Network Paraguay
Qualitative market research agency in Paraguay
MindMarket is a market research agency that runs qualitative studies in Paraguay, from in-depth interviews and focus groups to shop-alongs and home visits, with moderators who live in the country and one project manager for your whole study. Paraguay has 7.03 million people with a median age of 27.0, and 83.1 per cent of them use the internet (DataReportal, Digital 2026). It is a bilingual country: most people speak Guaraní as well as Spanish, and many mix the two in one sentence. Research there lets participants answer in the language the thought comes in, and it treats the border trade with Brazil and Argentina as part of the market.
AT A GLANCE
Paraguay at a glance for researchers
- Population. 7.03 million people, median age 27.0, 63.9 per cent in urban areas (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Paraguay is young, and most of its people live in the eastern half of the country. Greater Asunción is the one large urban area, followed by Ciudad del Este on the Brazilian border and Encarnación on the Argentine one. Most of the Chaco, the western half of the country, is thinly populated.
- Languages. Spanish and Guaraní are both official, and most Paraguayans use both; the everyday mix is known as jopará. Each participant chooses the language of the session. Our moderators live in Paraguay and work in both.
- Internet and mobile. 5.84 million internet users, 83.1 per cent of the population, and 9.46 million mobile connections (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Social media counts 4.65 million user identities, 66.1 per cent of the population, and the median fixed download speed is 100.55 Mbps (same source). Video interviews work well in the cities.
- Where fieldwork happens. Asunción and its metropolitan area first, then Ciudad del Este and Encarnación for the border economies. Coronel Oviedo or Concepción are added for the interior, and the Chaco is planned as its own fieldwork.
- Data protection. The new Law No. 7593/25 on Personal Data Protection, approved in November 2025, sets the framework. Participants are told what is recorded and why, and consent is collected before each session.
- Timing. January is the summer holiday month, and Holy Week closes the country. Independence is marked on 14 and 15 May, and 8 December, the feast of Caacupé, puts large numbers of people on the road.
IN THE FIELD
How does an interview run in Paraguay?
In Paraguay, a question asked in Spanish can get a shorter answer than the same question in Guaraní. People choose a language by subject and by company, and a study that fixes one in advance hears part of what they think. A study in Paraguay asks each participant which language they want before the first question.
- Spanish, Guaraní or both. Each participant is asked at recruitment which language they are most at ease in for the subject. Moderators follow the switch between the two, and the analysis notes which language each answer came in. Transcripts keep both languages as spoken, with the English translation beside them.
- Stimulus in two languages when it matters. Advertising and pack copy are tested as they will run. Where Guaraní is part of the message, it is written and checked by someone who speaks it at home, and never translated word for word from Spanish.
- The border is part of the shelf. Shoppers in Ciudad del Este and Encarnación compare prices with Brazil and Argentina, and goods cross in both directions. A study of price or brand asks where the participant last bought the category, and at what price. Electronics, clothing and groceries are the categories where the comparison is sharpest, and the screener records how often the participant crosses.
- Asunción and the interior. Greater Asunción holds the largest share of buyers, and the interior differs in income, retail and how much Guaraní is spoken. A national decision adds at least one city outside the capital, recruited by people who live there. The same discussion guide runs in each city, so the results can be compared.
RECRUITMENT
How do you recruit participants in Paraguay?
- We recruit through local partners in Asunción, Ciudad del Este and Encarnación, by city, language, income and category use. Every session is reconfirmed by phone on the eve of fieldwork. Border-city participants are asked where they do their main shopping.
- In smaller towns, recruiters work in person through local contacts. People who join studies regularly are not recruited, and you sign off the quotas before recruitment begins.
- MindMarket pays every participant's incentive itself. You never handle it.
METHODS
Which methods work in Paraguay?
Most studies in Paraguay run as in-depth interviews and focus groups, with shop-alongs, ethnographic home visits or UX research when the question needs them.
| Method | Works well when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| In-depth interviews | Finance, telecoms, health and family purchases, in the participant's language | A Spanish-only interview with someone who would say more in Guaraní |
| Focus groups | Concepts, food, drink and advertising in Asunción | An Asunción group read as the whole country |
| Shop-alongs | Supermarkets, neighbourhood shops and border retail | A price compared with the wrong side of the border |
| Home visits | Cooking, cleaning and household routines | A visit without an introduction from someone the family knows |
| UX research | Banking, wallet and delivery apps on a phone | Interfaces translated for Spain or Mexico |
QUESTIONS
Questions buyers ask about research in Paraguay
How much does market research cost in Paraguay?
A full-service qualitative study with MindMarket starts at $40,000 for the first market, and Paraguay added to a multi-country study starts from $8,000. Sessions in Guaraní and a second city move the price more than the number of interviews. Every quote is itemised and follows within 48 hours of a first call. Estimate your study.
How do I choose a market research agency in Paraguay?
Choose by what the study has to decide. A Paraguayan fieldwork company fits a survey or a retail audit. A qualitative specialist such as MindMarket fits a brand from outside Paraguay that needs local people heard in their own language, by moderators who live there, with one team across every country. Read how to choose a global qualitative research agency.
Should sessions in Paraguay run in Spanish or in Guaraní?
In the language each participant chooses, and often both. Most Paraguayans speak Guaraní as well as Spanish and move between them by subject. Our moderators live in Paraguay and work in both, and your team follows through simultaneous interpretation. Written stimulus is prepared in Spanish, and in Guaraní where the message uses it.
Is Asunción enough for research in Paraguay, or should I add other cities?
Asunción is enough for a first read. For a national decision, add Ciudad del Este or Encarnación, where shoppers compare prices across the border, and a city of the interior when your product sells there. Online sessions reach smaller towns without travel.
How does cross-border shopping affect research in Paraguay?
Cross-border shopping changes the reference price in Paraguay. Shoppers near Brazil and Argentina know what the category costs on the other side, so the moderator asks where and at what price the last purchase was made, and stimulus is checked against both sides of the border.
Can you help us decide, not only run the interviews?
Yes. Beyond the fieldwork, our Customer-Led Strategy work turns what people in Paraguay told us into a recommendation: what to do, what not to do, and why. We form the hypotheses, test them with your customers and recommend from their words. If you already work with strategy consultants, we work alongside them.
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