{"id":37045,"date":"2021-05-19T04:21:26","date_gmt":"2021-05-19T04:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.proprofs.com\/c\/?p=37045"},"modified":"2026-11-02T11:27:36","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T11:27:36","slug":"how-many-questions-asked-in-survey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.proprofssurvey.com\/blog\/how-many-questions-asked-in-survey\/","title":{"rendered":"Number of Questions in a Questionnaire: Data-Backed Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"How<\/p>\n

\u201cHow many questions should I include in my survey?\u201d<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWith limited survey questions, will I be able to collect enough information from my target audience?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cOr, will a large number of questions tire my customers and make them drop out of my survey?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You might have faced the above dilemmas while creating a survey.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a survey creator, you want to collect as much information as possible from your target audience. But remember, your survey takers will not always be willing to take up the surveys and most of them will have time constraints. They may find it challenging to fill out lengthy, open-ended questions and abandon the survey midway. So, it is crucial to find a balance between your data collection needs and your survey taker\u2019s ease of survey response.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ideal number of questions in a survey depends on many factors ranging from your survey goals to your audience type. Through this blog, let’s explore the tips and tricks to tackle the confusion of every survey creator <\/span>\u201cHow many questions should be asked in a survey?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>What Are the Factors That Affect Your Survey Length<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

How long should a survey be? <\/strong>There is no definite answer to this question! It depends on many aspects ranging from what are your survey goals and objectives to the type of audience who will take your survey.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s dig deeper into these factors:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. Survey Type<\/b><\/h3>\n

There are many types of surveys like market research surveys<\/a>, customer satisfaction survey<\/a>, employee engagement surveys<\/a>, Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys, and more. An NPS survey<\/a> aims to understand your customer loyalty with only one question on a scale of 0-10.\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cHow likely will you recommend our brand to your friends and family?\u201d.<\/b> Hence, an NPS survey is a very short survey that can be completed in seconds.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Market<\/p>\n

On the other hand, customer satisfaction surveys help you understand the customer\u2019s happiness with your products and services.<\/span><\/p>\n

This could consist of a handful of open-ended and closed-ended questions, with the exact number depending on your objective and how long the survey takes to complete. Hence, it takes more time to answer.<\/p>\n

\"Customer<\/p>\n

A powerful survey maker tool like <\/span>ProProfs Survey Maker <\/span><\/a>comes with <\/span>customized survey templates<\/span><\/a> to create any type of survey with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Target Audience<\/b><\/h3>\n

Who is your ideal target audience? Are they your customers or potential customers or they are your employees? Based on your ideal survey base, you can keep your <\/span>questions for a survey<\/span> less or more in number.<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, an annual employee survey may need more questions than a customer pop-up, because it covers several topics. Do not assume employees will not mind answering in-depth questions, though. They have limited time too, so base the length on your research objective and the completion time you measure in testing.<\/p>\n

\"Employee<\/p>\n

On the other hand, when you want to know about your online visitor\u2019s website experience, it is better to ask them\u00a0<\/span>very few questions, often just one or two, in the form of a pop-up survey.<\/p>\n

. Your website visitors easily get tired and frustrated with a lengthy survey. It is better to wait till they convert into customers before collecting and understanding their feedback about your brand.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Exit<\/p>\n

3. Survey Objectives<\/b><\/h3>\n

Largely, <\/span>business survey questions<\/span><\/a> are designed with a specific goal in mind. As a startup owner, you may have a goal of understanding the needs of your target audience to serve them better. A series of market research questions<\/a>, designed to understand their choices will serve the purpose here. The survey can have different questions including <\/span>demographic questions<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>open-ended questions<\/span><\/a>, and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Market<\/p>\n

Alternatively, the efforts made by a customer while interacting with your brand can be measured by a customer effort score (CES).\u00a0<\/span>This survey is usually very short, often just a few questions.<\/p>\n

Usually, it is embedded at major touchpoints like product purchases or customer complaint resolution.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Survey<\/p>\n

Asking too many questions can reduce the quality of your online survey and affect the genuineness of the feedback collected.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>Why Should You Avoid Asking Too Many Questions in Your Survey?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Asking too many questions in your survey can cause issues ranging from survey dropout to lower-quality responses. Here are a few reasons to keep the surveys short and crisp:<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Avoid Survey Fatigue<\/b><\/h3>\n

Survey fatigue is a situation in which your survey taker feels bored or tired of taking the survey. Usually, too many questions can bring in a tiring effect on the survey participants. For example, when there are so many open-ended questions, your survey takers need to think more and frame in-depth answers to the questions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many of them can spare only a few minutes from their busy schedule for the survey.\u00a0They might see the entire survey process as a waste of time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fatigue also builds up across surveys, not only within a single questionnaire. If the same people receive survey after survey, response rates and answer quality can drop even when each survey is short. Space out your surveys, limit how many a single person receives in a given period, avoid repeating questions you have already asked, and share what changed after the last survey.<\/p>\n

\"SurveyImage Source<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

2. Reduce Survey Dropout Rate<\/b><\/h3>\n

The chances of survey takers\u2019 dropping out of the survey increase when the survey is long and exhausting.<\/span><\/p>\n

Higher dropout can introduce bias when the people who leave differ from the people who finish, but dropout alone does not tell you how inaccurate your results are.<\/p>\n

Research<\/span><\/a> shows that a survey with more than 25 minutes of completion time shows 3 times more dropout as compared to a survey that can be completed in just 5 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Ensure High Data Quality<\/b><\/h3>\n

High dropout or a low response rate can distort your data when the people who leave or never respond differ from the people who finish. For example, if only 10 out of 60 people complete your survey, and they are mostly fans of your new product, your results will overstate how much people like it.<\/p>\n

A low response rate does not prove your results are wrong, but it raises the risk, so check who responded and compare them with the audience you want to understand. You need input on every aspect of your product or service, including from critics, to understand the challenges and serve your audience better.<\/p>\n

Based on different survey types, you can frame varying questions to suit your business needs. Let\u2019s see how.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>What Are the Ideal Number of Questions For Different Survey Types?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

How many questions should I ask in an online survey form? How long should an employee survey be? What is the i<\/span>deal and maximum length for a web survey<\/a><\/span>? Each type of survey has its own dynamics when it comes to surveying length, survey question types, templates, customization options, and so on.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s understand this one by one.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Customer Surveys<\/b><\/h3>\n

Customer survey length depends on the purpose. A short survey right after a support interaction may need only a few questions, while a broader relationship survey can run longer. Rather than fixing a number, set a target completion time, often a few minutes, and test that your survey meets it.<\/p>\n

Especially, if you have a new customer, you don\u2019t want to lose their valuable feedback by overwhelming them with a lot of questions. In fact, a new customer brings a new perspective to your products and services.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Employee Surveys<\/b><\/h3>\n

An employee survey can run longer than a customer survey when your objective needs it, for example an annual engagement survey that covers several topics. Employees may have a lot to say about daily responsibilities, pay, perks, and work environment, but that does not mean they will want to complete a long survey. Set the length from your research objective and the completion time you measure in testing, and use shorter pulse surveys between longer ones.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But, make sure that the employee survey is a balanced mix of both open-ended and closed-ended questions to bring in question variety.<\/span><\/p>\n

With this, your employees are less likely to get bored and drop out of the survey.<\/p>\n