42 quantitative question examples to inspire your next survey

In research and marketing, quantitative questions provide insightful data that can be measured to analyze real patterns and trends. These are the types of questions that allow you to assign numerical values to people's opinions, for example: "How would you rate our service on a scale of 1–10?"

If you're trying to understand the level of customer satisfaction or employee engagement, or test a research hypothesis, these useful questions help you turn answers into actionable data.

In this guide, you'll learn what quantitative questions are, how to use them in your research, and how they differ from qualitative ones. 

You'll discover many simple and ready-to-use examples to adapt for your next survey or questionnaire. Plus, you'll get practical tips on how to write high-quality research questions.

What are quantitative questions?

Quantitative questions help you obtain data that can be measured numerically. These questions are used to gain facts, frequencies, and measurable patterns rather than feelings or opinions.

They tend to have specific, structured response options: scales, counts, or multiple-choice responses that facilitate comparisons across a group of respondents.

Here are some quantitative question examples:

• "How often do you shop online each month?"
• "Please rate your agreement with this statement: 'I trust online reviews.' (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree)"

Marketers and researchers use these questions to quantify behaviors, preferences, and performance. Then they can turn insights into clear, data-backed conclusions that drive decisions.

Qualitative vs. quantitative questions

Researchers and marketers often contrast these types of questions because both metrics are used differently in research. Understanding these differences helps you design more informative surveys and studies.

Quantitative questions are about numbers, measurements, and patterns. They allow you to track trends, compare groups, or test hypotheses using structured responses that can take the form of scales, counts, or multiple-choice options. Online surveys are one of the most popular quantitative methods: 85% of research professionals regularly use them in their work.

‍Qualitative questions focus on words, experiences, and motivations that describe why people behave the way they do. Qualitative questions uncover emotions and investigate context through open-ended or interview-style responses.

How to use quantitative questions in research

Now that we understand what quantitative questions are and how they differ from qualitative ones, let's explore how they're used in research. 

These questions help researchers answer questions such as "how much," "how often," or "to what extent." Experts use these questions to: 

• Measure variables. Quantitative questions are those used by researchers in measuring variables such as age, income, frequency of behavior, and level of satisfaction.
• Compare groups. In comparing different populations or groups, such as students from different schools or patients under different treatments.
• Identify trends. Quantitative questions, if gathered over a period of time, can reveal a pattern, change, or trend.
• Test hypotheses. Structured numerical data allows the testing of relationships among variables; for example, whether longer study time leads to better exam scores.
• Support decisions with evidence. Quantitative responses are used to draw conclusions and make recommendations based on clear, measurable data.

In practice, quantitative questions are incorporated into surveys, questionnaires, structured interviews, or experiments. They should be phrased so that they are clear, specific, and answerable by using numbers. This will make the analysis of the results and answering research questions more objective.

42 quantitative question examples  

Quantitative questions can be tailored to fit a wide range of research objectives. With them, you can understand customer behavior, evaluate employee satisfaction, and more. In this section, we've organized quantitative question examples into practical categories, so you can quickly find inspiration for your next survey!

1. Rating scale questions

Rating scales enable respondents to express intensity, satisfaction, or agreement numerically.

1. "On a scale of 1–10, how satisfied are you with our customer service?"
2. "How would you rate the quality of our product? (1 = Poor, 5 = Excellent)"
3. "How likely are you to recommend our brand to a friend? (0 = Not likely, 10 = Extremely likely)"
4. "Rate your agreement with the following statement: 'The website is easy to navigate.' (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree)"
5. "How important is eco-friendliness when choosing a product? (1 = Not important, 7 = Very important)"

2. Multiple-choice questions

Structured multiple-choice questions make it easy to quantify responses.

1. "How often do you shop online?"

• Daily
• Weekly
• Monthly
• Rarely

2. "Which social media platform do you use most?"

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter
• TikTok
• LinkedIn

3. "Which of these features do you value most in a smartphone?"

• Camera quality
• Battery life
• Screen size
• Price
  

4. "Which age group do you belong to?"

• 18–24
• 25–34
• 35–44
• 45+

3. Frequency questions

These measure how often a behavior occurs, giving insight into patterns and engagement.

1. "How many times did you visit our store in the past month?"
2. "How many hours per week do you spend on social media?"
3. "In the last 12 months, how many products have you purchased online?"
4. "How many emails do you open from our company each week?"
5. "How often do you exercise per week?"

4. Demographic and background questions

These useful questions provide context for segmentation and analysis. Let's consider some standard quantitative question examples:

1. "What is your age?"
2. "How many people live in your household?"
3. "What is your annual income range?"
4. "What is your highest level of education?"
5. "How many years have you been using our product?"

5. Dichotomous (Yes/No) questions

Yes/No questions are simple yet very effective for quantifying basic behaviors of respondents.

1. "Have you purchased from our website in the last six months?" (Yes/No)
2. "Do you subscribe to our newsletter?" (Yes/No)
3. "Have you ever recommended our brand to someone?" (Yes/No)
4. "Do you use our mobile app?" (Yes/No)
5. "Would you attend a product demo if invited?" (Yes/No)

6. Likert scale statements

A Likert scale is a rating scale where respondents indicate how strongly they agree (or disagree) with a certain statement. Likert scales measure opinions, attitudes, or perceptions with a range of agreement or frequency.

