Every day, around 403 million terabytes of data are created.
No wonder that most startups and small businesses can’t handle such volumes—they may lack time, money, or simple manpower.
But market research software can. The right tools can help you automate data collection and analysis to understand your market better, spot opportunities early on, track competitors in real-time, and make smarter decisions faster.
Many entrepreneurs use market research tools like Google Trends, SurveyMonkey, Statista, and Qualtrics for trend analysis, customer feedback, data visualization and more.
Tools for market research are important—no question about that. But most founders’ real question is, “Which tool is best for research?”
With so many free and paid options out there, it’s easy to get lost. Your time is too valuable to waste trying every market research software on the market.
To help you cut through the noise, we’ve compiled a list of the 12 best tools to do research faster and more efficiently in 2025. We also added some expert tips on how to conduct market research.
Let’s dive in!
Market research software: What and why?
Let’s talk some basics first, namely, “What is a market research tool?” and “Why do startups and small businesses need it?”
A market research tool is software used to collect, analyze, and interpret data about markets, competitors, customers, and industry trends. It helps businesses make more data-driven decisions.
Now, the why-you-need question.
A simple answer—to help you research the market (pretty obvious, right?).
A more detailed one—market research software can address several pain points for startups:
- “We don’t know if there’s enough demand for our product or service.”
Market research tools help you validate your product idea and make sure there’s an actual market demand. With the help of Google Trends and SurveyMonkey, you can analyze trends and gather feedback to ensure you’re offering something people want.
- “We’re not sure who our target customers are or how to reach them.”
If you want to make your marketing efforts work well, you must know whom to target—who your customers are. And tools like SurveySparrow and Census Business Builder help you define customer segments so you can target the right audience.
- “We don’t know what our competitors are doing or how we stack up against them.”
Tools like Prisync, Grand View Research, and Awario track competitor pricing, monitor market trends, and analyze industry dynamics. Take these insights to adjust your strategy and maintain an edge.
- “Our customers aren’t providing feedback, and we don’t know how to improve.”
With tools like Qualtrics and SurveySparrow, you can systematically collect customer feedback and spot areas of improvement.
- “Market research is expensive, and we don’t have the budget for full-scale studies.”
No worries. There are free market research tools like Google Trends and Think With Google, demo versions, and trial periods, so everyone can choose something up to their needs and pockets.
Market research software can be your go-to assistant, saving you time, money, and effort. As a founder, you’ll always have better ways to use those saved resources—like scaling your business more efficiently.
The 12 best market research tools and software in 2025
We’ve grouped the tools by category for your convenience.
Group #1: Trend & market discovery tools
These tools will help you find the right market before you launch.
With the help of Exploding Topics, you spot emerging trends before they hit the mainstream. The platform pulls from search data and online conversations to surface what’s gaining traction across industries.
Why this market research tool is good for your startup: Perfect for startups looking to get ahead of the curve—whether you’re shaping a new product, refining your positioning, or just trying to stay relevant.
How to use:
Browse trending topics by category or industry.
Use the insights to fine-tune your roadmap, product ideas, or content strategy.
Pricing: Starts at $39/month
Product Hunt: 4.9/5 (72 reviews)
- Think with Google (Market Finder) + Google trends
Two free market research tools worth bookmarking: Google Trends and Market Finder. One shows what people are searching for and where; the other helps you spot international markets that might be a good fit.
Why they’re worth considering: Great for early-stage teams working with lean budgets. Together, they offer a smart way to spot demand signals and shape your go-to-market strategy—locally or globally.
How to use:
Google Trends: Search a keyword to see how interest changes over time and where it’s strongest.
Market Finder: Enter your product and get a list of countries with strong demand—plus insights on local consumer behavior and market fit.
Pricing: Free
Product Hunt: 4.8/5 (52 reviews)
Here, you can find demographic, economic, and geographic data. You can also create custom reports with maps and charts to analyze local market conditions.
