Empathy Maps: a Guide to Getting Inside a User's Head

Empathy is fundamental to human-centered design, yet it’s rarely discussed in the context of team dynamics. As researchers, we naturally build empathy through direct exposure — listening to users’ frustrations, observing their workarounds, and hearing their stories firsthand.

But most stakeholders don’t have that same level of exposure to users. They rely on research insights to bridge the gap. Even a single user quote or story can shift a team’s perspective, revealing assumptions and prompting more user-centered decisions. These moments highlight how powerful shared understanding can be.

Empathy mapping is one way to foster this understanding. It helps teams visualize what users think, feel, say, and do — transforming abstract data into human insight. With tools like this, empathy becomes a research skill and a shared foundation for design and strategy.

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More often than not, UX professionals encounter clients or colleagues who depend on their assumptions to guide the user journey and design processes. While empathy mapping alone cannot shift a culture that disregards user research, it can spark change.

What Is an Empathy Map?

An empathy map is a collaborative tool used for visualizing what a particular user is experiencing, thinking about, and feeling during a user experience session.

It is mainly made to help teams develop a stronger understanding of users and a much more profound empathy considering their motivations, emotions, and not simply behaviors on the surface level.

Insights gathered from empathy maps inform the creation of user personas, which serve as detailed representations of different user types to help designers tailor their solutions to meet specific user needs.

An empathy map is generally divided into four main sections or quads, which are considered common core elements.

• Says – This contains everything users say out loud during interviews or conversations. This means every single paraphrased statement or direct statement is included here.
• Thinks – This part describes the user’s inner thoughts, which are not necessarily expressed aloud but include beliefs, aspirations, hopes, and doubts.
• Does – This covers a wide range of the actions taken by the user and includes observable actions, interactions, or behaviors reminiscent of a habitual routine.
• Feels – The user’s implied or expressed emotions come under this section. It includes mood, frustration, excitement, vexation, and confusion.

All designed empathy maps logically focus on the user, who is usually represented by a persona or actual person from your research and illustrated by placing at the center of the map. Everything bound by the quadrants focuses on the user’s experience.

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The empathy map, created by Dave Gray of XPLANE, is now a global sensation. It is used in UX, product strategy, marketing, and even customer care. It is a particularly useful tool for synthesizing qualitative research, such as interviews or diary studies.

When employing empathy maps, teams can identify patterns, synchronize on crucial user concerns, and construct with greater precision, sympathy, and coherence.

Because user insights are organized visually, teams do not have to rely on assumptions or secondhand information. Design choices are made based on the lived experiences of authentic users.

Why Empathy Maps Are Important

Regarding what matters the most, empathy maps enable teams to center and focus on the user. During product development, it is common for teams to fall into the trap of designing based on personal opinions, assumptions, or business objectives.

Empathy maps change the narrative by making user thoughts, feelings, and behaviors central and visible, shifting the conversation. The mapping process is a crucial method for understanding users' attitudes and behaviors, aiding in synthesizing user research and revealing insights about user needs.

Empathy maps shift focus from data to information people can relate to, deepening gaps in knowledge that require in-depth research. Most importantly, empathy maps compel everyone, from designers to stakeholders, to look beyond the product’s surface and view it from a user perspective.

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By incorporating empathy maps into the design process, teams ensure that user needs are prioritized from the onset, shaping the overall design and development journey toward more relevant outcomes.

With empathy maps, you integrate the element of empathy in the process rather than just the result. Achieving a shared understanding among team members regarding user needs through collaborative processes like empathy mapping enhances decision-making and mitigates miscommunication.

When to Use an Empathy Map

Empathy maps are helpful tools for understanding users on a deeper emotional level, particularly after completing qualitative research. Empathy maps can also help understand diverse user groups.

These are the moments you would use them:

• Post-user interviews or field studies -> Transform insights into organized observations.
• During synthesis analysis -> Work with your team to create concepts of user emotions and thoughts, gaining new insights.
• While developing personas or journey maps -> Construct detailed user narratives and utilize empathy maps as frameworks.
• To foster empathy among stakeholders -> Enable non-research employees and executives to appreciate the user’s experience firsthand.