1. "I feel confident using this product." (Strongly disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree, Strongly agree)
2. "I check product reviews before purchasing online." (Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Often, Always)
3. "Our company meets my expectations for quality." (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree)
4. "I find our customer support helpful and responsive." (1 = Strongly disagree, 7 = Strongly agree)
5. "The pricing of our services is fair." (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree)

7. Ranking questions

These questions let respondents order items by preference or importance.

1. "Rank the following features from most to least important: Price, Quality, Design, Customer support."
2. "Rank the channels you use to get product information: Social media, Website, Friends, Advertising."
3. "Rank the benefits of our loyalty program: Discounts, Exclusive content, Early access, Free shipping."

8. Slider or numeric input questions

These quantitative question examples in surveys let your respondents input specific numbers or move a slider for more precise measurement.

1. "How many hours per week do you spend on streaming services?"
2. "What is your estimated monthly spending on groceries?"
3. "On a scale from 0 to 100, how confident are you in our brand?"
4. "Enter the number of times you've used our service in the past year."

9. Matrix questions

These questions let respondents rate multiple items using the same scale, saving time and simplifying analysis.

1. "Rate the following product features from Poor to Excellent:"

2. "Indicate how often you use these services: Never / Rarely / Sometimes / Often / Always"

10. Behavioral or usage questions

These are focused on what respondents do, rather than what they think.

1. "How many times have you visited our website in the past 30 days?"
2. "How often do you use public transport each week?"
3. "How many products from our brand do you own?"
4. "How many hours per week do you spend working remotely?"

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How to write great quantitative research questions

Well-designed questions give you reliable, actionable data, while poorly designed ones lead to confusion, bias, or unusable results. Here's how to create the right questions that really work for your research goals.

Define your research goal

Before you write questions, you should clearly understand what you want to measure. 

• What behavior, respondents' opinion, or demographic information am I attempting to capture?
• How will the data obtained be used to make decisions?

Example: If your goal is to measure customer satisfaction, your quantitative questions might focus on service quality, product usability, or likelihood to recommend your brand.

Choose the right question type

Select the appropriate survey question types that correspond to your research purpose. When choosing questions for your study, take into account the main purpose of the study:

• Rating scale questions for measuring satisfaction, agreement, or importance
• Multiple choice questions for preference or categorical data
• Frequency questions to track behavior
• Ranking questions for prioritizing options

If you want numeric, comparable results, avoid open-ended questions, because they're qualitative.

Keep questions clear and concise

Use simple, clear language. Avoid jargon, double negatives, and complicated phrasing.

• Poor example: "To what extent do you think our brand's customer service performance exceeds industry standards?"
• Better example: "On a scale of 1–10, how would you rate your satisfaction with our customer service?"

Employ balanced response options

Make sure your scales and choices cover the full range of possible answers.

• For Likert scales, include a neutral option when appropriate.
• For multiple-choice questions, all options must be mutually exclusive.
• For numerical or frequency items, indicate a specific unit of time, frequency, money, etc.

Pre-test your questions

Before starting a survey, you should test questions with a small sample. This will enable you to identify confusion or misinterpretation. After that, adjust the questions based on feedback. Pre-testing also helps ensure that your data can be analyzed effectively.

Keep the survey focused and manageable

Too many questions may cause fatigue. They also affect response quality. It's better to focus on the questions that directly support your research goals.

• Prioritize critical questions
• Group similar topics together
• Limit the survey to a reasonable length, such as 10–20 questions for most quantitative surveys.

Consider data analysis early

Do you know how you'll analyze the data? This might lead to changes in the wording of questions.

• Numeric answers allow for averages, percentages, and trends
• Categorical responses allow segmentation and comparison.
• Consistent scales make it easier to compare across questions

Avoid double-barreled, leading, and biased questions

Every question should measure one thing at a time and remain neutral. Try to avoid combining multiple concepts or guiding respondents toward a specific answer.

Double-barreled 

Example of a poor question: "How would you rate the quality of our products and our customer service?" 

It's a double-barreled question. It attempts to measure two different aspects in one question. The respondent might be satisfied with the product but dissatisfied with the service. This means the answer becomes unclear and ambiguous.

Better:

• "How satisfied are you with our product quality?"
• "How satisfied are you with our customer service?"

Leading/biased 

Example of a poor question: ​​"How much do you love our excellent new product?" 

This is a leading/biased question. Why? Because the words "love" and "excellent" steer the respondent towards a positive evaluation, even if they're not satisfied with the product.

Better: "How satisfied are you with our new product?"

This is a neutral question. The word "satisfied" does not impose an evaluation, allowing the respondent to honestly express their opinion and provide objective data.

Review for clarity and simplicity

Read each question as if you were your respondent. Make certain it is easy to understand and quick to answer.

Here is your ultra-simple checklist:

• Language clear? Yes / No
• One concept per question? Yes / No
• Options balanced? Yes / No
• Can answers be measured numerically? Yes / No

Final thoughts

Quantitative questions in surveys turn the opinions, behaviors, and preferences of respondents into measurable, actionable data. 

In the business sector, they help measure customer satisfaction, track product and service usage, and identify market trends. This enables you to offer better options and boost sales. In governmental organizations, quantitative data can gauge public opinion, assess public program effectiveness, and guide policy decisions. In academic research, well-crafted quantitative questions are applied to test different hypotheses, analyze patterns, and draw statistically valid conclusions.

Software tools like Checkbox's no-code survey builder facilitate the creation of online surveys. Custom questions and deep analytics let you capture the values, interests, activities, beliefs, and lifestyle patterns of your respondents, and transform these insights into action. Start creating surveys now. Request a demo to explore Checkbox's features!

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