--- title: "How to create a poll in Slack (step by step)" url: "https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-create-a-poll-in-slack/" description: "Create a poll in any Slack channel in under a minute with the /poll command, the shortcut menu or the Simple Poll app. Steps, examples and settings." --- # How to create a poll in Slack Slack has no poll button of its own. Its help centre suggests two routes: install a polling app, or post a message and ask people to vote with emoji reactions. This guide covers the app route with Simple Poll, used by 945,000+ teams, because it gives you a real poll: counted votes, anonymous voting, one-vote limits and a clean result. There are three ways to start a poll once Simple Poll is in your workspace. All of them end in the same poll. ## Steps 1. **Add Simple Poll to Slack** Install Simple Poll from [simplepoll.rocks](https://simplepoll.rocks/) once per workspace. If your workspace restricts app installs, ask an admin to approve it. After that, anyone in the workspace can create polls. 2. **Open the channel you want to poll** Go to the channel where the people you want answers from already are. In a private channel, add Simple Poll first with `/invite @Simple Poll`. 3. **Type /poll with your question and options** Put the question and each option in double quotes, for example `/poll "Which day works for the team lunch?" "Tuesday" "Wednesday" "Thursday"`. Add settings such as `anonymous` after the last quote, without quotes. 4. **Check the preview and post** Press Enter. Simple Poll shows you a preview that only you can see. If it looks right, click **Create Poll** and it posts in the channel. 5. **Or build it in the form instead** Type `/poll` on its own and press Enter, or click the **Run shortcut** button (the / symbol at the bottom left of the message box) and pick **Create poll with Simple Poll**. Fill in the question, options and settings, click **Preview**, then **Create Poll**. ## Example polls Paste any of these into the message box in Slack. ```text /poll "Which day works for the team lunch?" "Tuesday" "Wednesday" "Thursday" ``` The simplest poll. Works on every plan. *Free.* ```text /poll "What should we cover in the company meeting?" "Hiring progress" "Party update" "Financials" allow-options anonymous ``` Anonymous, and people can add topics you missed. *Free.* ```text /poll "Which launch date works for you?" "Next Monday" "Next Wednesday" "The Monday after" limit 1 close after 1 day @here ``` A decision with one vote each and a 24-hour deadline (Premium). *Premium: vote limits, closing automatically.* ## Three ways to start a poll - **The /poll command with text.** Fastest when you know what you want to ask. Everything fits on one line, and you see a preview before it posts. - **The /poll command on its own, or the shortcut.** Opens the poll form, where every setting is a checkbox or a dropdown. Best for your first few polls, for surveys, and for recurring polls, which you set up with the form's **Schedule** button. - **The Simple Poll app.** Click Simple Poll in the Apps section of your Slack sidebar, then **Create a poll** on its Home tab to open the same form. The form also has a **Template gallery** with ready-made polls such as a meeting-time finder and a mood check-in. ## Write the question so nobody has to ask what you meant Put the decision in the question. "Which launch date works for you?" gets better answers than "Launch date". Give two to five short options that don't overlap, and if you might have missed one, add `allow-options` so voters can add their own. By default people can pick as many options as they like. When you need one answer per person, add `limit 1` (Premium). When you need the answer by a deadline, add `close after 1 day` (Premium) so the result settles on its own. ## Settings worth knowing on day one - `anonymous`: nobody, you included, sees who voted for what. Use it for anything about feelings or feedback. See [anonymous polls](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-create-an-anonymous-poll-in-slack/). - `allow-options`: voters can add options. - `hide results`: voters don't see the tally until the poll is closed. See [hiding results](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-hide-poll-results-until-the-poll-closes/). - `ranked`, `scale`, `short text` and `q&a` change the poll type: ranked choice, a 1 to 5 rating, free-text answers, or an upvoted question queue. - `@here` notifies the channel when the poll posts. Use it for polls with a deadline, not for every lunch vote. The full list is in the [/poll command guide](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-use-the-poll-slash-command/). ## The mistakes that waste a poll Posting in the wrong channel is the big one: test a new poll in a direct message to yourself first. The other two are leaving it open forever, so the result never feels final, and asking two questions in one poll. If you have several questions, make it a [survey](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-create-a-survey-in-slack/) instead. When the vote is done, click the poll's **Open** button, then **Poll settings**, then **Close**. You can reopen it later from the same place. ## FAQ ### Does Slack have a built-in poll feature? No. Slack's own help centre points you to a polling app from the Slack Marketplace, or to an informal poll where people vote with emoji reactions on a message. See [polling in Slack without an app](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-poll-in-slack-without-an-app/) for the trade-offs. ### Is Simple Poll free? Yes. The Free plan covers polls with up to 5 options, anonymous voting, adding options and hidden results. Premium adds vote limits, automatic closing, reminders, scheduling, surveys and up to 45 options. See [pricing](https://simplepoll.rocks/pricing/), or start a 14-day trial with `/simplepoll trial`. ### Who can create polls? Once Simple Poll is installed, any member of the workspace can create a poll in a channel they're in. ### Can I edit a poll after posting it? On Premium you can edit a poll you created: click its **Open** button, then **Poll settings**, then **Edit**. You can't rewrite an option in place: delete it and add a new one, which also deletes any votes on it. ### Can I try a poll without anyone seeing it? Yes. Post it in a direct message to yourself, or in a private channel with only you in it. ## Related - [How to use the /poll command in Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-use-the-poll-slash-command/): /poll is Simple Poll's slash command. Typed on its own, it opens the poll form. Typed with a question, options and a few keywords, it builds the whole poll in one line, shows you a preview, and posts it. This page is the reference for the one-line version. - [How to create an anonymous poll in Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-create-an-anonymous-poll-in-slack/): An anonymous poll in Simple Poll hides who voted for what from everyone, including the person who created it. The poll still counts every vote and shows the totals. It's free on every plan. - [How to create a survey in Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-create-a-survey-in-slack/): A survey in Simple Poll is one Slack message with several questions behind it. People click the survey's Open button, answer in a pop-up without leaving Slack, and you get the results in the same place. Surveys are a Premium feature, with up to 20 questions each. - [How to poll in Slack without an app](https://simplepoll.rocks/guides/how-to-poll-in-slack-without-an-app/): Slack doesn't have a poll feature of its own. Its help centre gives two options: install a polling app from the Slack Marketplace, or run a quick, informal poll in a message where people vote with emoji reactions. On paid Slack plans there's a third route, a Workflow Builder form. - [Team lunch poll for Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/templates/team-lunch/): When you are organising a team lunch or a food order and need a decision before someone has to book or order. - [Meeting time poll for Slack](https://simplepoll.rocks/templates/meeting-time/): When you need to find a slot that works for a group and calendars alone don't tell you who can really make it. ## Sources - [How to create a poll in Slack (Simple Poll help centre)](https://help.simplepoll.rocks/article/122-how-to-create-a-poll-in-slack) - [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) - [How do I close a poll?](https://help.simplepoll.rocks/article/85-how-do-i-close-a-poll) - [How do I edit a poll?](https://help.simplepoll.rocks/article/46-how-do-i-edit-a-poll) - [What is the template gallery?](https://help.simplepoll.rocks/article/134-what-is-the-template-gallery-and-how-do-i-use-it) - [Conversations: Create a poll in Slack (Slack help centre)](https://slack.com/help/articles/229002507-Conversations--Create-a-poll-in-Slack) --- Simple Poll is the #1 polls and surveys app for Slack. Add it to Slack: https://simplepoll.rocks/. Pricing: https://simplepoll.rocks/pricing/.