Question Types

About Question Types

Qualtrics provides over 100 different ways to ask a question. There are 23 question types and a variety of settings that can be used to access each of these possibilities. This page provides a brief description of each question type, with links to pages where you can learn more about each.

You can specify the type of question you want  by clicking the dropdown arrow to the right of the Create a New Question button.

Static Content

These questions do not require any action from the respondent. Information in these questions is merely displayed to respondents.

Descriptive Text: Descriptive Text questions can be used to add an introduction or instructions to your survey, or wherever you need to display content to the respondent, without asking for feedback.

Graphic: Graphic questions can be used to display an image to your respondents without asking for feedback.

Standard Questions

These question types are some of the most commonly used. They are a simple and effective means of gathering information.

Multiple Choice: Multiple Choice questions form the basis of most research. They can be displayed as a traditional list of choices or as a dropdown menu, select box, etc.

Text Entry: Text Entry is used to gather open-ended feedback from respondents. These responses can be lengthy essays, standard form information such as name and email address, or anything in between.

Rank Order: Rank Order is used to determine each respondent’s order of preference for a list of items.

Matrix Table: Matrix Table is used to collect multiple pieces of information in one question. This type provides an effective way to condense your survey or to group similar items into one question.

Slider: Sliders let respondents indicate their level of preference with a draggable bar rather than a traditional button or checkbox.

Side by Side: Side by Side questions let you ask multiple questions in one condensed table and provides an effective way of shortening your survey while gathering the same amount of data.

Specialty Questions

These questions are used in more specific situations and gather more targeted data.

Constant Sum: Constant Sum collects numeric data and displays a sum to the respondent. This type is often used for allocation assessments, such as defining how you spend your time in different activities.

Hot Spot: Hot Spot allows respondents to interact with regions of an image. This type is often used in usability testing and concept testing.

Graphic Slider: This variation of the Slider question has respondents use various graphic options, such as changing a frown to a smile or choosing a grade, to indicate their level of preference.

Drill Down: Drill Down helps respondents choose from a long list by starting with a broad category and then honing in on the choices that are relevant to the respondent.

Pick Group and Rank: Pick Group and Rank is used for sorting activities. Respondents place items into groups and have the option to rank the items within the group.

Heat Map: Heat Map lets respondents click a specific point on an image. In your data, you can see a heat map that shows which parts of the image were most often clicked. This type is often used for web development (e.g., eye flow analysis) and advertisement testing.

Net Promoter® Score: NPS® tracks customer loyalty with one simple, standardized question: “On a scale from 0-10, how likely are you to recommend our company to a friend or colleague?”

Highlight: The Highlight question type allows you to present survey participants with an interactive text sample. Participants can select words from the text and evaluate using criteria you choose. For example, whether they like or dislike the selected text.

Signature: The Signature question type presents survey participants with an entry box where they can draw their signature. On a desktop, they can use their mouse, and on a mobile device they can use their finger.

Advanced

These questions go above and beyond standard survey insights; they allow you to obtain detailed information about your respondent and their interaction with your survey, often without requiring any action from the respondent.

Timing: This hidden question is used to time—as well as limit—how long participants spend on a page of the survey.

File Upload: File Upload is used to collect information beyond the survey questions, such as user-uploaded photos or documents. The File Upload question type is an add-on feature not included in the standard Qualtrics license. Please contact your Qualtrics Account Executive for more information.

Screen Capture: Screen Capture allows respondents to attach a screenshot of the site they are viewing when taking a survey through a Website / App Feedback (Site Intercept) project. This question type is only available to users that have purchased access to Website / App Feedback projects.

Captcha Verification: Captcha Verification is used to ensure that your respondents aren’t robots. This question has participants respond to a challenge to verify they are real humans.

Meta Info: Meta Info reports the public information about the respondent’s computer, such as their browser and operating system. The question requires no respondent action and is completely hidden.

Replace From Library

Clicking on the Question Library icon will take you to the Qualtrics question library. This allows you to pull questions from other surveys you’ve built or from the Qualtrics Library of template questions.

For more information on what templates we have available, visit Pre-Made Qualtrics Library Questions.

Changing the Question Type

1. Click on a question.
2. Click the Change Question Type menu.
   
3. Hover over any question type to bring up an example.
   
4. Choose a question type from the list.
   Qtip: Or, to see more variations, click the dropdown arrow next to any question type. See a question’s specific support page to learn more about the variations available.