Why to try this market research software: If your startup depends on understanding specific regions, this is a simple way to identify your target customers and spot gaps.
How to use:
Plug in your business type and location.
You’ll get insights on things like income levels, population trends, and more—with visualizations to help make sense of it all.
Pricing: Free
If you need to get comprehensive industry reports with market trends, forecasts, competitive analysis, and consumer behavior insights across various sectors, go to Grand View Research. It’s just a perfect place.
Why this market research software is good for your startup: You can use these reports to get a sharp view of the landscape before entering a market or making big bets on where to grow. Grand View Research works best for startups at a later stage that need more comprehensive reports and deeper competitive analysis.
How to use:
Search for reports by industry or topic.
Look at metrics like market size, growth projections, and who’s leading the space.
Pricing: Varies depending on the report—usually custom quotes.
Customer feedback:
“Grand View is a gold-standard expert in research. They brought so much insight and enthusiasm into the research and crafting storylines from the data. I’m delighted with the report we produced. It exceeded my expectations, and I’m looking forward to joining forces with the team again.” —Susi O’Neill | Head of Brand Content B2B, Brand Activation Studio | Global | Kaspersky
“Well organized data and very good presentation of the final report, helped to derive insights easily.” —GE Healthcare
Statista gives you access to thousands of stats, forecasts, industry reports, and infographics—all in one place. It also comes with interactive charts and a new Research AI feature for quicker insights.
Why it’s a good choice for your startup: Great for secondary research. You can dig into reliable, industry-specific data without spending hours piecing things together.
How to use:
Search topics you’re exploring.
You can view major stats, download reports, and grab ready-made visuals for your decks or planning.
Pricing: Free basic account; paid plans start at $149/month
G2: 4.4/5 (26 reviews)
Group #2: Customer feedback & research platform
The following small business market research tools will help you listen to your users before you build (so you know for sure what your customers want).
Quantilope is an AI-driven market research software that makes the research process faster and easier. You can use it for survey design, data collection, and analysis. The platform offers real-time analytics, dashboard reporting, and advanced research techniques like conjoint, MaxDiff, and sentiment analysis.
Why it’s a good option: It saves you time, giving you quick, high-quality insights, but may cost you some money (be aware of this if you’re on a low budget so far).
How to use:
Pick from pre-made questions to create surveys quickly.
Send surveys to your audience and track responses in real-time.
Use the easy dashboards to analyze the results.
Pricing: Custom pricing
G2: 4.3/5 (40 reviews)
Qualtrics XM helps you understand your customers better with tools for surveys, sentiment analysis, and brand tracking. It integrates well with CRM systems like Salesforce.
Why to use this market research tool: It may give you cool insights into your customer behavior so you can improve your products and services more effectively. But just make sure you have a budget for its premium features.
How to use:
Create surveys and send them to your audience.
Use feedback to make smarter changes to your product or service.
Pricing: Upon request
G2: 4.3/5 (734 reviews)
Due to SurveySparrow, you can create surveys with a conversational design. You can also try recurring surveys, NPS tracking, and sentiment analysis. The platform integrates well with tools like Slack and Zapier, so you can automate your workflows.
Why it’s good for your startup: SurveySparrow helps you collect feedback easily from customers or employees. And it automates the data collection process. A simple, useful, and budget-friendly market research tool.
How to use:
Create surveys with templates or custom questions.
Share surveys via email or embed them on your website or app.
Use the dashboard to analyze the results.
Pricing: Starts at $19/month (if you choose to pay annually)
G2: 4.4/5 (2013 reviews)
SurveyMonkey is a cool online survey platform that offers customizable templates, advanced analytics, and easy integrations. With its help, you can gather the necessary information quickly.
Why to consider this tool: If you’re on a tight budget, this platform is just what you need for researching your audience.
How to use:
Create surveys using drag-and-drop tools or choose from over 200 templates.
Share surveys through various channels and track responses in real-time.
Use advanced analytics and AI-powered sentiment analysis to dive deeper into the data.
