Question Writing Best Practices

Writing clear, unbiased, and effective questions is one of the most important parts of building a high-quality survey. The goal is to make sure respondents easily understand what you’re asking and can answer accurately.

• Use plain, everyday language. Avoid jargon, acronyms, or technical terms that might confuse respondents.
  Keep questions short and focused - ask about one thing at a time.

• If the topic requires explanation, break it into multiple questions rather than one long one.

• Don’t suggest a “right” answer. For example:

  • Instead of: How much do you love this product?

  • Try: How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with this product?

• Make sure all response options are balanced and neutral.

• If you’re showing brands, products, or ads, randomize order when possible to prevent position bias.

• Include all reasonable response options.

• Use an “Other (please specify)” option if answers may vary widely.

• Make sure options are mutually exclusive - respondents should not be able to select more than one that fits.

• When using scales, keep consistent anchors (for example, always use “Strongly disagree” to “Strongly agree”).

• Avoid repetitive or redundant questions.

• Use skip logic and piping to make the survey feel personalized and efficient.

• Keep grid questions short – large grids can be tiring or confusing.

• If using images or videos, confirm that they load correctly and add clarity, not clutter.

• Always preview your survey before launch.

• Check randomization, exclusives, and logic carefully.

• Have a teammate review your questions — a fresh set of eyes often catches unclear wording or missing response options.

We have a clear point of view on survey length: the shorter the questionnaire, the better the experience for respondents - and the more genuine the answers you’ll collect.

Aim to keep your survey under 15 minutes, maximum. In most cases, 5–7 minutes is the sweet spot for balancing depth and quality.

• Mix up your question types — don’t rely entirely on long grids or open-ends.

• Include a blend of quick-click questions and short open-ends to maintain variety.

• Keep each screen focused and visually clean so respondents don’t lose attention.