Last updated: January 2026
What Is SurveyMonkey?
When you need to gather feedback, conduct research, or measure satisfaction, SurveyMonkey is the tool most people reach for first. As the world's most recognized survey platform, SurveyMonkey has made creating and distributing surveys accessible to everyone from students conducting class research to enterprises measuring global customer satisfaction.
The platform's success comes from balancing simplicity with capability. Creating a basic survey takes minutes, yet sophisticated features like branching logic, custom variables, and advanced analytics support complex research projects. This range makes SurveyMonkey suitable for casual polls and serious research alike.
With over 40 million surveys created monthly and an installed base that includes most Fortune 500 companies, SurveyMonkey has essentially defined what online surveying looks like.
Create Your First Survey FreeKey Features of SurveyMonkey
Survey Builder
The drag-and-drop survey builder supports 15+ question types including multiple choice, rating scales, matrices, open text, and more. Pre-built templates cover common use cases like customer satisfaction, employee engagement, market research, and event feedback—giving you professional starting points you can customize.
Survey Logic
Advanced surveys need conditional logic, and SurveyMonkey delivers. Skip logic shows different questions based on previous answers. Question and page randomization prevents order bias. Quota management ensures you get the demographic mix you need.
Distribution Options
Reach respondents through web links, email invitations, social media, embedded website surveys, or SurveyMonkey's own respondent panel (Audience). Track responses by source and send reminders to non-responders.
Analysis and Reporting
Built-in analytics show response summaries, cross-tabulations, and statistical significance. Export data to Excel, SPSS, or integrate with analytics tools for deeper analysis. Create shareable reports and dashboards for stakeholders.
Integrations
SurveyMonkey connects with hundreds of tools including Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Teams, Slack, Tableau, and Zapier. Automatically trigger surveys based on CRM events, pipe responses into your data warehouse, or post results to collaboration tools.
Enterprise Features
For organizations, SurveyMonkey offers team collaboration, brand customization, SSO, compliance certifications (HIPAA, GDPR), and admin controls. The platform scales from individual users to organization-wide deployments.
SurveyMonkey Pricing in 2026
Free (Basic) — Create unlimited surveys with up to 10 questions and 40 responses per survey. Enough for simple polls and testing.
Standard — $25/month (annual). Unlimited questions and 1,000 responses per month, plus essential features like skip logic and data export.
Premier — $75/month (annual). 15,000 responses per month, advanced logic, phone support, and priority features. Popular for regular survey users.
Team Plans — Starting from $25/user/month for collaboration features, shared assets, and centralized billing.
Enterprise — Custom pricing for large organizations with advanced security, compliance, and admin requirements.
Start Your Free SurveyMonkey SurveyPros and Cons of SurveyMonkey
Pros
- Industry standard — Widely recognized and trusted by respondents
- Easy to use — Minimal learning curve for basic surveys
- Powerful when needed — Advanced features for complex research
- Strong integrations — Connects with major business tools
- Reliable — Proven platform with excellent uptime
- Templates — Professional starting points for common use cases
Cons
- Free tier limitations — 10 questions and 40 responses is quite restrictive
- Pricing adds up — Full features require Premier or higher
- Response limits — Even paid plans have monthly response caps
- Design constraints — Less design flexibility than some competitors
Who Should Use SurveyMonkey?
Market Researchers — The platform's depth supports serious research projects while being accessible to non-researchers.
HR Teams — Employee engagement surveys, exit interviews, and pulse checks are natural use cases.
Customer Experience Teams — NPS, CSAT, and feedback collection integrate with CX workflows.
Event Organizers — Pre-event registration, session feedback, and post-event evaluation surveys.
Educators — Class feedback, course evaluations, and academic research.
SurveyMonkey vs Alternatives
Typeform offers more engaging, conversational survey experiences with better design. Higher engagement but more expensive per response.
Google Forms is completely free with unlimited responses. Basic features but can't match SurveyMonkey's capabilities.
Qualtrics is the enterprise alternative with more sophisticated research features. Much more expensive but more powerful.
JotForm provides more form-building flexibility with survey capabilities. Good middle ground on features and price.
Create Better Surveys with SurveyMonkeyGetting Started with SurveyMonkey
- Create a free account — No credit card required to start
- Choose a template or start blank — Templates save time for common use cases
- Add your questions — Drag and drop question types into your survey
- Configure logic (optional) — Add skip logic for more sophisticated flows
- Choose distribution — Web link, email, or embed on your site
- Analyze responses — Review results as they come in
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I remove SurveyMonkey branding?
Paid plans allow custom branding and removal of SurveyMonkey branding from surveys.
Is SurveyMonkey GDPR compliant?
Yes, SurveyMonkey provides GDPR compliance features including consent management and data deletion capabilities.
Can I buy responses?
SurveyMonkey Audience lets you target specific demographics and purchase responses for market research.
How do I export data?
Export responses to Excel, CSV, PDF, or SPSS. Integrations can automatically send data to other systems.
Final Verdict
SurveyMonkey earned its market leadership by being good enough for professionals while accessible to beginners. The free tier lets anyone create basic surveys, while paid plans unlock the features serious research requires.
The main consideration is pricing—SurveyMonkey isn't cheap once you need more than basic functionality. But for organizations that rely on surveys for feedback and research, the platform's reliability, integrations, and feature depth justify the investment.
For most survey needs, SurveyMonkey remains the safe, capable choice.
Start Surveying with SurveyMonkey