Pricing: Free basic plan; paid plans start at $11/month
G2: 4.4/5 (22,945 reviews)
That’s where you can find the right people for your qualitative research, like interviews or focus groups. You’ll be able to target participants based on things like age, profession, or interests.
Why it’s a good choice: Respondent makes finding the perfect research participants quick and easy, so you can gather all the necessary info on your customer preferences and behaviors. A great B2C and B2B market research tool.
How to use:
Set up a project and choose the type of people you want to talk to.
Let Respondent match you with the right participants.
Conduct your interviews or surveys directly through the platform.
Pricing: Starts at $36/session (B2C); $72/session (B2B)
Customer feedback:
“The participants have been who they say they are, we can verify them, and they’re super responsive. Respondent has helped us do better research and be better researchers.” —Jacqueline Jordan | GVP | Research at Huge
“Respondent is a lifesaver… it’s the best recruitment tool, nothing comes close.” —Nicholas Cope | Department Head of Customer Experience & User Research | Extreme Networks
Group #3: Brand & competitor insights tools
The following market research software options help you track brand sentiment, monitor competitor prices, and spot industry trends—insights you need to stay ahead.
Awario is a social listening tool that can help you track brand mentions across social media, blogs, forums, and news sites in real-time. With this software, you’ll know exactly what people are saying about your brand. Also, it can help you find influencers who will boost your message and expand your reach.
Why it’s good for your startup: Awario helps you keep track of what people are saying about your brand, so you can respond quickly. Just a perfect market research tool for small businesses and startups that want to refine their marketing strategy.
How to use:
Set up alerts for keywords related to your brand or industry.
Monitor mentions across platforms and understand how people feel about your brand.
Spot influencers who align with your brand values and can help spread your message.
Pricing: Starts at $29/month
Customer feedback:
I’m stoked on the potential it has. I’ve already added this to my existing clients and have made my money back in minutes.” —Michael Ruiz | Public Relations Manager | Michael Ruiz Consulting
Prisync is great for e-commerce businesses as it helps them track competitor prices and stock levels. It will automate the whole process for you and give insights through customizable dashboards and reports.
Why to use this tool in market research: Prisync makes it easy to keep your pricing competitive and profitable. It saves your time with automation while giving you the data you need to make smarter decisions. But just note, that it works best only for e-commerce businesses.
How to use:
Add competitor URLs or sales channels to automatically monitor prices and stock.
Set pricing rules to adjust based on market changes.
Use the analytics dashboard to track performance and spot trends.
Pricing: Starts at $99/month; includes a free trial
G2: 4.7/5 (160 reviews)
Below, we’ve compared all the 12 market research software options based on the main features, prices, and use cases. Look through and decide which tools work best for you and your business.
If you’re still deciding which tools to go for, this is a short cheat sheet on how to choose market research software for startups:
Define your goals: What do you need? Customer feedback? Competitor insights? If you need a tool for customer feedback, go for SurveyMonkey, but if you want to compare prices, choose Prisync.
Budget check: Does this market research software fit your budget? Which value can it bring to you? Consider free tools like Google Trends for basics, low-cost options like SurveyMonkey or Awario for more value, and premium tools like Statista or Qualtrics for deep research.
Scalability: Can the tool grow with your business? Look for flexible plans and expanding features.
Ease of use: Does the tool have an intuitive interface and support resources? Easy-to-use tools will save you time.
Integrations: Does it work with your CRM, analytics, or workflow tools? Check for integrations with Google Analytics, Slack, or Salesforce.
Security: Make sure the market research analysis tools you choose comply with GDPR and secure your data.
Customization: Can you personalize surveys and reports? Look for tools with flexible features like Quantilope.
Support: Check for 24/7 support and an active user community.
Trial: Test the market research tool before you fully commit to see whether it meets your needs.
Customer feedback: Read reviews on platforms like G2 or Product Hunt to understand the tool’s real-world performance.
