helpful platforms
to run an online survey
Online surveys allow you to quickly and easily hear from a large number of people, including those in remote or hard-to-reach areas. Many tools are free, or offer affordable packages that align with your resources. Combined with the knowledge you already have, these results can help you allocate resources and shape activities and programs so that they are reflective of local needs.
SurveyMonkey is a well-known, trusted survey tool. It is simple to use and has the benefit of potential familiarity for respondents. Measuring feedback is simple, so changes, actions, and next steps can easily be made once results are gathered.
The paid plans allow for easy design and analysis when working with large numbers of respondents. The free version is useful if only working with a few dozen respondents.
Well-known and trusted survey interface
Sample survey templates based on survey purpose
Example question bank
Offers a broad range of question types such as short answer, multiple choice, paragraphs, and drop-down
Options to create more than just surveys — quizzes and polls can be made as well
Feedback can be collected via link, social media, chat, and more
Survey results can be exported or integrated with other programs
Free version only allows a maximum of 10 questions per survey and does not allow data to be exported
Responsibility of sharing the survey with the target audience falls solely on the creators of the survey
Some larger organizations might filter out emails from SurveyMonkey
Yes, paid recruitment services are offered through SurveyMonkey.
Free option. Free survey templates, including those for marketing and healthcare surveys, are also available.
Personal and business plans cost anywhere range from $25+ per month with additional features available at higher rates.
Note: Inquire about free services as a public health organization working on COVID-19 messaging.
The cheapest subscription plan is most useful for capturing a relatively small sample of broader public opinion. For users with a more flexible budget, the tool’s full scope of features makes it an efficient investment for accurately surveying, marketing to, and analyzing public opinion within highly specific parameters.
Offers detailed demographic options for targeted marketing
Customizable options for survey themes are available
Offers a broad range of question types such as short answer, multiple-choice, paragraphs, and drop-down
Gain insights such as the geolocation, organizational role, and mobile usage of the survey respondents
Allows for screening questions that allow or block respondents from taking the survey
More expensive option for online surveys and analysis, but offers a full range of features. One-time surveys could be created to be cheaper than other paid platform options.
The program offers the option to buy survey respondents from the App Store and Google Play. Samples can be provided for surveys of any size
Users must purchase a paid subscription
Pricing depends upon survey structure and numerical target for number of respondents. See pricing calculator and overview of plans
Note: Inquire about free services as a public health organization working on COVID-19 messaging.
Google Forms offers a free, easy way to create a customized survey for a target audience. A product of Google, users only need a Google account to create a Form.
Lower barriers to entry and Google’s automatic collection of results in a Google Sheet make this survey useful for those looking for a cost-effective way to survey their community. Users will need to accompany the survey with a marketing plan since distribution is the sole responsibility of the user.
Interface is both free and easy to use
Offers a broad range of question types such as short answer, multiple-choice, paragraphs, and drop-down
The results are integrated with Google Sheets (spreadsheets; see results in bar graphics, pie charts, and more)
Survey takers do not need to have a Google account to take them, they only need the survey link
Customizable visual survey design is very limited
Responsibility of sharing the form and performing outreach falls solely on the creators of the form
There is no option for paid recruitment with Google Forms but it’s cousin platform, Google Surveys does offer this service.
Free, but a Google account is needed
Another offering from Google’s comprehensive marketing toolkit, Surveys lets users create surveys, target the people they want, and get results fast.
Google Surveys is best when users want to “dig deep” when gaining insights. Learn the “why” and “how” measuring certain parameters is (and is not) effective.
The program is intuitive to use
Multiple survey formats available
Audience and desired number of responses are up to the survey creator
Initial survey data can be seen within a few hours of it going live
Customization is limited
No free plans available
A maximum of 10 questions is allowed
Google Surveys handles recruitment and finds respondents for a small fee per completed survey.
Google Survey charges a nominal fee per completed response. The price per complete goes up as the complexity of the survey and target audience increases.
Qualtrics offers a comprehensive, top-line surveying and analysis platform.
This tool offers effective means of surveying and analyzing results from large populations.
Multiple options for survey format and theme (50+ templates) to accommodate a range of mobile and electronic devices and platforms
With over 8 question types offered, such as short answer, multiple choice, paragraphs, and drop-down, there are numerous options for customizable surveys
Offers detailed automatic analysis and filtering of results
Free version has some restrictions including no data exports and more limited questions types (6 total)
Responsibility of sharing the survey with the target audience falls solely on the creators
There is no option for paid recruitment with Qualtrics.
Users can now access a free basic survey tool
Plans appear to start in the low thousands
Note: Inquire about free services as a public health organization working on COVID-19
Facebook allows for pages to create simple polls that can be shared with followers. These polls are limited in scope but can capture follower base opinion relatively quickly.
Creating a Facebook poll is recommended when seeking feedback from the organization’s existing follower base. The use of qualifying questions can help determine responses from specific demographic groups, but paid advertising is recommended if seeking responses from users outside of followers.
Easy access to users and increased motivation to respond, since it can be done by either accessing the organization’s Facebook page, or by seeing the poll pop up in one’s newsfeed
Qualifying questions can help target specific demographic respondents
Quick and easy to create and disseminate
Sample will be limited to existing followers; services for customization and setup are limited
Results, including participant’s individual answers, are shown publicly
There is no option for paid recruitment when creating Facebook polls
It is free to create a Facebook poll, but admin or editor access is needed for the necessary organization’s pages
Best for those who want surveys with a modern and “human” feel, Typeform’s plans offer more customization, responses, and integrations. The free version is best for basics and seeing if the tool is right for the audience and project at hand.
Templates for everything from quizzes to polls
Simple interface
Easy to access data
Free to register
Limited features with the free plan (only 3 free typeforms, only 10 questions allowed per form, and 100 responses allowed per month)
Paid plans can add up fast
There is no option for paid recruiting with Typeform
Free and paid options are available
Paid plans range from $35 to $75 a month, and allow for more responses, email notifications for respondents, and other capabilities, such as integrations with programs such as Mailchimp and Airtable
Note: Inquire about free services as a public health organization working on COVID-19
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