Lifecycle stages
Draft
When you first create a survey, it starts in draft status (API:unpublished). In this stage:
- You can edit the question, options, targeting, and sample size
- No respondents see the poll yet
- No charges are applied
- You can delete the draft without any cost
In progress
When you publish a draft, the survey moves to in progress status (API:in-progress):
- The poll is submitted to the respondent panel
- Targeting criteria are applied to find matching respondents
- Charges are applied to your account
- You can no longer edit the question or options
- Responses stream in as respondents complete the poll
- You can view partial results in real time
- Each response includes a vote/ranking and a written explanation
Completed
When all responses are collected, the survey is completed (API:completed):
- All results are final and available
- Full demographic breakdowns are accessible
- Written explanations from every respondent are available
- AI Summary is automatically generated
- Results are stored permanently in your account
Archived
Surveys can be archived to remove them from your active list (API:archived). Archived surveys are hidden from default views but their data is preserved.
Stopping a survey early
You can stop a live survey before it reaches the full respondent count. Unused responses are refunded to your account. This is useful when you’ve already seen a clear trend in early results.Adding more respondents
After a survey completes, you can extend it with additional respondents without recreating the poll. The new responses are added to the existing results, letting you increase confidence or gather more demographic data.Timing
| Sample size | Typical completion time |
|---|---|
| 15 | Under 15 minutes |
| 30 | 15-30 minutes |
| 50 | Under 1 hour |
| 75 | Under 1 hour |
| 100 | 1-2 hours |
| 200+ | 2-4 hours |
Completion time varies based on targeting criteria. Broader targeting (e.g., general US audience) completes fastest. Adding targeting traits increases time: 1-2 traits may take 30 minutes to 2 hours, 3-4 traits may take several hours, and highly niche targeting can take 1-3+ days. International surveys with targeting may also take longer.
What respondents see
When a respondent matches your targeting criteria, they see:- Your question — The main prompt you wrote
- Options — The choices you provided (images, text, etc.)
- Selection prompt — They vote, rank, or rate based on the question type
- Explanation prompt — They write a short explanation for their choice
Results structure
Completed surveys include:- Vote counts and percentages for each option
- Written explanations from every respondent
- Demographic breakdowns showing how different segments voted (age range and gender included by default)
- Statistical confidence indicators for the results
- AI Summary with key findings and patterns
- Response timestamps showing when each answer came in
Next steps
Surveys overview
Review survey types and targeting options.
Best practices
Write better questions and optimize your polls.