Tips on market research from our Waveup team
Of course, it’s important to use the right market research software and tools, but without a solid understanding of the basics, you might run into challenges or waste time on the wrong things.
To help you get everything right from the start, we’ve gathered some expert tips from our Waveup team:
Tip #1: You should know exactly what you want to achieve
Before you start researching the market, ask yourself:
Am I trying to validate a new product idea?
Do I want to understand my customers’ pain points?
Do I research competitors?
Or maybe I am identifying my target market?
As you can see, goals are various, as are the tools used in market research. That’s why it’s so important to have clear objectives—they’ll help you choose the best methods and save you both time and money.
Tip #2: Use a mix of primary and secondary research:
There are four common methods of market research:
Surveys and questionnaires—when you collect data through structured questions to understand customer opinions, preferences, and feedback;
Focus groups—when you bring together small groups to discuss their thoughts and feelings about your product or service.
Observational research—when you watch how customers behave in real-world settings to learn how they interact with your product or service.
Data analysis—secondary research—when you look at existing data, like reports or studies, to get a sense of market trends or competitor behavior.
Solid market research is a mix of both primary (interviews, surveys, focus groups, and observations) and secondary (reports, industry studies, and public data) methods.
SurveyMonkey, SurveySparrow, Respondent, and Awario are the tools used most in primary market research.
As for the secondary research, you can turn to Statista, Grand View Research, or Census Business Builder.
Together, they can give you a 360-degree view of your market.
Tip #3: Don’t overestimate the paid market research software:
Sure, premium options may give you a more comprehensive feature toolkit, but sometimes it’s okay to start with free or more affordable market research tools for small businesses (especially if you’re on a tight budget).
Don’t underestimate platforms like Google Trends and Think With Google (Market Finder). Although these tools are free, they may give you a really cool starting point.
Tip #4: Test your hypothesis, don’t simply assume
It’s really tempting to make assumptions about what your customers want or need, but testing is always better. Use A/B testing, MVPs (Minimum Viable Products), and user feedback loops to test ideas before you implement them. In such a way, you’ll reduce the risk of investing in a product or feature that customers won’t actually use.
Tip #5: Always stay flexible and be ready to iterate:
Market research isn’t a one-time activity, it’s an ongoing process. As trends and customer behaviors change, you need to keep gathering data and adjusting your strategies. Build a feedback loop where you continuously analyze new data and iterate on your strategies accordingly.
For instance, after launching a product, track sales trends, customer feedback, and competitive movements to understand what’s working and what’s not.
Wrap-up on market research software and tools
The right market research tools can make all the difference in your understanding of the customers, staying ahead of your competitors, and tweaking your business strategies. These tools may become your go-to assistants that take all the nitty-gritty stuff under control so you can focus on the creative side of your business.
So, take your time, explore the options, and choose the best market research tools for startups 2025.
But if you feel like having expert guidance, reach out to Waveup. We’re here to gather, analyze, and present the data you need in a clear, customizable report.
Explore our other guides on market-related topics:
Top 10 Market Research Consultants—here, you’ll find the top firms that can run the research for you.
Top-down and bottom-up market size calculation for startups—a simple breakdown of how to estimate your market size, and when to use each method.
How To Build A Killer Go-To-Market Slide: Best Practices And Examples—tips and examples to help you craft a strong GTM slide for your investor pitch deck.
FAQs
What software to use for research?
Everything depends on your needs. If you want to conduct general market research, tools like Google Trends and Exploding Topics can help a lot. If you need to know what customers think about your product/service, use SurveyMonkey or SurveySparrow. If competitors are your target, then go for Prisync and Awario. But if you need a great source for secondary research, it’s definitely Statista.
How do I choose the right market research software?
There are several things you need to consider when choosing the best market research tool. On your side, you should define your goals (what you want to achieve) and your budget (what you can afford).
On the software side, focus on how scalable it is, whether it connects well with your existing tools, how intuitive and easy it is to use (great UX), whether it complies with data protection regulations, and if it can be tailored to your needs (customization).