Hick’s law states that with every additional choice the time it will take for user to make a selection increases. And this increase is not linear. This means that the more options a user has when using your website or web application the more difficult it will be to use.
The classic case study for Hick’s law involves a grocery store which put out free jam tasting for customers. In one case they had 40+ jams to sample and choose from, and in the other only a few samples. What they discovered is that customers purchased more jam when presented with three to four options over the forty plus. Most customers opted not to purchase jam at all rather than pick from such a large selection.
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