---
title: "What is a survey response rate? Formula and how to raise it"
url: "https://simplepoll.rocks/glossary/response-rate/"
description: "Response rate is the share of people asked who actually answered. How to calculate it for a Slack poll, why it matters, and what raises it."
---

# What is response rate?

**Response rate**: Response rate is the share of people you asked who actually answered: the number of respondents divided by the number of people invited, times 100.

Also known as: participation rate, survey response rate.

A result means less when few people answered. "80% are happy" from 5 of 40 people says
something very different from 80% of 38 of 40.

## Example polls

Paste any of these into the message box in Slack.

```text
/poll "Which week works for the team offsite?" "First week of next month" "Second week" "Third week" limit 1 close after 3 days remind 1 day before closing @here
```

One vote per person so votes equal respondents, with a deadline, a reminder and a channel mention. *Premium: vote limits, closing automatically, reminders.*

```text
/poll "Two-question check-in" "Anonymous, 30 seconds." anonymous close after 2 days remind 24 hours after posting --- "How was your week?" scale --- "Anything blocking you?" short text optional
```

A short anonymous survey that reposts itself once, a day after posting. *Premium: surveys (several questions), closing automatically, reminders.*

## Calculating it

Response rate = respondents ÷ people asked × 100. Two things to get right:

- **The top of the fraction is people, not votes.** In a poll where people can pick
  several options, total votes overstate turnout. With `limit 1` (Premium), each person
  casts one vote, so votes equal people.
- **The bottom is the people you meant to ask.** A channel with 60 members that includes
  other teams, bots and guests isn't an audience of 60. Count the group the question was
  for.

## Why it matters

The people who answer are often not a random slice of the people you asked: those with
strong views, or who happen to be online when you post, are likelier to respond. A low
response rate can tilt the result either way. Report the rate next to the result, every time.

## Raising it in Slack

- **Post where people already are**, in the team channel, not a channel they've muted.
- **Keep it short.** One question beats five. See [survey fatigue](https://simplepoll.rocks/glossary/survey-fatigue/).
- **Make it anonymous** when the topic is personal.
- **Give it a deadline** with `close after` (Premium), so it isn't something to get to
  later.
- **Remind once.** `remind 1 day before closing` or `remind 24 hours after posting`
  (Premium) reposts the poll at the bottom of the channel.
- **Mention the channel** with `@here` for things that need everyone, sparingly.
- **Share the result and what you did with it.** People answer the next poll when the
  last one changed something.

## FAQ

### What is a good response rate for an internal poll?

There's no fixed bar. Compare against your own past polls with the same audience, and be
cautious with results from a small minority of the group.

### Can I see who hasn't answered an anonymous poll?

No. Anonymous means nobody can see who answered, so you can't see who didn't either.
Remind the whole channel instead.

## Related

- [What is survey fatigue?](https://simplepoll.rocks/glossary/survey-fatigue/): Survey fatigue is when people are asked for feedback so often, or at such length, that they stop answering or start answering carelessly.
- [How to close a Slack poll automatically](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-close-a-slack-poll-automatically/): A poll that never closes never quite decides anything: votes trickle in, the result shifts, and nobody knows when to act. An automatic close fixes the deadline up front. In Simple Poll you add close after and a duration, and the poll closes on its own. Automatic closing is a Premium feature; anyone can close their own poll by hand.
- [Weekly pulse survey for Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/templates/weekly-pulse-survey/): When an annual engagement survey is too slow to catch problems and you want a light, regular read on how the team is doing.
- [What is a quorum?](https://simplepoll.rocks/glossary/quorum/): A quorum is the minimum number of members who must take part, by attending a meeting or by voting, for a group's decision to count. Under Robert's Rules of Order, the default is a majority of the entire membership unless the group's own rules set another number.

## Sources

- [How can I use Slash Commands to make a poll quickly?](https://help.simplepoll.rocks/article/120-how-can-i-use-slash-commands-to-make-a-poll-quickly)

---

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