OBJECTIVES: Blogs have become a fruitful source of qualitative data in recent years and, as there is a relative lack of qualitative data in many areas of health research, this new data source could provide valuable insight in the early stages of research development. As such, the objective of this study was to assess the potential use of blogs in research development by comparing the data available in blogs with that gained from conducting semi-structured interviews with patients. METHODS: The subject of menopausal hot flashes was used to demonstrate the comparison. Twenty semi – structured interviews were conducted with women reporting to suffer hot flashes. The interviews focussed on a description of the symptoms and their impact on HRQoL. The themes emerging from the content analysis of these interviews was then compared to the themes found in twenty blog entries. Four researchers conducted the analysis, two in each data source group. RESULTS: Both the semi - structured interview data and the blog data provided numerous descriptions of the symptoms of hot flashes, with no discrepancies in thematic content. The interviews did however allow an explicit discussion of the range in symptom severity and the relationship between hot flashes and night sweats, which could only be inferred in the blog analysis. Similarly, the effect of hot flashes on physical and social functioning, and psychological wellbeing, produced similar themes in both data sources. However, while the interviews permitted clarification of the impact of symptoms on HRQoL, blog analysis often relied on inference. CONCLUSIONS: The broad themes elicited from both data sources were comparable. However, the interactive nature of the interviews produced richer, more reliable data than that contained within the blogs. As such the role of blog analysis could be that of a cost effective adjunct to literature searches when developing research protocols.