Digital app users are clear about this. The ease of use of an app is important to 96% of them. And 69% admit to having abandoned an app because it was difficult to use. These data come from the study ‘Usability as seen by users’ carried out by We are testers among more than 1,000 people in Spain. This report puts figures on something we already know. The usability of a digital application is not optional. If it is not easy to use, users will stop using it and look for other ways to meet their needs. The study provides many details on how companies can improve the usability of their websites and apps.
Today’s public is very aware of the dangers of the internet. News stories about scams or unauthorised access to personal data, together with campaigns carried out by different companies and institutions to reduce digital risks, have raised public awareness. Today, users consider ‘security when using the website or app’ to be the most important factor for a good user experience. And security is closely related to ease of use. When users perceive poor usability, they distrust the website or app and suspect that it may be a scam. Therefore, having excellent usability will not only help prevent abandonment due to complexity, but also increase trust.
After security, everything related to the ease of finding what you want is what matters most to users. On the one hand, this has to do with information architecture, intuitive menu design and the use of navigation conventions that are easily recognisable by users. It also has to do with the use of search functions to find what you want without using the menu. These two factors were ranked among the four most important by 47% and 45% of users, respectively.
The following factors were considered most important by users: that the website or app ‘works well on mobile phones, computers or tablets’, that there are ‘solutions for going back’ and that ‘few steps are needed to complete a task’.
If you have abandoned an app that made things difficult for you, you are not alone. Up to 69% of users admit to having stopped using an app because it was difficult to use. Among the reasons most frequently cited by users for abandoning an app is ‘not understanding the app’. In some cases, users blame the app itself – ‘it was chaotic’, ‘there was no way to understand it’ – and in other cases they assume part of the blame – ‘I didn’t know how to do it’, ‘it was too advanced’. The latter case seems easier to solve, as greater clarity, simpler language, or more help for users to complete their tasks easily can reduce user abandonment.
Identifying the app as ‘too complicated’ is also an important factor. In this case, users may have managed to complete their tasks, but feel that they had to invest too much effort to do so. ‘It was too difficult to use,’ ‘apps are there to simplify your life, not to cause you stress,’ or ‘if it has a steep learning curve, I’ll look for another way.’ These are some of the phrases that show how users give up when the level of complexity seems greater than necessary.
The feeling of wasting time, poor performance and stability of the application, or the need to disclose data that is not considered necessary to complete the task are also among the factors that lead users to give up on an app.
The younger the users, the more impatient they are with applications that do not have good usability. Thus, up to 81% of Generation Z members and 72% of Millennials admit to having abandoned applications at some point due to difficulties in using them. Members of Generation X and Baby Boomers seem to have more patience. Of these, ‘only’ 62% and 64% say they have abandoned applications because they were complicated.
Usability is also of fundamental importance in e-commerce. Fifty-four per cent of users have abandoned their cart during an online purchase. To avoid this, online stores need to pay close attention to the main factors that cause abandonment:
Other aspects, such as offering a variety of payment methods that work properly, ease of use that saves the user effort, and the absence of errors are also key to conversion.
When users are dissatisfied with an application or website, they look for alternative ways to meet their needs. Statements such as ‘I looked for an easier app’ or ‘There are other apps that do the same thing and are easier to use’ show how users simply leave when they encounter difficulties. This has important implications for companies that have invested effort and resources in developing apps that do not satisfy their users. The same is true for online stores, which may be losing a significant portion of their sales due to poor usability.
Understanding users’ needs and expectations, as well as the friction points they encounter when using a website or app, is the first step towards improving usability. Conducting tests with real users provides the necessary insights that product and development teams need to improve the user experience. And a better user experience can have a direct impact on business results, as the study shows.
According to Javier Turrado, CEO of We are testers: ‘The users we interviewed clearly demonstrate the true importance of usability. With the data from this study, UX experts have evidence to help their organisations prioritise it and turn it into a competitive factor.’
The study ‘Usability as seen by users’ was conducted between 29 July and 4 August 2025 among 1,176 people representative of the Spanish population between the ages of 18 and 65 through an online survey of the We are testers consumer and user panel.
More details about the study and the complete results can be downloaded from the reports section of this website.
Fecha de actualización 13 septiembre, 2025
