Ecological Momentary Assessment · Experience Sampling
ExpiWell: the leading platform for ESM & EMA research
High-fidelity, real-world data collection and analytics for scientific discovery — created by researchers, for researchers. Launch a study in minutes, capture life as it happens, and turn moments into insight.
What are EMA and ESM?
Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) are research approaches that repeatedly capture people’s thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and contexts in real time, in their natural environments. By sampling experience in the moment, they reduce recall bias and reveal how well-being and behavior unfold across days, situations, and people.
ExpiWell is a modern, no-code software platform that makes ESM and EMA research easy to design, deploy, and analyze — on iOS, Android, and the web. It was created by Dr. Louis Tay, director of the WAM Lab at Purdue University, to give researchers the capabilities that off-the-shelf survey tools could not provide.
Capabilities
Everything you need for real-world research
Adaptive mobile surveys
Design sophisticated EMA/ESM surveys with branching logic, diverse question types, and flexible, repeated scheduling.
Smart scheduling & reminders
Signal-, interval-, and event-contingent prompts with push notifications and reminders that automatically adapt to each participant’s time zone.
Wearables & passive sensing
Combine self-reports with passive data from Apple Watch, Fitbit, and smartphone sensors for a fuller picture of daily life.
Geofenced & context triggers
Activate surveys by location for clinic, campus, or community studies — capturing behavior in the contexts that matter.
Real-time analytics dashboard
Monitor response rates and compliance live, visualize incoming data, and link responses anonymously over time.
Participant management & payments
Recruit, track, and pay participants directly — keeping longitudinal and diary studies running smoothly.
AI-powered insights Coming soon
Machine-learning capabilities for pattern detection across intensive longitudinal data — surfacing trends, risks, and moments that matter, automatically.
So I did a thing …
In 2013, I realized there was no platform that could conveniently conduct ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and experience sampling method (ESM) research. Survey tools existed, but none could do all of the following at once: schedule surveys, send notifications and reminders, adapt to participant time zones, link surveys anonymously over time, dashboard ongoing response rates, pay participants, visualize incoming data, and connect to wearables.
So I created ExpiWell to do all of that — and more. Today it proudly serves thousands of researchers around the world and keeps growing to advance ESM and EMA research.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is ExpiWell?
ExpiWell is a research platform for Experience Sampling Method (ESM) and Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) studies. It lets researchers design adaptive mobile surveys, schedule real-time prompts, integrate wearables and sensors, pay participants, and analyze data on a unified dashboard — across iOS, Android, and the web.
What is the difference between EMA and ESM?
The terms are closely related and often used interchangeably. The Experience Sampling Method (ESM) repeatedly samples people’s momentary experiences (thoughts, feelings, activities) in daily life, while Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) emphasizes real-time assessment of behaviors and states in natural (ecological) settings. Both reduce retrospective recall bias and capture within-person change over time.
Who created ExpiWell?
ExpiWell was created by Dr. Louis Tay, William C. Byham Professor of Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Purdue University and director of the Well-Being, AI, and Measurement (WAM) Lab.
Who uses ExpiWell?
It is used by 6,300+ researchers across 1,000+ institutions, including academic psychologists, clinical and healthcare researchers, educators, organizational scientists, and market researchers.
Does ExpiWell support wearables and sensors?
Yes. ExpiWell can collect passive data from wearables and devices such as Apple Watch and Fitbit, as well as smartphone sensors, to complement self-reported survey responses.
Can I schedule notifications and pay participants?
Yes. ExpiWell supports signal-, interval-, and event-contingent scheduling with time-zone-aware push notifications and reminders, live compliance monitoring, and built-in participant payments.