Best Event Survey Tools: 10 Ways to Get Attendee Feedback

Feedback has a shelf life

Most event feedback gets collected at the worst possible moment: days later, by email, when everyone's back at their desks and the buzz has gone.

I've run and spoken at plenty of events in 23 years in marketing, and the difference between feedback you can use and a pile of four-out-of-five ratings usually comes down to timing. The tools matter less than when you ask and how much you ask for.

During the session, straight after, or across the whole event?

During the session. Live polls, word clouds and audience Q&A keep people involved and give the speaker instant answers. Attendees usually join from their phones.

Straight after. A short survey sent the same day, while the event's still fresh, gets you the honest first reactions.

Across the whole event. If you're running a conference, an event app can hold the agenda, the polls and the surveys in one place.

Event feedback tools at a glance

Tool	Type	Good for
Formstack	Forms and workflows	Feedback forms that feed other workflows
Jotform	Form builder	Quick feedback forms and surveys
Pigeonhole Live	Audience engagement	Q&A, quizzes and word clouds live
Poll Everywhere	Live polling	Polls inside your existing slides
Slido	Q&A and polling	Audience questions and live polls
SurveyMonkey	Survey builder	Post-event surveys from templates
Tally	Form builder	Simple forms built by typing
Typeform	Conversational forms	Triggering automated follow-ups
Whova	Event app	Event app with registration and engagement
Wooclap	Interactive presentations	Keeping audiences involved in presentations

Ten event survey and polling tools

Here they are in no particular order, listed A to Z. Each description is based on the vendor's own words about its product, so treat them as their claims and try each one with a real session in mind.

Formstack

Best for: Organisations that want online forms tied into wider workflows, with document generation and e-signatures on the same platform.

Jotform

Best for: Creating forms and surveys easily, from a quick feedback form to a longer questionnaire.

Pigeonhole Live

Best for: Live Q&A, polls, quizzes, word clouds, surveys and reactions for an audience, all in one place.

Poll Everywhere

Best for: Speakers adding interactive polls to the presentation tools they already use, with nothing for participants to download.

Slido

Best for: Meetings, events and conferences that want easy Q&A and polling to get the audience talking.

SurveyMonkey

Best for: Surveys and forms built with AI and templates, for customer feedback, event registrations and more.

Tally

Best for: Building simple, professional-looking forms in seconds just by typing, with no coding needed.

Typeform

Best for: AI-powered forms that can trigger automated workflows, such as a follow-up, once someone answers.

Whova

Best for: Conferences that want an event app with online registration, event management and engagement tools in one place.

Wooclap

Best for: Presenters who want an interactive presentation tool that keeps the audience hooked from start to finish.

Making live polls work in the room

A live poll only helps if people join it. Put the joining code on screen for longer than feels necessary, say it out loud, and leave it up while the first question runs. The speaker should ask the first question in the first few minutes, before anyone settles into checking their email.

Keep in-session questions light and quick to answer. Multiple choice and word clouds work well while people are listening. Save anything that needs thought for the survey afterwards, when they've had time to take in the whole event.

And close the loop on stage. If a poll shows half the room wants more on a topic, say so and adjust. Nothing makes an audience more willing to answer the next poll than seeing the last one change something.

For Q&A, let people vote questions up. The speaker gets the questions most of the room cares about, quieter attendees get a voice without raising a hand, and the moderator has an easier job keeping time.

Short surveys get answered

The W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative has a Forms Tutorial that says users usually prefer simple and short forms, and advises asking only for what's required. It's written about accessibility, but it's good sense for any event survey too.

In practice, I'd keep a post-event survey to a handful of questions: would they come again, which session helped most, the one thing to change, and a free-text box. Every extra question is another chance for someone to close the tab.

If you need a longer survey for partner reports or accreditation, split it. Ask the short version of everyone, then invite those who want to say more to a second, optional form. You'll get more complete answers from the people who care, and nobody else feels trapped.

Accessibility counts as well. Clear labels, readable contrast and a form that works on a phone make life easier for everyone, not only people using assistive technology.

Wording that gets useful answers

• What was the most useful thing you learned?
• Which session would you skip next time, and why?
• What should we do differently?
• Would you tell a colleague to come along?
• Anything else you'd like to tell us?

Open questions take longer to read, but they're where the ideas for your next event come from. Ratings tell you something's wrong; comments tell you what.

My advice for event organisers

Use two tools, not one. A live polling tool in the room gets people talking and gives speakers something to react to. A short form afterwards captures the considered view. Send it within a day, say how long it takes, and share one change you made because of last time's feedback. People answer more readily when they can see somebody read the last lot.

If you want to go beyond events, there's a wider list of customer feedback tools, and a guide to what to look for in a web survey tool if you're comparing form builders.

Do you make event survey or audience polling software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.

Want your tool on this list? Featured spots and reviews here are paid partnerships. Here's how to partner with me.

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between a live poll and an event survey?

A live poll runs during a session and shows results straight away. An event survey is usually sent afterwards to collect considered feedback on the whole event.

When should I send a post-event survey?

Soon, while the event's still fresh in people's minds. The same day or the next day works well for most events.

How many questions should an event survey have?

As few as you can. Ask only what you'll act on, and keep the form simple and short.

Can I use one tool for both polls and surveys?

Some audience engagement tools and event apps cover both. Check whether the survey side is as flexible as a dedicated form builder before you rely on it.