Google Forms Survey Examples: 7 Templates That Get Responses
Quick answer: The surveys that get completed are short (under 10 questions), lead with ratings instead of typing, and cover one topic. Below are 7 copy-ready templates — customer feedback, employee satisfaction, event feedback, product research, NPS, course evaluation, and website feedback — with the exact questions and Google Forms question types to use.
Google Forms' template gallery gives you a starting point, but the built-in templates are thin — a title, a couple of generic questions, and you're on your own. What actually determines whether people finish your survey is the question list. Below are seven surveys you can rebuild in Google Forms in a few minutes each, with the specific question types (multiple choice, linear scale, paragraph) that make them fast to answer on a phone — which is where most of your respondents will be.
1. Customer feedback survey
The workhorse. Send it after a purchase, a support interaction, or on a quarterly cadence. Goal: find out what's working and what's driving people away, in under two minutes.
- Overall, how satisfied are you with [product/service]? — Linear scale, 1 (very dissatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied)
- What do you like most about it? — Paragraph, optional
- What's the one thing we should improve? — Paragraph
- How often do you use [product/service]? — Multiple choice: Daily / Weekly / Monthly / Rarely
- How does it compare to alternatives you've tried? — Multiple choice: Better / About the same / Worse / Haven't tried alternatives
- Can we contact you about your feedback? — Short answer for email, optional
The "one thing we should improve" phrasing matters — asking for one thing gets sharper answers than an open "any suggestions?"
2. Employee satisfaction survey
Run this anonymously or don't run it at all — attributed answers to these questions are polite fiction. Turn off email collection and sign-in before sharing (see our anonymous form guide).
- I would recommend this company as a place to work. — Linear scale, 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree)
- I have what I need to do my job well. — Linear scale, 1–5
- My manager gives me useful feedback. — Linear scale, 1–5
- I can see a path to grow here. — Linear scale, 1–5
- My workload over the past month has been: — Multiple choice: Too light / About right / Heavy but manageable / Unsustainable
- What's one thing that would make your work week better? — Paragraph, optional
Statement-plus-agreement-scale reads faster than a question for every item, and identical scales let you track scores across quarters. Skip department questions on small teams — they de-anonymize.
3. Event feedback survey
Send within 24 hours while memory is fresh. Works for conferences, workshops, meetups, and internal all-hands.
- How would you rate the event overall? — Linear scale, 1–5
- Which part was most valuable? — Multiple choice listing the actual sessions/segments, plus "Other"
- How was the pacing? — Multiple choice: Too slow / Just right / Too rushed
- How were the logistics (venue, timing, food, A/V)? — Linear scale, 1–5
- Would you attend a future event like this? — Multiple choice: Definitely / Probably / Probably not
- What should we do differently next time? — Paragraph, optional
Naming the real sessions in question two turns vague feedback into a ranked list of what to keep.
4. Product research survey
For validating an idea or prioritizing features — before you build, not after. The trick is asking about current behavior, not hypothetical enthusiasm.
- How do you currently handle [the problem]? — Multiple choice listing known tools/workarounds, plus "I don't" and "Other"
- How often does [the problem] come up? — Multiple choice: Daily / Weekly / Monthly / Rarely
- How frustrating is your current solution? — Linear scale, 1 (works fine) to 5 (constant pain)
- What have you tried that didn't work? — Paragraph, optional
- Which of these would help most? — Multiple choice with your candidate features
- Would you like early access when it's ready? — Short answer for email, optional
Notice there's no "Would you pay for this?" — nearly everyone says yes to that question and nearly no one means it. Frequency plus frustration is a far better demand signal.
5. NPS survey (the two-question classic)
Net Promoter Score is deliberately tiny, which is why response rates are high. Build it with exactly two questions:
- How likely are you to recommend [company/product] to a friend or colleague? — Linear scale, 0 to 10 (set the lower bound to 0 — Google Forms defaults to 1). Label 0 "Not at all likely" and 10 "Extremely likely."
- What's the main reason for your score? — Paragraph, optional
Scoring: respondents answering 9–10 are promoters, 7–8 are passives, 0–6 are detractors. NPS = % promoters − % detractors, giving a number from −100 to +100. The score is a trend line; the paragraph answers are where the actual insight lives — read the detractor comments first.
6. Course evaluation survey
For teachers, trainers, and workshop leads. Mid-course versions catch problems while you can still fix them; run it anonymously for honest answers.
- The course objectives were clear. — Linear scale, 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree)
- The pace of the course was: — Multiple choice: Too slow / About right / Too fast
- The materials (slides, readings, exercises) supported my learning. — Linear scale, 1–5
- The instructor explained difficult concepts clearly. — Linear scale, 1–5
- Which topic do you wish we'd spent more time on? — Short answer
- What's one change that would improve this course? — Paragraph
7. Website feedback survey
Link it from your footer or a "Feedback" link. Keep it to a minute — nobody budgets time for website surveys.
- What brought you to the site today? — Multiple choice: Looking for specific information / Comparing options / Ready to buy or sign up / Just browsing / Other
- Did you find what you were looking for? — Multiple choice: Yes / Partially / No
- If not, what were you looking for? — Short answer, optional
- How easy was the site to use? — Linear scale, 1 (very difficult) to 5 (very easy)
- Anything confusing or broken? — Paragraph, optional
The pairing of "did you find it" with "what were you looking for" surfaces content gaps you'd never guess from analytics alone.
Best practices that apply to all seven
- Keep it short. Under 10 questions; under 5 for pulse checks. Every question you cut raises completion.
- Design mobile-first. Most responses come from phones. Prefer taps (multiple choice, linear scale) over typing, avoid grid questions, and test your own form on your phone before sharing.
- One topic per survey. A survey about the event and the newsletter and future plans gets half-answers on all three. Send separate short surveys instead.
- Make open-ended questions optional. A required paragraph field is where completions go to die — but the volunteers who do fill it in give you the best material.
- Close the loop. Share what you learned and changed. It's the strongest predictor of whether people answer your next survey.
FAQ
Does Google Forms have built-in survey templates?
Yes — the template gallery includes starters like Event Feedback, Customer Feedback, and Course Evaluation. They're minimal, so most people either customize them heavily or build from a question list like the ones above.
How many questions should my survey have?
Under 10 for a full survey, under 5 for a pulse check. Completion rates fall as length grows, especially on phones.
How do I make an NPS survey in Google Forms?
Use a Linear scale question set to 0–10 asking how likely they'd be to recommend you, plus an optional paragraph asking why. Score it as % of 9–10 answers minus % of 0–6 answers.
Should my survey be anonymous?
For employee and course feedback, yes — honesty depends on it. For customer and product research, ask for an email but make it optional so people who want follow-up can opt in.