What Is Prototype Testing?
Prototype Testing connects to a Figma prototype and asks participants to work toward a goal screen (or explore freely), tracking clicks, misclicks, time, and whether they reached the goal.Note: Figma is currently the only supported prototype source — there’s no support for InVision, static image uploads, video uploads, or other prototyping tools today. This includes prototypes built with Figma Make, as long as the output is a standard Figma prototype share link.Prototype Testing is one of several sibling block types you can add to an Unmoderated Test study — alongside Card Sorting, Tree Testing, and Website Testing (each with its own help article). It’s unmoderated only; there’s no live/moderated version of this block, and there’s no diary-study format today.
Why It Matters
Catch usability issues before development. Validate a design flow with real users while it’s still cheap to change. Measure objectively, not just anecdotally. Success rate, clicks to goal, and time-on-task give you a quantitative baseline alongside qualitative feedback. Test at scale, without scheduling. Since it’s unmoderated, you can run far more sessions than you could moderate live, and participants complete it on their own time. See exactly how people navigated. Paths and Screens views show you the actual route participants took through your Figma file, not just the end result.Common Use Cases
Set Up a Prototype Test
Prototype tests are a type of Unmoderated Test study, built from blocks.- Create your study. Configure the title, research goal, participation limits, and incentives.
- Set up your screener (optional). Add qualifying questions with logic.
- Configure external recruitment (optional). Use Great Question’s external recruitment marketplace integration for participant sourcing.
- Build your test flow. Add and order the blocks participants will move through: Welcome, Permissions, Prototype Test, Other Questions, and Thank You.
- Review and publish. Verify accuracy and launch.
Adding a Prototype
- Click Add Prototype on the Prototype Test block.
- Paste your Prototype link — this must be a Figma prototype link (containing
/proto/and a node ID), copied using Figma’s blue “Share prototype” button, not just the file’s edit URL. - Click Import. The first time you import a prototype, you’ll be asked to connect your Figma account.
- Once imported, click Sync prototype any time your Figma file changes to pull in the latest version.
/proto/ at all, while “Invalid prototype URL. Ensure you copy the link by first launching the prototype and pressing the blue ‘Share prototype’ button.” means the domain and path look right but the link is missing its node ID — you likely copied the file URL instead of the prototype share link.
Tip: Large prototypes load more slowly and take longer to sync. If you can, create a trimmed Figma file with only the frames relevant to your test.
Configuring the Test
- Test type — choose Goal-based (participants work toward a specific goal screen, and you measure how directly they get there) or Open-ended (participants explore freely with no defined goal).
- Goal screen (goal-based only) — click through your prototype inside Great Question to set a Start screen and a Goal screen.
- Indicate completion to participants — toggle whether participants see a “Completed” message once they reach the goal screen.
- View settings — control how the prototype scales/fits in the participant’s window.
- Disable Figma keyboard shortcuts — on by default; keeps participants from triggering Figma’s own navigation shortcuts (including browser-style back/forward within the prototype) so they stay inside the tested flow.
Note: Each Prototype Test block supports one task — a single start-to-goal path (or one open-ended exploration). If you need multiple tasks, add multiple Prototype Test blocks rather than expecting one block to track several goals at once.
Permissions
Add a Permissions block before the test to capture recordings. Choose which inputs to capture — Screen, Microphone, Camera — and set the device type.Note: On mobile devices, screen sharing isn’t available due to platform limits. Mobile recordings include microphone and camera only.
Results and Metrics
Results appear across four tabs: Table, Paths, Timelines, and Screens.- Goal-based tests report Success rate, Avg. Clicks to goal, Misclick rate, and Avg. Duration.
- Open-ended tests report total Clicks, Misclick rate, and Avg. Duration.
- Use Export CSV to download the underlying results (this button can be restricted on some plans).
Note: Success rate measures whether a participant ever reached the goal screen — it doesn’t penalize wandering or backtracking first. Avg. Clicks to goal and Misclick rate are your better signal for how direct or confused their path was.
Best Practices
Keep your Figma file focused. Trim it to the frames relevant to your test — this speeds up sync and keeps you comfortably under the file-size ceiling below. Enable export permissions on your Figma file before importing. Sync fails if exporting is disabled for the file — this is one of the most common avoidable sync failures. Expect degraded analysis above 300MB. Prototypes larger than 300MB will still run for participants, but the Paths and Screens views won’t be available — keep files under this size if you need the full analysis. Don’t over-read a single low success rate. Since success only requires eventually reaching the goal, check Misclick rate and Paths together with Success rate before concluding a design is confusing.Troubleshooting
| Issue | What’s Happening | How to Fix |
|---|---|---|
| ”Invalid prototype URL. Expected: https://www.figma.com/proto/…” | The link isn’t a Figma URL, or doesn’t contain /proto/ at all. | Open your prototype in Figma, click the blue Share prototype button, and paste that link — not the file’s edit URL. |
| ”…Ensure you copy the link by first launching the prototype and pressing the blue ‘Share prototype’ button” | The domain and path look correct, but the link is missing its node ID — usually because the file URL was copied instead of the prototype share link. | Re-copy the link from inside the running prototype using Share prototype, not from the Figma file/editor URL bar. |
| ”Prototype file size too large” | The Figma file is over the 300MB sync limit. | The test will still run for participants, but trim the file to relevant frames if you need the Paths and Screens views. |
| ”File can’t be exported” | The connected Figma file doesn’t have export permissions enabled. | Ask the file owner or an editor to enable export permissions in the Figma file’s settings, then re-sync. |
| ”Invalid prototype link” | Figma returned a not-found error — the file may not exist anymore, or you may not have permission to view it. | Double-check the URL, or ask the file owner to confirm you have access. |
| ”Sync paused: Figma rate limit reached” | Figma’s API rate limit was hit — limits vary by Figma plan and seat type. | Wait — this resets automatically. If it happens often, check your team’s Figma plan/seat type. |
| ”Prototype sync failed” (generic) | An unrecognized sync error occurred that doesn’t match a more specific message above. | Try re-syncing. If it persists, contact support — this generic message means the specific cause isn’t one of the known ones above. |
| Paths or Screens view is missing or incomplete (no error shown) | A frame with multiple layered interactions hit a known Figma API limitation that can leave part of the interaction map incomplete. | This is a Figma-side constraint, not a setup mistake — simplify that frame’s interactions if precise path tracking matters. |
| Need to track more than one task or goal | A single Prototype Test block only supports one start-to-goal path. | Add another Prototype Test block for each additional task. |
| Participant seems unable to navigate back during the test | Figma keyboard shortcuts (which include prototype navigation shortcuts) are disabled by default to keep participants on the tested flow. | This is expected behavior — turn off Disable Figma keyboard shortcuts in the block’s settings if you want that navigation available. |
| No screen recording on mobile | Screen sharing isn’t available on mobile devices due to platform limits. | Expect microphone and camera capture only for mobile participants; this isn’t configurable. |
| Export CSV button is missing or disabled | CSV export can be restricted by your account’s plan or permissions. | Check with your account admin about export permissions for study responses. |
Still need help? Contact us at support@greatquestion.co — median response time is 19 minutes during support hours.