How Open Lab Works

Contribute to real academic research from your browser — no downloads, no lab visits. Sign up in minutes, join studies that match your interests, and track everything in your personal dashboard.

Create free accountBrowse studies
01

Create a free account

Sign up with just a username and password — email is optional. After signing up you'll complete a short onboarding that captures your background and research preferences so we can match you to the right studies.

  1. 1Create your free account — username + password, email optional
  2. 2Complete onboarding: country, language, age, education, and research interests
  3. 3Log in anytime to access your personal dashboard

Just want to try one study? Many studies support one-click anonymous joining via a direct link — no account required.

02

Find studies that match you

There are several ways to discover research opportunities on Open Lab.

  • Browse the Available Studies page — filter by topic, duration, and compensation
  • Enter a study code or invitation link shared directly by a researcher
  • Receive personalised invitations in your dashboard Invitations tab based on your profile
  • Check dashboard Notifications for new studies matching your research interests

Received a link that doesn't work? Contact the researcher or reach out to our support team.

03

Participate — entirely in your browser

Once enrolled, studies run fully in your browser. No software to install.

What participation looks like:

  • Interactive experiments and cognitive tasks built with lab.js
  • Surveys, questionnaires, and rating tasks
  • Real-time progress tracking — see exactly where you are in a study

Changed your mind? You can withdraw from any study at any time via your dashboard. Your data will be handled per the study's consent terms.

04

Track everything in your dashboard

Your personal dashboard is the control centre for all your participation activity. Once logged in you have access to six sections:

Your data is encrypted end-to-end, stored securely, and never shared with third parties without your explicit consent. Open Lab is GDPR-compliant and you retain full control over your information.

Your dashboard at a glance

Everything you need to manage your research participation in one place.

Overview

A summary of your activity: studies joined, completed, and pending invitations — all in one place.

My Studies

See every study you have joined. Track status (Enrolled, Completed, On Hold), progress, participant code, group assignment, and your completion code.

Invitations

Studies that researchers have personally invited you to join, matched to your profile. Accept or decline at your own pace.

Messages

Direct messaging with the research team for any study you are enrolled in. Ask questions, report technical issues, or request clarification.

Notifications

Stay up to date with new studies that match your interests, status changes, and important updates from researchers.

Wallet

View your earned compensation from completed studies and submit payout requests. Compensation details are shown on each study page.

Profile

Keep your background information current — the more complete your profile, the better we can match you to relevant studies.

Create your free account to access all features →

Ready to contribute to science?

Create your free account and start participating in studies from researchers around the world.

Create free accountBrowse studies