An Easy NVivo Alternative for Action Research in Education
As an educator, action research turns you into a researcher of your own classroom practices. The challenge is analyzing all the data you need to collect. Transcripts pile up, observation notes on top of that, co-researchers may need a shared workspace, and you need to code all the data fast enough to use what you learn.
Coding tools like NVivo can help organize the process. The learning curve is the issue. Hours or days of training is a lot to slog through when you're already overloaded with work. NVivo alternatives like Delve feel like they’re built for busy educators on a budget who just want to get right to work.
Action research is meant to move quickly from insight to action within real classrooms and organizations. As outlined in National University’s Action Research resource, analysis directly informs planning and change. Coding tools that slow early analysis can disrupt that cycle.
Moving away from NVivo as the default for action research
It seems like everyone uses NVivo for action research because it’s the tool they learned about in school, but there are more modern, easy to use alternatives. NVivo offers sophisticated features for complex multi-year research projects, works with text, audio, and video files and visualization tools can help spot code relationships as your project develops through iterative cycles.
But teaching, collaborating and do action research is where NVivo slows things down:
Steep learning curve. Teachers report NVivo "is not very user friendly, there are plenty of options but you need a whole course to learn to work with it," When you're analyzing data between teaching and grading, you want research tools that are easy to pick up and use.
Expensive team setup. Each researcher needs a desktop license at $1,195+ annually. Adding cloud collaboration features costs another $499-598. For teachers working with colleagues or students working with advisors, those costs pile up fast. Teams also report file syncing problems that cause delays or lost work.
Collaboration breaks easily. One professor tried NVivo's cloud collaboration and found "any time I would upload the project to the cloud it would work then somehow get corrupted." When you're testing a new approach mid-semester, collecting student feedback, and trying to analyze results, these technical issues interrupt the iterative cycle that makes action research work.
These challenges don't mean NVivo can't work for your education action research. But they do make the process harder when you need fast turnaround, simple collaboration options, and educator-aware pricing.
An easy to learn, collaboration friendly NVivo alternative exists
When Dr. Jennifer Garcia Ramos needed to analyze student interviews about AI use in chemistry courses, she tried using NVivo but found it only created more work for her. The full-day MAXQDA training didn't stick either.
When she landed on Delve qualitative analysis tool, her research workflow changed in all the right ways. No installation since it was web based. The coding process was easy to pick up. Adding her collaborator took a few clicks. The video tutorials covered what she needed quickly.
She explains what stood out most: "The way that Delve presents itself is inviting and simple. I watched the tutorial videos and it was just super helpful."
Get started today, not after weeks of training
Dr. Jennifer was able to create a Delve account in her browser, upload interview transcripts and observation notes, and start coding right away. All without any file version conflicts or download issues.
Another researcher working on an EdD program completed a seven-week COVID impact study and wrote: "What first seemed like a daunting experience was made much more possible by the use of Delve … I don't think that would have been possible in such a short time without this tool."
The free online course also walks through coding fundamentals. For other educators teaching research methods, Delve provides ready-made resources you can drop into your curriculum.
Team up without the tech headaches or corrupted files
With Delve, you can add colleagues, peer-debriefers, or grad assistants to any project with ease. Delve lets everyone see coding updates in real-time. There’s no file sharing, merge problems, or access issues for new collaborators. And there are no extra fees or charges for collaboration features like with NVivo.
Dr. Garcia Ramos added her co-researcher who'd never used Delve: "I added them to the account and that was it. They were able to easily navigate through the website."
You can control who has edit or view only access. Give view-only access to principals, department chairs, or committee members who need to review your work without learning new software or buying licenses. Give edit access for collaborators who are coding alongside you. For action research involving multiple stakeholders, this speeds everything up.
A simple interface that supports your thinking
Your transcripts, codes, and descriptions stay visible without digging through menus. "The UI is very straightforward and simple to use. Coding text is very easy," noted one university researcher.
Drag and drop reorganizes codes as themes start to form. Dr. Katherine Miller at UPenn used this feature while managing 18 hours of workshop recordings for her dissertation on data literacy education. As a visual learner, she found the interface made her "thinking a lot easier."
This flexibility matches how you work over the iterative cycles of action research. You're not locked into early decisions, whether you're analyzing classroom data or conducting dissertation research.
Budget-friendly, flexible pricing Education pricing starts at $18/month per user. Pay for active months, pause when you're collecting more data.
One teacher shared: "I saved tons of hours ... Also the price is very competitive for the student version."
From classroom investigation to published research — Dr. Garcia Ramos analyzed student interviews about AI use and published her findings in Frontiers in Education while teaching full-time. “Delve is awesome. Thank you for existing when I needed it the most for my graduate studies.”
Comparing NVivo alternatives for action research
You need to know the basics for action research. Here’s a quick recap:
| Factor | NVivo | Delve |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | 5–7 days (complex interface) | 10 minutes (web-based) |
| Licensing | Desktop + cloud collaboration | Web-based |
| Pricing | $1,195+ per user/year (+ $499–598 collaboration add-on) | $18/month per user (education) or $432/year |
| Learning curve | Steep (enterprise complexity) | Minimal (focused approach) |
| Collaboration | File syncing issues reported | Real-time, no file management |
| Best for | Large enterprise projects, solo researchers | Action research, teaching teams, students |
For deeper comparisons, our ultimate guide to qualitative coding software covers seven major qualitative coding platforms by metrics you care most about. Those include:
You can also see direct matchups like MAXQDA vs. NVivo vs. Delve or ATLAS.ti vs. Dedoose vs. Delve. For questions or help with actual methodology, our thematic analysis guide and qualitative coding essentials walk through the analysis process step by step.
See why researchers switch from NVivo to Delve
People who switched from NVivo explain what got better and why the suggest the move:
Ellen C: "I really love it! The Delve platform is exactly what I need where others were overwrought and too expensive."
Anne B: "I was a bit scarred by some earlier products (NVivo) that were so time consuming and demanding. Delve is a breeze to use."
JJ C: "Delve was a lifesaver... the simplicity and the ease in navigating their tool is commendable. [NVivo’s] expensive, not student friendly and difficult to navigate.”
Kellen C: "Other tools can be pretty elaborate, but they are clunky and don't follow an intuitive design. Delve was definitely built with the end user in mind."
Mahdi D, Isidro L, Sanjay J, and Ariel H also switched from NVivo to Delve. You can find more first-hand accounts from real users over on our customer page.
Try Delve, the Nvivo alternative for your action research
With action research for education, each cycle of questioning, testing, and analyzing strengthens your teaching. The coding software you use should support that work without adding a bunch of technical barriers, or eating into the limited time you have for research.
Start a free 14-day trial and see how Delve handles your classroom interview data, observation notes, and student feedback. No credit card required, and you can invite collaborators to join your project.