Empathy mapping is a valuable resource whenever the objective is to incorporate the user’s perspective into discussions. Understanding the user's needs ensures that products resonate with users by addressing their emotions and behaviors.

How to Create an Empathy Map

Filling a template may not be the most accurate description of empathy maps, as they are more about navigating your user’s world. The value of this framework depends on the research conducted and the conversations it stimulates within your team.

Gathering information from outside elements is crucial as it lays the groundwork for understanding the user's internal thoughts and feelings. Here is a thoughtful approach to it in steps.

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An empathy map traditionally splits into four quadrants: Says, Thinks, Does, and Feels. This structure helps teams visualize user attitudes and behaviors, ensuring that accurate user insights inform design processes. By aligning with a shared understanding of user needs, teams can create more effective and empathetic designs.

To assist you in this process, we offer a free template for creating empathy maps. This downloadable resource can help your team synthesize insights and understand customer behaviors, ultimately enhancing your business strategies.

Start with a Real User

Choose one particular individual user to begin with. This can be someone you interviewed or observed as part of your research, or it can be an aggregate persona that embodies important characteristics from several users.

Remember, the more specific and real your subject is regarding actual behavior and feedback, the more depth and meaning the empathy map you create will carry.

A detailed persona description is crucial as it serves as a broad representation of user motivations, guiding your understanding of actual user needs and preferences.

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Gather Qualitative Research

Each segment of the empathy map is based on rich qualitative data. Including survey answers is crucial as they help uncover additional insights about user perspectives that might not be explicitly expressed. Begin by compiling your notes, transcripts, recordings, or any observational material.

Search for instances where users articulated pain points, joyful moments, indecision, or the things that are important to them. Without pieces of this sort, each quadrant of the empathy map will lack structure and will be void of the essence of user experience. Incorporate direct quotes from users to ensure the authenticity of their sentiments and needs.

Set Up the Empathy Map Framework

An empathy map traditionally splits into four quadrants: Says, Thinks, Does, and Feels, with the user positioned at the center. Each section captures a distinct aspect of the user’s experience.

In the “Says” quadrant, you capture the user’s verbal expressions, whether a direct quote or something paraphrased from what they communicated orally.

“Thinks” captures an internal monologue of beliefs, hopes, or worries that aren’t articulated articulately.

“Does” includes the user’s actionable and behavioral responses to a product task — how they take tasks and apps.

In the “Feels” section, describe the user's emotional state, including the emotions the participant experienced at the points in which they were confused, happy, frustrated, anxious, etc.

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To facilitate team collaboration and organize insights effectively, use sticky notes to jot down observations related to each quadrant of the empathy map.

Fill in the Map Collaboratively

Once you’ve created the framework, try filling in the insights from your research into each quadrant. This step is best done with other team members, preferably in a design, product, or research synthesis session.

Talk about the most memorable moments from or during the interviews. Everyone brings in different interpretations of the user’s journey and combines them. Remember to bring in quotes and examples as much as you can.

If you’re stuck somewhere, for example, what the user might be thinking, make it a team discussion and combine your findings to form the most agreeable hypothesis that respects user research. Do not make assumptions without any basis.

It is also crucial to imagine what it is like to be in someone else's head to fully understand the user's emotions, aspirations, and challenges.

Reflect and Identify Insights

Pause for a moment and inspect the comprehensive perspective after all necessary steps have been taken to complete the map. Is there any significant emerging data you can observe that provides deeper insights?

Are there contradictions, such as users claiming to enjoy something while preferring a different action much of the time? Are there emotionally intense areas that point to problems or unfulfilled needs?

Information as such becomes the core ideas from which design decisions their problem statements. Gaining insights from this analysis is crucial for tailoring strategies based on a deeper understanding of user needs and behaviors.

Share and Revisit the Map

When you feel your empathy map is complete, disseminate it to the entire team. It is not only for the researchers; every designer, engineer, marketer, and stakeholder has a piece of it. Discuss it in meetings, use it to prioritize features, or as a springboard for inspiration.

