Card Sorting Template: Free Card Lists, Script and Study Plan
This template gives you everything to run a card sort: ready card lists for common use cases, a study plan, and a participant script. Copy the cards into a spreadsheet, or paste them into a free card sort to start collecting results.
Free plan: 3 studies. Unlock the full analysis for a single study for $15, or choose Starter at $19/mo.
Used by 1,800+ users.
Study Plan Template
Goal
Understand how users group and label content
IA Decision
Menu structure, navigation, or categories
Cards
15 to 60 content items (pages, features, or products)
Sort Type
Open (participants create labels) or closed (you provide categories)
Participants
Recruit representative users from your target audience
Timeline
Plan for recruitment, collection, and analysis phases
Ready Card Lists
Copy these card lists to use as a starting point. Each list is sized for a typical card sort (15 to 20 cards) and matches common use cases.
Website Navigation
Plan your site menu with these 15 ready page cards.
- Home
- About Us
- Services
- Products
- Portfolio
- Team
- Contact
- Blog
- FAQ
- Pricing
- Testimonials
- Privacy Policy
- Terms of Service
- Support
- Downloads
Copy the cards to paste into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV to import directly.
SaaS App Features
Organize your app features with these 13 ready cards.
- Profile Settings
- Push Notifications
- Dark Mode
- Search
- Favorites
- Share Content
- Rate App
- Help Center
- Sign Out
- Privacy Settings
- Account Management
- Theme Customization
- Language Settings
Copy the cards to paste into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV to import directly.
E-commerce Product Categories
Organize your store catalog with these 15 product cards.
- Running Shoes
- Yoga Mats
- Protein Powder
- Wireless Headphones
- Fitness Tracker
- Water Bottle
- Resistance Bands
- Dumbbells
- Athletic Wear
- Recovery Foam Roller
- Pre-workout Supplements
- Sports Bra
- Gym Bag
- Athletic Socks
- Heart Rate Monitor
Copy the cards to paste into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV to import directly.
Intranet Navigation
Organize your intranet by employee tasks with these 15 cards.
- Submit Expense Report
- Request Time Off
- Company Directory
- IT Help Desk
- Benefits Overview
- Training Resources
- Company News
- Employee Handbook
- Performance Reviews
- Team Calendar
- HR Policies
- Payroll Information
- Office Facilities
- Submit Feedback
- Project Templates
Copy the cards to paste into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV to import directly.
Student or Course Project
Practice card sorting with these 12 educational cards.
- Video Lectures
- Interactive Quizzes
- Reading Materials
- Practice Exercises
- Group Discussions
- Downloadable Resources
- Progress Tracking
- Community Forum
- Office Hours
- Certification Tests
- Peer Reviews
- Templates and Tools
Copy the cards to paste into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV to import directly.
Free plan: 3 studies. Unlock the full analysis for a single study for $15, or choose Starter at $19/mo.
Used by 1,800+ users.
Participant Instructions Script
Welcome! Thank you for helping us organize this content. In this card sort, you will see cards with labels on them. Your task is to group these cards into categories that make sense to you.
- Read through all the cards first to get familiar with the content.
- Drag cards into groups. You can create as many groups as you need.
- Give each group a name that describes what the cards in it have in common.
- There are no right or wrong answers — we want to see how you naturally think about this content.
Once you have sorted all the cards and named your groups, click Submit. Thank you for your help!
Choose Open, Closed or Hybrid
Open sort
Participants create their own category names. Best for new information architectures.
Closed sort
You provide the categories. Best for validating a draft structure.
Hybrid sort
Provide starter categories and let participants create new ones. Best for refinement.
How Many Participants
15 participants will give you a directional answer. 30 or more gives statistical confidence for a similarity matrix and dendrogram. For a closed sort, 20 to 30 is usually enough.
Use the sample size calculator to estimate the number of participants you need based on your confidence level and margin of error.
Analysis Checklist
- ✓Standardize category names (merge 'Help' and 'Support')
- ✓Unlock the full analysis to see the similarity matrix and dendrogram ($15 per study or Starter plan)
- ✓Read the similarity matrix to find which cards are grouped together most often
- ✓Check the dendrogram for natural clusters
- ✓Look for split cards that participants disagree on
- ✓Turn the top clusters into a draft navigation structure
- ✓Validate your new structure with a tree test
Learn how to read a similarity matrix and dendrogram in our card sort analysis guide.
Print-Friendly Version
This template is print-friendly. Use your browser's print function (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P) to print the card lists. The lists will print cleanly on A4 or letter paper.
Free plan: 3 studies. Unlock the full analysis for a single study for $15, or choose Starter at $19/mo.
Used by 1,800+ users.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I edit these card lists?
Yes. Copy the cards, then add, remove or rename any card to match your content. Aim for 15 to 60 cards: fewer than 15 does not give enough grouping signal, and more than 60 tires participants.
Should I run an open or closed card sort?
Run an open sort when you are starting from scratch and want to see how participants naturally group and label content. Run a closed sort when you have a draft structure and want to validate where each item belongs. You can also run open first, then closed to refine the structure.
How many participants do I need?
The number of participants depends on your research goals and the complexity of your content. More participants give you more confidence in the patterns you find. Use the sample size calculator to estimate based on your needs.
Can I print this template?
Yes. Use your browser's print function (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P). The card lists are formatted to print cleanly on A4 or letter paper.
What do I do with the results?
After participants sort the cards, clean the category names and review the groupings. With the full analysis unlocked, you can read the similarity matrix to see which cards are grouped together and check the dendrogram for natural clusters. Then turn those clusters into a draft navigation and validate it with a tree test.