How to set up Zoom polls and surveys to collect real time feedback during meetings

If you're running meetings and want honest, quick reactions from your audience, polls and surveys can be a game-changer. But let's be real: setting them up the right way in Zoom takes a little know-how, and it's easy to get lost in menus or end up with clunky, useless feedback. This guide is for anyone who wants straightforward, actionable steps—whether you're leading a team check-in, teaching a class, or just trying to keep a big group awake.

Why Use Zoom Polls and Surveys? (And When Not To)

Polls and surveys are built right into Zoom for a reason—they’re one of the easiest ways to get a pulse on your group during the meeting, not after everyone’s tuned out. Here’s what they’re good for:

  • Real-time feedback: Instantly see if people are following, confused, or just ready to move on.
  • Quick decisions: Cut down on endless “any objections?” silences.
  • Engagement: Give everyone a low-stakes way to participate, even the quiet folks.

But here’s what they aren’t good for: - Deep insight: You won’t get thoughtful written answers—Zoom’s tools are basic. - Anonymous venting: Polls can be anonymous, but it’s not watertight. Don’t ask anything sensitive. - Complex logic: If you want branching questions or multi-page surveys, look elsewhere (think Google Forms).

Bottom line: use Zoom’s built-in polls and surveys for fast, simple feedback. For anything fancier, use a real survey tool and drop the link in chat.

The Two Tools: Polls vs. Surveys (Know the Difference)

Before you dive in, you need to know which tool fits your need:

  • Polls: Run during a meeting. Great for quick questions with predefined answer choices. You can launch them multiple times.
  • Surveys: Show up after a meeting ends. Participants see a pop-up or get a link. Best for end-of-meeting wrap-ups but less “in the moment.”

You don’t have to pick just one—you can do both. But for most real-time feedback, you’ll want polls.

Step 1: Check Your Zoom Account Settings

Don’t waste time building polls only to find out they’re disabled. Here’s how to make sure you can actually use them:

  1. Sign in at zoom.us (not the app—use the website).
  2. Go to Settings (left sidebar).
  3. Under the Meeting tab, scroll to In Meeting (Basic).
  4. Find Polling and make sure it’s ON. If you want to allow anonymous polls, enable that too.
  5. For surveys, scroll to In Meeting (Advanced) and make sure Meeting Surveys is ON.

Pro tip: Some features need a paid account (Pro, Business, etc.). If you’re on the free plan, you may be limited or locked out entirely.

Step 2: Schedule Your Meeting the Right Way

You can add polls to existing or new meetings, but there’s a catch: you need to be the meeting host (or have editing rights).

  • Recurring meetings: Good news, polls can be reused across recurring meetings.
  • Personal Meeting Room: Polls work, but only if you schedule through the web—not from the desktop app.

Set up your meeting as usual. Save it, then head straight to the next step.

Step 3: Create a Poll (Before the Meeting)

Here’s where most people get tripped up. You can’t create polls from the desktop app—only from the web.

  1. Find your meeting in Zoom’s web portal (under “Meetings” > “Upcoming”).
  2. Click the meeting title.
  3. Scroll down and look for the Polls/Quizzes tab. (If you don’t see it, double-check your settings and permissions.)
  4. Click Create.

Now, build your poll:

  • Title: Keep it short—nobody sees this but you.
  • Questions: You can choose single choice, multiple choice, or “quiz mode” (if you want to grade answers).
  • Anonymous: Decide if responses are linked to participant names.
  • Add as many questions as you want, but don’t get greedy—3-5 is plenty for real-time feedback.
  • Save the poll.

What works: Simple, clear questions. Think “Was this helpful?” or “Ready to move on?”

What doesn’t: Long, essay-style questions. People won’t bother typing out thoughtful answers with Zoom’s clunky input.

Step 4: Launch a Poll During Your Meeting

When you’re ready to gather feedback:

  1. Start your meeting as the host.
  2. At the bottom of the Zoom window, click Polls/Quizzes (you might just see “Polls”).
  3. Pick the poll you want and click Launch.

Participants will see the poll pop up on their screen. You’ll see responses come in live.

  • Share results: When you end the poll, you can show everyone the results.
  • Download data: Click the “Download” option if you want a CSV file—handy for record keeping.

Heads up: Mobile users can vote, but the experience isn’t as smooth. Warn people in advance, especially if you have lots of phone/tablet attendees.

Pro Tips for Better Polls

  • Keep it short: Attention spans are short. One or two questions per poll is ideal.
  • Use for checkpoints: Ask “Are we going too fast?” or “Ready for Q&A?” at natural breaks.
  • Test before you go live: Run a dummy meeting with a friend to make sure everything shows up.
  • Don’t overdo it: Poll fatigue is real. One or two polls per hour is plenty.

Step 5: Set Up a Post-Meeting Survey

If you want feedback after the meeting wraps up (e.g., “How was today’s session?”):

  1. In the meeting settings, scroll down to Survey.
  2. Click Create New Survey or paste a link to an external survey (like Google Forms).
  3. Add your questions. Zoom’s built-in surveys are basic: multiple choice, short answer, rating scale.
  4. Save.

When your meeting ends, participants see the survey automatically. You can also send them the link afterward.

What works: Simple ratings (“Rate this meeting 1-5”). A single open-ended question for suggestions.

What doesn’t: Long, multi-page surveys. People want to leave the meeting, not fill out a census.

Managing and Downloading Results

Don’t just run polls—do something with the feedback.

  • To view results: Go to the Reports section in the Zoom web portal.
  • Export: Download results as CSV for later review.
  • Privacy: Be careful with sensitive data. Even “anonymous” isn’t ironclad—don’t ask anything too personal.

Common Gotchas (and How to Avoid Them)

  • Polls don’t show up? You’re probably in the desktop app, or you didn’t enable them in settings.
  • Can’t edit live? Zoom polls can’t be tweaked once the meeting starts. Prep ahead.
  • Breakout rooms: Polls only work in the main room, not in breakouts (as of early 2024). For breakout feedback, use chat or a shared doc.
  • Attendee limit: Free plans and large webinars may have polling restrictions. Check your Zoom plan details.

Alternatives Worth Considering

If you need more control or fancier features:

  • Google Forms: Great for branching logic, file uploads, or longer surveys.
  • Slido, Mentimeter: Good for live Q&A, word clouds, more dynamic interaction. Can be integrated with Zoom, but adds complexity.
  • Old-fashioned chat: Sometimes, just asking for a quick “Y/N” in chat works better for small groups.

Keep It Simple and Iterate

Don’t stress about making the perfect poll or survey on your first try. The real value is in consistent, honest feedback, not fancy question formats. Start with one or two questions, see what works, and tweak as you go. Remember, the goal is to get real input without slowing down your meeting—or making everyone groan when another popup appears.

Less is more. Get just enough feedback to improve, then move on. If it’s not working, try another tool—no shame in that.