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Above all, treat it as a living document. Change it when your understanding of the user evolves due to new research insights. Ensure that all team members understand user insights to enhance collaboration and effective communication.

Every user-centered empathy map is an incredible tool for developing user understanding. It does not need expensive gadgets or rigorous analysis; only authentic narratives, willingness to listen, and a pledge to look from the user’s perspective.

Tips for Running an Effective Empathy Mapping Session

Don’t Stress About Getting It “Right”

Participants could spend time deliberating on the placement of the details, such as whether this is a feeling, a pain point, or a sensory observation. That's perfectly okay. There will always be some iterations and multiple ways things are perceived for a user's data set, especially in cross-functional teams. The session's goal is not perfect classification but achieving an emotional resonance with the user's journey.

Keep the Focus Tied to Your Project Goals

Empathy mapping is not meant to capture every little detail about a user’s emotions or behaviors. It is intended to assist in understanding how a specific audience interacts with the problem you are focusing on.

The exercise loses focus and direction if the problem scope becomes too wide. Understanding the primary purpose of empathy mapping is crucial to ensure that the activity aligns with the project goals and objectives.

Customize the Map to Fit Your Context

As long as the focus is on the project and persona or the insights at hand, feel free to change the map’s structure. If your user is a procurement manager in a B2B context and emotional data is not part of your research, then it is perfectly fine to modify or remove that section.

The shape of the design should aid your goals, not inhibit them. So, change things for the session rather than having the session dictate the structure. Additionally, understanding what the user physically does, such as refreshing pages or comparing prices, can provide deeper insights into user behavior.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

While empathy mapping is easy to structure, there are a few common mistakes that can simplify its effectiveness.

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Using Assumptions Instead of Real Data

An empathy map built on guesswork undermines its purpose. Always ground the content in actual user research — interviews, observations, or data.

Overthinking Categorization

Don’t get stuck debating where an insight fits. Focus on accurately capturing the user’s perspective. Precise placement is less important than clarity.

Being Too Vague

General statements like “the user is frustrated” don’t add value. Every insight should be tied to specific evidence, such as a direct quote or behavior.

Treating the Map as a One-Time Exercise

Empathy maps should evolve with the project. Revisit and refine them as you gather more insights and as user behavior changes.

Working in Isolation

Empathy mapping should be a collaborative activity. Involve your team — discussions often lead to deeper understanding and stronger alignment around user needs.

Tools to Support Empathy Mapping

In 2025, a few key tools have emerged as the go-to choices for teams looking to create empathy maps that are collaborative, actionable, and grounded in real user data.

FigJam

FigJam has become a favorite for design and product teams thanks to its intuitive templates, real-time collaboration, and seamless integration with Figma. Many empathy mapping sessions now start with FigJam due to its ease of use, especially for teams already working in design tools.

Miro

Miro remains a gold standard for remote collaboration. Its robust empathy map templates, sticky note system, and clustering features make it ideal for multi-disciplinary workshops and synthesis sessions. In 2025, Miro’s AI tools also help speed up insight grouping and labeling.

Notion

As a flexible workspace, Notion is widely used for documenting empathy maps alongside personas, research notes, and journey maps. Its simplicity makes it a go-to for teams that prefer a lighter, text-based alternative to whiteboards.

These tools support empathy mapping and strengthen cross-functional understanding by making insights visible, shareable, and grounded in real user voices. The best tool is the one your team will actually use — and these four continue to stand out in 2025.

Read more:

• The Must-Know UX Laws That Drive Great User Experiences
• Strengthening UX Through Detailed Design Validation
• Mastering UX Mockup: a Comprehensive Guide

Conclusion

Behind every user, there is a human being, and empathy maps help ensure this is not forgotten. They enable the transformation of abstract research into concrete understanding, therefore enhancing product development.

Next time you synthesize user insights, it is not enough to think, “What did they say?” It is important to ask that profound question: “What were they really considering and feeling?” That is where exceptional designs stem.