit from more intuitive affordances and responsive feedback mechanisms. It reinforced the importance of combining task-based testing with post-task reflection, especially when evaluating feature discoverability and user expectations.