You can recruit participants on Prolific for one-to-one interviews, or focus groups.
Interviews take place outside Prolific, using tools such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Skype.
Recruit the right participants
If your study includes a live interview, apply these prescreeners from Participation on Prolific:
Webcam
Video call interview
This ensures only participants who have opted in to interviews can see your study.
For niche or hard-to-reach groups (e.g. professionals, carers, or users of specific tools), you can:
Use custom screening, or
Run a two-stage study (a screener survey followed by interviews)
This helps identify eligible participants and reduces dropouts.
Write a clear study description
Your study description should clearly explain:
Study details
What participants will do
Whether the study has multiple stages
Which external tools will be used
How consent is obtained and can be withdrawn
How you will ensure the study is safe and respectful for participants
Recording and personal data
Whether the interview will be recorded
How recordings will be used, stored, and deleted
Avoid collecting personal information. If any personal data is collected, you must explain how it will be used and when it will be deleted.
Participants should be asked to identify themselves using their Prolific ID rather than their real name.
Payment and requirements
How participants will be paid (approval or bonus)
Whether payment depends on attending the interview
Whether video and microphone must be enabled
Any device, browser, or software requirements
Whether any downloads are required and if participants should test anything in advance
Apply device requirements using device restriction labels when setting up your study.
Completing the study
How participants should provide their Prolific ID before finishing
How participants will receive the completion code
How participants will be debriefed
Collect consent and schedule interviews
Prolific does not provide a scheduling tool, so you’ll need to use an external tool such as Calendly or Doodle.
A common approach is to use a short survey (e.g. Typeform or SurveyMonkey) as your study link to:
Provide study information
Collect consent
Direct participants to the scheduling tool
Participants who do not consent should be asked to return their submission.
Participants who consent can proceed to book a time slot.
You can also use your scheduling tool as the study link instead of a survey. Different approaches may work better depending on your study, so you may want to test what works best.
Best practices
Ask participants to enter their Prolific ID instead of their name
Ask participants to book using their Prolific email address
Provide an exit option at each step (e.g. instructions to return their submission)
Avoid scheduling interviews to start immediately
Allow time between booking and the interview to reduce no-shows
Complete the scheduling study
After participants book a time slot:
Provide a completion code or completion link
Ensure the submission is marked as complete
Leaving submissions incomplete while participants wait for the interview may cause the study to be flagged as underpaying. This can happen if there is a gap between the scheduling step and the interview.
Participants who submit with NOCODE can still be reviewed and approved.
All studies must meet Prolific’s minimum reward rate (£6 / $8 per hour).
Communicate with participants
Send interview links and reminders using Prolific messages.
Important
Participants may not receive automated emails from external scheduling tools
Messages should be sent through Prolific to ensure delivery
Participants will not receive automated reminders unless they are sent via Prolific messaging.
To reduce no-shows, send a manual reminder shortly before the interview. Messages can be sent in bulk.
Run the interview and approve submissions
At the end of the session:
Ask participants to confirm their Prolific ID
Approve submissions only for participants who attended
If a participant does not attend:
Contact them via Prolific messages
Offer to reschedule or ask them to return their submission
If they do not respond, contact Prolific Support with the participant IDs at least 2 working days before the 21-day auto-approval deadline.
Do not reject submissions for non-attendance.
Managing no-shows and auto-approval
Submissions auto-approve after 21 days.
To avoid paying for missed interviews:
Schedule interviews well before the 21-day deadline
Monitor pending submissions
Contact Support early if a participant does not attend
Paying fairly for interview studies
Interview studies require participants to commit to a specific time.
When calculating payment, include time spent:
Scheduling
Testing tools
Completing preparation
The minimum rate is £6 / $8 per hour. We recommend a minimum of £10 / $13 per hour to improve attendance and participation rates.
Recording interviews
If you record sessions:
Inform participants clearly
Explain how recordings will be used and stored
Ensure any personal data collected is handled appropriately and deleted when no longer needed
Encourage participants to use their Prolific ID or an alias during the interview.
Sending reminders
Participants can only reliably receive messages sent through Prolific.
Automated reminders from external scheduling tools (e.g. Calendly) may not be delivered.
If you want to remind participants about your interview, send a message using the Prolific messaging system. You can send messages in bulk.
Run a pilot
We strongly recommend running a pilot study to test:
Consent flow
Scheduling process
Messaging and reminders
Payment and approval
This helps identify issues before launching your full study.
Pre-launch checklist
Before publishing your study, confirm:
Recruitment criteria are clear
Consent and scheduling steps are explained
Payment includes all participant time
You have a plan for reminders and no-shows
Interviews are scheduled before the 21-day auto-approval deadline
If your study meets these requirements, you’re ready to launch.